Evelyn Wawryshyn
Encyclopedia
Evelyn Wawryshyn [Litwin/Moroz] (born November 11, 1924) is a former Canadian second basewoman who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was a women's professional baseball league founded by Philip K. Wrigley which existed from 1943 to 1954. During the league's history, over 600 women played ball.-History:...

. Listed at 5' 3", 130 lb., Wawryshyn batted and threw right-handed. She was nicknamed Evie by her friends and teammates.

Evelyn Wawryshyn was a slick-fielder at second base, playing for four different teams of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in a span of six years. Basically a consistent line-drive
Line drive
In baseball, a line drive is a type of batted ball, sharply hit, and on a level trajectory. The threshold between a line drive and a fly ball can be subjective....

 hitter, she posted a career .266 batting average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...

 in 544 games. Despite hitting only one home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...

 in 1943 at bat
At bat
In baseball, an at bat or time at bat is used to calculate certain statistics, including batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage. It is a more restricted definition of a plate appearance...

s, she contributed with 463 single
Single (baseball)
In baseball, a single is the most common type of base hit, accomplished through the act of a batter safely reaching first base by hitting a fair ball and getting to first base before a fielder puts him out...

s, 37 double
Double (baseball)
In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

s and 16 triple
Triple (baseball)
In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

s to collect a .303 of slugging. She also brought her Player of the Year honourable mention status in 1948 as well as steadily improving All-Star recognition, joining the third All-League team in 1948, the second team in 1949, and a first selection for the All-Star Game at second base in the 1950 season. In addition, her .266 average ranks her thirteen on the AAGPBL career batting list.

1940s

The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was a circuit that began to operate in the early 1940s in cities located on or near Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...

. The main promoter was Philip K. Wrigley
Philip K. Wrigley
Philip Knight Wrigley , sometimes also called P.K. or Phil. Born in Chicago, he was an American chewing gum manufacturer and executive in Major League Baseball, inheriting both those roles as the quiet son of his much more flamboyant father, William Wrigley Jr. After his father died in 1932, Philip...

, owner of the Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...

, who worried about the viability of Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 players during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 decided to establish an alternate attraction. Since the only organized ball for women in the country was softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...

, the league officials created a hybrid game that included both fast-pitch
Fastpitch softball
Fast-pitch softball is a form of softball played commonly by women and men, though coed fast-pitch leagues also exist. The International Softball Federation is the international governing body of softball...

 softball and baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

. Wrigley had scout
Scout (sport)
In professional sports, scouts are trained talent evaluators who travel extensively for the purposes of watching athletes play their chosen sports and determining whether their set of skills and talents represent what is needed by the scout's organization...

s all over the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 and even Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...

 signing girls for tryouts. The circuit was initially called the All-American Girls Softball League, though early in the first season the name was changed to All American Girl's Baseball League. In its twelve years of history the AAGPBL evolved through many stages progressing far enough to become a regulation baseball game. These differences varied from the beginning of the league in 1943, progressively extending the length of the base paths and pitching distance and decreasing the size of the ball until the final season of play in 1954.

A native of Tyndall, Manitoba
Tyndall, Manitoba
Tyndall is a community in Manitoba. It is located in the Rural Municipality of Brokenhead.Tyndall is a community in Manitoba. It is located in the Rural Municipality of Brokenhead....

, Wawryshyn was the only girl in a home of four children. Archie, the older brother, always let her play ball with him. I believe he is responsible for implanting the love for this pastime, she recalled in her autobiography. But like most athletes, Wawryshyn excelled in more than one sport. She dabbled in ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

, was North-Eastern Manitoba Senior Girls' track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...

 champion in 1940, and played fastball pitch in Winnipeg for the CUAC Blues (Canadian Ukrainian Athletic Club), provincial champion team in 1945, to become the Blues Most Valuable Player
Most Valuable Player
In sports, a Most Valuable Player award is an honor typically bestowed upon the best performing player or players on a specific team, in an entire league, or for a particular contest or series of contests...

 and win the Koman Trophy. She also was a member of the Provincial Senior Ladies' Championship basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 team in Flin Flon
Flin Flon
Flin Flon is a Canadian mining city located on the border of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, with the majority of the city located within Manitoba.- Founding :...

 in 1946, but in reality her real passion was baseball. Her dreams came true when she was discovered by an AAGPBL scout
Scout (sport)
In professional sports, scouts are trained talent evaluators who travel extensively for the purposes of watching athletes play their chosen sports and determining whether their set of skills and talents represent what is needed by the scout's organization...

 who invited her to a tryout camp at Wrigley Field
Wrigley Field
Wrigley Field is a baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales...

 in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

. She passed the test and was rewarded with a contract to play in the league.

