By Jeff Johncox
The Norman Transcript
OKLAHOMA CITY — Monday night, Jennie Finch, who has been the face of Team USA softball for a decade, took her final bow at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium after the Americans won the World Cup for the fourth straight time.
How important was Finch, not just to Team USA, but to softball in general?
She was the ambassador of the sport. She represented softball to millions of casual fans, bringing popularity to the game and becoming its first, true crossover star. She was cheered loudly at the celebrity softball game at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, Calif., two days before the MLB All-Star Game was played on the same field.
Finch has thrown fast balls by hitters on late-night talk shows.
She’s appeared in national commercials that played during bigger, more popular sporting events.
“Everybody talks about how she’s a role model for little girls, but she’s really a role model for every one of us on the team,” teammate Caitlin Lowe said after Monday’s game. “She teaches us how to act, how to play the game the right way. There’s no better person to actually model your game after.”
So, with Finch retiring, the big question is, “Who will fill her shoes?”
Who will be the next face of, if not all of softball, at least Team USA?
The biggest name on the team now might be former Texas ace Cat Osterman, who won a gold medal in the 2004 Athens Olympics and was part of the silver-medal-winning Beijing squad in 2008.
Osterman might be the new ace of the squad, and the ace is always the focal point for softball fans.
But the Longhorn lefty was quick to point out she won’t be replacing Finch.
“I won’t have near as much attention as Jennie has,” Osterman said. “I have no problem admitting that. I’m just going to keep coming out here and playing ball. That’s what I come out here to do. We put on a good show for the fans and interact with them. And she’s not going anywhere. She’s still going to be around. She’s still going to be the face of softball.”
But not as an active player.
Osterman missed the World Cup due to an arm injury she suffered at the World Championships.
Team USA’s ace in Oklahoma City last weekend was undoubtedly former Tennessee pitcher Monica Abbott, who dominated hitters throughout the tournament and pitched the championship game Monday night. She picked up three World Cup victories, allowing just one run in her three complete games.
But Abbott isn’t ready to take over Finch’s role, either. In fact, Abbott thinks Finch may get more involved with the sport now that she’s not playing.
“I don’t think Jennie will ever not be the face of softball,” Abbott said. “I think that even though she’s retiring her on-field schools, her impact on the game will jump up a level from here.”
The pitching staff is solid, even without Finch.
With Osterman and Abbott, the Americans have two solid aces. And Eileen Canney pitched solidly in the World Cup, with the exception of a five-run inning Sunday against Team Canada that led to Team USA’s only loss in the tournament.
Lowe said the next face of the team could come from anywhere. But again, there’s no replacing Finch.
“I really don’t think anybody will ever be Jennie Finch,” Lowe said. “I know each and every one of us will try. That’s the way you play the game. But she’s such a wonderful person, a wonderful friend.”
Finch’s popularity likely won’t be repeated. The Japanese players watched from the third-base line as a tribute party was held on the field, messages from her teammates to Finch playing on the scoreboard, and cheered with the rest of the fans when Finch spoke to the crowd and received a moving speech from former coach Mike Candrea.
Then several Japanese players went over to Team USA’s dugout to take pictures with Finch’s young son, Ace.
Though her presence on the team will surely be missed, the Americans are still the top world’s top team. And they’ll still garner plenty of attention for what they accomplish on the field.
Jeff Johncox 366-3535 jjohncox@normantranscript.com
