Lizzie Arlington

Elizabeth Stride Warner (August 31, 1876 – March 14, 1919), known professionally as Lizzie Arlington, was an American baseball player. She was the first woman to play for a professional men's baseball team.

Early life Arlington was the youngest of six children born to emigrants Henry and Mary Stride, from Wales. She grew up in Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania, where she played baseball with her father and brothers.

On June 20, 1891, at age 13, Arlington took the field as the pitcher for the Mahanoy City baseball team against the visiting Cincinnati Reds (a professional women's team barnstorming through the area). Reds' manager Mark Lally, impressed with her play, immediately recruited and signed her to play for his team. Arlington played three seasons with the Reds, including two where she shared pitching duties with Maud Nelson.

On July 5, 1898, Arlington became the first woman to play for a professional men's baseball team when she pitched the ninth inning for the Reading Coal Heavers against the Allentown Peanuts. Reading was leading 5–0 heading into the final inning when Arlington entered the game. Though she allowed two hits and walked a batter to load the bases, Arlington succeeded in retiring the next three batters to preserve the victory, as the crowd enthusiastically shouted "Good for Lizzie!" After leaving baseball, she continued to play tennis, and according to her obituary, she frequently attended local baseball games. After her husband's death on January 25, 1911, she embarked upon a business career. She died in Philadelphia in 1919.