Olivia Pichardo

Olivia Pichardo
Brown Bears – No. 19
Outfielder / Pitcher
Born: (2004-02-26) February 26, 2004
Forest Hills, New York, U.S.
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Women's baseball
Representing  United States
2024 Thunder Bay Team

Olivia Whitney Pichardo (born February 26, 2004) is an American baseball player for the Brown University Bears and U.S. women's national team. She is the first woman to play NCAA Division I baseball.

Early life

Pichardo was born in Queens, New York.[1][2] She began playing baseball in kindergarten and played varsity baseball in high school.[3][4] She also played on the Next Level Baseball travel team, as well as the Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League's New York Crush.[3] She also interned for the New York Mets in their amateur scouting department.[5]

College career

In November 2022, as a freshman, Pichardo became the first woman named to an NCAA Division I baseball roster when she made the Brown Bears team as a walk-on.[6] In March 2023, she became the first woman to play in an Division I baseball game, when she pinch hit.[5] She appeared in one game that season.[7] That summer, she became the first woman to hit a home run while playing in the Hamptons Collegiate Baseball League. She played for the Sag Harbor Whalers.[8] In 21 games, she had a .083/.344/.156 slash line, with 16 walks and 18 strikeouts. She pitched in three games, allowing 6 unearned runs in 3 innings.[9]

Pichardo played in one game for Brown in 2024, getting hit by a pitch and scoring her first run in a loss to Princeton on April 6.[7][10] That summer, she played for the Dubois County Bombers of the Prospect League, the first woman on that team’s roster.[11] She batted .128/.340/.205 with 1 home run, a 10th-inning game winner, in 16 games.[9][12]

In 2025, Pichardo batted 0-for-3 in three games for Brown.[9] She played that summer for the Piney Woods TimberHogs of the Mid-America League alongside U.S. women's national teammate Remi Schaber. Hall of Famer Pedro Martínez, whose son played in the collegiate summer league, said Pichardo and Schaber were "talented individuals. They have more to show than people think.”[7][13]

International career

In 2022, Pichardo played for the United States women's national baseball team in a five-game series against Canada.[4] She played as both an outfielder and pitcher.[6] She made four starts in the outfield and one as a pitcher.[14][15]

In the group stage of the 2024 Women's Baseball World Cup in 2023, Pichardo hit a home run against Canada and batted .333 in three games while throwing 2 scoreless innings.[16] she led all pitchers in the World Cup finals with 8 strikeouts, as the U.S. finished second to Japan. As a hitter, she batted .214 with a sacrifice fly.[17] Her fastball reached 85 miles per hour.[18]

Personal life

Pichardo has a younger sister.[18][7] Her father grew up in the Dominican Republic, and her mother is Chinese-American.[19]

Pichardo threw out the ceremonial first pitch at a Boston Red Sox game on May 3, 2023, during Asian American Pacific Islander Night at Fenway Park.[20][21][19]

References

  1. ^ Sterling, Wayne (March 18, 2023). "Olivia Pichardo becomes first woman to play in Division I baseball game". CNN. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  2. ^ Martin, Chantz (November 22, 2022). "Brown University freshman Olivia Pichardo makes history, becomes first woman on Division I baseball roster". Fox News.
  3. ^ a b Scott, Jelani (March 17, 2023). "Brown's Olivia Pichardo Makes History As First Woman to Play D-I Baseball". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  4. ^ a b Owens, Jason (March 18, 2023). "Brown's Olivia Pichardo becomes first woman to play in D-I NCAA baseball game". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Olivia Pichardo becomes first woman to play in an NCAA Division 1 baseball game". CBS News. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Williams, Madison (November 21, 2022). "Brown Walk-On Is First Woman Ever to Make D-I Baseball Roster". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d "Olivia Pichardo - Baseball". Brown University Athletics. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
  8. ^ "Pichardo 1st woman to homer in summer league". ESPN. Associated Press. July 25, 2023.
  9. ^ a b c "Olivia Pichardo College & Amateur Leagues Statistics". Baseball Reference. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
  10. ^ Lawrence, Linus (April 8, 2024). "Baseball drops series at home against Princeton". The Brown Daily Herald. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
  11. ^ "Dubois Co. Bombers sign first woman to roster". WFIE. December 26, 2023.
  12. ^ First Girl To Play D1 Baseball Hits Home Run to Win Game - Dubois County Bombers - Olivia Pichardo. Dubois County Bombers. June 10, 2024. Retrieved January 30, 2026 – via YouTube.
  13. ^ Vaughan, Trey (July 5, 2025). "Transcending women's baseball players visit Joplin". The Joplin Globe. Retrieved January 30, 2026 – via Yahoo Sports.
  14. ^ McCann, Savannah (February 27, 2023). "Actions Speak Loudest: Talent Carried Olivia Pichardo To Her Place In History". Baseball America. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  15. ^ "Olivia Pichardo Brings Division 1 Experience Into Second Year With Women's National Team". USA Baseball. July 13, 2023. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
  16. ^ "Pichardo, Olivia Whitney". World Baseball Softball Confederation. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
  17. ^ "Stats". World Baseball Softball Confederation. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
  18. ^ a b Pichardo, Olivia [@_oliviapichardo]; (August 29, 2024). "Shoutout to the goat @denaebenites2 behind the plate 🤝" – via Instagram.
  19. ^ a b Lee, Joon (May 23, 2023). "How Olivia Pichardo defied doubters to make baseball history". ESPN. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
  20. ^ Madgic, Emma (June 20, 2023). "History Maker". Brown Alumni Magazine. Retrieved January 30, 2026.
  21. ^ NESN [@NESN] (May 4, 2023). "Olivia Pichardo, the first woman to play NCAA Division 1 baseball, threw out the first pitch at Fenway Park" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
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