Attractive, quiet, pleasant, the charming Wawryshyn moved around for a while in a brief period of six years, as the AAGPBL shifted players as needed to help teams stay afloat. She entered the league in 1946 with the Kenosha Comets
Kenosha Comets
Based in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the Kenosha Comets were a women's professional baseball team that played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The team played their home games at Kenosha's Lake Front Stadium, but later moved to Simmons Field.The Kenosha Comets were one...

, playing for them part of the season before joining the Muskegon Lassies
Muskegon Lassies
The Muskegon Lassies were one of the expansion teams of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in , representing Muskegon, Michigan. The team played their home games at Marsh Field....

 (1946–47), Springfield Sallies
Springfield Sallies
The Springfield Sallies were a women's professional baseball team who joined the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in the season. The team represented Springfield, Illinois, and played their games at Lanphier Ball Park....

 (1948) and Fort Wayne Daisies
Fort Wayne Daisies
The Fort Wayne Daisies were a women's professional baseball team that played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League...

 (1949–51). My favorite manager was Carson Bigbee
Carson Bigbee
Carson Lee "Skeeter" Bigbee was an American outfielder in Major League Baseball who played his entire career with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was born in Lebanon, Oregon, and attended the University of Oregon....

 (Muskegon and Springfield), who gave me the chance to play each and every game
, Wawryshyn said. She added, Later, Max Carey
Max Carey
Max George Carey was an American center fielder in Major League Baseball who starred for the Pittsburgh Pirates and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1961...

 was instrumental in my final year with the Fort Wayne Daisies
.

In her rookie season, Wawryshyn appeared in a combined 73 games between Kenosha and Muskegon, hitting .217 and driving in
Run batted in
Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...

 18 runs while scoring
Run (baseball)
In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted balls are met or assured...

 29 times.

In April 1947, all of the league's players were flown to Havana, Cuba, for spring training
Spring training
In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...

. The trip was a highlight experience for many of the girls, and Wawryshyn remembered it well. I especially enjoyed spring training in Cuba, she recalled. At the time, the Brooklyn Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...

 trained in Havana because Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson was the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947...

, who would be the first Afro-American to play in the Major Leagues, was training with the Dodgers for the first time. City ordinances in Vero Beach, Florida
Vero Beach, Florida
Vero Beach is a city in Indian River County, Florida, USA. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2006 estimates, the city had a population of 16,939. It is the county seat of Indian River County...

, where the Dodgers normally trained, prevented blacks and whites from competing on the same field against each other. Notably, newspaper stories from Havana indicate that the All-American girls drew larger crowds for their exhibition games in Havana than did the Dodgers. Wawryshyn saw little action with the Lassies that year, but still to increase her average to .237 in just 36 games.

In 1948, Wawryshyn was dealt to the Springfield Sallies in an effort to bolster the new team. But the helpless Sallies finished as the worst team in the league, getting roughed up as a last-place expansion club with a 41-84 record, ending 35 and a half games behind the Racine Belles
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 team played its home games at Horlick Field.-History:...

 in the Western Division, and had no All-Stars in their roster. The only regular to have a significant year for them was Wawryshyn, who tied for sixth place in the league with a .266 batting average in a career-high 114 games, while ranking among the top ten hitters with 114 hits, 66 stolen base
Stolen base
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate...

s and 126 total bases
Total bases
In baseball statistics, total bases refers to the number of bases a player has gained with hits, i.e., the sum of his hits weighted by 1 for a single, 2 for a double, 3 for a triple and 4 for a home run.Only bases attained from hits count toward this total....

. The pitching staff was led by the durable Doris Barr
Doris Barr
Doris Barr [Dodie] was a pitcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5' 6", 145 lb., Barr batted and threw left-handed...

