Ruby Ethel "Rebel" Heafner (March 3, 1924 – October 2, 2010) was a right-handed catcher 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 ...

from 1946-51. She joined the AAGPBL after serving during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Playing for the Rockford Peaches in 1946, she hit .141 with six stolen bases in 47 games. In 1947, with the Fort Wayne Daisies, she hit .172 in 65 games. Again with Fort Wayne in 1948, Heafner batted .160 in 59 games and in 1949, she hit .171 in 50 games for the Daisies. Moving to 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 ...

in 1950, Heafner hit .211 with a career-high 17 RBI in 65 games. In 1951, with the Battle Creek Belles, she hit .205 with 33 walks (to only 15 strikeouts) in 56 games. In total, Heafner hit .178 with 171 hits in 959 at-bats. She hit 17 doubles, four triples and no home runs while scoring 83 runs and driving in 57. She had 28 stolen bases, 124 walks and 154 strikeouts. She was born in Gastonia, North Carolina and died in

Kings Mountain, North Carolina Kings Mountain is a small suburb, suburban city within the Charlotte metropolitan area in Cleveland County, North Carolina, Cleveland and Gaston County, North Carolina, Gaston counties, North Carolina, United States. Most of the city is in Clev ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heafner, Ruby 1924 births 2010 deaths All-American Girls Professional Baseball League players Rockford Peaches players Fort Wayne Daisies players Racine Belles (1943–1950) players Battle Creek Belles players Baseball players from North Carolina 21st-century American women