Christina-Taylor Green: Field Named After Youngest Tucson Shooting Victim, Killed When Gabrielle Giffords Targeted

April 13, 2011 — -- The field where Christina-Taylor Green once played baseball and dreamed of becoming the first female major leaguer now bears her name and the statue of an angel.

"I know she would be looking down on us from heaven and you know she's gonna have that big smile on her face and she'd want everyone to be happy," said her father, John Green.

ESPN's "E:60" calls Christina-Taylor Green its "Angel in the Outfield."

On April 1, Little League's opening day, parents and children gathered to celebrate Christina-Taylor's life, and the renaming of Field 1 for her.

Christina-Taylor, age 9, was shot in the chest Jan. 8 outside a Tucson, Ariz., grocery store. She was attending an informal town hall meeting for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords when alleged gunman Jared Loughner opened fire. She was the youngest of six people killed.

Her teammates in the Canyon Del Oro Little League, just northwest of Tucson, said that although it felt good to play baseball again, they missed her.

"Without her, it's a little bit lonely," Nick Urias said.

One of two girls on the team, Christina-Taylor would challenge a coach to a footrace and win; throw long from third base; and sing Beyonce songs in the field. Mae Sinclair, now the team's only female player, said Christina-Taylor showed the boys how to play baseball.

"She would catch balls and she would stand up to the boys even if they say she's a girl, she's not allowed to play," Mae said.