I loved the recent “A League of Their Own” remake from Amazon Prime — especially because parts were filmed in Pittsburgh — and now the Heinz History Center has a rare game-worn uniform from the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League!
The white, blue, and gold colors were worn by Cincinnati-native Betsy Jochum — one of the original 60 players in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League and an inspiration for the 1992 film and 2022 series.
While she never played in Pittsburgh, from 1943 to 1948, Jochum was a hard-hitting outfielder for the South Bend, Indiana Blue Sox — quick on her feet and adept with the bat, leading the league in hits in 1943 and 1944 with a .296 average. During her career, Betsy amassed 354 stolen bases, including seven in one game.
Today, she’s a living legacy. On Feb. 8, she celebrated her 103rd birthday.
Want to learn more about the more than 600 players who competed in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League between 1943 and 1954, including 15 from Western Pennsylvania? There’s a whole exhibit in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., and WESA profiled Troy Hill native Betty Jane Cornett and Armstrong County’s Dorothy “Dot” Kovalchick.
You’d be in good company — at its peak in 1948, the women's league attracted almost one million paying fans!
Learn more about Jochum, Cornett, Kovalchick, and more the Heinz History Center’s exhibition, A Woman’s Place: How Women Shaped Pittsburgh.
