Fern Battaglia
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| Fern Battaglia | |
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| Third base / Second base | |
| Born: January 6, 1931 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | |
| Died: March 15, 2001 (aged 70) Bensenville, Illinois, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| Teams | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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Fern Gertrude Battaglia (January 6, 1931 – March 15, 2001) was an infielder who played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Listed at 5' 4", 120 lb., she batted and threw right handed.[1][2]
Born in Chicago, Illinois, the diminutive Fern Battaglia joined the league in 1950 with her hometown Chicago Colleens, by then a player development team. She split time between third and second bases in her rookie year, batting .204 (51-for-250) with one home run and 29 runs batted in in 67 games, gaining a promotion to the Battle Creek Belles for the 1951 season.[3][4]
She then played half a season with the Belles before returning home to take care of her ill mother. Battaglia posted a .167 average in just 18 games and did not return to the league for a second season.[1]
After that she was employed by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), teaching at public schools in the Chicago area.[1]
In 1988, Fern received further recognition when she became part of Women in Baseball, a permanent display based at the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York, which was unveiled to honor the entire All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
She was a longtime resident of Bensenville, Illinois, where she died in 2001 at the age of 70.[2][5]