Mamie "Peanut" Johnson was an American professional baseball player who was one of three women, and the first female pitcher, to play in the Negro Leagues.
Biography
Johnson was born Mamie Belton in Ridgeway, South Carolina on September 27, 1935 to Della Belton Havelow and Gentry Harrison. She lived for a time in Long Branch, New Jersey before moving to Washington, D.C. in the 1940s. Along with Connie Morgan, she was signed by the Indianapolis Clowns in 1953, played with the team from 1953 to 1955, and had a 33–8 win-loss record. A right-handed pitcher with a deceptively hard fastball, she also threw a slider, circle changeup, curveball, screwball, and knuckleball. She received pointers on pitching the curveball from Satchel Paige. At the plate, batting right-handed, her batting average was in the range of.262 to.284. Johnson was known as "Peanut" during her career due to her height—5 feet, 3 inches. Johnson earned the nickname after an at-bat in which she faced Hank Baylis of the Kansas City Monarchs. After a hard strike, Baylis stepped out of the batter's box and said, "Why, that little girl's no bigger than a peanut. I ain't afraid of her." She proceeded to strike him out. Johnson is the subject of the book A Strong Right Arm, describing her life growing up and the obstacles to her becoming a professional Negro League baseball player. After retiring, she earned a nursing degree from North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University and established a 30-year career in the field. She married Charles Johnson; their marriage ended in divorce. She later married Edwardo Goodman. In 1999, Johnson was a guest of the White House. On June 5, 2008, Johnson and other living players from the Negro League Era were drafted by major league franchises prior to the 2008 MLB First year Draft. Johnson was selected by the Washington Nationals. On October 3, 2009, Johnson spoke at Baseball Americana 2009, organized by the Library of Congress, in the company of Larry Dierker, Ernie Banks, and other figures from baseball's history. In 2015, a Little League named for Johnson was formed in Washington. Mamie Johnson died on December 18, 2017 in a Washington, D.C. hospital of cardiac-related causes. She was survived by her third husband, Emanuel Livingston; five stepdaughters; a stepson; her uncle, Leo "Bones" Belton; several siblings; two grandsons; and many step-grandchildren.
