Mickey Vernon

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Mickey Vernon
Vernon in 1961
First baseman / Manager
Born: (1918-04-22)April 22, 1918
Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died: September 24, 2008(2008-09-24) (aged 90)
Media, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Batted: Left
Threw: Left
MLB debut
July 8, 1939, for the Washington Senators
Last MLB appearance
September 27, 1960, for the Pittsburgh Pirates
MLB statistics
Batting average.286
Hits2,495
Home runs172
Runs batted in1,311
Managerial record135–227
Winning %.373
Teams
As player

As manager

Career highlights and awards

James Barton "Mickey" Vernon (April 22, 1918 – September 24, 2008) was an American

Washington Senators (1939–1948, 1950–1955), Cleveland Indians (1949–1950, 1958), Boston Red Sox (1956–1957), Milwaukee Braves (1959) and Pittsburgh Pirates (1960). He also was the first manager in the history of the expansion edition of the Senators (now the Texas Rangers), serving from 1961 through May 21, 1963, and was a coach
for four MLB teams between 1960 and 1982.

Vernon retired as a player in 1960 with 2,495 hits, and holds the major league record for career double plays at first base (2,044). He has the American League (AL) record for career games (2,227), putouts (19,754), assists (1,444) and total chances (21,408). The lanky Vernon was listed as 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) tall and 170 pounds (77 kg); he batted and threw left-handed.

Early life

Mickey Vernon was born in Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania, and attended Villanova University, before making his major league debut on July 8, 1939. He was the father of Gay Vernon.

During

African-American to break the baseball color line in the American League
, in 1947 with the Cleveland Indians.

Baseball career

Playing career

Vernon played for 14 full major league seasons (400 at bats or more) in his 20-year career. He wound up batting over .335 twice, over .300 five times, and over .290 nine times. He was a two-time American League batting champion. In 1946, his .353 batting mark eclipsed Ted Williams' .342 by 11 points. Then, in 1953, Vernon's .337 average denied Cleveland's Al Rosen (.336) the Triple Crown by just one one-thousandth of a point.[1] The following year, 1954, Vernon had a career-high 20 home runs, 97 RBIs, and 14 triples. He led the AL with 33 doubles and 67 extra-base hits. He also had 294 total bases, which was second in the AL, behind Minnie Miñoso.

Over time, Vernon became one of the best-liked ballplayers, mainly through his unique personality and charismatic, but quiet, style. On

intentional walk in his nine plate appearances to become one of only 29 players in baseball history to have appeared in a major league game in four decades. By his final game played, on September 27, 1960, he was, at 42, the oldest player in the National League
by almost a year, and one of the most popular figures in the game.

He appeared in 2,409 MLB games without playing in the postseason, third most in history behind Ernie Banks and Luke Appling.[2] Notably, on September 25, 1960, during Vernon's time on the active list, the Pirates clinched the NL pennant; but he was not on the Pirate playing roster for the 1960 World Series, resuming his full-time coaching duties. He earned a World Series ring when the Bucs triumphed in seven games over the New York Yankees.

Vernon posted a career .286 batting average with 172 home runs and 1,311 RBIs in 2,409 games. The left-hander averaged 88 RBIs a year, and had 11 seasons with 80 or more, three with 90 or more. He scored 1,196 runs with 137 stolen bases and a .359 on-base percentage. His career slugging percentage was .428, with a career high of .518 in 1953. He compiled 2,495 hits, with 490 doubles and 120 triples, in 8,731 at bats. He had 3,741 career total bases, with his career high coming in 1953 (315).

Satchel Paige once said, "If I had a two run lead, and the bases were loaded in the ninth inning, and Mickey Vernon was up...I'd walk him and pitch to the next hitter."[3] Ned Garver recalled that in Vernon's finest seasons, "He'd hit the ball wherever it was pitched. He was difficult to pitch to in those seasons."[3]

Coaching and managing

Vernon in 1963

Vernon's career as a coach and manager began during his 1960 stint on the staff of his longtime friend, Pirates' skipper Danny Murtaugh.

The following year, in

farm system. In Vernon's two full seasons at the helm, 1961 and 1962, the Senators lost a combined 201 games. They were 14–26 and last in the ten-team American League when Vernon was fired on May 21, 1963. He finished with a career record of 135–227, a .373 winning percentage
.

Vernon remained in the game into the 1980s as a major league coach for the Pirates (returning there for a second term in 1964), St. Louis Cardinals (1965), Montreal Expos (1977–1978) and Yankees (1982). He also managed at the Triple-A and Double-A levels of the minor leagues, and served as a roving batting instructor for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Kansas City Royals and Yankees before retiring from baseball.

Death

Vernon died from a stroke at age 90, on September 24, 2008. He had resided in Media, Pennsylvania.

MLB highlights

  • MLB Record: Double plays at first base (2,044)
  • American League All-Star (1946, 1948, 1953–1956, 1958)
  • American League batting champion (1946, 1953)
  • American League leader in doubles (1946, 1953, 1954)
  • American League leader in extra base hits (1954)
  • American League leader in fielding average (1950-1952, 1954)
  • American League top 10 in
    MVP voting
    (1946, 1953, 1954)
  • American League top 10 in triples (1941, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1951–1955)

Legacy

In August 2008, Vernon was named as one of the ten former players who began their careers before 1943 to be considered by the

2009
.

Playing in four different decades (1939–1960), Vernon ended his career with 2,237 games at first base, second to only Jake Beckley (2,377) in major league history. He led the American League in fielding percentage four times, and the majors twice.

He became one of the few first basemen to finish his career with a .990 fielding percentage, and participated in more double plays than any other.

The Mickey Vernon Museum Collection in Radnor, Pennsylvania, honors Vernon's career, military service, and friendship with Murtaugh, among other artifacts.[5]

Vernon is interred at the Lawn Croft Cemetery in Linwood, Pennsylvania.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ Goldstein, Richard (14 March 2015), "Al Rosen, Who Missed Triple Crown by a Step, Dies at 91." The New York Times
  2. ^ Baseball Reference
  3. ^
    ASIN B00B6JBVV6
    .
  4. ^ McCue, Andy, and Thompson, Eric (2011), "Mismanagement 101: The American League's Expansion of 1961." The National Pastime 2011, Archived 2019-07-06 at the Wayback Machine Society for American Baseball Research
  5. ^ The Mickey Vernon Sports Museum
  6. ^ Baseball Almanac

Further reading

External links

Achievements
Preceded by Hitting for the cycle
May 19, 1946 		Succeeded by
Sporting positions
Preceded by Pittsburgh Pirates first-base coach
1960
1964 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Joe Schultz
 St. Louis Cardinals first-base coach
1965 		Succeeded by
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