Vern Stephens

From BR Bullpen

Vernon Decatur Stephens (Junior or Buster)

Bats Right, Throws Right
Height 5' 10", Weight 185 lb.

Debut September 13, 1941
Final Game June 30, 1955
Born October 23, 1920 in McAlister, NM USA
Died November 3, 1968 in Long Beach, CA USA

[edit] Biographical Information

". . . the best shortstop prospect I have ever seen." - Vern Stephens' manager at San Antonio, Marty McManus, a long-time major league infielder

Vern Stephens put up incredible offensive numbers as a shortstop but didn't make it into the Hall of Fame. An eight-time All-Star, he was in the top five in the MVP voting three times. He was a member of the 1944 St. Louis Browns, the only Browns team to play in the World Series.

Stephens was the subject of a long article in one of Bill James' books. James pointed out that Stephens was a shortstop who, after playing a decade, had posted offensive numbers that were equalled only by one contemporary in that period, Stan Musial.

Based on the similarity scores method, the three most similar players (as of 2006) to Stephens are all Hall of Famers.

Stephens broke into the majors in 1941 and played his first seven seasons with the Browns, arguably having his best years with them. However, he achieved his greatest fame with the Boston Red Sox from 1948-1952, posting big RBI totals in 1948-1950. Observers have had a tendency to discount the stats posted in Stephens' career due to his playing in Fenway Park, but his performances in Boston merely continued the dominance that he had shown in St. Louis. During his years with Boston, Ted Williams was the only teammate who was able to regularly out-perform him offensively.

As a defensive player, his range and fielding percentage were generally above average. However, he flunked his physical for the army due to an old knee injury, and another injury to the knee eventually caused him to move from shortstop to third base.

In 1946, he briefly jumped to the Mexican League, but was brought back after only a few days. Jack Fournier was one of the people who went down to get him. Other players who jumped and stayed longer were suspended by major league baseball, but Stephens continued to play in the majors.

He died of a heart attack at age 48.

There is also a SABR biography of Stephens here: Vern Stephens. It reveals a number of interesting facts. Stephens played American Legion Baseball with Bob Lemon. Vern also played basketball and swam in high school, and attributed his upper body strength to all the swimming. He got good grades in high school. He was in the minors from 1938-41, leading a couple leagues in RBI. Along with his knee injury, Stephens' eyesight was declining in the later years of his major league career. After his playing days he worked for several companies in sales and became a top amateur golfer.

He had a reputation as a drinker who liked the nightlife, but some think that the reputation was overblown and obscures that his nightlife didn't keep him from posting great numbers.

Led the American League in RBIs 3 times. Arguably the most by a shortstop. Honus Wagner led the league 5 times but twice as an outfielder.
8 time all-star shortstop
Led the AL in homeruns in 1945 with just 24.
Age at debut: 20 years, 10 months, 21 days
Age at last game: 34 years, 8 months, 7 days
Age at death: 48 years, 0 months, 11 days