Dorothy “Dottie” Green

Natick has a longstanding history with America’s national pastime. Some Natick residents and visitors may be familiar with the Harwood & Sons Baseball Factory building downtown, but not everyone knows about one of Natick’s best players.

Dottie’s high school senior portrait, 1938 | from Natick Historical Society collections

Dorothy “Dottie” Green was one of the founding members of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) in 1943, playing catcher for the Rockford Peaches. Dottie played for the team for four years until a knee injury in 1947 ended her baseball career. She then served as a chaperone for the team until 1953, one year before the league was officially disbanded.

Before Dottie played for the AAGPBL, she was a student at Natick High School. According to her senior yearbook, Dottie was very involved in extracurriculars. She served as Captain of the basketball and bowling teams, Captain of the Girls’ Athletic League, and Manager for Fall Sports. She also played on the baseball, ping pong, badminton, tennis, volleyball, and field hockey teams. Beyond the athletic fields, Dottie played trumpet and harmonica in the high school band and orchestra. Her peers predicted she would be America's “ping pong champion” by 1953.

After graduating from high school, Dottie played for the Boston Olympettes, a semi-pro softball team in Boston Garden. When the AAGPBL was founded, Dottie was one of the several Olympettes recruited for the new league. As a catcher for the Rockford Peaches, Dottie had an excellent defensive record with a career fielding average of .960 and was known to handle her pitchers well. Dottie and the Rockford Peaches won the league championship in 1945.

Dottie in her catcher’s gear (right), speaking to pitcher Olive Little (left), undated | from Rockford Register Star

The AAGPBL was formed in 1943 during WWII to maintain interest in the sport while men’s Major League Baseball was suspended. The AAGPBL was initially organized into four baseball teams (this would later grow to 15) to compete for a championship title. The Rockford Peaches (based in Illinois) were the most successful of the 15 teams, winning a record four titles over the 12-year life of the league. Dottie played catcher for the 1945 championship team.

After the league was disbanded, Dottie worked as a recreation officer at the state prison for women in Framingham. One of Dottie’s longtime friends said she was not a major league baseball fan until later in life, because she thought “the men were too slow.”

Any baseball fan has seen or at least heard of the 1992 film A League of Their Own, starring Geena Davis and Tom Hanks. The Davis character, Dottie Hinson, played catcher for the Rockford Peaches in the AAGPBL, and although the character and Dottie Green shared the same first name and played the same position, those familiar with the league claim that this was merely a coincidence. Nonetheless, the movie popularized the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League story and the athleticism of the women who played—like Natick’s own Dottie Green.