After the movie ''

A League of Their Own ''A League of Their Own'' is a 1992 American sports comedy-drama film directed by Penny Marshall that tells a fictionalized account of the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). The film stars Tom Hanks, Geena Dav ...

'', a fictional movie based on 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 ...

, several women's baseball leagues were attempted, including Ladies League Baseball, which began play in 1997. The first five teams in the league were the San Jose Spitfire, San Francisco Bay Sox, Long Beach Aces, Phoenix Peppers and Los Angeles Legends.

1997 Season

In the 1997 season, the league consisted of five teams: the San Jose Spitfire, San Francisco Bay Sox, Long Beach Aces, Phoenix Peppers and Los Angeles Legends. In the league's championship the San Jose Spitfires defeated the Los Angeles Legends. Janelle T. Frese of the Los Angeles Legends won the Ladies League Baseball "Most Outstanding Pitcher" award for the 1997 season. In 1997 the Long Beach Aces played at

Blair Field Blair Field is a stadium in Long Beach, California. It originally opened in 1956 and is primarily used for baseball. It holds 3,238 people. It is named for Frank Blair, the sports editor for the ''Long Beach Press-Telegram'' newspaper for 32 ye ...

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

, the home of the Long Beach State University baseball program. They were coached by Don Barbara, former professional player and assistant coach at

Sacramento State California State University, Sacramento (CSUS, Sacramento State, or informally Sac State) is a public university in Sacramento, California. Founded in 1947 as Sacramento State College, it is the eleventh oldest school in the 23-campus California ...

. Barbara played at Long Beach State and was a Dirtbag assistant coach, later becoming the head recruiter and hitting coach at Sacramento State. The Aces were also coached by Joe Magno, who assumed the role of Aces bench coach. Magno was a scout with the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

and later became a minor league bench coach for the

Western Baseball League The Western Baseball League was an independent baseball league based in the Western United States and Western Canada. Its member teams were not associated with any Major League Baseball teams. It operated from 1995 to 2002. The league was founde ...

champion

Long Beach Breakers The Long Beach Breakers were a minor league baseball team that played at Blair Field in Long Beach, California. They played in the independent Western Baseball League since 1978 and were not associated with any Major League Baseball team. The ...

in 2001. Magno's coaching career started as an assistant coach at

Eckerd College Eckerd College is a private liberal arts college in St. Petersburg, Florida. Founded in 1958, part of the campus is waterfront and beach on Boca Ciega Bay. Because of its location, Eckerd is considered a "beach school" and has its own student ...

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...

, and continued at Long Beach State, where he ran the Dirtbags showcase camps from 1995 to 1997. Magno later coached high school baseball at

Mayfair High School Mayfair High School is a middle and high school in the Bellflower Unified School District in the city of Lakewood, California. The school first opened in 1959. The student population is approximately 3616 in grades 7 through 12. Mayfair serves ...

in Lakewood, California. The Aces had a difficult time filling the stands at Blair Field and were forced to disband after the inaugural season.

Expansion

In 1998, the league expanded and changed its name to the Ladies Professional Baseball League. The league expanded eastward by adding teams in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

, and

Augusta, New Jersey Augusta is an unincorporated community located within Frankford Township, in Sussex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population for the ZIP Code Tabulation Area 07822 was 887.

, and moving the Los Angeles Legends to Homestead, Florida. The newly expanded league planned a 56-game schedule starting in July and ending in September.

Cancellation

The Ladies Professional Baseball League canceled its second season after only 12 games were played. Michael Ribant, league president and founder, blamed low fan turnout. The average attendance was less than 500 per game. The projected losses for the 1998 season became too great, and the league folded.

Teams

References

{{Reflist Sports leagues disestablished in 1998 Sports leagues established in 1997 Women's baseball leagues in the United States Defunct baseball leagues in the United States 1997 establishments in the United States 1998 disestablishments in the United States Baseball leagues in California Baseball leagues in Arizona Women's sports in California Women's sports in Arizona Defunct women's baseball leagues