All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) was established during World War II to maintain American interest in baseball as many male players were enlisted in the military. Launched by businessman Philip K. Wrigley in 1943, the league was initially intended as a temporary solution but gained lasting popularity, running until 1954. The league featured teams composed of female players, who were scouted for both their athletic abilities and their appeal, with charm-school classes required for players to enhance their public image.
Over its existence, the league included notable teams like the Rockford Peaches and the Racine Belles, and produced standout athletes such as Dottie Kamenshek and Sophie Kurys. The league adapted its rules over time to align more closely with traditional male baseball, incorporating changes such as overhand pitching. Despite its success, the AAGPBL ultimately disbanded due to shifts in societal norms, increased competition from television, and changing leisure activities.
The league provided over six hundred women with opportunities for travel, stable earnings, and personal empowerment, serving as an inspiration for future generations of female athletes. Its legacy is celebrated in popular culture, notably through the 1992 film "A League of Their Own," which highlights the league's impact on women's roles in sports.
All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
Identification Women’s baseball league
Date Operated from 1943 until 1954
The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League changed the role of women in American sports. No longer were women seen simply as softball players because they were the weaker sex but proved that they could participate more equally on a level playing field.
After the United States entered World War II at the end of 1941, Major League Baseball rosters shrank, decimated as players went to serve their country. In an effort to keep baseball alive and to continue providing Americans with sports entertainment during the war years, business mogul Philip K. Wrigley decided to start a women’s baseball league. It was intended to be merely a temporary measure to fill a defined need during the war, but the growing popularity of the league and the desire of the young women on its teams to continue playing kept the league going through the 1954 season, when it finally folded.
Business Opportunity
As a businessman, Wrigley saw an opportunity during World War II and he took it. He believed that America needed baseball and if the major and minor leagues could not fill that need, then perhaps a women’s league could. Following on the idea of the cultural icon Rosie the Riveter, a temporary change for women in the workforce, Wrigley expected his league to operate through the duration of the war, and then its players would return to their prewar responsibilities. When Wrigley began the league, it was called simply the “All-American Girls Baseball League.” The word “Professional” was added later.
Wrigley believed that with careful recruiting of players, a league could operate throughout the Midwest. He sent out scouts and announcements to hold tryouts in selected cities. Of the hundreds of young women who showed up, sixty-four were assigned to four teams. Women were chosen for beauty as well as for their baseball skills. Wrigley wanted people never to forget the players on the field were women. He even required the league’s initial players to take charm-school classes.
More than six hundred women played in Wrigley’s league between 1943 and 1954. The number of teams each season varied from four to as many as ten. In addition to its players, each team also had a female chaperon to help the players deal with the press, keep an eye on them on road trips, and generally keep things in order. With the exception of Mary Baker, who managed the Kalamazoo Lassies through most of the 1950 season, the league’s managers over the years were all former Major League Baseball players. The numbers of games and competitive formats varied from season to season, but every year the teams played at least ninety games and sometimes more than 110.
After the 1945 season ended, Wrigley sold the league to Arthur Meyerhoff. Meyerhoff directed the league until 1951, when he sold control to the team owners, who operated it until it was dissolved in 1954. Meanwhile, the league went through a variety of rule changes. For example, the size of ball was reduced, pitching motions shifted from underhand to overhand delivery, and the distance between the pitcher’s mound and home plate was lengthened. Overall, the trend was toward making the game more similar to traditional, male baseball.
Teams and Players
Teams such as the Rockford Peaches, South Bend Blue Sox, and Racine Belles enjoyed many seasons with the league. Other teams such as the Peoria Red Wings, the Milwaukee Chicks, and the Muskegon Lassies either folded quickly or moved their franchises around because their markets were small. Every year, the league held both an all-star game and a championship series, which the Racine Belles won in the league’s inaugural season. The Rockford Peaches eventually held the league record with four championships.
In addition to those chosen as all-stars, the league had numerous standout players. One of the best was Dottie Kamenshek, who played from 1943 to 1953 and led the league with 1,090 hits. Sophie Kurys led the league in stolen bases with 1,114—including 201 during a single season—and batted .260. Jean Faut pitched two perfect games during her outstanding pitching career, while pitcher Connie Wisniewski had a 107-48 career record with a 1.48 earned run average and earned the nickname “Iron Woman” for her durability. These and other stars helped keep the league going. However, as American social and economic conditions changed, interest in the league waned, and the league eventually had to fold. Competition with television broadcasting, advances in travel, new leisure opportunities, and changing images of women in society all contributed to the league’s demise. As marriage and home took on increased popularity in the 1950’s, the league could not compete.
Impact
For the more than six hundred women who got the chance to play, the league offered them opportunities they never would have gotten otherwise. It opened a world of travel, paid them livable wages, and gave many the confidence to then go on and try other things. Over the years the league and the players have become an inspiration to other women not only in baseball but also in life. In 1988, the National Baseball Hall of Fame dedicated an exhibit honoring the league. In 1992, Penny Marshall directed a fictional film about the league’s first year, A League of their Own (1992). Tom Hanks played the former Major League Baseball star who managed one of the teams, and Geena Davis portrayed the league’s star player.
Bibliography
Brown, Patricia I. A League of My Own. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2003. Memoir written by a woman who pitched in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
Browne, Lois. The Girls of Summer: The Real Story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. New York: HarperCollins, 1993. History of the league published shortly after the film A League of Their Own came out.
Hammer, Trudy J. The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. New York: New Discovery Books, 1994. History of the league written for middle school readers.
Johnson, Susan E. When Women Played Hardball. Seattle: Seal Press, 1994. Memoir written by a sociologist recalling her excitement being a fan of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League during her youth.
Madden, W. C. The Women of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League: A Biographical Dictionary. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2005. Profiles of more than six hundred women who played in the league, with their statistical records, brief biographical sketches, and many previously unpublished photographs.