Nancy Mudge
Encyclopedia
Nancy Mudge [Cato] is a former second basewoman who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
. Listed at 5' 2", 120 lb., Mudge batted and threw right handed. She was nicknamed ″Smudgie″.
Born in Bridgeport, New York
, Nancy Mudge played during five seasons in the AAGPBL, three of them with the Kalamazoo Lassies
. Mudge was a solid, smooth-fielding at second base that paced the league in fielding percentage
between 1953 and 1954. A light hitter, she had the ability to get on base, by any means, way above than the pure ability to get the hit
. She reached first base by walks
, by a bunt single or being hit
by the pitcher, though she was a .183 career hitter but posted a solid .311 on-base percentage. A smart and aggressive baserunner, she knew when to take the extra base. An AAGPBL scout
tried to sign Mudge after seeing her playing field hockey
in Indiana
, thinking that she had athletic abilities, endurance and fitness necessary to play baseball. Mudge refused, because she wanted to graduate college first. However, she later had a tryout with the Fort Wayne Daisies
.
, and was sent to the Springfield Sallies
during the midseason. She hit a combined .308 average
with 24 runs batted in in their first 40 games. Unfortunately, she tore a cartilage in her knee that required surgery and rehabilitation for the rest of the summer.
After graduating from college, Mudge returned to baseball action and was assigned to the Kalamazoo Lassies in 1951. She played for them two and a half years before joining the Battle Creek Belles
during the 1952 midseason. After that, she spent 1953 with the relocated Muskegon Belles
, when the franchise moved for a while to see if that city would support a girls baseball team, but the experiment failed and Mudge returned to Kalamazoo in 1954.
In 1954 Mudge hit .232 in 98 games, including career-numbers in runs scored (74) and hits (82), while driving in
22 runs. She also made the league's All-Star Team
, forming part of a Lassies All-Star slick infield that included June Peppas
at first base, Dorothy Schroeder
at shortstop
, and Fern Shollenberger
at third base
. Meanwhile, the called Home Run Twins, Chris Ballingall
(17) and Carol Habben
(15), powered the offense with 32 home run
s; Peppas and Schroeder enjoyed big numbers, and Kalamazoo advanced to the Championship Series. As a result, the Lassies defeated the Daisies in a best-of-five games series, during what turned out to be the AAGPBL final season.
Mudge returned home after the league disbanded. She married and changed her name to Nancy Mudge Cato. She is currently living in Elk River, Minnesota
.
Mudge was one of 25 players who made the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League clubs hailed from New York City and State, including Muriel Bevis
, Gloria Cordes
, Mildred Deegan
, Betty Trezza
and Margaret Wigiser
.
Since 1980, June Peppas and a group of friends began assembling a list of names and addresses of former All-American Girls Professional Baseball League players. Her work turned into a newsletter and resulted in the league’s first-ever reunion in Chicago, Illinois in 1982. Starting from that reunion, a Players Association was formed five years later and a significant number of former AAGPBL players continued to enjoy reunions, which became annual events in 1998. For many years, Nancy Mudge Cato has been an active participant in the events organized by the association.
The AAGPBL folded in 1954, but there is now a permanent display at the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum at Cooperstown, New York
since November 5, that honors those who were part of this unique experience. June and Nancy, along with the rest of the league's girls, is now enshrined in the Hall.
The AAGPBL Players Association helped to bring the league story to the public eye. The association was largely responsible for the opening of the aforementioned exhibition. Of the approximately 560 women who had played in the league, most had lost touch with the others; at least not until the first reunion held in Chicago.
In July 1988, the Society for American Baseball Research
(SABR) held their annual National Convention in Minneapolis with 340 people in attendance. Andy MacPhail
was the keynote speaker, and Minor league baseball
home run legend Joe Hauser
was a special guest, while Nancy was part of a players panel along Hauser, Julio Bécquer
and Howie Schultz
.
Nancy was also honored by the Colorado Silver Bullets
all-female baseball team in their 1994 inaugural season, in which she threw out the first ball pitch of a game celebrated in Saint Paul, Minnesota
.
Fielding
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' 2", 120 lb., Mudge batted and threw right handed. She was nicknamed ″Smudgie″.
Born in Bridgeport, New York
Bridgeport, New York
Bridgeport is a hamlet located partly in the Town of Sullivan in Madison County, New York and partly in the Town of Cicero in Onondaga County, New York...
