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1921–1999 · South Bend, 1950–1952
Charlene Barbara Pryer — later Mayer — was born September 24, 1921, stood five feet one and weighed 105 pounds, and at her peak was the most disruptive offensive player in her league. She came to South Bend in 1950 after four-plus seasons at Muskegon and part of 1950 itself at Kalamazoo. Her 1951 season led the league in four departments at once: a .312 average, 133 hits, 106 runs and 129 stolen bases, with an All-Star selection at second base; in the last three games of the 1951 final she hit .357. In 1952 she stole a league-high 59 bases in only 79 games before the season's last weekend. Her career totals were a .255 average and 510 stolen bases in 704 games, and in 1947, at Muskegon, she had led all the league's outfielders in fielding percentage at .995. Her South Bend story ends where the team history's walkout entry begins — the suspension that triggered it was hers — and one later account says she was reinstated and chose to retire; every account agrees she never played another game. She died June 3, 1999.
Sources
- Jim Sargent, SABR biographies of Jean Faut and Sue Kidd, and the league record — the 1951 league leads and All-Star selection, the 1952 suspension and its aftermath.
- Baseball-Reference Register and StatsCrew — the 1951 batting line, the 1952 stolen-base lead, the career totals.
- All-American Girls Professional Baseball League records — the 1947 outfield fielding lead.