TV show recounts teenage girl's strikeout of Ruth, Gehrig

LOS ANGELES (AP) -Jackie Mitchell, the minor league pitcher who struck out Babe Ruth during a 1931 exhibition game was no ordinary ballplayer. She was a 17-year-old girl.And she struck out fellow New York Yankees great Lou Gehrig that same game, sai

LOS ANGELES (AP) -Jackie Mitchell, the minor league pitcher who struck out Babe Ruth during a 1931 exhibition game was no ordinary ballplayer. She was a 17-year-old girl.

Mitchell was intended to be part of a publicity stunt for Tennessee's Chattanooga Lookouts ``but she wanted to prove she belonged in a man's game,'' Nash said.

Her exploits were part of Nash's ``Amazing Sports Stories'' series, which debuted Sunday on FSN. The episode includes rare film footage of Mitchell pitching to Ruth, which Nash said a series researcher located at the Chattanooga Regional History Museum.

There's been debate over whether Ruth and Gehrig struck out deliberately as part of the stunt, an issue the episode addresses. Nash doubts that's what happened.

``Ruth was a showman and maybe he would have gone along with it. But he didn't like the idea of women playing baseball,'' Nash said. ``And Gehrig was so straight-laced, so serious, I've never read anything that indicates he would take a dive on something like this.''

Mitchell also was a genuinely talented athlete and pitcher, Nash said, who'd mastered a dropping curve ball. Ruth struck out on four pitches, Gehrig on three.

As a child, Virnett ``Jackie'' Mitchell had gotten tips from future Hall of Fame pitcher Dazzy Vance, a neighbor, Nash said.

Nash, an avid sports fan as well as TV producer, recounted Mitchell's adventure in his 1992 book, ``Believe It Or Else,'' written with Allan Zullo.

Mitchell's glory was short-lived. Within days of the exhibition game, her contract was voided by baseball commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis on the basis of gender.

She found other ways to use her athletic talents, including barnstorming with the House of David, a novelty team known for its bearded players. Mitchell died in 1987.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.