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SPEAKER_02: ["Pomp and Circumstance"]
SPEAKER_01: Hello, from Wonder Media Network, I'm Jenny Kaplan and this is Encyclopedia Wamanica. Today we're talking about a legendary baseball pitcher. Despite being underestimated due to her age and gender, she struck out two of the greatest players of all time. Let's talk about Jackie Mitchell. Jackie Mitchell was born Vern Beatrice Mitchell on August 28th, 1913. Jackie's prowess on the baseball field started at an early age. Growing up in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Jackie's next door neighbor was the legendary pitcher Charles Arthur Dazzie Vance. Dazzie, a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, was a major league player for 20 years. He was the only pitcher to lead the National League in strikeouts for seven consecutive seasons. Dazzie worked with Jackie to teach her how to throw a variety of pitches, including breaking balls and his signature ball drop, more commonly referred to as a sinker. Jackie had a unique sidearm delivery for her pitches. It allowed her to maximize both control and speed. By the time Jackie was 16, she was playing for a traveling women's baseball team. While playing at training camp, Jackie's curveball caught the attention of Joe Engle, the owner of the Chattanooga minor league team, the Lookouts. Joe was known for pulling publicity stunts to try to pack stadiums. He thought that adding the first female pitcher in professional baseball to his roster would drive turnout. On March 25th, Jackie officially signed with the Lookouts. Sports journalists immediately took note of Jackie. Her distinct pitching style garnered fast attention. There was talk that she could be the first woman to go on and pitch in the major league. Along with praise of her technique came a pile of sexist coverage. One article read, "'The Curves Won't Be All on the Ball' when pretty Jackie Mitchell takes the mound." On April 2nd, 1931, the Lookouts had an exhibition game against the New York Yankees. The prospect of a 17-year-old girl pitching to legendary Yankees like Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig created massive buzz about the game. In front of a packed 4,000-person audience, the Lookouts' first pitcher gave up back-to-back base hits. The coach pulled him from the mound and put Jackie in his place. Her first matchup was against Babe Ruth. At that point, Babe Ruth was towards the end of his career. Still, he remained dominant. He would go on to finish the season tied for the lead for most home runs. He tipped his hat to Jackie and assumed the batting position. Jackie let rip her signature sidearm sinker. Ruth let it sail. It was called a ball. On the second pitch, Jackie didn't miss the strike zone. Ruth gave it a full-bodied slugger swing. He missed, badly. The third pitch, same thing happened. Swing and a miss. Ruth grew agitated and demanded the umpire inspect the ball. With a 1-2 count, Jackie needed one more strike to send Ruth back to the dugout. The stadium watched in astonishment as her next pitch caught the outside corner of the strike zone. Strike three. Yeah! Ruth flung his bat to the ground and stormed off. But Jackie's performance on the mound wasn't over. Next in the lineup was Lou Gehrig. Gehrig was in the prime of his career and would go on to tie Babe Ruth for most home runs that season. But he, too, was no match for Jackie. She sailed three balls over the plate. He swung and missed every single one. And just like that, three and out, Gehrig left the field in a huff. The crowd, understandably, went wild and gave Jackie a standing ovation. Despite this early success, Jackie walked the next two players and her coach called her back to the dugout. The Yankees went on to win the game 14-4. But the real victory was Jackie's. The New York Times ran a headline the next morning that read, Ruth and Gehrig struck out by girl pitcher. Unfortunately, Jackie would not go on to pitch in Major League Baseball. The baseball commissioner at the time, Kennesaw Mountain Landis, voided Jackie's contract. He claimed that baseball was too strenuous for women. But Jackie's baseball career wasn't over. In that era of baseball, there were a variety of amateur teams that traveled around the country infusing games with circus or vaudeville acts. They were known as barnstorming teams. In 1933, Jackie signed with the House of David, a barnstorming team known for wearing fake beards and riding donkeys during their games. With House of David, Jackie had another opportunity to pitch against major leaguers, successfully beating the St. Louis Cardinals 8-6. Ultimately, the circus-like antics of barnstorming baseball wore on Jackie. She retired from baseball in 1937 at the age of 23. Jackie went to work at her father's optical business back in Chattanooga. She declined to join the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League when it started up in 1943. In 1982, Jackie returned to the mound once more to throw the opening pitch of the season for the lookouts. Just five years later, in January of 1987, Jackie died. She was 73 years old. Jackie's famed strikeouts of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig are still debated amongst baseball historians. At the time of the game, plenty of newspapers speculated that the whole event had been orchestrated. After all, the owner of the lookouts was famous for pulling off crazy stunts. What could be a crazier stunt than a 17-year-old girl striking out two of the greatest baseball players of all time? Journalists for The New York Times commented on how Ruth, "...performed his role very ably. They alleged he was pretending to be upset by the strikeout. Some historians speculate that this narrative was created to protect their male egos. Others argue the skepticism is warranted. The odds that Jackie was skilled enough to beat these two greats in such a high-profile moment may be a bit too good to be true. That said, for those who believe the strikeouts were legitimate, there's evidence to back that up, too. As a totally unknown pitcher, Jackie was a wild card, and that gave her the upper hand against Ruth and Gehrig. She was also a left-handed sidearm pitcher facing lefty batters, a favorable matchup for Jackie. Most importantly, she was trained by the great Dazzie Vance. The element of surprise and her technical training could have all come together for the sensational upset. If Ruth and Gehrig were in on it, they never said as much. When Jackie was asked directly if Ruth and Gehrig were actually trying or if it was all a ruse, she replied, "'Why hell, they were trying, damn right. Hell, better hitters than them couldn't hit me. Why should they have been any different?'"
SPEAKER_08: All month, we're talking about Olympians, or women who should have been Olympians.
SPEAKER_01: For more on why we're doing what we're doing, check out our newsletter, Womanica Weekly. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram at Encyclopedia Womanica. Special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co-creator. Talk to you tomorrow. Before you go, I wanna tell you about another show I think you might like. There's a new podcast from the TED audio collective called Body Stuff with Dr. Jen Gunter. Join Dr. Jen Gunter, an OB-GYN and pain medicine physician, as she busts the lies we're told and sold about our health. Is it possible to boost the immune system? Do we really need eight glasses of water a day? She'll unpack some of the surprising cultural backstories behind medicine and explore how the body actually works. Find and follow Body Stuff with Jen Gunter wherever you're listening.
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