Joyce Hill

Joyce Elaine Westerman (née Hill; December 29, 1925 – January 18, 2021) was a catcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Listed at , 150 lb., she batted left-handed and threw right-handed.

Biography Hill was born in Kenosha, Wisconsin and grew up on the Clausen-Hill farm in Pleasant Prairie. Hill did not play any sports at Kenosha High School because they had none for girls. She acquired softball experience while playing in the county softball league for 12-to 15-year-olds and then in an industrial league for two years. In Kenosha, she gained a good reputation as a hard throwing pitcher and shortstop for the team of Nash Motors, which later bought Hudson Company to found American Motors.

Hill entered the league in 1945 with the Grand Rapids Chicks, but was converted into a catcher. She was a force behind the plate and had capacity as a left-handed hitter to drive the long ball.

Hill became the everyday catcher for Peoria in 1947. While she turned in a good defensive performance, she also showed a strong throwing arm and the ability to get the most out of a pitching staff. She then found herself on the move again, this time to the Racine Belles during the 1948 midseason. Through 1949 she shared catching duties with Irene Hickson, returning to Peoria from 1950 to 1951. While Hill loved to catch, she also suffered a litany of injuries that hurt her play. She recalled one game in which she had four broken fingers taped on her throwing hand. During the off-season, she continued to work for the Nash Company.

Following the 1950 season, Hill and Raymond A. Westerman were married in Kenosha, the couple's home town. During her last two seasons in the league she played under her married name, Joyce Westerman, but her days of catching were over and she had to switch to first base and, eventually, to play outfield.

Hill retired after 1952 to become a mother and raise a family of two daughters, Janet and Judy, both of whom became ball players. She later went to work for the United States Postal Service, retiring in 1985. She also played fast-pitch softball from 1960 to 1975, becoming a member of several championship teams. She died on January 18, 2021.

Career statistics Batting Fielding GPPOAETCDPFA 478 2714 208 94 3016 82 .969