Women's Baseball

Women's baseball is played in several countries. The strongest and most organized women's baseball leagues are in the United States, Australia, Japan, Taiwan, Cuba, Hong Kong, and Canada. Those countries have national governing bodies that support girls' and women's baseball programs. Other countries/regions that currently have organized women's baseball are Germany, France, Netherlands, Croatia, India, South Korea, Venezuela, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Brazil, Dominican Republic, and Pakistan. There also is a handful of women playing baseball in Vietnam currently on the Fishanu team at Hanoi University and on the Hanoi Baseball Club.

Internationally, the World Baseball Softball Confederation is the world governing body for women's and men's baseball, as well as women's and men's softball. The WBSC was created in 2013.

Timeline

Important events and milestones in women's baseball:

* 1875 – The first women's baseball game for which fans were charged and women players were paid was played between the Blondes and the Brunettes in Springfield, Illinois, on 11 September.
* 1876 – The Resolutes, modeled after the Vassar College team, developed their own version of uniforms which included long-sleeved shirts with frilled high necklines, embroidered belts, wide floor-length skirts, high button shoes and broad striped caps.
* 1880 – A Smith College team was disbanded after disapproving mothers complained about the children playing the sport, saying it was not appropriate for women to play.
* 1880s – The Dolly Vardens, an all-female, African-American team from Chester, Pennsylvania, was assembled by barber-turned-sports entrepreneur John Lang in the 1880s as a team that played for the entertainment of spectators.
* 1920s – Philadelphia had factory teams for women, women's leagues, and the Philadelphia Bobbies for non-working women.
* 1930s – The "Bold Years" for women's baseball; women baseball players toured internationally, played junior baseball, and signed minor league contracts.
* 1943–54 – The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) was started by Philip Wrigley, owner of the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley's Chewing Gum.
* 1944–54 – The National Girls Baseball League was founded by Charles Bidwell, owner of the Chicago Cardinals. The league consisted of teams in Chicago and operated for 11 seasons.
* 1946 – Sophie Kurys set the stolen base record for the AAGPBL with 201 stolen bases in 203 attempts; this record continues to be unequalled in baseball history, as Rickey Henderson is second in stolen bases with 130 (1982).
* 1947 – The Racine Belles of the AAGPBL started the Junior Belles baseball program; 100 girls tried out and 60 were selected to play on four teams; the Grays, Greens, Reds, and Golds.
* 1948 – Dottie Wiltse pitched for the AAGPBL up until she was four months pregnant.
* 1948 – The Junior Belles became more popular, as more girls tried out for the teams; other AAGPBL teams, such as the Lassies and the Comets, began to sponsor girls’ junior baseball teams.
* 1948 – After five years of playing, the AAGBL (also known as the AAGPBL) starts throwing pitches overhand instead of underhand.
* 1950 – The Racine Belles and Junior Belles folded due to lack of money.
* 1955 – Bill Allington formed two women's teams called Allington's All-Stars which barnstormed the U.S. playing men's town and semi-pro teams, and lasted until 1957.
* 1984 – Former Atlanta Braves executive Bob Hope founded the Sun Sox, an all-women's team, and tried to enter them into the Class A Florida State League; however, the league did not award Hope the franchise.
* 1988 – American Women's Baseball Association (AWBA) founded in Chicago; first organized women's league since AAGPBL (1943–1954).
* 1990s – American Women's Baseball League (AWBL; also known as American Women's Baseball, AWB) was founded by Jim Glennie in an effort to unite women's baseball teams and leagues around the country and to provide support to them.
* 1992 – ''A League of Their Own'' movie about the AAGPBL was produced by Penny Marshall.
* 1994 – Bob Hope formed and Coors Brewing Company sponsored the Colorado Silver Bullets women's baseball team which played men's college and minor league teams; the team existed for 4 years.
* 1994 – Women's National Adult Baseball Association (WNABA) formed; 16 women's teams played in a women's world series in Phoenix in 1994.
* 1995 – WNABA had 100 affiliated women's baseball teams in 16 states in the U.S.
* 1997 – Ladies League Baseball was formed by San Diego businessperson Mike Ribant.
* 1998 – After beginning its second season, the Ladies League Baseball expanded to 6 teams and went nationwide, but folds shortly after "due to lack of attendance".
* 2000 – The American Women's Baseball League (AWBL) took women's baseball team to Japan to play Team Energen, the Japanese women's national team.
* 2001 – The first Women's World Series (WWS) was played at the SkyDome in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; countries that participated included the United States of America, Australia, Canada, and Japan – the U.S. won the gold medal.
* 2003 – Pawtucket Slaterettes all-girls' baseball league celebrated its 30th season of all-girls' baseball.
* 2003 – Women's baseball became an official sport (39th) of the AAU; this marked the first time in United States history that a U.S. national organization began sanctioning and supporting women's baseball.
* 2003 – The American Eagles of American Women's Baseball Federation (AWBF) became the first women's baseball team to be sanctioned by USA Baseball.
* 2004 – The first-ever Women's Baseball World Cup was played in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; the event was sanctioned by the International Baseball Association and Federation (IBAF) and was hosted by Baseball Canada. Seven Women's Baseball World Cup tournaments have been held biennially, most recently in September 2016.
* 2004 – USA Baseball sanctioned the first official national women's baseball team; the team competed in the 2004 WWS (in Japan) and in the 2004 Women's World Cup of Baseball
* 2004 – John Kovach, manager of the South Bend Blue Sox Women's Baseball Club, director of the Great Lakes Women's Baseball League, and AAU Women's Baseball Youth Baseball Chair, worked out a proposal with Little League Baseball

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