University of Havana 1947

This photo was taken on the steps of the University of Havana, Cuba, during spring training in Havana in 1947. The eight AAGPBL teams were there on May Day (May 1st), so this photograph of Betsy Jochum's was probably taken the last week of April, 1947. There is also a famous newsreel footage showing this same scene.

The Brooklyn Dodgers trained in Havana February 1947, because Jackie Robinson, the first black big leaguer, was with the Dodgers for the first time. City ordinances in Vero Beach, Florida, where the Dodgers normally train (and they still do), prevented blacks and whites from competing on the same field against each other. Newspaper stories from Havana indicate that the All-Americans drew larger crowds for their exhibition games in Havana than did the Dodgers! Of course, the girls were prettier. Actually, women's baseball was so unique that thousands of Cubans came out to see each game.

Contributed by Jim Sargent