Sixty-five original AAGPBL members appeared in scenes for the movie filmed in October 1991 recreating the induction of the league into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1988.

Women were selected for their skilled play, but the player also needed to fit what was seen by marketers as a wholesome, feminine ideal.

The result was the creation of the six-team National Girls Baseball League, which began in 1944, composed entirely of Chicago-area teams.

The National Girls baseball League was founded by Emery Parichy, Charles Bidwill (owner of the Chicago Cardinals football team) and politician Ed Kolski.

The South Bend Blue Sox and the Rockford Peaches were the only two teams that stayed in their home cities for the full period of the AAGPBL's existence.

[7] Baseball Hall of Fame members Max Carey and Jimmie Foxx managed teams in the AAGPBL.

[19] The uniforms worn by the female ballplayers consisted of a belted, short-sleeved tunic dress with a slight flare of the skirt.

Rules stated that skirts were to be worn no more than six inches above the knee, but the regulation was most often ignored in order to facilitate running and fielding.

A circular team logo was sewn on the front of each dress, and baseball caps featured elastic bands in the back so that they were one-size-fits-all.

[20] During spring training, the girls were required to attend evening classes at Helena Rubinstein's charm school.

The proper etiquette for every situation was taught, and every aspect of personal hygiene, mannerisms and dress code was presented to all of the players.

The league was featured in national periodicals such as Time, Life, Seventeen, Newsweek and American Magazine, as well as in local city newspapers.

The major publicity themes that characterized the league were "Recreation for War Workers", "Femininity", "Community Welfare", and "Family Entertainment".

Only one team complied with Fred Leo's request, which led to an early 1952 preseason board meeting to discuss inadequate promotion.

[25] Due to the decentralized league administration, many of the promotion efforts from team management were aimed exclusively at local populaces.

[26] As attendance and revenues began to fall in the early 1950s, the league became less alluring to players, and some even returned to playing softball.

Compared to softball, the crucial differences were that nine (not ten) players were used, and runners could lead off, slide and steal bases.

In its twelve years of history the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League evolved through many stages.

These differences varied from the beginning of the league, progressively extending the length of the base paths and pitching distance, while decreasing the size of the ball until the final year of play in 1954.

For the first five years the circuit used a fastpitch underhand motion, shifted to sidearm in the 1947 season, and overhand pitching began in 1948.

[21] Shepard was also the longtime art director for the Chicago Cubs and spearheaded a series of innovative uniforms beginning in 1937.

[33] The uniform was meant to display the player's feminine image; all masculine clothing was not allowed, both on the field and in public.

Shepard unveiled the inaugural uniforms in a palette of pastel colors: green for Kenosha; yellow for Racine; blue for South Bend; and peach for Rockford.

Geena Davis, Lori Petty, Rosie O'Donnell, Madonna and Tom Hanks were the stars of the film, which was directed by Penny Marshall.

[38] The series also addresses race relations at the time, taking on a split format which follows both the Peaches and Max Chapman—a fictional black pitcher who was barred from trying out for the league.

Many people in the 1950s thought that women were not supposed to play baseball, so most female athletes competed on other fields of endeavor.

Finally, in 1980, former pitcher June Peppas launched a newsletter project to get in touch with friends, teammates, and opponents that resulted in the league's first reunion in Chicago, Illinois in 1982.

[45] The organization, headed by Sue Parsons (Rockford, 1953–54) with support from Misdee Miller, granddaughter of AAGPBL founder Phillip Wrigley, organizes the All-American Woman’s Baseball Classic at Ed Smith Stadium, the spring training home of the Baltimore Orioles, in Sarasota, Florida during November in a tournament that began in 2022.