Sports | Dorothy Kamenshek League of Their Own Inspiration Dead at 84 Dorothy 'Dottie' Kamenshek was a star at first base By John Johnson Posted May 22, 2010 1:12 PM CDT Copied The Geena Davis character 'Dottie,' at left, is based on Dorothy Kamenshek. (Columbia Pictures) A baseball legend is gone: Dorothy Kamenshek—the inspiration for the Geena Davis character Dottie in A League of Their Own—is dead at age 84. The Los Angeles Times leads its obit with this quote from Yankees first-baseman Wally Pipp: She "was the fanciest-fielding first baseman I've ever seen, man or woman." No wonder: Kamenshek sometimes jumped 3 or 4 feet into the air to snag throws or did the splits, making her a fan sensation in the old All-American Girls Professional League. Kamenshek, who played for the Rockford (Illinois) Peaches, made Time's 1999 list of the 100 best female athletes of the century. Read These Next A government shutdown could mean permanent layoffs. It's one of the best lottery pool stories you'll ever read. Trash bags, zip ties, bleach caught delivery driver's attention. Judge demands answers from Trump administration on Mangione comments. Report an error