, who posted a decent 2.68 ERA
Earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...

 with a career-high 116 strikeout
Strikeout
In baseball or softball, a strikeout or strike-out occurs when a batter receives three strikes during his time at bat. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters....

s despite her 7-19 record. The ill-fated Sallies folded at the end of the season.

Wawryshyn breathed fresh air when she moved to Fort Wayne in 1949, as part of a team accustomed to the spotlight. The strong Daisies counted with the sister duet of Betty Foss
Betty Foss
Betty Foss [Fossey] was a infielder and outfielder who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5' 10", 180 lb., she was a switch-hitter and threw right-handed. She started her career as Betty Weaver but changed her last name to Foss after marrying...

 and Joanne Weaver
Joanne Weaver
Joanne Weaver [″Joltin' Jo″] was a right fielder who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League...

, who combined to win five consecutive batting championships, as well as the slugger Wilma Briggs
Wilma Briggs
Wilma Briggs [Briggsie] is a former female left fielder who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5' 4", 138 lb., she batted left-handed and threw right-handed....

, flashy infielders as Mildred Deegan
Millie Deegan
Mildred Eleanor Deegan was an American pitcher and second baseman who played ten seasons in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, from to .-Background:...

 and Dorothy Schroeder
Dorothy Schroeder
Dorothy Schroeder [″Dottie″] was a shortstop who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5' 7", 150 lb., Schroeder batted and threw right-handed...

, while the pitching stars were Dorothy Collins
Dottie Wiltse Collins
Dorothy Wiltse Collins [Dottie] was an American pitcher in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, which was in existence from 1943–54....

 and Maxine Kline
Maxine Kline
Maxine Kline [Randall] is a former female starting pitcher who played from through with the Fort Wayne Daisies of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League...

.

1950s

Wawryshyn hit .251 in her first season for the Daisies, including 47 runs and 34 RBI in 109 games. Her most productive season came in 1950, when she posted a career-high .311 average in 104 games and was selected for the All-Star Team
All-American Girls Professional Baseball League All-Star Team
The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was a women's professional baseball circuit which existed for twelve seasons from through ....

. She also smashed 124 hits in 399 at-bats and scored 71 times, all career-highs, while driving in 50 runs. In 1951, during what turned out to be her final season, she hit a solid .277 with a career-high 54 RBI and 60 runs scored in 104 games. While the Daisies made the playoffs in their 1945 debut and from 1948 through 1954, they struggled in the post-season and never won a championship title.

Usually, Wawryshyn played ice hockey during the baseball off-season. Her highlights include being the top scorer on the Senior Women's hockey team of Winnipeg that won both Western and Eastern Canadian finals in 1950. She also worked as a teacher in the off-season, and eventually missed spring training. She married in 1951 and has been a member of the AAGPBL Players Association since its inception in 1982.

Wawryshyn and other 63 girls that represented Canada in the AAGPBL form part of the permanent display at the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum at Cooperstown, New York
Cooperstown, New York
Cooperstown is a village in Otsego County, New York, USA. It is located in the Town of Otsego. The population was estimated to be 1,852 at the 2010 census.The Village of Cooperstown is the county seat of Otsego County, New York...

, inaugurated in 1988, which is dedicated to the entire league rather than any individual player. She also gained inductions into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame (1992), the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (1998), and the Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame (1998).

Wawryshyn currently lives in Winnipeg, Canada.

Batting statistics

GP
Games played
Games played is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated ; the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested.-Baseball:In baseball, the statistic applies also to players who, prior to a game,...

AB
At bat
In baseball, an at bat or time at bat is used to calculate certain statistics, including batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage. It is a more restricted definition of a plate appearance...

R
Run (baseball)
In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted balls are met or assured...

H
Hit (baseball)
In baseball statistics, a hit , also called a base hit, is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches first base after hitting the ball into fair territory, without the benefit of an error or a fielder's choice....

2B
Double (baseball)
In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

3B
Triple (baseball)
In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

HR
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...

RBI
Run batted in
Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...

BA
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...

SLG
544 1943 275 517 37 16 1 193 .266 .303

Sources

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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