When a group of women banded together to play in a baseball league that would one day be immortalized in the film A League of Their Own, they grabbed their bats and balls on the premise that they could compete with the best ballplayers around.
Decades later, the members of that original team still hold that belief, and their play is backing it up.
Former players from the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League gathered last weekend to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the league and the 20th anniversary of the movie made in their honor, which comes out on Blu-Ray on Oct. 16.
Of the 500 women who played in the league, which ran from 1943 to 1954, 47 were on hand for the special weekend, which also included stars from the film. The league was first established to provide extra entertainment while many of America's men were overseas, fighting in World War II.
Last weekend, a team with some of the original players took on a local softball team, Wings Over Syracuse, and won 15-14, according to a news release. Jeneane Lesko, who played for the Grand Rapid Chicks, played first base and went 1-for-2. Katie "Horsey" Horstman of the Fort Wayne Daises went 2-for-2 with a double.
Not a bad day for some players with not much left to prove.
