State of Vermont women’s advocates claims women can throw baseballs as fast as men

By Guy Page

Vermont’s chief advocate for women testified to the Legislature yesterday that women can throw baseballs as fast as men and that only segregation is keeping them out of the Big Leagues.

During the same testimony, Carrie Brown, Executive Director of the Vermont Commission on Women, also declined to answer the question “what is a woman?” when asked by a legislator.

The exchange took place Tuesday, April 21 during a House Judiciary hearing on PR4, the proposed constitutional amendment that would add gender orientation and nation of origin to the list of protected classes of people under the Vermont Constitution. If approved by the Legislature, the proposed amendment will go to voters in November. 

For the record, the fastest softball pitch by a woman is 79 MPH. An excellent major league fastball travels at 95-100 MPH. There are no extensive statistics on fastest hardball pitch by a woman, although the Guinness Book of World Records states that Lauren Boden threw 69 MPH in 2013. An online news report claims that Olivia Pichardo, then 17, threw 82 MPH in 2021. Women are active in professional baseball as umpires, coaches, trainers, and front office personnel.

The following transcript was taken from Golden Dome VT, the AI-powered reporter of all Vermont Legislature committee hearings:

Rep. Tom Oliver, R-Sheldon: How do you feel about males competing in women’s sports?

Carrie Brown (Executive Director, Vermont Commission on Women): Well, I mean, I think if you really want my honest answer as a parent of kids and who play sports, I would much rather see a world where sports were not necessarily segregated by gender, but by ability. So I know we don’t live in that world, but I would be a lot happier about that. I know that there are women who could pitch a baseball fast enough to be able to be a pitcher in MLB, and it would be great if there were no segregation that way.

Oliver: You said pitch in baseball fast enough to pitch in the MLB?

Brown: I’m sure of it. I could be wrong, but I believe it.

Zachary Harvey, R-Castleton:  I appreciate that. I have one more to say. How would you define a woman?

Brown: I’m not gonna answer that question. Sorry. 

Harvey: Why?

Brown:  I’m not gonna answer that question.

Harvey: It seems to me that the head of the Vermont Women’s Alliance [sic] should be able to answer that. 

Brown: I’m not gonna answer that question.

Harvey: Okay. I think the silence is deafening. I would just say that.

Martin LaLonde (Chair): Thank you very much, Cari. Appreciate you being here. And we’ll go to Arnold Thomas next…… 

According to her VCW bio, Brown served two terms as a VCW commissioner before joining the staff in 2012. She has worked as the Director of Girls’ Programs for Vermont Works for Women, a non-profit organization supporting education, training and careers in non-traditional fields for women and girls, and directed the Women in Technology Project, a national award–winning summer technology camp for girls at Vermont Technical College. She has served on the boards of Northern New England Tradeswomen, Turtle Island Children’s Center, the New England Association for Cooperative Education and Field Experience, and the Norwich University Alumni Association. Cary received her bachelor’s degree from Haverford College, and a Masters of Public Administration degree from Norwich University. She lives in Montpelier with her family, where she is a Justice of the Peace and also serves on the Montpelier City Council. According to a State of Vermont website, Brown earns $110,448 per year.