Mitch Skupien was a

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

and executive 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 ...

. Very little is known about this man who worked hard for the AAGPBL during the final five years of its existence. Previously, Skupien had managed the Rayson Sporting Goods, a

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

baseball team, and also had served as a

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement * Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

for the AAGPBL since the early years of the circuit. He reported to the board of directors in 1949 and later managed during four years, leading his teams to three playoff appearances, including the Championship title in the league's last season. Skupien took the field in 1951 with 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 ...

, managing for them one year before joining the

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 ...

(1952–1954). In his first season, Skupien led Grand Rapids to the first-half title with a 40–13 record and posted the second-best record at 71–35 (in an eight-team format), earning a ticket to the playoffs. But the Chicks lost the first round 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 pl ...

, two games to none. He landed in Kalamazoo in 1952 in an attempt to revive the struggling Lassies franchise, who had had losing records in four of their six previous seasons. With him at the helm, the team improved to 49-60 and ended fifth (next to last), after collecting a second-worst 34-75 the previous year. In 1953, the Lassies finished third with a 53–50 record and advanced to the playoffs. After defeating 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, an ...

in the first round (2–1), Kalamazoo was beaten by Grand Rapids in the final series (2-to-1). The Lassies had a 48–49 mark in 1954 and finished fifth out of six teams. In the playoffs, Kalamazoo defeated 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 ...

in three games, and later disposed of the strong Daisies (3-2) to clinch the last Championship title in the league's history. In addition to his work as a skipper, from 1949 to 1950 Skupien was kept busy as a

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all ...

for the Chicago Colleens and

Springfield Sallies The Springfield Sallies were a women's professional baseball team who were members of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in the 1948 season and became a development team. The Sallies were based in Springfield, Illinois and played ...

touring teams. For the next two years the Colleens and Sallies recruited new talent for the league, while playing an extensive exhibition schedule against each other through the South and East, including contests at

Griffith Stadium Griffith Stadium stood in Washington, D.C., from 1911 to 1965, between Georgia Avenue and 5th Street (left field), and between W Street and Florida Avenue NW. The site was once home to a wooden baseball park. Built in 1891, it was called Boun ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, and

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx, New York City. It is the home field of the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. Opened in April 2009, the stadium replaced the orig ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

Patricia Barringer Patricia Barringer (September 14, 1924 – March 31, 2007) was an All-American Girls Professional Baseball League ballplayer. Listed at 5' 7", 145 lb., she batted and threw right handed. Born in New Carlisle, Ohio, Patricia Barringer atten ...

, who had played at second base in the AAGPBL, was named by Skupien as chaperone and manager of the Colleens, who wore green uniforms, while another former second bagger, Barbara Liebrich, became the chaperone-manager for the Sallies, who wore white uniforms.''A League Of My Own: Memoir of a Pitcher for the All-American Girls'' – Patricia I. Brown. Publisher: Macfarland & Company, 2003. Format: Paperback, 216pp. Language: English. Mitch Skupien is part of the AAGPBL permanent display 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- ...

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 ...

, opened in , which is dedicated to the entire league rather than any individual figure.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Skupien, Mitch All-American Girls Professional Baseball League managers Minor league baseball managers Place of birth missing (living people) Year of birth unknown Possibly living people Baseball scouts