A League of Their Own

- Come here, Bobby. - Come on. Give me...

You might need that.

Where'd you find this?

It was in one of those cartons.

- Needs oil. - Who doesn't?

You ready?

- I'm not going. - Mom!

I already got two children, I don't need a third.

Why is it so important that I go?

Well, for one thing, it'd be nice if you just left the room.

Besides, these are your old friends.

They probably won't even remember me.

The "Queen of Diamonds," Dottie Hinson?

I just don't think this is a good idea.

Oh, come on, Mom. I mean, you're gonna get to see Aunt Kit.

- You hardly ever see each other. - We still won't.

She'll be traveling around with that husband of hers.

- Frank. He has a name. - Frank.

And he's always been very nice to you.

He makes me nervous.

- There's a lot of reasons why I can't go. - Mom.

Honey...

...l'm not comfortable about this. I'm not really part of it.

It was never that important to me. It was just something I did.

When are you gonna realize how special it was, how much it all meant?

I...

Yeah. I know how you feel. I really do.

But you're going.

Car.

- A car, a train, a bus. I'm tired already. - Sleep on the plane.

- Grandma's out. Is there a fire? - Wisenheimer.

Julie next door is watching you. I don't want any bad reports.

- Okay. Bye, Grandma. - Bye.

Jeffrey, come here.

No matter what your brother does, he's littler than you are.

Give him a chance to shoot. Promise?

- Yeah. - Okay.

Bobby, come here.

Kill him.

Come on, you'll miss your plane.

Yeah!

Well, I still think I shouldn't go.

Get a hit, Beans!

I'm coming, Mae! I'm coming!

This week in the world of sports.

With the boys overseas and off to war...

...baseball pitches in for the war effort.

Trading bats for bullets, Yankee Joe DiMaggio...

...promises to give those Nazis a jolt.

Ace fireballer Bob Feller...

...has traded Cleveland gray for Navy blue.

Baseball's biggest stars say:

"Look out, Mr. Hitler. The Yanks are coming."

Not to mention the Indians, Red Sox and Tigers.

And they won't come back till it's over, over there.

Meanwhile, Chicago club owner Walter Harvey, the candy-bar king...

...met with other team owners at the Harvey Mansion as rumors persist...

...that baseball may be shut down for the duration of the war.

Harvey's promotional whiz kid, Ira Lowenstein...

...has been given the job of figuring out how to keep baseball going.

Good luck, Mr. Lowenstein.

Strike 2!

Hey!

- Hey, fatso! - Come on!

Get the hell out of the way! What are you, crazy?

Strike 3!

Kit! Kit!

- Sis, don't swing at that high pitch. - I can hit it.

- You can't. - I can.

This bat's too heavy. You'll never get it around.

I will!

Kit, Kit. Listen. There's a big hole on the right side. Don't look.

- Unless she pitches inside, pull it. - I know.

Batter up!

No high ones.

I like the high ones!

- Mule! - Nag!

Come on, one more.

Easy out, easy out.

Come on, Kit. Keep your eye on the ball.

Right in here, right here.

Strike 1!

Strike 2!

Too high. No.

All right, Kit. Look it over!

Look it over there!

Strike 3!

All right, two out, everybody. That's two away!

- Better luck next time! - Come on, Dottie!

- Knock it out of here! - Okay, Dottie!

Two outs. Batter up!

Dottie!

- You can do it. - Play ball.

Right in here, Becky.

Bring them in, bring them in!

Bring them in there, Dottie!

Ball!

- Keep your eye on it, Dottie! - Come on, Becky.

Come on, Dottie! One hit and we win!

Dottie!

That's it, Dottie! You did it!

Great.

That's the ball game!

Dottie, Dottie, Dottie.

That was a swell hit. Good job!

Hey, Kit! What are you swinging those high ones for?

Good thing your sister bailed you out.

How about the two bucks you owe me for this game?

Kit! Wait up, I'll give you a ride!

- Would you stop kicking the rocks? - I'm sorry.

- That game just made me so mad. - Kit, we won. Get mad if we lose.

That last pitch was right down the middle.

If I'd have swung at that, I'd be the big hero.

- You got me so crazy... - All I said was lay off the high ones.

"Good thing your sister bailed you out, Kit."

"Kit, why don't you get your sister to teach you how to hit?"

"Why can't you be beautiful like your sister?"

What idiot said that?

No one.

- But that's what they were thinking. - No, it's not!

No?

You ever hear Dad introduce us to people?

"This is our daughter Dottie.

This is our other daughter, Dottie's sister."

Should've just had you and bought a dog.

- Mitch Swaley likes you. - He's one step up from dating pigs.

But an important step.

- Why are you walking so fast? - Why are you?

- Because you are. - Can't even let me walk faster than you?

Sure.

Girls, you got chores to do.

Don't run! You'll scare the chickens!

I don't have time for these games.

- Why are you running? - You can run faster.

Your legs are longer.

- I win! - Barely.

Hey.

Hey!

Hey, yourself.

Doesn't that hurt them?

It doesn't seem to.

It would bruise the hell out of me.

Who are you?

I'm Ernie Capadino, baseball scout.

I saw you playing today. Not bad, not bad.

Ever hear of Walter Harvey? Harvey Bars?

You know, the candy?

Yeah, we feed them to the cows when they're constipated.

He's starting a girls' baseball league...

...so we can make a buck while the boys are overseas.

Wanna play?

Nice retort. Tryouts are in Chicago. It's a real league, professional.

Professional baseball?

They'll pay you $75 a week.

We only make 30 at the dairy.

Well, then, this would be more, wouldn't it? You interested?

Come on. Seventy-five dollars a week?

Pull her leg. Mine are long enough already.

Look, your country needs you.

And you can not only play ball, but you're kind of a dolly.

Oh, now I get it. Listen, mister.

I'm a married woman. My husband's overseas.

Oh, relax! I'm talking lookie, no touchie.

We want girls easy on the eye.

I'll go. I'm ready right now. I gotta sign something?

I don't want you! I want her! The one who hit the ball!

You can climb back under the cow.

She's good. She's very good.

She pitches. She didn't today, because she did yesterday.

Thanks for that special glimpse into her life.

I want you.

You I saw, you I like. What do you say? The train leaves for Chicago tomorrow.

- What do you say? Are you in? - No, thanks.

Dottie.

"No, thanks"?

Hey, no skin off my Ashtabula.

If you wanna pluck cows, that's your business.

You know something? You're not nice.

That one hurt. So long, milkmaids.

No, wait!

Just watch me pitch. Dottie, get your mitt! I'll throw a few.

- I'll show you some pitches... - No. No, no, no.

Now look...

...I know the goods when I see the goods, and she's the goods.

I'm sorry.

Will you shut up?!

- You're a pitcher, huh? - Yeah.

I'll tell you what. If she comes, you can come too.

If you stink, it'll only cost us a train ticket.

Get these wild animals away from me!

Haven't you ever heard of a leash?

Come on, Dottie.

You got the whole rest of your life to hang around here.

Never go anywhere. Never do anything.

I'm married. I'm happy. It's what I want. Let's not confuse things.

Okay.

But can't you just have this first?

Just so you can say you once did something? Something special?

Goodness sake, Kit!

Keep your voice down. Your father's listening to the radio.