It's hard to tell what's most impressive about Nadia Diaz. Diaz, the 11-year-old Little Leaguer from Syracuse, N.Y., struck out 19 batters in a game last weekend. She's got four pitches in her arsenal, one of which is a fastball that clocks in at 60 miles per hour. At the plate she's hitting above .600.
And, oh yeah, she's a girl.
"It's fun," she said, "because the boys, sometimes, they think they're all that. But when I go up there and pitch, they go, 'Whooo.' It's a funny reaction."
Diaz has an excellent baseball pedigree. She is the niece of former Major League catcher Benito Santiago and the cousin of pitcher Nelson Figueroa. Her father played Double-A ball in Puerto Rico.
At one time, the line "You play ball like a girl!" was an insult. Not anymore.
-- Follow Robbie Levin on Twitter @RobbieLevin.
