All-American Girls Professional Baseball League pitcher Mary Pratt passed away at 101.
12:23 PM PDT, May 11, 2020Mary Pratt, a member of the original 1943 Rockford Peaches of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League , has died. She was 101 years old. Her death was confirmed on Wednesday by her nephew, Walter Pratt.
Pratt was a lefty pitcher for the Peaches and later with the Kenosha Comets. Her best season was with the 1944 Comets, finishing with 21 wins, a 2.50 ERA and 26 strikeouts. Pratt was a graduate of Boston University with a degree in physical education and she had a 40-plus year teaching career. She also spent time officiating basketball, softball, field hockey and lacrosse games.
"It was in 1943 that I had the opportunity to become a member of the AAGPBL," Pratt wrote on the AAGPBL website."In June of that year, I was contacted by personnel in Chicago and flew out to Chicago after the close of school. I was met by Mr. Ken Sells, appointed by Mr. Philip Wrigley as President of the AAGPBL. I was escorted to Rockford and joined that team. That evening, Rockford was in the process of playing a league game at the 15th Ave. stadium.
The AAGPBL was formed in 1943 when Major League Baseball players were called for military service during World War II. What started as a way to keep ballparks busy and produce wartime entertainment, quickly progressed into a professional league for women baseball players. We are terribly sad to report that former Rockford Peaches and Kenosha Comets pitcher, Mary Pratt passed away on May 6th. She was 101 years old. Mary was the last known original Peaches player that played on the 1943 team. Her stories, her energy will be missed for a long time.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Chris Pratt and Elizabeth Banks Reprise 'Lego Movie' Characters for COVID-19 PSAChris Pratt (prattprattpratt) and ElizabethBanks are sharing tips on how to stay healthy amid the coronavirus pandemic in a new PSA
Read more »
Premier Lacrosse League Players Pay Tribute to Their Biggest Fans — Mom! — in Mother's Day VideoAs the players share kind words of love and admiration for their mothers, old family photos and videos are also shown
Read more »
Andre Harrell dies: Mariah Carey, John Legend, Kamala Harris mourn Uptown Records founderTributes to revered music executive Andre Harrell, who helped launch the careers of Mary J. Blige and Sean Combs, poured out on social media.
Read more »
Andre Harrell's radical, genius idea: Hip-hop and R&B belonged togetherMusic executive Andre Harrell, who died Thursday at 59, did more than just mentor Mary J. Blige and Sean Combs; he bridged the gap between soul and rap.
Read more »
101 Ways to Style a Plain White Tee For SummerThere are a few more options than you'd think.
Read more »
Betty Wright, the Soulful Singer Who Helped Define R&B, Dies at 66Betty Wright, the soul singer who helped define the R&B music genre, has died at 66.
Read more »