Mickey Vernon
From BR Bullpen
James Barton Vernon
- Bats Left, Throws Left
- Height 6' 2", Weight 180 lb.
- School Villanova University
- Debut July 8, 1939
- Final Game September 27, 1960
- Born April 22, 1918 in Marcus Hook, PA USA
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[edit] Biographical Information
Mickey Vernon was an outstanding hitter and fielder largely for the Washington Senators during their most hapless decades. Vernon closed his stellar career, at age 42, with almost 2500 hits. He broke into the bigs as baseball's youngest player in 1939 and finished as its oldest player in 1960. Mickey Vernon is one of a handful of players who played in four decades.
In Hall of Fame voting by the BBWAA, he got as high as 25% of the vote. In the 2007 voting by the Veterans Committee, he received 17% of the vote.
Possessing excellent bat control and an eagle-eye, he led the league twice in batting average and three times in doubles; 4 times in on-base percentage and was a 7-time All-Star selection and posted a .359 on-base percentage. The expansive Griffith Stadium affected Vernon's extra-base hit totals. Vernon hit 55 home runs in his home parks, while hitting 117 on the road.
Losing two of his prime years to military service during World War II also limited his career statistics. He missed the 1944 and 1945 seasons. These seasons came and went while Mickey Vernon would have been in the prime of his career - 26/27 years old. Had he played these seasons, his all-time hit totals would have approached 2,900. Vernon holds the major league record by participating in the turning of 2044 double plays. As good a hitter as he was, Vernon was probably an even better fielder.
After wrapping up his career with quick stops in Boston, Cleveland, Milwaukee and Pittsburgh, Vernon returned to DC to become the expansion Senators' first manager in 1961.
Vernon was a player/coach for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1960. He managed the Senators in 1961-1963, coached with the Pirates again in 1964 and also with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1965. He then managed the Vancouver Mounties (1966-1968), Richmond Braves (1969-1970), and Manchester Yankees (1971). Vernon was a minor league batting instructor for the Kansas City Royals in 1973-1974 and Los Angeles Dodgers in 1975-1976. He returned to the big leagues as a coach for the Montreal Expos (1977-1978) and New York Yankees (1982).
The most similar players to Mickey Vernon, based on the similarity scores method, are first basemen with high averages, a lot of doubles, and long careers such as Mark Grace, Bill Buckner, Al Oliver and Keith Hernandez. However, a more appropriate comparison may be Enos Slaughter, who also lost some of his best years to service in World War II.
Vernon was one of several people who threw out the "first pitch" for the 2007 opener of the 2007 Washington Nationals.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 7-time AL All-Star (1946, 1948, 1953-1956 & 1958)
- 2-time AL Batting Average Leader (1946 & 1953)
- 3-time AL Doubles Leader (1946, 1953 & 1954)
- 20-Home Run Seasons: 1 (1954)
- 100 RBI Seasons: 1 (1953)
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 1 (1953)
- 200 Hits Seasons: 2 (1946 & 1953)
| Preceded by N/A | Washington Senators Manager 1961-1963 | Succeeded by Gil Hodges |
[edit] Records Held
- Double plays, first baseman, career, 2044
