At 99, she threw the first pitch of women's pro baseball

Maybelle Blair threw out the ceremonial first pitch of the Women's Professional Baseball League on August 1 in Springfield, Illinois, seven decades after the last women's pro league disbanded. She is 99. She had also broken four ribs recently. "Nothing was going to stop me from being here, even if I had to crawl," she told WICS. Blair pitched for the Peoria Redwings in 1948, back when the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League filled ballparks during World War II. The new WPBL runs 30 games through September with four teams, all playing at Springfield's Robin Roberts Stadium. New York's Denae Benites hit the league's first home run and went 4-for-4. During the weekend, Blair got to meet the league mascot, also named Maybelle, which may be the only time a person has been introduced to their mascot self. She got misty at the game. "This is the happiest day of my life," she said.