[Litty]

2024

For the second time, Joan Shea was traded back to the Valkyries. She had become a free agent after the 2023 season and was promptly signed by the Valiant… who traded her back to the Valkyrie. Shea is a good hitter, going .243 across her season. She has also been a decent catcher, with a .994 fielding percentage.

Meanwhile, the league was focused on Keesha DeWilliams. The 18-year-old was scouted as a legitimate star. Everything was off the charts and she was a definite first overall pick, with hopefully a long future in the league ahead of her.
To no-one’s surprise, DeWilliams went first overall to the Valiant. 2023’s #1 pick, Kylie Lyons proved to be a bust, hitting .152 in 23 games for the Bears. Irina Rybkin was drafted 8th and signed with the Valkyries.

For the fourth straight year, Cape Cod won the North Division with a record of 42-30. New York took second after a season long fight with Bristol. It came down to a final 4-game series between the two teams, with New York sweeping their opponents. This mean that New York finished 37-35 for the second straight year. In the South Division, Salisbury also finished 42-30 while Richmond finished 40-32, coming second and taking the top wild card spot.

Cape Cod once again beat New York in the first round, beating them in four. Meanwhile Salisbury also won in four. This set up a rematch of the 2023 WBLA Cup. The series went the distance with Salisbury relinquishing a 3-1 series lead. Cape Cod rallied, taking games five, six and seven to steal the title from under Salisbury’s nose. The series MVP was Tania Wold, who went 13-for-29 with 2 home runs.

Billie Eischens shone as recorded a triple crown with a .336 batting average, 26 home runs and 58 RBIs. Keesha (4th in BA- .331, T-4th in HR- 15). Kerry Hendrickson of Salisbury recorded the best ERA of the league with 2.21. Hendrickson also recorded the most strikeouts with 96. New York’s Maria Rodriguez recorded 8 wins in 15 starts, down from 12 wins in 2023.

Keesha DeWilliams won Rookie of the Year, hitting .331 with 15 home runs. She also finished fourth in overall batting average and tied fourth in home runs, fulfilling the promise of her preseason scouting results. Kerry Hendrickson’s league-leading ERA and total strikeouts earned her her first Pitcher of the Year award. Meanwhile, Billie Eischens home runs and RBIs earned her a second MVP award.

On December 1st, the league held an expansion for the four new teams- Asheville, Hamilton, Huntington and Roanoke. With the first pick, Huntington chose three-time Best Defensive Player at LF and 2024 WBLA Cup MVP Tania Wold. Other big names that went in the draft included Erica Gatlin, a two-time WBLA Cup champion and 2023’s Reliever of the Year, and Bo Hampton, a talented reliever who has been a solid part of bullpens in Richmond and Cape Cod.

On New Year's Eve, there was a piece of sad news to end the year. 2021 MVP Cherry Zeck retired from the WBLA at the age of 45. Zeck hit .354 across 256 career games. Zeck had been drafted in the 11th round of the inaugural 2019 draft by Salisbury and had gone onto play for New York, Charlotte and Cape Cod. In her honour, the Best Offensive Player of the Year award was renamed the Cherry Zeck award.