Throughout her childhood, Saskatoon’s Braidy Birdsall made a name for herself as one of the most promising young karate athletes coming out of Saskatchewan, winning medals and trophies at every level.

After over a decade of championship performances, though, she needed a new challenge which came on the diamond with the Saskatoon Royals baseball team.

“I actually did martial arts for 13 years and trained nationally and internationally for that,” said Birdsall. “I kind of felt my career there was done, so I turned to baseball.”

It’s a decision which has paid off significantly for the 19-year-old, who on Nov. 20 saw her professional baseball dreams come true as the 85th pick in the inaugural Women’s Pro Baseball League Draft.

It was a moment she shared with her family hundreds of kilome

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