Athletes Unlimited today announced that Kim Ng – a trailblazing executive and the first woman to serve as General Manager of a major American men’s professional sports team – has been named Commissioner of the AUSL (Athletes Unlimited Softball League), which will launch its inaugural season with Opening Day on Saturday, June 7. 

Ng, who joined Athletes Unlimited last summer as a Senior Advisor charged with developing the new pro softball league, has been instrumental in rallying support for the AUSL from all key stakeholders in the sport, beginning with softball players and surrounding them with world-class managerial talent. The many accomplishments Ng has spearheaded since that time include: assembling a world-class collection of softball’s biggest names to serve as General Managers, Head Coaches and ambassadors; engineering the creation of the first four team brands as well as the league’s inaugural draft; establishing a package of player benefits unprecedented in the history of the sport; leading negotiations with the 12 cities and venues that will host the AUSL this season; and overseeing all operations for the new league, including league structure, rules and scheduling. 

As Commissioner, she will be charged with fostering the league’s growth, promoting its brand, and driving its long-term success. Ng will report to Athletes Unlimited CEO and Co-Founder, Jon Patricof, and work closely with Patricof, Athletes Unlimited Co-Founder Jonathan Soros, and the Athletes Unlimited Board of Directors to set the strategic direction for the AUSL, ensuring sustained success and expansion. 

“Kim’s intellect, experience, and connection to players and business leaders alike clearly make her uniquely qualified for this role, and the way she has galvanized and inspired the entire softball community behind the AUSL over the past year has been remarkable,” Patricof said. “The AUSL marks a bold new step forward for softball, and under Kim’s leadership, we are confident it will soon join the ranks of the leading pro sports leagues.” 

“Softball was my first love growing up, so it’s both gratifying and humbling to be given this responsibility at such a pivotal moment for the sport,” Ng said. “I’m grateful to everyone at Athletes Unlimited and across the softball community for welcoming me with open arms, and look forward to rewarding the faith they’ve placed in me by doing everything I can to ensure the AUSL lives up to its promise to grow this sport at the professional level in the U.S. to new heights.” 

Ng, who played college softball for the University of Chicago, ascends to this leadership position in her first favorite sport following more than three decades in professional baseball, where she most recently was General Manager of the Miami Marlins. Under Ng’s leadership, the 2023 Marlins posted the fourth-best winning percentage in the history of the franchise and earned the Marlins’ first full-season postseason berth in 20 years.  

As a baseball executive with the Marlins, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Yankees, Ng was an integral contributor to those clubs’ nine postseason appearances, including six League Championship series and three World Championships. She was the Assistant General Manager for the 1998-2001 Yankees, where at the time she was the youngest person appointed to the position, and then worked as AGM of the Dodgers for nine years. 

As Senior Vice President, Baseball Operations for Major League Baseball, Ng worked to grow the game in countries around the world and helped to advance the World Baseball Classic. It was during her time in MLB’s Baseball and Softball Development department that Ng served as MLB’s representative on the board of USA Softball and worked with key former and current Team USA softball players to grow the sport at the grassroots level. 

Ng grew up in and around New York City. She graduated from the University of Chicago, where she played softball for four years and earned a degree in Public Policy. 

The AUSL’s four teams – the Bandits, Blaze, Talons, and Volts – will play 24 games each between June 7 and July 23, culminating with the top two teams competing in the AUSL Championship, a best-of-three series to be held July 26-28 at the University of Alabama’s Rhoads Stadium. Following the AUSL Championship, 60 players will compete for an individual championship in the AUSL All-Star Cup, a 24-game competition in August featuring the innovative Athletes Unlimited scoring system. 

The full AUSL game schedule can be found here. Single game tickets are now available here. More information, including team rosters and the regular season schedule broken down by team, can be found at theAUSL.com. 

ESPN has signed on as a founding broadcast partner of the AUSL and will carry 33 total games exclusively across platforms in 2025, with 30 of them to air on linear television. Additional broadcast partners and other details will be announced at a later date.