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All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was a women's professional baseball league founded by Philip K. Wrigley which existed from 1943 to 1954.
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With the advent of World War II reaching America, and in order to maintain baseball in the public eye while the majority of able men were away, several major league baseball executives started a new professional league with women players. Initial tryouts were held at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
Principal differences between the AAGPBL and the men's game, besides the sex of the players, were in the size of the diamond, the pitching styles and the size of the ball. Indeed, the game was actually softball for the first season, but rules were gradually changed over the years until the game was virtually identical to men's baseball. The players were also required to wear short skirts during play and lipstick at all times, were preferably to have long hair, and not to wear slacks or trousers at any time.
The Rockford Peaches won the most league championships with four (1945, 1948, 1949, 1950). The Milwaukee/Grand Rapids Chicks were second with three (1944 in Milwaukee, 1947 and 1953 in Grand Rapids). The Racine Belles (1943 and 1946) and the South Bend Blue Sox (1951 and 1952) each had won two, and the Kalamazoo Lassies won in the league's final season (1954).
The 1992 film A League of Their Own, although fictionalised, covers the founding and play of this league. Tom Hanks, Rosie O'Donnell, Geena Davis and Madonna were the stars of the film, which was directed by Penny Marshall. Several histories of the AAGPBL have been published in book form.[1][2]
Although the AAGPBL was the first recorded professional women's baseball league, women had played baseball since the 19th century. The first known women's baseball team played at Vassar College in 1866[[1]], while barnstorming Bloomer Girls teams[3] (sometimes including men[4]) flourished from the 1890s to the 1930s. There were at least three women players in the professional Negro Leagues.
- Kenosha Comets (1943-1951)
- Racine Belles (1943-1950) / Battle Creek Belles (1951-1952) / Muskegon Belles (1953)
- Rockford Peaches (1943-1954)
- South Bend Blue Sox (1943-1954)
- Milwaukee Chicks (1944) / Grand Rapids Chicks (1945-1954)
- Minneapolis Millerettes (1944)
- Fort Wayne Daisies (1945-1954)
- Muskegon Lassies (1946-1949) / Kalamazoo Lassies (1950-1954)
- Peoria Redwings (1946-1951)
- Chicago Colleens (1948)
- Springfield Sallies (1948)
- 1943 Racine Belles
- 1944 Milwaukee Chicks
- 1945 Rockford Peaches
- 1946 Racine Belles
- 1947 Grand Rapids Chicks
- 1948 Rockford Peaches
- 1949 Rockford Peaches
- 1950 Rockford Peaches
- 1951 South Bend Blue Sox
- 1952 South Bend Blue Sox
- 1953 Grand Rapids Chicks
- 1954 Kalamazoo Lassies
- ^ Macy, Sue. A Whole New Ball Game: The Story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. ISBN 014037423X
- ^ Browne, Lois. Girls of Summer: The Real Story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. ISBN 0006379028
- ^ Berlage, Gai Ingham. Women in Baseball. ISBN 0275947351
- ^ Ritter, Lawrence S. The Glory of Their Times: The Story of the Early Days of Baseball Told By the Men Who Played It. ISBN 0941372081