Personality News

A Leage of Their Own movie poster featured in our Baseball at the Movies exhibit. (NBHOF Library)

In March, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates Women's History Month with a look at women who changed baseball history.

Most Americans are aware that in the 1940s and early 1950s a baseball league in which the players were entirely women hosted games across America. What many may not realize is how remembrance of this league was almost lost to greater American memory save for the efforts of another important, groundbreaking woman: Penny Marshall. 

Nancy Faust (NBHOF Library)

In March, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates Women's History Month with a look at women who changed baseball history.

The ballpark is surely a feast for the senses: The sights of the game, the smell of the the field…the touch of your mitt as you sit in the stands eager to grab a foul ball. 

Ng Kim

In March, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates Women's History Month with a look at women who changed baseball history.

By Max Miller 

Baseball has historically been positioned as a male sport. But there are a number of women currently working to change this paradigm. One of the most successful to date is Kim Ng. 

Eliza Green (NBHOF Library)

In March, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates Women's History Month with a look at women who changed baseball history.

As a girl growing up near Rochester, N.Y., in the 1850s, Eliza Green was a frequent visitor to the nearby home of famed suffragist Susan B. Anthony. Some of Anthony’s can-do feminism must have rubbed off on the young woman. In her 30s, she would secretly become baseball’s first female official scorer, for the Chicago team now known as the Cubs. She served in this capacity from 1882-91.

Nicole McFadyen serves as the head groundskeeper for the Baltimore Orioles. (Todd Olszewski/Baltimore Orioles)

In March, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates Women's History Month with a look at women who changed baseball history.

By Amanda Rodriguez

Nicole McFadyen has two goals when it comes to her field at Camden Yards: “Have a field that is pleasing to the eye and has a high degree of playability.” To achieve this, it has taken McFadyen a lot of perseverance and work. But as the heads groundskeeper for the Baltimore Orioles, McFadyen’s job is a labor of love.

Mamie "Peanut" Johnson featured in a 1954 Kansas City Monarchs vs Indianapolis Clowns program. (NBHOF Library)

In March, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates Women's History Month with a look at women who changed baseball history.

The game-changing moment in Mamie “Peanut” Johnson's life occurred one summer afternoon in 1953. A scout for the Indianapolis Clowns (of the Negro American League) saw the 19-year-old Johnson play. “He asked me afterwards if I wanted to play pro baseball,” Johnson recalls. "I said, ‘Yes, indeed!’” 

Ila Borders pitching for the St. Paul Saints. (Courtesy of St. Paul Saints)

In March, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates Women's History Month with a look at women who changed baseball history.

By Cassidy Lent

For four years, the professional baseball world got to experience something that it had rarely seen before. From 1997-2000, a woman by the name of Ila Borders pitched in 52 minor league baseball games with four different teams, finishing with a 2-4 record and 6.75 ERA.

Alta Weiss (NBHOF Library)

In March, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates Women's History Month with a look at women who changed baseball history.

Born Feb. 9, 1890, Alta Weiss was a pitching legend in her hometown of Ragersville, Ohio by the time she was three years old.

Her father, Dr. George Weiss, swore that she could throw a corncob at a cat with all the skill and precision of a big league pitcher. As Alta grew up, her father encouraged her to play ball, and even established a local high school so that Alta could play on its baseball team.

Hank Thompson (NBHOF Library)

Throughout Black History Month in February, the Hall of Fame celebrates the lives of African Americans who made historic contributions to the National Pastime.

Hank Thompson led a complex life made up of remarkable heights and depths. He was a decorated war veteran, integration trailblazer and World Series star.

Emmett Ashford became the first African-American to umpire in the big leagues in 1966. (NBHOF Library)

Throughout Black History Month in February, the Hall of Fame celebrates the lives of African Americans who made historic contributions to the National Pastime.

By Adrianna Mondore

Once Jackie Robinson signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers in November of 1945, Emmett Ashford said to himself: "I'm going to be the first black umpire." Ashford then worked to make his prediction come true.

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