She Struck Out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. They Voided Her Contract Days Later. |
On April 2, 1931, seventeen-year-old Jackie Mitchell took the mound for the Chattanooga Lookouts against the New York Yankees. She struck out Babe Ruth. Then she struck out Lou Gehrig. Seven pitches. The crowd gave her a standing ovation. A few days later, baseball commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Lan