The American Women's Baseball Association (AWBA) was founded by Darlene
Mehrer in 1988. Darlene attended a Randy Hundley Baseball Fantasy Camp and
found she loved playing baseball. She looked for a team to play with, and
when she found there were no women's baseball teams, she started AWBA as
a not-for-profit recreational women's baseball league. Played in Glenview,
IL, the first AWBA game was televised on a local Chicago cable station.
Members of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL)
attended the game and threw out the ceremonial first pitch. Approximately
100 fans attended the game. Players from the game signed a baseball that
was placed in the Women in Baseball Exhibit in the Baseball Hall of Fame
at Cooperstown, NY. Darlene attended the opening of this exhibit in November
1989. AWBA is believed to be the first organized women's baseball league
since the AAGPBL folded in 1954. Darlene died in January 1990.
AWBA has hosted various baseball-related activities throughout the years,
including sponsoring charity events. AWBA has participated in All Star
games among its own players or against teams from other states, including
games held at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Kane County Stadium in Geneva, IL,
Chief's Stadium in Kenosha, WI, and Michigan State University in Lansing,
MI. Six players from AWBA were extras in the movie "A League of Their Own."
AWBA has had as many as 5 teams and has played in Glenview, Chicago, Oak
Park, Lisle, and Lombard. AWBA teams have traveled at times, playing
in Kenosha, WI, Lansing, MI, and South Bend, IN. Various competitive/traveling
teams have spun off AWBA over the years, the latest being the
Chicago Storm
. Members of the Storm regularly attend AWBA practices, where tryouts are
held.
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