Verne Blackbourn

Laverne Ellsworth Blackbourn

• Bats unknown, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 155 lb.

• Debut September 2, 1921
• Final Game September 2, 1921
• Born April 25, 1895 in Beetown, WI USA
• Died May 14, 1990 in Beetown, WI USA

BR page BR page for Charlie Blackburn

Biographical Information

Verne Blackbourn pitched one game for the Chicago White Sox on September 2, 1921, giving up a walk and nothing else in one inning. He was from Beetown, WI and returned there after his brief major league stint, living until he was 95 years old.

Unfortunately for him, he became a missing ballplayer when the record of his major league career was wrongly attributed to Charlie Blackburn, who had pitched briefly in the Federal League a few years earlier and who was from Chicago, IL. That mistake was not corrected until 2025, when researchers determined that these were two discrete persons, and the vital statistics of Laverne "Verne" Blackbourn were confirmed.

Further Reading

• "New Ballplayer Discovered", in Bill Carle, ed.: Biographical Committee Report, SABR, September/October 2025, p. 1