Canadian ball hall to host virtual Canadian Women in Baseball panel discussion on Thursday evening

March 4, 2025

Official Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame Release

On Thursday March 6 at 7 p.m. (E.T.), the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum, in partnership with Rawlings Canada, is proud to be hosting the virtual Canadian Women in Baseball Panel.

In honour of International Women’s Day, we’re bringing together six women who are making their careers in baseball, either on the field, behind the scenes, or in the front office, to ask them to discuss the work they do and how they got to be where they are today.

This virtual discussion will be streamed via Zoom and can be accessed by signing up at the registration link here. The event is free to stream, but donations are greatly appreciated. (Donations $10 or more will receive a tax receipt)

At the end of the panel, Rawlings Canada will be doing a draw for a brand-new Rawlings “Gamer XLE” glove to give away to one lucky member of the audience. You won’t want to miss out on this event!

Here is a list of the panelists and their bios:

Alli Schroder

From Fruitvale, B.C., the right-handed pitcher began playing for Team Canada in 2017. She earned Baseball Canada’s Women’s National Team Futures Award in 2018, and in 2021 she became the first woman to play in the Canadian Collegiate Baseball Conference for Vancouver Island University. Alli balances time on the mound for Baseball Canada with her job as a firefighter with the B.C. Wildfire Service. She was featured this year in the MLB Network documentary and book, “See Her Be Her.”

Andrea Goldstein

Andrea is in her fourth season as vice president of communications with the Toronto Blue Jays, where she oversees strategic communications, media relations, and publicity for all areas of the organization. A former sports reporter, Andrea has more than 30 years of experience in the sports and media industry. Prior to joining the Blue Jays, she spent 11 years at Rogers Sports & Media leading communications and public relations for the country’s most diverse portfolio of media assets, including Sportsnet. She has also led communications for TSN and Canada’s Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium for the Vancouver Olympics. Andrea has a Bachelor of Applied Arts in Journalism from Toronto Metropolitan University and an Honours Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre from York University. She currently resides in Toronto with her dog, Oscar.

Lisa Turbitt

Lisa is one of the most decorated Canadian umpires working in the game today, and she’s racked up a number of firsts. In 2004, Lisa became the first female umpire to work behind home plate in international competition when she was part of the umpiring crew for the Women’s Baseball World Cup. In 2022, she also became the first female umpire to work a World Baseball Classic event as part of the crew at the WBC Qualifiers. She was also part of the first all-female crew at an Intercounty Baseball League (IBL) game. In 2004, Lisa earned Baseball Canada’s Senior Umpire of the Year Award, the first female to do so. When not on the diamond, Lisa works as a seventh grade teacher.

Ellen Harrigan

Ellen is entering her 26th season with the Dodgers as vice president, baseball administration and her 44th year in professional baseball. Harrigan began her career in baseball in 1981 working in baseball operations with the Toronto Blue Jays under GM Pat Gillick. She spent 15 years with Toronto, including five seasons as GM of the Single-A St. Catharines Blue Jays, before joining the Baltimore Orioles in Major League Operations from 1996 to 1999. Harrigan was named Female Executive of the Year twice during her tenure in the New York Penn League and more recently was recognized by Sports Business Journal with a 2023 Game Changer Award. Ellen oversees all administrative facets on the baseball side with the Dodgers, from contracts and budgets to support programs for players and their families. Harrigan, who was born in Ireland and emigrated to Canada at a young age, resides in Santa Clarita with her son, Justin.

Ashley Stephenson

In 2004, Ashley became one of the members of the first Canadian Women’s National Team where she excelled for 15 seasons. She helped lead her team to seven medals at the WBSC, Women’s World Cups, and Pan Am Games. She was named the Women’s National Team MVP in 2005 and 2008, and an All-Tournament All-Star at the 2008 World Cup. She has also twice been the recipient of Baseball Canada’s Jimmy Rattlesnake Award for outstanding ability and sportsmanship, an award which has since been renamed in her honour. Stephenson has continued to coach the Women’s National Team and in 2023 she joined the Blue Jays’ High-A Vancouver Canadians as a position coach. In 2024, Ashley was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum. This year, she has joined the coaching staff of the class-A Dunedin Blue Jays.

Claudette Scrafford

Claudette is the resident Canadian at Cooperstown. She joined the staff of the National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum in 2002 as the reference librarian before becoming the dedicated manuscript archivist. In this role, Claudette is responsible for the preservation of some of the most important documents from throughout the history of baseball.