Twila Shively

Twila I. Shively

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 6", Weight 128 lb.

• Schools Indiana University, Illinois State University

• Born March 20, 1920 in Decatur, IL USA
• Died November 25, 1999 in Douglas, MI USA

Biographical Information

Twila Shively played six years in the AAGPBL for three different teams.

She debuted in 1945 and hit .196/.280/.234 with 46 steals in 106 games for the Grand Rapids Chicks. She led AAGPBL outfielders with 234 putouts. She was also 5th in the league in steals behind Sophie Kurys, Helen Callaghan, Dottie Kamenshek and Shirley Jameson. She was 1 for 10 in the postseason. Her best season came in 1946, when she hit .247/.340/.296 with 75 stolen bases and 78 runs in 111 contests for the Chicks. She was third in outfield putouts (213), 4th in assists (17), tied for the lead in double plays (5) and 4th among starters in fielding percentage (.969). She also was among the offensive leaders in total bases (121, between Betsy Jochum and Thelma Eisen), hits (101, 9th between Eleanor Dapkus and Jochum, tied for 9th in doubles (9) and tied for third in runs (even with Kamenshek, trailing Kurys and Lib Mahon). In the playoffs, she was Grand Rapids' top hitter at .286 but they fell 3 games to 2 to the Rockford Peaches in the first round.

Shively batted .206/.266/.249 with 51 swipes in 1947. In the playoffs' first round, she was 4 for 17. In the finals, she was only 4 for 24 but stole a team-high 8 bases as Grand Rapids beat the Racine Belles in 7 games. In 1948, she was reassigned to the Chicago Colleens, a new team. The AAGPBL executives thought she would be a big draw because she had played with the Rockolas for the National Girls Baseball League in Chicago in 1944. She resented the move, liking her Grand Rapids club. She didn't even finish up 1948 in Chicago, also playing for the Peoria Redwings, and producing far below her 1945-1946 level at .156/.302/.190 with 36 steals.

Moving to first base with Peoria in 1949, the Decatur native made 35 errors and hit only .187/.304/.222 with 18 steals. She ended up with the 1950 Redwings at .192/.287/.252 with 29 stolen bases, returning to her traditional outfield spot. Overall, she had hit .200/.296/.244 with 255 steals and 274 runs in 614 games.

After her playing days, she was a physical education teacher and coach (softball and volleyball) at Washington High School for 30 years. She later was a volunteer for Meals on Wheels. She died due to complications from Alzheimers.

Sources

• The AAGPBL Record Book by W.C. Madden
• Girls of Summer by Lois Browne
• AAGPBL bio