Maud Nelson

Maud Nelson, date unknown

Maud Nelson (born Clementina Brida, November 17, 1881 - February 15, 1944) was an early professional woman baseball pitcher, scout, manager, and team owner.

Maud Nelson began pitching professionally at the age of 16, as a starting pitcher for the Boston Bloomer Girls. She played for a several professional baseball teams, including the American Athletic Girls and the Cherokee Indian Base Ball Club. In addition to her starting pitching duties, she often played third base in the later innings of a game.

In 1911, Maud Nelson became owner-manager of the Western Bloomer Girls, along with her first husband, John B. Olson, Jr. She also became a baseball scout in 1911, recruiting both male and female players for a number of professional teams. After John died in 1917, Maud again played for Boston, and managed a women's team for the Chicago Athletic Club.

In the early 1920s, Maud married Costante Dellacqua, with whom she later started the All Star Ranger Girls team. In the 1930s, she retired to a house in the neighborhood of Wrigley Field, living there until her death in 1944.

Sources

• Gregorich, Barbara (1993). Women at Play: The Story of Women in Baseball. Harcourt Brace and Company. pp. 6–11.
• "The Girls of Summer". Retrieved 2007-01-18.