Well, I wasn't sure I was going to go to the AAGBPL Reunion/exhibition softball game today. I try to sleep in on the weekends so as to protect my mental health. Luckily, my girlfriend's dogs bark bark bark bark in the morning and my girlfriend does nothing about it, so I didn't sleep in. I found myself on the road and said, "forget it--I'm going to the game." The steady, sometimes hard rain also gave me pause, but I'm glad I went.
The AAA season is over, so I was very glad to see Alliance Bank Park once more before next April. The place looked just a little lonely with so few cars in the parking lot, but I loved the energy inside the stadium. There were AAGBPL players all along the concourse, signing autographs. From what I understood, the previous reunion was in 2012 and there were 200 attendees of the 700 former players. Today, there were approximately 40 players, all of whom seemed pleasant and excited. As part of the reunion, they spent yesterday in Cooperstown. (The AAGPBL display in the Hall of Fame is a good exhibit and worth checking out.)
One of the things I loved most was the support system around the AAGPBL. It's great that there are younger people working to preserve the legacy of the league. I was also touched by a happenstance discussion with the son of Dorothy Chapman Maguire. I am not sure...she may have been the loose inspiration for the Geena Davis character in the film. According to her bio, she received a call that her husband had been KIA. She played that day! Later, it seems, she received word that her husband was alive and in a hospital. She died in 1981 and the son I spoke with attends all of the reunions to help out and to hear stories about his mother. How sweet! As you'll see, that's not the only time I got a little choked up.
I was correct in assuming there would be memorabilia for sale. I bought a replica AAGPBL ball that had already been signed by a few players. (The ball is really cool-looking, by the way. And the box looks old-fashioned.) I worked my way around the concourse, adding to the ball. (Some of the ladies just kinda signed in fine-point Sharpie instead of the blue ballpoint I offered...it's okay.) I loved meeting Jean Faut; a few other ladies told me (independently of each other) that Faut was the best pitcher in the league. Faut told me that the curveball was her favorite pitch to throw. Her batterymate Lois Younger was beside her; Younger said she was a journeyman, but managed to catch two of Faut's perfect games. I also loved meeting Katie Horstman, a fellow fan of the Ohio State Buckeyes. Boy, was she lively. She said she would be a better coach than Dusty Baker and I'm not sure she's wrong.
The rain persisted for a couple hours, but cleared up in plenty of time to get in the softball game. I'm not a fan of summer heat, so it was pretty great to see a ballgame when it wasn't too hot or too cold. The "affiliates" of the AAGPBL challenged the "Wings over Syracuse" softball team. I think it was more of an exhibition than a real ballgame, which was fine. Tim Wiles from the Hall of Fame was the announcer; after a ceremony, they played ball. Also in attendance were Megan Cavanaugh and Patti Pelton, two actresses from A League of their Own. You will remember Cavanaugh as the unfortunate-looking Marla *****. Cavanaugh and Pelton both took part in the game and Cavanaugh pleased the crowd by acting out some of the bits from the movie, including Marla's slouched posture.
I got a little choked up when Katie Horstman and Mary Pratt took the field in addition to batting. I forget who, but another of the ladies came out wearing her uniform from the 1950s and was one of the center fielders. It was absolutely beautiful to watch these older women do something that they love and to share the experience with the respectable crowd that showed on a day whose weather started out crummy. It was simply touching to watch Horstman shout (encouragingly) at the other fielders and to turn a double play! Another (politely) argued an umpire's ruling on a fair ball. (She was right; the ball was foul.) And the player in the vintage uniform dashed to her right on a grounder in the five-hole...she was backing up the shortstop, just like you're supposed to! I really have to find some men's league to play in at some point.
Here's who is on my ball (I'll check spelling and stuff when I figure out how I want to account for all of my non-card memorabilia.):
Tori Palermo
Ann Meyer
Jane Jacobs
Lillian Shadic
Norma Whitney
Jeannie Dee Combes
Mary Pratt
Terry McKinley
Mary Lou Graham
Jean Buckley
Terry Donahue
Lou Erickson
Marilyn Jenkins
Katie Horstman
Jackie Mattsom Baumgart
Corky Carl
Lois Younger
Jean Faut
Wilma Briggs
Oh...I'm sure that autograph collectors will not be surprised: the women all have beautiful penmanship and put a great deal of effort into giving each person a crisp signature.
