Audrey Bleiler ''Seitzinger(January 12, 1933 – June 20, 1975) was an

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

who played from through 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 ...

. Listed at , 125 lb., Bleiler batted and threw right-handed. She was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The opposing pitchers were not worried about facing the diminutive Audrey Bleiler, but she would compensate for that with her quickness and instinctive reflexes at the hot corner for most of her three seasons in the league, winning consecutive championships with 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 Fi ...

. Bleiler joined South Bend in the 1950 season, serving primarily as a backup at third base for

Helen Filarski Helen Filarski (later Steffes; May 11, 1924September 13, 2014) was an American baseball player. She was an infielder and outfielder who played from 1945 through 1950 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at , 125 l ...

and eventually filling in at shortstop for

Senaida Wirth Senaida Wirth 'Shu-Shu''(October 4, 1926 – May 20, 1967) was a shortstop who played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at , 114 lb., Wirth batted and threw right-handed. She was born in Tampa, Florida. Senaida ...

. Bleiler was part of a rare occurrence in her rookie season while playing a game against the Muskegon Lassies. With runners at second and third bases and none outs, she caught a line drive ball and threw to second sacker Mary Baker, who nailed the base runner. Baker then whipped the ball to Bleiler, who tagged the runner before she could return to third to complete a 5-4-5 triple play. Her most productive season was in 1951, when she posted a slash line ( BA/ OBP/ SLG) of .202/.291/.256 to help the Blue Sox win their first pennant and championship title. After being married in 1951, she played under the name of Audrey Seitzinger during the 1952 season, her last year in the league. South Bend swept the Grand Rapids Chicks in the best-of-three first round, and won their second title in a row after defeating the Rockford Peaches, 3 to 2 games. She was a .180 career hitter and batted .286 (6-for-21) in seven postseason games.All-American Girls Professional Baseball League Record Book She left the Blue Sox after the season and stayed home to take care of her family. She went on to have two boys, Thomas and Charles, and two girls, Audrey and Marie. Audrey Bleiler Seitzinger died in 1975 in

Camden, New Jersey Camden is a city in and the county seat of Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Camden is part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan area and is located directly across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the 2020 ...

, at the early age of 42.Ancestry.com – Audrey Seitzinger report
/ref> Thirteen years after her death, she was recognized at ''Women in Baseball'', a permanent display based at the

Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-re ...

Cooperstown, New York Cooperstown is a village in and county seat of Otsego County, New York, United States. Most of the village lies within the town of Otsego, but some of the eastern part is in the town of Middlefield. Located at the foot of Otsego Lake in the C ...

, which was unveiled to honor the entire All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.

Career statistics

Batting Fielding

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bleiler, Audrey All-American Girls Professional Baseball League players South Bend Blue Sox players Baseball players from Philadelphia 1933 births 1975 deaths 20th-century American women 20th-century American people