Femme Fans

West Side resident Melissa Malamut wants women to fall in love… with sports. Malamut, author of the new book, She’s Got Game, The Woman’s Guide to Loving Sports (Or Just How to Fake It!), was a self-described tomboy who had the chutzpah to join the boys’ baseball team and quit cheerleading because it conflicted with her soccer games. 

Though she admits she “got really girly” during her high school years (she likes to take her time getting dressed and putting on makeup), she never traded in her cleats for stilettos. Malamut worked for a time at ESPN as a fact checker before penning the book in hopes to teach women how to keep their girly side—like how and when to wear heels to a sporting event—while developing a genuine love and understanding of sports.

“[Sports have] a lot of history and a lot of rules,” says Malamut. “This book is for someone who doesn’t know anything about sports, but I’ve had people who are more educated sports fans tell me they learned a thing or two.”

Five of the seven chapters explain the history and basics of baseball, football, basketball, hockey, college football and basketball; the sixth combines tennis, golf, major league soccer and NASCAR. Despite the current madness in the city for soccer due to the World Cup, Malamut admits that there is very little of it in She’s Got Game. “I don’t watch MLS, so I don’t teach people things that I don’t know,” she explains. For impatient learners, the final chapter is a Quick Guide cheat sheet.

After revealing the history of the song “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” Malamut admits in the book: “I have always sung the fifth line as ‘So let’s root . . .’ instead of the proper ‘Let me root,’ which means I’ve been singing it wrong for decades.”

Throughout the book, Malamut pitches an assortment of practical advice, including the best time to go to the bathroom while attending a sporting event, what to wear (wearing a cap to a baseball game to cover up a bad hair day will backfire when you have to remove it for the national anthem) or why you should keep your hands to yourself, instead of on the fly ball, if you’re sitting close to the baseball field. Detailed illustrations and field guides help the reader understand positions and referees’ hand signals for the more common calls. 

While some women may think the way to a guy’s heart is on the field, Malamut cautions that “being one of the guys doesn’t always translate into being one of the guys’ girlfriends” though, as she explains, she has “made a lot of guy friends” through her love of sports.

Reading She’s Got Game, however, isn’t enough to become a true fan. “Whatever sport is going on, the best way to learn a game is to watch a game, see if it’s right for you,” explains Malamut.

The book seems especially relevant for many New Yorkers, with so many local teams to choose from. “Everyone is really fortunate living in New York to have teams with rich history and lots of rivalry competition,” said Malamut. “I found that the rivalry can be a lot of fun if you are a good fan and not so fueled by it.”

Malamut also advocates playing sports for social reasons and is a member of a kickball league that plays weekly. Afterward, she relaxes at a bar on the Upper West Side. “I’m still young and enjoying my life,” says Malamut. “I figured kickball would be a good way to meet people.”