The AAA season is over, so I was very glad to see Alliance Bank Park once more before next April. The place looked just a little lonely with so few cars in the parking lot, but I loved the energy inside the stadium. There were AAGBPL players all along the concourse, signing autographs. From what I understood, the previous reunion was in 2012 and there were 200 attendees of the 700 former players. Today, there were approximately 40 players, all of whom seemed pleasant and excited. As part of the reunion, they spent yesterday in Cooperstown. (The AAGPBL display in the Hall of Fame is a good exhibit and worth checking out.)
One of the things I loved most was the support system around the AAGPBL. It's great that there are younger people working to preserve the legacy of the league. I was also touched by a happenstance discussion with the son of Dorothy Chapman Maguire. I am not sure...she may have been the loose inspiration for the Geena Davis character in the film. According to her bio, she received a call that her husband had been KIA. She played that day! Later, it seems, she received word that her husband was alive and in a hospital. She died in 1981 and the son I spoke with attends all of the reunions to help out and to hear stories about his mother. How sweet! As you'll see, that's not the only time I got a little choked up.
I was correct in assuming there would be memorabilia for sale. I bought a replica AAGPBL ball that had already been signed by a few players. (The ball is really cool-looking, by the way. And the box looks old-fashioned.) I worked my way around the concourse, adding to the ball. (Some of the ladies just kinda signed in fine-point Sharpie instead of the blue ballpoint I offered...it's okay.) I loved meeting Jean Faut; a few other ladies told me (independently of each other) that Faut was the best pitcher in the league. Faut told me that the curveball was her favorite pitch to throw. Her batterymate Lois Younger was beside her; Younger said she was a journeyman, but managed to catch two of Faut's perfect games. I also loved meeting Katie Horstman, a fellow fan of the Ohio State Buckeyes. Boy, was she lively. She said she would be a better coach than Dusty Baker and I'm not sure she's wrong.
The rain persisted for a couple hours, but cleared up in plenty of time to get in the softball game. I'm not a fan of summer heat, so it was pretty great to see a ballgame when it wasn't too hot or too cold. The "affiliates" of the AAGPBL challenged the "Wings over Syracuse" softball team. I think it was more of an exhibition than a real ballgame, which was fine. Tim Wiles from the Hall of Fame was the announcer; after a ceremony, they played ball. Also in attendance were Megan Cavanaugh and Patti Pelton, two actresses from A League of their Own. You will remember Cavanaugh as the unfortunate-looking Marla *****. Cavanaugh and Pelton both took part in the game and Cavanaugh pleased the crowd by acting out some of the bits from the movie, including Marla's slouched posture.
I got a little choked up when Katie Horstman and Mary Pratt took the field in addition to batting. I forget who, but another of the ladies came out wearing her uniform from the 1950s and was one of the center fielders. It was absolutely beautiful to watch these older women do something that they love and to share the experience with the respectable crowd that showed on a day whose weather started out crummy. It was simply touching to watch Horstman shout (encouragingly) at the other fielders and to turn a double play! Another (politely) argued an umpire's ruling on a fair ball. (She was right; the ball was foul.) And the player in the vintage uniform dashed to her right on a grounder in the five-hole...she was backing up the shortstop, just like you're supposed to! I really have to find some men's league to play in at some point.
Here's who is on my ball (I'll check spelling and stuff when I figure out how I want to account for all of my non-card memorabilia.):
Tori Palermo
Ann Meyer
Jane Jacobs
Lillian Shadic
Norma Whitney
Jeannie Dee Combes
Mary Pratt
Terry McKinley
Mary Lou Graham
Jean Buckley
Terry Donahue
Lou Erickson
Marilyn Jenkins
Katie Horstman
Jackie Mattsom Baumgart
Corky Carl
Lois Younger
Jean Faut
Wilma Briggs
Oh...I'm sure that autograph collectors will not be surprised: the women all have beautiful penmanship and put a great deal of effort into giving each person a crisp signature.
