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70-year-old Gwen Goldman serves as honorary bat girl for Yankees

By Chelena Goldman | Last updated 6/29/21

Sure, the Yankees lost to the visiting Los Angeles Angels on Monday night, but it was hard to feel completely down with honorary bat girl Gwen Goldman in attendance.

Goldman made headlines for becoming New York's bat girl at the age of 70 — a whopping 60 years after she was initially rejected for the honorary role because she's female.

"It was a thrill of a lifetime — times a million," Goldman said in a special press conference during the fourth inning of Monday's game. "And I actually got to be out in the dugout, too. I threw out a ball. I met the players. Yeah, it goes on and on. They had set up a day for me; that is something that I never would have expected."

Goldman, a retired social worker, was invited to Monday's game as part of the Yankee's annual HOPE Week. She sported a full Yankees uniform for the festivities, then walked onto the field to throw out the ceremonial first pitch. She also posed with umpires pregame and stood with skipper Aaron Boone during the national anthem.

"I think it's really cool," Boone said. "Hopefully, it's an experience of a lifetime for her and a long one in coming."

The Yankees also took time during the third inning to share the Zoom call Goldman had with general manager Brian Cashman in which she was formally invited to the game.

In 1961, 10-year-old Gwen Goldman penned a letter to the Yankees expressing her dream of being a bat girl. The response she received from the GM at the time still hangs on her living room wall.

This HOPE Week, the Yankees will make 70-year-old Gwen’s dream come true. pic.twitter.com/9sMosEcPOz
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) June 25, 2021

She then walked up the dugout stairs and tipped her cap to an applauding crowd at Yankee Stadium.

"The whole piece, from walking in the front door of the stadium at Gate 2, to coming up to a locker with my name on it that said 'Gwen Goldman' and suiting up, then walking out onto the field," she said. "It took my breath away. It's obviously taking my words away, also."

Goldman first wrote to the Yankees expressing her dream of being a bat girl in June 1961. Then-general manager Roy Hamey replied with a rejection, stating that she would only be "uncomfortable" sitting in a dugout full of men.

"While we agree with you that girls are certainly as capable as boys, and no doubt would be an attractive addition on the playing field, I am sure you can understand that it is a game dominated by men," the letter said.

Though initially jilted, Goldman kept the letter and never gave up on her dream. This year, after her daughter Abby reportedly emailed the team, Cashman made the move to right the wrong.

"Some dreams take longer than they should to be realized, but a goal attained should not dim with the passage of time," Cashman said. "I have a daughter myself, and it is my sincere hope that every little girl will be given the opportunity to follow her aspirations into the future."

60 years later, in a new letter to Gwen from the current Yankees GM, Brian Cashman invites her to Yankee Stadium to fulfill her dream. pic.twitter.com/FHZK3SIfe5
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) June 25, 2021

Despite the 60-year wait, Goldman's love for her favorite baseball team never waned.

"I didn't hold it against them, I loved the Yankees," she said. "I never in my wildest dreams — never thought that 60 years later, Brian Cashman would make this become a reality."

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