Shirley Cohen is a recurring character in the Amazon Prime Video television series, A League of Their Own. She is portrayed by Kate Berlant.
Biography[]
Shirley is seen trying out for the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in Batter Up, where she is seen stretching alongside Jess and complaining about her spitting, introducing her as the anxious and marginally uptight character she continues to be throughout the series. Despite her apprehensive attitude, she's an extremely intelligent player, often seen calculating statistical wins for Carson throughout the season.
Though often the comedic character of the team, she struggles with a paralysing fear of the world around her, from Jo's queerness to contracting botulism, and the inability to accept things as they are. However, towards the end of the series she reaches a breaking point when Carson walks in on her eating from dented cans in their shared room in Perfect Game, something she had been previously fearful of. She also then kisses Carson and sighs in relief that queerness is not contagious like she'd previously been told.
Trivia[]
- Shirley's position is left field. Her number is 14.
- In Batter Up, she tells Carson that she has a scar caused by a humidifier.
- She enjoys playing the flute and baking bread (referenced in the promotional video of the Peaches in Switch Hitter).
- Despite the comedic scenes that arise from Shirley's fear of queerness being a contagious disease, that view was held by many people during the time period.
- During the Charm School scenes in Find The Gap, Vivienne points out that Shirley's visage is too "Semitic", implying that she's Jewish. Shirley later makes reference to her rabbi, thus confirming that she is Jewish.
- She has a routine of touching both shoes before she bats. This is referenced in the bathroom scene in Batter Up, and Shirley can be seen doing her pre-batting routine in episodes 2 and 3.
- In Back Footed, she says that she cries after every game.
- When she sees Vivienne Hughes watching their practice from the stands in Find The Gap, she states that Vivienne dresses like Shirley’s mother, possibly implying that she is also from New York.
- She suffers from night terrors, as she tells Carson in The Cut Off after shaking her awake thinking that Carson was having one. She tells Carson that it sets the tone of the whole day.
- Before they go to the bar in Batter Up, Shirley tells Greta that she's never technically been drunk before but had read a lot of Greek literature surrounding alcohol.
- She tells Carson that she has very specific dietary restrictions in Find The Gap, and that she has never been alone in public before.