Carolyn E. Morris (September 28, 1925 – February 20, 1996) was a female

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

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 ''India'' by her teammates and close friends. A hard-throwing, underhand pitcher, Carolyn Morris had a brief but relevant career in the AAGPBL. She hurled a

perfect game Perfect game may refer to: Sports * Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners * Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game * Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New York ...

, three no-hitters, twelve innings of no-hit ball in a final championship series, and averaged 26 wins in each of her three seasons in the circuit. In addition, she was a member of a champion team and earned an All-Star berth. A native of

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1,608,139 residents as of 2020. It is the fifth-most populous city in the United States, and the on ...

, Morris was a smiling attractive brunette who pursued a

modeling A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...

career before turning all of her attention to baseball. She started pitching

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. " Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thr ...

in grammar school, and stayed in school competition right up to and through high school. After that, she hurled in the Phoenix area in male teams. In addition, Morris was an accomplished musician and devoted to classical music. She entered the AAGPBL after graduating from school in 1944 and was allocated to the

Rockford Peaches The Rockford Peaches were a women's professional baseball team who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. A founding member, the team represented Rockford, Illinois. The Peaches were one of two teams to pla ...

. In 1944 Morris joined a Rockford team managed by Nap Kloza. The Peaches finished fourth in the first half of the year (28-32), but improved to third the second half (26-31) after collecting the fourth overall record (53-65) out of six teams. Morris gave a great contribution to the team, hurling two no-hitters and finishing with a 23–18 record for a .561

winning percentage In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

in 44 pitching appearances. She struggled with her control,

walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an ' inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ...

133 batters while

striking out ''Striking Out'' is an Irish television legal drama series, broadcast on RTÉ, that first aired on 1 January 2017. Produced by Bl!nder F!lms for RTÉ Television, ''Striking Out'' stars Amy Huberman as Dublin-based solicitor Tara Rafferty, who is ...

112. for a 0.84 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Proving her rookie season was not a fluke, Morris excelled in 1945. Overall, she had a solid season, going 28–12 (.700) and improved her K/BB to a solid 2.16 (119-to-55). In addition, during the midseason she pitched a perfect game against the

Fort Wayne Daisies The Fort Wayne Daisies were a women's professional baseball team based in Fort Wayne, Indiana that played from through as members of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. History The Daisies represented Fort Wayne, Indiana, and ...

. The Rockford team, now with

Bill Allington William Baird Allington (October 26, 1903 – August 17, 1966) was an American minor league baseball player and manager. Listed at 5' 9" and 160 pounds, Allington batted and threw right-handed. He was born in St. Clair County, Michigan ...

at the helm, clinched the first place with a 67–43 record. In the first round of the playoffs, the Peaches disposed of the

Grand Rapids Chicks The Grand Rapids Chicks were a women's professional baseball team based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. They played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League from 1945 to 1954, winning championships in 1947 and 1953. History The franchise ...

, three to two games, with Morris winning 1–0 and 2–0 shutouts decisions against stellar

Connie Wisniewski Constance Wisniewski (Wiśniewski) (February 18, 1922 – May 4, 1995) was a starting pitcher and outfielder who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5' 8", 147 lb., she batted left-handed an ...

and the Chicks. Then, in the final series Rockford beat the Daisies in five games, with Morris winning three of the four victories for her team. But Morris was even better in her final season. In 1946, she posted a 29–13 record (.690 W%) with a 1.42

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

in 49 games, striking out 240 batters while walking only 98 (2.45 K/BB). Her numbers included a third no-hitter and career-highs in wins, strikeouts and ERA. Rockford finished in fourth place (60-52), advanced to the playoffs, and defeated the

in the first round, three to two games. In the final series against 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 Fi ...

, Morris pitched a no-hitter for nine innings in Game 6 and was not removed until the bottom of the twelfth inning. Belles pitcher

Joanne Winter Joanne Emily Winter '' o' (November 24, 1924 – September 22, 1996) was a pitcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at , 138 lb., she batted and threw right-handed. Early life A native ...

allowed thirteen hits, but Racine could not put them together to produce a run. The scoreless game went into the bottom of fourteen, until

Sophie Kurys Sophie Kurys (May 14, 1925 – February 17, 2013) was a former second basewoman who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at , , Kurys batted and threw right-handed. Career A native of Flint, Mic ...

of the Belles got a hit off

reliever In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weather ...

Mildred Deegan Mildred Eleanor Deegan (December 11, 1919 – July 21, 2002) was an American pitcher, outfielder and second basewoman who played ten seasons in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, from to . Background Deegan was one of 25 ...

, stole second base, and, in the midst of stealing third, saw her teammate

Betty Trezza Betty "Moe" Trezza (August 4, 1925 – January 16, 2007) was an American professional baseball player. An infield and outfield utility, she played from through for four different teams of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. T ...

hit the ball to right field. Kurys slid home to score the winning run and the Belles won the championship title. At the end of the season, Morris was selected for the All-Star Team. Following her baseball career, Morris worked as a real estate broker and, relatedly, a notary public. She also became part of the AAGPBL permanent display at the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum at Cooperstown, New York, opened in , which is dedicated to the entire league rather than any individual player. She died in Mesa, Arizona at the age of 70.

Pitching statistics

AAGPBL perfect games

''All-American Girls Professional Baseball League Record Book'' – W. C. Madden. Publisher: McFarland & Company, 2000. Format: Paperback, 294pp. Language: English.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Carolyn All-American Girls Professional Baseball League players Baseball players from Phoenix, Arizona 1925 births 1996 deaths 20th-century American women 20th-century American people