As teammates fade away, Finch shines on for US

By JEFF LATZKE
AP Sports Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY — The fans still cheer when the tall blonde
with the glittery, red headband makes her way into the pitching
circle. And Jennie Finch has still got game.

While many of her former Olympic teammates have put away their
softball cleats, the sport’s most recognizable face is still
going strong and she doesn’t know when she’ll stop.

Finch calls softball a summer-to-summer decision these days,
with the next chance at playing in the Olympics a full seven
years away and still not a sure thing. The 28-year-old knows she
won’t be playing then, but she also isn’t ready to walk away
now.

Softball needs Finch, and she needs the game.

She can reel off the reasons why she’s still putting on the red,
white and blue at a time when the sport is at a crossroads. The
International Olympic Committee controls a big chunk of
softball’s fate with its decision coming up this October on
whether to include the sport in the 2016 Games.

Finch feels compelled to do her part to help continue a
tradition built by the likes of Dot Richardson and Lisa
Fernandez, and bridge the gap to the next generation of softball
players.

“It’s for these young girls out here. I love it. It’s so special
to see them, just seeing female athletes compete and play the
game. I love the game. I love my teammates,” Finch said.

“I feel the Lord definitely opened this opportunity. If you
would have told me last year that I would have the opportunity
to be playing first base, hitting No. 5, and then pitching and
hitting at the same time, it’s pretty special. To have the
opportunity, I’m so grateful for it.”

Finch made herself known as one of the sport’s most dominant
pitchers. She won an NCAA-record 60 straight games at Arizona,
leading the Wildcats to the 2001 NCAA title and becoming a star
for the Olympic team. Appearances on “This Week in Baseball”
gave her the chance to show that not even major league hitters
could get a piece of one of her deliveries.

“I think you have to consider her the face of the game in terms
of the media attention and the spotlight, so to speak, has been
on her for quite a while,” said first-year coach Jay Miller. “I
think she handles that very well. As great a ballplayer as she
is, she’s an even better person.”

Finch said it gives her chills to hear fans cheering for her
like they did when she moved over from first base to take over
in relief during the Americans’ 7-2 win against the Netherlands
in their World Cup of Softball opener Thursday.

She struck out the first five batters she faced and 11 of 13
overall in four dominant innings. And beyond showing off her
pitching prowess, Finch is finally getting a chance to hit, too.

After being asked to save her energy mainly for pitching the
past few years, Finch impressed Miller with her hitting during
training camp. She has since delivered the championship-winning
hit in the bottom of the seventh in the final game of the Canada
Cup earlier this month, then started the World Cup by going
3-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored.

It was the kind of performance that Finch said “makes you want
to play forever.”

But Finch knows that won’t happen. Her son, Ace, is now 3 years
old and she’s the only mom on the U.S. team this summer, though
outfielder Jessica Mendoza taking time off while awaiting her
first child.

Longtime teammates Laura Berg, Crystl Bustos, Stacey Nuveman,
Kelly Kretschman, Jenny Topping, Tairia Flowers and Lovieanne
Jung all retired following the Olympics. Finch came back, unable
to shake off a 3-1 loss to Japan in the gold medal game.

“Leaving that ballfield in Beijing, I definitely wanted to come
back and I wanted to have the opportunity to wear this uniform
again,” she said. "I wanted to continue to play USA softball and
rebound from that silver medal there in China.

“I felt like I had a lot more to give.”

That includes some veteran savvy to a revamped U.S. squad that
features 10 rookies. Miller said he counts on Finch to measure
the pulse of the team and has found her helpful in smoothing the
transition between coaches.

“She’s just been a joy to work with. She went from one of our
younger players to our oldest player this year, although we
don’t like to remind her of that too often,” Miller said. "She’s
a tremendous ambassador for our sport. The patience that she
shows in terms of dealing with the fans and media and things
like that has been outstanding.

“You couldn’t ask for a better representative for our sport in
the world.”