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Why Did Women’s Professional Baseball Fail?
How the original league fell behind after being ahead of its time
During World War II, the keys to the baseball kingdom were briefly handed over to women. In 1943, baseball aficionado and gum magnate Philip Wrigley started the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Major League Baseball (MLB) was struggling mightily in the face of the global war. Young men at every level of baseball were being drafted or choosing to go to war. The drain on manpower and talent had a massive negative effect on professional baseball.
In 1940, there were 44 minor league teams feeding 16 major league clubs. By 1945, there were only 12 minor league teams remaining. The result was a precipitous drop in talent on the diamond. It was a drop in talent that Philip Wrigley saw with his own eyes and set out to do something about it.
While the United States was bereft of talented young men, it was not lacking in talented young women. The AAGPBL started during the dark heart of World War II and had some initial success. But the league would not last.
Today, there are many who believe that there is a larger potential market for women’s professional sports. Yet, there was a popular women’s professional league decades ago. What happened? Why did women’s professional…
