Joan Sindelar (August 29, 1931 - April 12, 2003) played 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 ...

between 1949 and 1953 in the positions of

first base A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

and utility

outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In cricket, baseball and ...

. She was born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, IL and her nickname was Jo Jo. Listed at 5 ft 7 in (1.63 m), 125 lb., she batted and threw

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

. She is recorded to have said that playing in the league was one of the best things that happened to her in her life.

Baseball teams

Joan played for the

Chicago Colleens The Chicago Colleens were a women's professional baseball team who played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League from 1948 to 1951, evolving into a development team. The team was based Chicago, Illinois and played their home game ...

(in 1949 and 1950),

Kalamazoo Lassies The Kalamazoo Lassies were a team who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The team represented Kalamazoo, Michigan. Home games were initially played at Lindstrom Field, but later games were played at the ...

(in 1950, 1951, 1952 and 1953).

Post-baseball career

Following her baseball career, Joan taught in schools in

Kalamazoo Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropolit ...

, MI and

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

, AZ. She was remembered by her students, having made a "profound impact" on them. She was an active golfer, joined a country club and became a champion. She won two annual memorial tournaments four club championships. Once she retired from teaching, Joan adopted a rural life in which she raised animals that she sold. She was known to take in a whole array of strays which she nurtured back to health. She really enjoyed working her yard, feeding birds and growing flowers. When she died at age 71, she was survived by Yvonne Jacques, three nieces residing in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and many great nieces and nephews.

Career statistics

References

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sindelar, Joan All-American Girls Professional Baseball League players 1931 births 2003 deaths 20th-century American people 21st-century American women