Who Is Cat Osterman? Facts About the USA Softball Pitcher
Get to Know Cat Osterman, the 3-Time Olympic Pitcher Making an Improbable Comeback For Tokyo
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After initially retiring in 2015, Osterman decided to attempt a comeback after softball was voted back into the Olympics in August 2016. She threw her first bullpen session in 2017, according to the Wall Street Journal, and was encouraged by the movement her pitches still had. She worked her way back to competition form, officially made the US team, then was handed the ball for the first game of the Olympic tournament. It was a fitting bookend: after starting USA Softball's last Olympic game, that heartbreaking loss in Beijing, Osterman took the mound 13 years later for the team's first of the 2021 Olympics. She pitched a 2-0 shutout to lead the US past Italy.
While Osterman is determined to reclaim gold in Tokyo, she said the decision wasn't solely about redemption. "That's a small piece," she explained in a 2019 Instagram post. "The bigger piece was being able to be part of Team USA again, and join the amazing young ladies that were on roster to experience something amazing. It was about the bigger picture."