We’ve compiled a list of our favorite A League of Their Own quotes that will teach you about friendship, unity, and believing in yourself.
A League of Their Own is the story of a struggling team in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. In the movie, two sisters join the first female baseball league and struggle to help it succeed while dealing with growing rivalry. Jimmy, a former player who drinks far too much and despises coaching a female team, trains them.
Jimmy, the two sisters, and the rest of the team faced many challenges that tested their resolve and determination. But in the end, they managed to overcome everything and prove that they, too, could succeed in their own game and league.
So, if you haven’t watched the movie yet, check out our collection of iconic, funny, and inspiring quotes from the characters. Don’t miss out, and make sure you read through to the end to gain some wonderful insights!
Start reading here.
And make sure to check out these baseball quotes and Major League quotes.
Best A League of Their Own Quotes
1. “It’s supposed to be hard. If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it. The hard—is what makes it great.” – Jimmy Dugan
2. “Are you crying? Are you crying? There’s no crying. There’s no crying in baseball!” – Jimmy Dugan
3. “Perhaps you chastised her too vehemently. A good rule of thumb: treat each of these girls as you would treat your mother.” – Umpire
4. “Baseball is what gets inside you. It’s what lights you up, you can’t deny that.” – Jimmy Dugan
5. “You got yourself in the league. I got you on the train.” – Dottie Hinson
6. “I gave away five years at the end of my career to drink. Five years. And now there isn’t anything I wouldn’t give to get back any one day of it.” – Jimmy Dugan
7. Ira Lowenstein: “Great game, Jimmy. I especially liked that move in the seventh inning when you scratched your balls for an hour.”
Jimmy Dugan: “Well, anything worth doing is worth doing right.”
8. “Look, that’s how the game is played. You won the game. You wanted it more than me.” – Dottie Hinson
9. “Why? What do you think? Because none of the other boys—they always made me feel wrong, like I was some sort of a weird girl or a strange girl or not even a girl, just because I could play. I believed them, too, you know? But not anymore. I mean, look, there’s a lot of us. I think we’re all right.” – Doris Murphy
10. “Careers and higher education are leading to the masculinization of women, with enormously dangerous consequences to the home, the children, and our country. When our boys come home from war, what kind of girls will they be coming home to?” – Maida Gillespie
A League of Their Own Quotes From Jimmy Dugan (Tom Hanks)
11. “Well I was just wonderin’ why you would throw home when we got a two-run lead. You let the tying run get on second base and we lost the lead because of you. Start using your head.” – Jimmy Dugan
12. “Something important has just happened. I was in the toilet reading my contract, and it turns out I get a bonus when we get to the World Series. So, let’s play hard, let’s play smart. Use your heads!” – Jimmy Dugan
13. “Dottie, if you want to go back to Oregon and make a hundred babies, great, I’m in no position to tell anyone how to live. But sneaking out like this, quitting, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.” – Jimmy Dugan
14. “Why would I wanna drink? I’m a goddamn Peach! Ah, double play! Now I’m hitting like a girl.” – Jimmy Dugan
15. “You stink, you’re lousy, you’re only the best player in the league.” – Jimmy Dugan
16. “Well, now, I was going to send you a thank-you card, Mr. Harvey, but I wasn’t allowed anything sharp to write with.” – Jimmy Dugan
17. “It was made very clear to me what I’m supposed to do here. I smile, wave my little hat—I did that, so when do I get paid?” – Jimmy Dugan
18. “Ballplayers. I don’t have ballplayers, I’ve got girls. Girls are what you sleep with after the game, not, not what you coach during the game.” – Jimmy Dugan
A League of Their Own Quotes From Dottie Hinson
19. “I’m so sick of being blamed for everything that’s bothering you. I got you into this league—I didn’t even want to be here.” – Dottie Hinson
20. “Look, I’m married, I’m happy. That’s what I want, so let’s not confuse things.” – Dottie Hinson
21. “Well, if you have any trouble, you know who to blame.” – Dottie Hinson
22. “Yeah. It is only a game, Jimmy. It’s only a game, and I don’t need this. I have Bob; I don’t need this. At all.” – Dottie Hinson
23. “You know, I seem to remember last week somebody throwing a rosin bag in my face, telling me to get my fat ass back behind the plate. Was that you or the umpire?” – Dottie Hinson
24. “Can we just hold each other for the rest of our lives?” – Dottie Hinson
25. “I’ll tell you what I’ll miss. Well, I’ll miss the girls. I’ll miss you, Kit.” – Dottie Hinson
26. “In the 43 years I’ve been practicing medicine, I never saw a woman throw up that much.” – Dottie Hinson
