The Rockford Peaches were a women's professional baseball team who played from 1943 to 1954 in the

All-American Girls Professional Baseball League The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) was a professional women's baseball league founded by Philip K. Wrigley, which existed from 1943 to 1954. The AAGPBL is the forerunner of women's professional league sports in the Uni ...

. A founding member, the team represented

Rockford, Illinois Rockford is a city in Winnebago County, Illinois, Winnebago and Ogle County, Illinois, Ogle counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. Located in far northern Illinois on the banks of the Rock River (Mississippi River tributary), Rock River, Rockfor ...

. The Peaches were one of 2 teams to play in every AAGPBL season, the other being the

South Bend Blue Sox The South Bend Blue Sox was a women's professional baseball team who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. A founding member, the team represented South Bend, Indiana, and played their home games at Bendix F ...

. They played their home games at Beyer Stadium on 15th Avenue in Rockford. The team's uniform consisted of a peach colored dress featuring the Rockford city seal centered on the chest, along with red socks and cap. In later years, the Peaches wore a white home uniform with black socks and cap.

History

One of the more successful teams in the

, the Dollys won the league championship in

1945 1945 marked the end of World War II, the fall of Nazi Germany, and the Empire of Japan. It is also the year concentration camps were liberated and the only year in which atomic weapons have been used in combat. Events World War II will be ...

1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The current Constitutions of Constitution of Italy, Italy and of Constitution of New Jersey, New Jersey (both later subject to amendment) ...

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2025 * January 2 – Luis ...

, and

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 ...

and had its share of star players. Dyes were hard to come by towards the end of the war and the team chose to dye their white uniforms a light shade of peach, which inspired the team nickname. Olive Little threw the first no-hitter in team and league history, on June 10, 1943. Peaches players who were named to the All-Star teams from 1946 to 1954 included Dorothy Kamenshek, Lois Florreich, Dorothy Harrell,

Carolyn Morris Carolyn E. Morris (September 28, 1925 – February 20, 1996) was a female pitcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at , 157 lb., Morris batted and threw right-handed. She was nicknamed ' ...

, Alice Pollitt, Ruth Richard, Rose Gacioch, Eleanor Callow, and Joan Berger. Pitcher Olive Little hurled the first

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit (baseball), hit through conventional methods. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in ...

both in team and league history. In addition, Florreich was the pitching champion in 1949 during the league's overhand era, and Gladys Davis won the league batting crown in the 1943 inaugural season, while Kamenshek earned the honors in the

1946 1946 (Roman numerals, MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1946th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 946th year of the 2nd millennium, the 46th year of the 20th centur ...

and

1947 It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Events January * January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country i ...

seasons. When former player Eileen Burmeister was asked why The Peaches supposedly favored theatricality over technical skill, she replied, "If God meant for us to play baseball, He would've made us any good at it.". The last living player of the first Peaches roster in AAGPBL, pitcher Mary Pratt, died on May 6, 2020, at the age of 101.

All-time roster

:''Bold denotes members of the inaugural roster'' * Velma Abbott * Melba Alspaugh * Amy Applegren * Ange Armato * Beverly Armstrong * Charlene Barnett * Joan Berger * Rita Briggs * Christine Bruce * Jean Buckley * Lorraine Bunton * Shirley Burkovich * Eileen Burmeister * Aldine Calacurcio * Eleanor Callow * Mary Carey * Betty Carveth * Bea Chester * Jean Cione * Muriel Coben * Clara Cook * Donna Cook * Dorothy Cook * Betty Jane Cornett * Dorothy Cramer * Louella Daetweiler * Barbara Anne Davis * Gladys Davis * Mildred Deegan * Wanita Dokish * Cartha Doyle * Beverly Dustrude * Louise Erickson * Elizabeth Farrow * Dorothy Ferguson * Helen Filarski * Alva Jo Fischer * Lorraine Fisher * Lois Florreich * Anita Foss * Betty Jane Fritz * Rose Gacioch * June Gilmore * Thelma Golden * Annie Gosbee * Dorothy Green * Carol Habben * Audrey Haine * Dorothy Harrell * Josephine Hasham * Ruby Heafner * Lillian Hlavaty * Margaret Holgerson * Marjorie Hood * Lillian Jackson * Donna Jogerst * Marguerite Jones * Marilyn Jones * Margaret Jurgensmeier * Dorothy Kamenshek * Joan Kaufman * Jacquelyn Kelley * Adeline Kerrar * Marguerite Kerrigan * Nancy King *

Irene Kotowicz Irene K. Kotowicz Ike"(December 10, 1919 – January 24, 2002) was an American pitcher and outfielder who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at , 128 lb., she batted and threw right-handed ...

