Louise Erickson (baseball)

Louise Erickson [Sauer] (June 2, 1929 – May 27, 2016) was an American pitcher who played from 1948 through 1950 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Listed at 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m), 162 lb. (73 kg), she batted and threw right-handed. She was nicknamed Lou by her teammates.

Erickson had a brief but fruitful career as a member of the AAGPBL. In a three-year stint, she was a member of two champion teams and landed on the All-Star team two times. While showing an array of pitches and not being prone to walks, she relied on a fastball, curveball and changeup combination, mixing speeds in her curve sparingly, with an impeccable control over location.

Born in Arcadia, Wisconsin, Erickson used to play baseball with her father, uncles and five brothers at an early age. I had no previous formal or informal training in softball or baseball. Two of my uncles played weekend baseball and I was the tomboy shagging balls in the outfield, she recalled in an interview.

Afterward she was allowed to shag balls for a neighboring town team, which drew the attention of the manager, who recommended her to the league. She was invited to a tryout and immediately was assigned to the Racine Belles in the 1948 season, which was already underway. She was used in relief duties and collected a 1–0 record with a 5.74 earned run average and 11 innings of work in three appearances.

Erickson opened 1949 with the Rockford Peaches. She was added to the pitching rotation, becoming the third starter on an excellent staff behind Lois Florreich and Helen Fox. Erickson responded to more mound time with a 17–6 record and a 1.76 ERA in 216 innings, including seven shutouts, while ranking fourth in the league in wins and winning percentage (.739), gaining selection to the All-Star team.

Meanwhile, the Peaches played a best-of-seven series with the South Bend Blue Sox, which Rockford swept, with Erickson defeating Jean Faut and South Bend in a two-hit, 1–0 shutout in Game 4. Then, the Grand Rapids Chicks and Rockford hooked up for a best-of-five series to determine the league championship, which was won by Rockford in four contests. In Game 3, Erickson beat Mildred Earp and Grand Rapids by a 5–2 score.