Meet the Penn softball alumna blazing a trail for women in the Marlins front office alongside Kim Ng

Before Game 2 of the Phillies-Marlins wild-card series, Jennifer Brann stood in the outfield shagging fly balls during Marlins batting practice.

It’s not exactly in her job description as a research and development analyst for Miami’s front office, but call it force of habit. Brann was, after all, a Division I softball player just a few years ago. She played four years at Penn as a pitcher and outfielder, graduating in 2020 with ninth-most strikeouts in program history (167), even with a COVID-shortened senior year.

And now she’s back on a field in Philadelphia, albeit a bit of a bigger one.

“I got chills when I was on the field,” Brann said. “Whether it was booing us, or cheering for the Phillies. I called my mom today. And I’m like, ‘Mom, it was the coolest experience I’ve ever been a part of.’ Because it was it was just so passionate.”

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After playing her fifth year at Maryland, Brann joined the Marlins as an analyst, starting in the minors and then working her way up to the major league club four days before opening day this year. She provides Marlins coaches and hitters with statistical data on opposing pitchers pregame, so they know what to expect once they step into the box.

As a former softball pitcher herself, she can offer a different perspective to hitters when breaking down analytics.

“I think it helps to understand the tendencies of pitchers,” Brann said. “Like, what would I do as a pitcher? How would I attack you as a pitcher? I think it provides an interesting perspective, especially when I’m talking to hitters.”

And occasionally, she’ll find time to shag fly balls or hop in a batting cage, like she did during the Marlins’ rain delay against the Mets last week.

Brann joined a Marlins front office led by general manager Kim Ng, who became the first female GM in MLB history when she was hired in 2020. This year, she became the first woman to lead an MLB team to the postseason as GM.

“You imagine the pressure. You imagine all the people wanting interviews with her, pictures of her, because she’s such a figure,” Brann said. “You think about that, and then you actually see it in person.”

The two of them have more in common than just the team they work for. Ng, who also played softball in college at the University of Chicago, said Brann’s playing experience helps her relate to players. Occasionally, Brann will throw to Josh Bell underhand, just like she used to in college.

“He’s just mostly trying to, like, tap it and try to work on contact, seeing it from a different perspective,” Brann said. “Just really work on, like, getting your hands to the ball.”

Brann and Ng knew what to expect coming back to Citizens Bank Park in October. Brann went to college in the city, and Ng was here for the 2008 NLCS as assistant GM of the Dodgers.

“These fans are the 27th man,” Ng said. “I’ve seen this place rocking, and it was no different [in Game 1]. It’s always interesting watching reactions of players, staff, your front office staff, the first time they come into this place, with this type of situation. It’s just a completely different dynamic.”

And though that “27th man” ultimately prevailed in this wild-card series, the Marlins’ journey to that point shouldn’t be discounted. Miami transformed from a team that finished with a losing record in 2022 into a playoff club, in large part because of big swings made by Ng this year.

“Kim Ng has done remarkable work over there,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “And, you know, they’re gonna be a force to be reckoned with for a long time. So that’s a really good club we beat.”

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Over the offseason, Ng acquired Luis Arraez, who paced the Marlins in batting average (.354) in 2023, and who manager Skip Schumaker called “the heartbeat of our team” on Tuesday. Among others, she added A.J. Puk, JT Chargois, and David Robertson through trades this year, and brought in free agents Jorge Soler and Yuli Gurriel.

“Kim did a really good job of acquiring guys that would buy into what we believe in,” Schumaker said. “They have high work ethic, high character guys have really transformed not only the lineup but the clubhouse.”

Added Ng: “The focus that we have this offseason, as well as during the season, was to really just try and be a club that beats itself as little as possible, because everything gets magnified on this platform, on this stage.”

For Brann, a trip back to Philadelphia usually also means a trip back to campus.

“It just it feels like home every time I come back, and I just get so giddy every time I just even see the skyline,” Brann said.

She stopped by Penn the morning before Game 2 to catch up with her old team and offer some career advice to a current Penn softball player hoping to one day break into the field.

“The baseball world is changing, the sports industry is changing,” Brann said. “I’ve tried to go back and as much as I can with my teammates to say like, ‘Hey, this is an option.’ And I don’t think that people actually took this as an option, until [Ng] got that job.”