SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – It’s already been a banner year for Los Angeles Queens infielder Caitlin Eynon.
Back in April, the Perth native earned MVP honors after leading Western Australia to a silver medal at the 2026 Australian Women’s Championships. She led the tournament in slugging percentage (1.136) and went 2-for-2 in the finals with two homers, six RBI and a grand slam.
Then, in July, she led her home country to its first-ever appearance in the WBSC Women’s Baseball World Cup finals. She hit another grand slam there.
So, when she stepped up to the plate on Wednesday with the bases loaded in a tied ballgame at the Women’s Pro Baseball League Championships, it was no surprise that she delivered.
Eynon hit a fly ball into short center that dropped right in front of San Francisco Firebells star Kelsie Whitmore. And even though she was thrown out at first, she knocked in the game’s winning run.
“I think once you start winning competitions, like we have our national championships in Australia, you start getting the feeling of winning big competitions like that, you just fall in love with the feeling of winning,” Eynon told The IX Sports after the game.
Eynon grew up playing baseball with her two older brothers. They eventually stopped playing, but she stuck with it. That decision paid off in a big way when she became one of four players drafted last November out of Western Australia. Teammates Leah Cornish and Elodie O’Sullivan, as well as the New York Heights’ Chloe Atkinson, are also representing the region.
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“I’ve obviously represented my country, and I still don’t think there’s gonna be any feeling like representing your country. It’s the coolest thing you’ll ever get to do,” Eyenon said. “We’ve got players from Mexico, from Japan, from Korea, like just being able to play with all these players from all around the world, you just learn different styles of baseball, and it’s good to have so much knowledge that you can just absorb, and then you choose what you wanna play with after that.”
And her style has translated well. Eynon finished the regular season with a .395 batting average. She slugged .632 and posted a 1.060 on-base percentage. She is 8-for-12 in the postseason with four runs and four RBIs. Wednesday was the first time this season she’s registered three hits.
“There’s obviously just so many talented baseball players here, so it’s just been so fun to play baseball,” Eynon said. “This is probably the most fun I’ve had playing baseball in a really long time.”
She’s done all that in the midst of a position change to third base, where coach Eric Young asked her to fill in, showing her versatility.
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“I’m just so appreciative of the Queens, because they just want to play,” Young told reporters after Wednesday night’s game. “They make everyone look good out there.”
Now, her Queens are battling for the league’s inaugural championship, facing the top-seeded San Francisco Firebells with a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series.
And Eynon knows she has a lot of people rooting for her to bring home another trophy, including friends, family and the whole Baseball WA organization that is helping to grow the sport in her home country.
“It’s been really cool. They’ve been following along and sending me lots of messages, so I appreciate them a lot,” Eynon said.
Game 2 of the WPBL Championship Series will start at 6 p.m. CT on Thursday. Game 3 will follow at 6 p.m. CT on Saturday, and then, if necessary, the following two games are scheduled for 2 p.m. CT on Sunday and 6 p.m. CT on Tuesday. All games are streaming in the U.S. on ESPN+.
