Gloria Cordes obit

Staten Island Sports Hall of Famer Gloria Cordes Elliott passes away at 86

 

She was not on the list.

Gloria Cordes Elliott, a Staten Island Sports Hall of Famer and baseball legend, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 86.

Her family remembers a kind-hearted woman who enjoyed trips to Atlantic City, and, of course, her beloved New York Mets.

Mrs. Cordes Elliott, a McKee High School star, played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, which inspired the 1992 film 'A League of Their Own'.

"A lot of the movie was Hollywood, but it did get the point across that we did know how to play ball," explained Mrs. Cordes Elliott years ago.

"Everyone we knew who watched that movie would say 'your Aunt Gloria was in that movie'," said her niece, Margie Lanigan.

The lifelong Staten Islander, who grew up in Stapleton before relocating to Oakwood, amassed a career 2.54 era over five seasons from 1950-54, appearing in three all star games -- her uniform is still on display at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y.

During the 1952 season, she fired 24 consecutive complete games en route to a career high 16 wins, while posting a career best 1.44 ERA. She earned the win in the league's inaugural all-star game that same year.

Mrs. Cordes Elliott was inducted into the Staten Island Sports Hall of Fame in 1997 and is featured at the Mount Loretto campus in Pleasant Plains.

Her playing career started when she went to Weissglass Stadium in Port Richmond to see two touring teams -- Chicago Colleens and Springfield Sallies -- play a baseball game.

Before the game they had tryouts to find possible players for the All American Girls League. When asked if anyone knew how to pitch, Mrs. Cordes Elliott jumped up to volunteer.

Her pitching career began with lessons from her brothers, Henry and Otto Cordes. Both brothers pitched for semi-pro Staten Island teams, the Gulf Oilers and the Staten Island Yankees, in the 1940s.

"They were happy for me because they knew how much I loved to play, and my brothers always wanted me to pitch for their team. But I was not allowed to play in anything organized at that time," said Mrs. Cordes Elliott.

At the age of 18, she left Staten Island and her job working for an insurance company in Manhattan to try out for the All American Girls Baseball League in South Bend, Ind. She did well and was signed to play, making $55 a week, which was $15 more than she made in Manhattan.

"I really loved the game," said Mrs. Cordes Elliott.

After the league folded in 1954, she went on to coach numerous girls teams at Staten Island Little League.

In 2010, she visited with a class of fifth graders at Our Lady Queen of Peace and explained how her older brothers taught her to pitch.

"Gloria inspired us girls," said Katie Lam, a fifth-grader at the time.

She is survived by her husband of 59 years, Edward, her sister Ruth Taber, and her many nieces and nephews.

She is predeceased by her son, E.P., and nine brothers and sisters.

Following her AAGPBL career, Cordes joined several other players on Bill Allington's All-American team, a barnstorming remnant of the league. The team, known as the All-American All-Stars, played 100 games from 1955 through 1957, each booked in a different town, against male semi-pro teams. The girls traveled over 10,000 miles in the manager's station wagon and a Ford Country Sedan. Besides Cordes, the Allington All-Stars included players as Joan Berger, Gertrude Dunn, Betty Foss, Jean Geissinger, Katie Horstman, Maxine Kline, Dolores Lee, Ruth Richard and Dorothy Schroeder, between others.

 

Teams

Muskegon Lassies (1950)

Kalamazoo Lassies (1950, 1951–'54)

Racine Belles (1950)

Battle Creek Belles (1950–'51)

Career highlights and awards

Two-time All-Star Team (1952, 1954)

Championship Title (1954)

Two playoff appearances (1953-'54)

Women in Baseball – AAGPBL Permanent Display

Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (1988)