They call her the 'Baseball Princess,' and she's striking out any boy who stands in her way

Francys Sandoval, just 13 years old, is understandably shy in an on-camera Zoom interview to talk about her baseball career. She sits beside her dad, Francisco -- a former Expos Minor League pitcher -- with her hat pulled down, nearly covering her eyes. She smiles when asked about what it's like to strike out a boy who thought he couldn't be struck out by a girl. She never really even brings up her dominant performances on the international level, wowing crowds with her electric 70-75 mph fastball.

But there is one thing she's sure about. One question she doesn't hesitate to answer. Her ultimate goal in a sport that's never had someone like her at its highest level.

"Las Grandes Ligas," Francys says, brightening up on the screen.

The big leagues.

Francys first started playing baseball when she was a toddler. She had some good role models.

Her dad, Francisco, pitched five years for the Navegantes del Magallanes' Minor League team and two in the Minors for Montreal -- getting as high as Class A. Her uncle, Daniel, played a couple seasons in the Minors for the Tigers. Her family also hails from Valencia, Venezuela, a coastal, ballplayer-rich town on the country's northwest coast. The same place where Félix Hernández was found firing 90-mph fastballs as a young teenager and Salvador Perez first fitted his left hand for a catcher's mitt.

"Yeah, since I was 3 years old, my dad was always just on the field," Francys told me through an interpreter. "That's when I started playing."

And for much of those early years and now -- she was the only girl on her teams in Venezuela. She never got interested in softball, simply preferring the competition, fast-paced action and the challenge of being different from everybody else on the diamond.

"I was always very happy about [playing baseball]," Francys said. "It's impressive. [A girl playing] is not something you see every day."

From hurling balls down her living room hallway almost before she could run to starring for her national team, Francys has indeed had quite an impressive 10 years.

She helped her country to a 7-2 record and bronze medal at the 2023 WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup -- firing a complete game win over Australia. She struck out eight over the four innings, giving up two runs and four hits. Taiwan, the tournament's host, couldn't get enough of her.

She's won MVP awards, Athlete of the Year honors and other accolades back home in Valencia.

And don't think that just because she's a pitcher, she can't also hit dingers.

The fantastic nickname "Baseball Princess" came during an outing in Mexico, when she helped her U-12 national team complete a huge comeback win over the Dominican Republic. Francys came on in relief and struck out six over 5 1/3 innings, allowing four earned runs in a 12-10 win.

"The guys on the public address system said it," she remembered.

It's now used in almost every story written about her. She posts the moniker on social media and wears tiara-shaped earrings in every game.

The Princess' most recent stop was a big one: Her 11- to 13-year-old Venezuelan team won the Intermediate Little League World Series in California this summer, the first Latin American team to take home the title. They swept their way through four games in the international bracket, winning by a combined score of 37-3 with three shutouts. And then they topped Hawaii, 12-7, in early August to become champions. Francys, one of two girls in the entire World Series, won three of the five games for her squad. She pitched a total of 10 innings, giving up six hits and three earned runs, while striking out eight. She beat Mexico in the international finale and gave up just two runs through four frames in the world final.

“She's taken grief for years for having her play against the boys, that she should just play against the girls," her dad, Francisco, told The Independent postgame. "But I think she’s proved before, but especially here, that she is right where she’s supposed to be."

"People were excited when they saw me pitching," Francys said of the crowds in California. "I love that kind of reaction from them."

Sandoval says his daughter's fastball can sometimes hit 76 mph -- faster than Mo'Ne Davis' 70-mph rate 10 years ago and up there with some of the best LLWS pitchers this season. She loves her curveball, but also throws a slider, sinker and changeup.

Mostly, she very much enjoys striking out a batter of the opposite gender -- particularly one who doesn't really believe she should be on the same field as them.

"That feels really good," Francys said. "That way, girls can show that they can also play ball."

Thanks very much to MLB.com's Efrain Ruiz for the translation help.