Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Joan Joyce
While watching the women's Elite 8 games, I noticed a little blurb on the bottom of the screen that Joan Joyce had died. People may not recognize the name, but she was one of the greatest of the pre-Title IX female athletes in the US.
Her principle sport was softball, where she was a dominant pitcher for the Raybestos Brakettes, winning the World Championship over Japan in 1974. Among other exhibitions of fast-pitch prowess, she not only struck out Ted Williams, but blew a bunch of additional pitches by him as well. She had a 753-42 win-loss record and once pitched 229 consecutive scoreless innings. She had a career ERA of .090 and a batting average of .327.
And that wasn't her only sport. In basketball, playing for Connecticut in the pre-NCAA days, she scored 67 points in one game and averaged 30 a game while making All-American.
At age 35, while still playing softball, she took up golf and within two years was playing in the LPGA. She played as a pro for 20 years, up to age 55.
Sadly, none of this paid her much, despite being one of the best athletes of her time, male or female. She worked as a travel agent, among other things.
Wouldn't you have loved to see her pitch?
