| 1951 All-American Girls Professional Baseball League season | |
|---|---|
 | |
| League | All-American Girls Professional Baseball League |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Teams | Eight |
| Regular season | |
| Season champions | Grand Rapids Chicks (first half) South Bend Blue Sox (second half) |
| Shaugnessy playoffs | |
| Champions | South Bend Blue Sox |
| AAGPBL seasons | |
The1951 All-American Girls Professional Baseball League season marked the ninth season of the circuit. The teamsBattle Creek Belles,Fort Wayne Daisies,Grand Rapids Chicks,Kalamazoo Lassies,Kenosha Comets,Peoria Redwings,Rockford Peaches andSouth Bend Blue Sox competed through a 112-game schedule, while theShaugnessy playoffs featured the top four teams from each half of the regular season.[1]
In 1951, many things changed in relation to the previous season, when attendance began to decline dramatically. TheRacine Belles franchise was moved toBattle Creek, Michigan, while theChicago Colleens andSpringfield Sallies traveling teams were disbanded.Betty Foss of Fort Wayne led all hitters for the second year in a row with a .368batting average, breaking her own single-season record of .346 set in her rookie season. Foss also topped the league with 34doubles, setting an all-timesingle-season record that would never be surpassed. Ninepitchers recorded anearned run average below 2.00, whileRose Gacioch of Rockford was the only one to gain 20 victories during the year. ThePlayer of the Year Award was given to South Bend pitcherJean Faut, who posted a 15–7 record with a 1.33 ERA and a league-leading 135strikeouts, including aperfect game against Rockford on July 21 of that season.[2][3]
During the best-of-three series, first-place South Bend defeated third-place Fort Wayne, two games to one, while second-place Grand Rapids was swept by fourth-place Rockford in two games. South Bend pitching starJean Fautdrove in a run and held Fort Wayne to a run in Game 1, and later struck out nine batters and allowed one run in Game 3 to advance to the finals. In the other series, Rockford'sHelen Nicol gave up six hits and shut out Grand Rapids in the first contest, whileMarie Mansfield hurled a 7–6, 11-inning victory to defeat the Chicks.[4]
The final series took all five games to decide the champion team. Rockford held a 2–0 advantage in the series and looked to take it all, but South Bend rebounded and won the last three games to clinch the title. In Game 3, Faut stopped the Peaches in their tracks, pitching a six-hit, 3–2 victory, and picked up the win in a seven-inningrelief effort in Game 5 to continue her winning ways. South Bend batted a collective .275 average in the finals, withJane Stoll leading the offense with a .333 average (6-for-18) and six RBI, whileSenaida Wirth batted .412 (7-for-17) and scored four runs, andBetty Wagoner hit .389 (7-for-18) with five runs.[4]
In 1951, the AAGPBL attendance declined for the third straight year. As revenues fell, individual teams' funds were limited to advertise nationally as a way of recruiting scattered baseball talent. With no centralized control of publicity, promotion, rookie training teams, and equalization of player talent, the League began to break down. The Kenosha and Peoria franchises withdrew at the end of the year, leaving the league with six teams for the next season.[5]
| Rank | Team | W | L | W-L% | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grand Rapids Chicks | 40 | 13 | .755 | — |
| 2 | Fort Wayne Daisies | 34 | 17 | .667 | 5 |
| 3 | South Bend Blue Sox | 38 | 22 | .633 | 5½ |
| 4 | Rockford Peaches | 31 | 26 | .544 | 11 |
| 5 | Peoria Redwings | 28 | 25 | .528 | 12 |
| 6 | Kenosha Comets | 21 | 36 | .368 | 21 |
| 7 | Kalamazoo Lassies | 19 | 38 | .333 | 23 |
| 8 | Battle Creek Belles | 11 | 45 | .196 | 30½ |
| Rank | Team | W | L | W-L% | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Bend Blue Sox | 38 | 14 | .731 | — |
| 2 | Rockford Peaches | 34 | 15 | .694 | 2½ |
| 3 | Fort Wayne Daisies | 34 | 18 | .654 | 4 |
| 4 | Grand Rapids Chicks | 31 | 22 | .585 | 7½ |
| 5 | Peoria Redwings | 21 | 31 | .404 | 17 |
| 6 | Battle Creek Belles | 19 | 35 | .352 | 20 |
| 7 | Kenosha Comets | 15 | 35 | .333 | 22 |
| 8 | Kalamazoo Lassies | 15 | 37 | .288 | 23 |
| Rank | Team | W | L | W-L% | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Bend Blue Sox | 76 | 36 | .679 | — |
| 2 | Grand Rapids Chicks | 71 | 35 | .670 | 2 |
| 3 | Fort Wayne Daisies | 68 | 35 | .660 | 3½ |
| 4 | Rockford Peaches | 65 | 41 | .613 | 8 |
| 5 | Peoria Redwings | 49 | 56 | .467 | 23½ |
| 6 | Kenosha Comets | 36 | 71 | .336 | 37½ |
| 7 | Kalamazoo Lassies | 34 | 75 | .312 | 40½ |
| 8 | Battle Creek Belles | 30 | 80 | .273 | 45 |
| First round Best of three series | Second round Best of five series | ||||||||
| 1 | South Bend Blue Sox | 2 | |||||||
| 3 | Fort Wayne Daisies | 1 | |||||||
| 1 | South Bend Blue Sox | 3 | |||||||
| 4 | Rockford Peaches | 2 | |||||||
| 2 | Grand Rapids Chicks | 0 | |||||||
| 4 | Rockford Peaches | 2 | |||||||