Also read: Field of Dreams Quotes, Bull Durham Quotes
Ira Lowenstein Quotes From A League of Their Own
27. “If we paid you just a little bit more, Jimmy, could you be just a little more disgusting?” – Ira Lowenstein
28. “Jimmy, you have a bunch of great players here. If you just give them a chance.” – Ira Lowenstein
29. “This is what it’s going to be like in the factories, too, I suppose, isn’t it? ‘The men are back, Rosie, turn in your rivets.’ We told them it was their patriotic duty to get out of the kitchen and go to work; and now, when the men come back, we’ll send them back to the kitchen.” – Ira Lowenstein
30. “Every girl in this league is going to be a lady.” – Ira Lowenstein
31. “Do you realize how dedicated these players are? They play with sprained ankles, broken fingers. Sometimes they ride a bus all night to play a double-header the next morning.” – Ira Lowenstein
32. “If you can’t play ball in this, you can’t play ball with us. Now, there are 38 girls on a train ride home, who’ll play in a bathing suit, if I ask them.” – Ira Lowenstein
33. “Mr. Harvey, I would like your executive approval for me to take over the league.” – Ira Lowenstein
34. “Ah, there is no smoking. There is also no drinking and no men.” – Ira Lowenstein
35. “Until you did that, I couldn’t tell if you were—drunk or dead.” – Ira Lowenstein
36. “I sold you a product when there was no product. This is a product.” – Ira Lowenstein
Also read: Moneyball Quotes, The Sandlot Quotes
Funny A League of Their Own Quotes to Make You Laugh
37. “What? Took me about a year. Not counting the two months I was in the hospital, though. Bat hit me right in the head. Bam!” – Doris Murphy
38. “Hey, Jimmy, you look like shit. Don’t you ever shave?” – Dottie Hinson
39. “Did anyone ever tell you you look like a penis with a little hat on?” – Jimmy Dugan
40. “Mae! Mae! Don’t use my bat! Use Marla’s. It’s heavier.” – Doris Murphy
41. “Yeah. We feed them to the cows when they’re constipated.” – Dottie Hinson
More A League of Their Own Quotes for Those Who Enjoyed the Movie
42. “Oh, what’s the difference? She’s reading, okay? That’s the important thing. Now go away, go, shoo, shoo. Go ahead, Shirley, you’re doing good.” – Mae Mordabito
43. “I’m singing to Nelson, ain’t I baby?” – Marla Hooch
44. Mae Mordabito: “It’s half a dress! Excuse me, but that’s not a baseball uniform!”
Doris Murphy: “Yeah, what do you think we are? Baseball players or ballerinas?”
45. “I know my girl ain’t so pretty as these girls, but that’s my fault. I raised her like I would a boy. I didn’t know any better. She loves to play. Don’t make my little girl suffer because I messed up raising her. Please.” – Dave Hooch
46. “Okay, let’s make like a bread truck and haul buns ladies!” – Doris Murphy
47. “Listen, that might have been a ball yesterday, it might have been a ball last week, but this is today and I’m calling it a strike.” – Umpire
48. Ernie Capadino: “I don’t want you. I want her, the one who hit the ball. You can climb back under the cow.”
Dottie Hinson: “She’s good. She’s very good. She’s a pitcher. She just didn’t pitch today because she pitched the day before.”
Ernie Capadino: “Well, thanks for that extra-special glimpse into her life.”
49. “Dottie, you got your whole life to have kids. You couldn’t give this up, you’d miss this too much.” – Kit Keller
50. Betty Horn: “Well, you know looks aren’t the most important thing.”
Doris Murphy: “That’s right. The important thing is he’s stupid, he’s out of work and he treats me bad.”
Did Our Collection Help You Feel More Empowered as a Woman?
One of the best sports movies ever made is A League of Their Own. It’s exciting like any sports movie, but it also has a lot of heart and humor. This is precisely why it’s impossible not to cry by the end of the story.
But, what makes this movie so great is that it teaches us so many valuable life lessons. It’s especially relevant to many young girls seeking to find their place in the world.
For one, A League of Their Own taught us to always be open to new experiences and give them a fair chance. This is something we’ve seen with Dottie when she first declines the offer to try out for the women’s league. In the end, she eventually joined the team.
Another is to believe in yourself and your abilities, like Kit. She has enough faith in her base-running skills to know that she can get the run and win the game for her team. Through this, she reminds us to have faith and always believe in ourselves, regardless of the circumstances.
Though some of these lessons may appear trivial, they’re actually some of the most forgotten bits of advice that we should all remember. But, if these lessons are taken to heart, great things are bound to happen, thanks to the inspiration and boost we got from A League of Their Own.
Do you have any more quotes to share? Join in the discussion below.