* Dolores Lee * Josephine Lenard * Barbara Liebrich * Olive Little * Claire Lobrovich * Jean Lovell * Shirley Luhtala * Betty Luna * Gloria McCloskey * Ethel McCreary * Marie Mansfield * Hazel Measner * Naomi Meier * Berith Melin * Bernice Metesch * Ruth Miller * Anne "Annie" (Mihelich) Henry * Betty Moczynski *Dorothy Moon * Mary Moore *

* Doris Nelson * Helen Nelson * Helen Nicol * Helen Nordquist * Cynthia Normine * Anna Mae O'Dowd * Pauline Oravets * Shirley Palesh * Suzanne Parsons * Barbara Payne * Migdalia Pérez * Marjorie Peters * Betty Jean Peterson * Hattie Peterson * Alice Pollitt * Mary Pratt * Donna Reid * Ruth Richard * Ruth Ries * Kay Rohrer * Jenny Romatowski * Irene Ruhnke * Margaret Russo * Sarah Jane Sands * Dorothy Sawyer * Edna Scheer * Marilyn Schmidt * Violet Schmidt * Minnie Simons * Josephine Skokan * Helen Smith * Mae Starch * Jackie Stallings * Elma Steck *

Margaret Stefani Margaret Stefani 'Marge''(December 18, 1917 – January 13, 1964) was an infielder and chaperone in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Summary Born in Detroit, Michigan, Stefani was one of the sixty original players of the All ...

* Lee Surkowski * Rella Swamp * Georgia Terkowski * Barbara Thompson * Gene Travis * Betty Tucker * Joan Tysver * Virginia Ventura * Zonia Vialat * Helen Waddell * Betty Warfel * Mildred Warwick * Rossey Weeks * Marie Wegman * Helen Westerman * Margaret Wigiser * Hazel Wildfong * Janet Wiley * Vilma Williams * Verna Wilson * Lorraine Wuethrich * Betty Yahr
''The Women of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League: A Biographical Dictionary'' – W. C. Madden. Publisher: McFarland & Company, 2005. Format: Paperback, 295 pp. Language: English. Coach , - , *jimmy dugan

''A League of Their Own''

The Rockford Peaches feature in the

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

film ''

A League of Their Own ''A League of Their Own'' is a 1992 American sports comedy drama film directed by Penny Marshall that tells a fictionalized account of the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). It stars Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Ma ...

'' by

Penny Marshall Carole Penny MarshallBorn Carole Penny Marshall in 1943, as per ''My Mother Was Nuts, a Memoir'', p. 10; . Copyright 2012 (October 15, 1943 – December 17, 2018) was an American actress, film director, and producer. She is best known for ...

. However, all of the characters in the film are fictitious. The team did not play in the 1943 league championship, as depicted in the film. In real life, the

Racine Belles The Racine Belles were one of the original teams of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League playing from through out of Racine, Wisconsin. The Belles won the league's first championship. The team played its home games at Horlick F ...

faced the

Kenosha Comets The Kenosha Comets were a women's professional baseball team based in Kenosha, Wisconsin that played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The team played their home games at Kenosha's Lake Front Stadium, but l ...

in 1943; the Peaches won their first title in 1945. The formation of the AAGPBL and the Rockford Peaches are also centered in the 2022 TV series ''

References

External links

Official Website of the AAGPBL
{{All-American Girls Professional Baseball League All-American Girls Professional Baseball League teams 1943 establishments in Illinois 1954 disestablishments in Illinois Baseball teams disestablished in 1943 Baseball teams disestablished in 1954 Defunct baseball teams in Illinois Professional baseball teams in Illinois Women in Illinois

History

All-time roster

''A League of Their Own''

See also

References

Further reading

External links