, Nancy Mudge played during five seasons in the AAGPBL, three of them with the Kalamazoo Lassies
Kalamazoo Lassies
The Kalamazoo Lassies were a team who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The team represented Kalamazoo, Michigan. Home games were initially played at Lindstrom Field, but later games were played at the Catholic Athletic Association Field, now the...
. Mudge was a solid, smooth-fielding at second base that paced the league in fielding percentage
Fielding percentage
In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball...
between 1953 and 1954. A light hitter, she had the ability to get on base, by any means, way above than the pure ability to get the hit
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....
. She reached first base by walks
Base on balls
A base on balls is credited to a batter and against a pitcher in baseball statistics when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls balls. It is better known as a walk. The base on balls is defined in Section 2.00 of baseball's Official Rules, and further detail is given in 6.08...
, by a bunt single or being hit
Hit by pitch
In baseball, hit by pitch , or hit batsman , is a batter or his equipment being hit in some part of his body by a pitch from the pitcher.-Official rule:...
by the pitcher, though she was a .183 career hitter but posted a solid .311 on-base percentage. A smart and aggressive baserunner, she knew when to take the extra base. 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...
tried to sign Mudge after seeing her playing field hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
in Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, thinking that she had athletic abilities, endurance and fitness necessary to play baseball. Mudge refused, because she wanted to graduate college first. However, she later had a tryout with the 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...
.
AAGPBL career
In 1950, between her junior and senior years in college, Mudge was given a contract to play with the Chicago ColleensChicago Colleens
The Chicago Colleens were a women's professional baseball team who played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The team represented Chicago, Illinois and played their home games at Shewbridge Field....
, and was sent to the 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....
during the midseason. She hit a combined .308 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 :...
with 24 runs batted in in their first 40 games. Unfortunately, she tore a cartilage in her knee that required surgery and rehabilitation for the rest of the summer.
After graduating from college, Mudge returned to baseball action and was assigned to the Kalamazoo Lassies in 1951. She played for them two and a half years before joining the Battle Creek Belles
Battle Creek Belles
The Battle Creek Belles were a women's professional baseball team that played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League...
during the 1952 midseason. After that, she spent 1953 with the relocated Muskegon Belles
Muskegon Belles
The Muskegon Belles were a women's professional baseball team that played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League during the season....
, when the franchise moved for a while to see if that city would support a girls baseball team, but the experiment failed and Mudge returned to Kalamazoo in 1954.
In 1954 Mudge hit .232 in 98 games, including career-numbers in runs scored (74) and hits (82), while 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...
22 runs. She also made the league's 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 ....
, forming part of a Lassies All-Star slick infield that included June Peppas
June Peppas
June Peppas is a former first basewoman and pitcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5' 5", 145 lb., she batted and threw left-handed.-Early life:...
at first base, 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...
at shortstop
Shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...
, and Fern Shollenberger
Fern Shollenberger
Fern Shollenberger [Shelly] was a third basewoman who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5' 4", 125 lb., she batted and threw right-handed.-Brief profile:...
at third base
Third Base
is a 1978 Japanese film directed by Yōichi Higashi.-External links:...
. Meanwhile, the called Home Run Twins, Chris Ballingall
Chris Ballingall
Chris Ballingall is a former female catcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5'6", 145 lb., she batted left-handed and threw right-handed....
(17) and Carol Habben
Carol Habben
Carol Habben was a center fielder and backup catcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5' 5", 135 lb., she batted and threw right-handed....
(15), powered the offense with 32 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...
s; Peppas and Schroeder enjoyed big numbers, and Kalamazoo advanced to the Championship Series. As a result, the Lassies defeated the Daisies in a best-of-five games series, during what turned out to be the AAGPBL final season.
Mudge returned home after the league disbanded. She married and changed her name to Nancy Mudge Cato. She is currently living in Elk River, Minnesota
Elk River, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 16,447 people, 5,664 households, and 4,400 families residing in the city. Recent estimates show the population at 21,329 as of 2005. The population density was 385.5 people per square mile . There were 5,782 housing units at an average density of 135.5 per...
.
Mudge was one of 25 players who made the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League clubs hailed from New York City and State, including Muriel Bevis
Muriel Bevis
Muriel Bevis [″Breezy″] was a female outfielder and pitcher who played in All-American Girls Professional Baseball League during the season. Bevis batted and threw left-handed. She was born in Corona, Queens, New York City....
