Rosemary (Micki) Stratton played all but two years of her softball career with the famed Raybestos Brakettes of Stratford, CT, leading the team in batting three times: 1959 (.320), 1961 (.324) and 1965 (personal best of .370). The first two years, 1954-1955, she played for the Wallingford Owlettes before joining the Brakettes in 1956. She participated in 10 ASA national championships and four times the Brakettes won the national title. Stratton batted .272 (61 x 224) in 10 national championships and also played first base and the outfield. Ironically her highest batting average in national championship play came in her last championship, .348 in 1965. Solid defensively, Stratton had a fielding percentage of 1.000 between 1958-1961 in national championship play including 23 assists. Seven times she earned All-America honors including first-team laurels in 1958, 1959, 1961, 1964 and 1965 and second-team honors in 1956 and 1963. In 1965, she played in the first ISF Women’s World Championship and batted .348 as the Brakettes, representing the USA, finished second. Stratton was named to the World All-Star team. Born July 12, 1938 in Middlefield, CT, Stratton said her greatest thrill in softball was “winning the 1958 national championship. Every event, winning or losing, was a learning experience. I’ve traveled places and met wonderful people that I would not have done if I hadn’t played softball,” Stratton said. Rosemary passed away on September 7, 2018.
