Kim Ng

Kimberly J. Ng^[1] (/ɛŋ/; born November 17, 1968) is an American executive in Major League Baseball. She is currently the general manager of the Miami Marlins and the highest-ranking female baseball executive. She is the first woman to serve as general manager of a team in the Big Four leagues in North America and the first person of East Asian descent to serve as general manager of an MLB team.^[2]

A graduate of the University of Chicago, Ng played college softball. She then worked her way up in the front office of several Major League Baseball teams and became a vice president of the league. She was named the Marlins' general manager in 2020.

Early life[]

Ng was born in Indianapolis, Indiana,^[3][4] the first of five daughters, to Virginia (née Fong) and Jin Ng. Her father, an American of Cantonese Chinese descent, was a financial analyst,^[5] and her mother, Thailand-born of Chinese descent, was a banker.^[6][7][8] She attended elementary school in Fresh Meadows, Queens^[9] and junior high on Long Island, New York. Her interest in baseball started when she played stickball on the street in Queens and her father taught her about sports.^[5] She played tennis and softball at Ridgewood High School in Ridgewood, New Jersey and graduated in 1986.^[10][11] She graduated from the University of Chicago in 1990, where she played softball for four years and was named MVP infielder, and earned a B.A. in public policy.^[12][13]

Career[]

Ng began her career as an intern with the Chicago White Sox after graduating from the University of Chicago. She was hired full-time in 1991^[14] and became special projects analyst before being promoted to Assistant Director of Baseball Operations under then-GM Ron Schueler in 1995.^[8] In 1995 she became the youngest person, and the first woman, to present a salary arbitration case in the major leagues when she worked for the White Sox, regarding the case of pitcher Alex Fernandez, and won.^[15] She then worked in the offices of the American League in 1997, where she was Director of Waivers and Records, approving all transactions.^[16]

In March 1998,^[17] she was recruited by general manager Brian Cashman to work for the New York Yankees as assistant general manager, becoming the youngest in the major leagues, at age 29, and the 2nd woman ever to hold the position. ^[10] She joined the Los Angeles Dodgers as vice president and assistant general manager in 2001.^[18]

In 2005, Ng was interviewed for the vacant position of Dodgers general manager. No female had ever been a GM in any major sport. The Dodgers hired Ned Colletti as their GM, who immediately kept Ng on as his assistant.^[19] She has interviewed for the general manager position with the Seattle Mariners, San Diego Padres, Anaheim Angels, and San Francisco Giants. On March 8, 2011, Ng announced that she was leaving the Dodgers to take on the position of senior vice president of baseball operations for Major League Baseball, where she would report to former Yankees and Dodgers manager Joe Torre.^[20][21]

Marlins general manager[]

On November 13, 2020, Ng was hired as general manager of the Miami Marlins. She became the first woman to become a general manager of a men's team in the history of major North American sports, as well as the first female Asian-American and first East Asian-American general manager in MLB history.^[2][22][23]

Awards[]

In 2015, Forbes ranked Ng #13 on its list of the most influential minorities in sports^[24] and #5 on its list of the most powerful women in sports.^[25] In 2017, Adweek named Ng one of the most powerful women in sports.^[26]

Ng was selected for the inaugural 2021 Forbes 50 Over 50; made up of entrepreneurs, leaders, scientists and creators who are over the age of 50.^[27]

Personal life[]

Ng is married to Tony Markward, co-owner of Silas Wines in Oregon.^[28]

See also[]

• Women in baseball

References[]