, Gloria Cordes
Gloria Cordes
Gloria Cordes [Elliott] is a former starting pitcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League...
, 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:...
, Betty Trezza
Betty Trezza
Betty Trezza [″Moe″] was an American professional baseball player. An infield and outfield utility, she played from through for four different teams of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League....
and Margaret Wigiser
Margaret Wigiser
Margaret M. Wigiser [Wiggie] is a former center fielder who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League...
.
Since 1980, June Peppas and a group of friends began assembling a list of names and addresses of former All-American Girls Professional Baseball League players. Her work turned into a newsletter and resulted in the league’s first-ever reunion in Chicago, Illinois in 1982. Starting from that reunion, a Players Association was formed five years later and a significant number of former AAGPBL players continued to enjoy reunions, which became annual events in 1998. For many years, Nancy Mudge Cato has been an active participant in the events organized by the association.
The AAGPBL folded in 1954, but there is now a 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...
since November 5, that honors those who were part of this unique experience. June and Nancy, along with the rest of the league's girls, is now enshrined in the Hall.
The AAGPBL Players Association helped to bring the league story to the public eye. The association was largely responsible for the opening of the aforementioned exhibition. Of the approximately 560 women who had played in the league, most had lost touch with the others; at least not until the first reunion held in Chicago.
In July 1988, the Society for American Baseball Research
Society for American Baseball Research
The Society for American Baseball Research was established in Cooperstown, New York, in August 1971 by Bob Davids of Washington, D.C. The Society's mission is to foster the research and dissemination of the history and record of baseball, while generating interest in the game...
(SABR) held their annual National Convention in Minneapolis with 340 people in attendance. Andy MacPhail
Andy MacPhail
Andy MacPhail is the former president of baseball operations for the Baltimore Orioles. He was the president/CEO of the National League Chicago Cubs from September 9, 1994 until October 1, 2006...
was the keynote speaker, and Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
home run legend Joe Hauser
Joe Hauser
Joseph John "Unser Choe" Hauser is a former professional baseball player who played first baseman in the major leagues from 1922–1929, with the Philadelphia Athletics and Cleveland Indians...
was a special guest, while Nancy was part of a players panel along Hauser, Julio Bécquer
Julio Bécquer
Julio Bécquer Villegas is a retired professional baseball player who played 7 seasons for the Washington Senators, Los Angeles Angels, and Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball...
and Howie Schultz
Howie Schultz
Howard Henry "Howie" Schultz , nicknamed "Stretch" and "Steeple", was an American baseball and basketball player from Saint Paul, Minnesota....
.
Nancy was also honored by the Colorado Silver Bullets
Colorado Silver Bullets
The Colorado Silver Bullets was an all-female professional baseball team that played in the United States in the mid-1990s. The Bullets were the first such team since the folding of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in 1954.- History :...
all-female baseball team in their 1994 inaugural season, in which she threw out the first ball pitch of a game celebrated in Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...
.
Career statistics
Batting| 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... | SB 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... | TB 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.... | BB Base on balls A base on balls is credited to a batter and against a pitcher in baseball statistics when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls balls. It is better known as a walk. The base on balls is defined in Section 2.00 of baseball's Official Rules, and further detail is given in 6.08... | SO 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.... | 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 :... | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 350 | 1094 | 186 | 200 | 25 | 3 | 8 | 55 | 97 | 255 | BB | SO | .183 | .311 | .233 |
Fielding
| 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,... | PO | A Assist (baseball) In baseball, an assist is a defensive statistic, baseball being one of the few sports in which the defensive team controls the ball. An assist is awarded to every defensive player who fields or touches the ball prior to the recording of a putout, even if the contact was unintentional... | E Error (baseball) In baseball statistics, an error is the act, in the judgment of the official scorer, of a fielder misplaying a ball in a manner that allows a batter or baserunner to reach one or more additional bases, when such an advance would have been prevented given ordinary effort by the fielder.The term ... | TC Total chances In baseball statistics, total chances , also called chances offered, represents the number of plays in which a defensive player has participated. It is calculated as follows: Total Chances = assists + putouts + errors. Chances accepted refers to the total of putouts and assists only. Fielding... | DP Double play In baseball, a double play for a team or a fielder is the act of making two outs during the same continuous playing action. In baseball slang, making a double play is referred to as "turning two".... | FA Fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 326 | 826 | 623 | 109 | 1558 | 111 | .935 |