Washington DC Baseball

[GeoPoto]

The 1939 Washington Senators won 65 games, lost 87, and finished in sixth place in the American League. They were managed by Bucky Harris and played home games at Griffith Stadium.

This was the year that possibly the best hitter of all time made his debut in the league, with the Boston Red Sox. Later in the season, on August 19, 1939, Theodore Samuel Williams smashed his first career grand slam against the Senators in an 8-6 Red Sox victory. Williams would go on in his rookie season to hit 31 homers, drive in a league-leading 145 runs, and bat .327. The league's great star, Joltin' Joe DiMaggio, would lead the junior circuit in batting with .381, which would hold as the highest average of his career. DiMag did miss five weeks of the season, though, as a result of a muscle tear in his leg sustained on Griffith Stadium's muddy outfield grass while chasing a Bobby Estalella liner on April 29.

Players of the caliber of Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams may come along once in a generation, but not likely twice, as they did. While the Senators didn't have a DiMaggio or a Williams, they did unveil some future standouts of their own in 1939. On July 8, a 21-year-old first baseman made his first appearance in a box score. Mickey Vernon would remain at the position for a period spanning four decades, most of which he would spend in Washington. Vernon's debut year was relatively inauspicious, as he hit just .257 with one home run the rest of the way. By season's end, the native of Marcus Hook, Pa., had played in 76 games, and before his career ended, he would hold the major-league record for most games played at first base. Quiet, consistent, and blessed with a good deal of charisma, Vernon would win the batting title twice, lead the league in doubles three times, and hit 490 career doubles. As a fielder, he was outstanding as well, the best at his position four times, twice pacing the entire majors.

[ValKehl]

Before being called up by the Washington Senators in July of 1939, James Barton "Mickey" Vernon (my second most favorite Senators player when I was a kid in the 1950's) played in 76 games and batted .343 for the Springfield (MA) Nationals of the Eastern league, a Class A minor leage affiliate of the Senators. The earliest Vernon collectible I have is this advertising photo issued by a Springfield clothier:

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by ValKehl

Before being called up by the Washington Senators in July of 1939, James Barton "Mickey" Vernon (my second most favorite Senators player when I was a kid in the 1950's) played in 76 games and batted .343 for the Springfield (MA) Nationals of the Eastern league, a Class A minor leage affiliate of the Senators. The earliest Vernon collectible I have is this advertising photo issued by a Springfield clothier:

What a great piece, Val! And what a great player and man Mickey was. In 2007, Mickey and I were two of a contingent of four who threw out the first pitch on Opening Day--the White House wouldn't send anybody that year because VP Cheney got booed so roundly when he did the honors the year before. I had Mickey to myself in the "green room" for about half and hour before they called us out, and I asked him about his rookie year of 1939, when the radio broadcaster was none other than Walter Johnson. Of course, Mickey remembered that year, and Johnson, well, and it was a treat to hear stories about it from someone who was there! I got him to sign the ball I threw out, and it's one of my treasures.

[GeoPoto]

(Thanks to Val and Hank for their Vernon inputs. I wondered if Val could come up with something I couldn't -- a pre-war Vernon. Of course he could!)

On September 13, a Joe Cambria (we will introduce Joe shortly) protégé', Early "Gus" Wynn, a 19-year-old righthander from Hartford, Alabama, started on the trail to Cooperstown. Unfortunately, Wynn would not find the right fork in the road until he left Washington, but eventually he too, like Mickey Vernon, would extend his career beyond the 1950s. He managed to play long enough to earn his 300th and final win, thereby guaranteeing immortality in the Hall of Fame, into which he was inducted in 1972. A scowling type on the mound, Wynn had a live fastball, but indeed never assembled the complementary pitches required for consistency until the Nats traded him to Cleveland at the end of 1948. In retrospect, that deal may well have been the worst the Senators made in their entire history, but for the time being, Wynn lost both his late-season decisions, and he would spend the better part of the next two years in the minors before resurfacing in Washington in 1941. . . .

[GeoPoto]

. . . One of baseball's most moving dramas unfolded right before the Senators in 1939. On April 30, the day after Joe DiMaggio tore up his leg at Griffith Stadium, Lou Gehrig appeared in his 2,130th consecutive game, the last one of his streak, which had begun against the Nats 14 years earlier. The Iron Horse went hitless against Joe Krakauskas, and upon making a routine play, was congratulated by Yankees pitcher Johnny Murphy. Two days later, after traveling to Detroit, Gehrig would take himself out of the lineup, suffering from unexplained sluggishness. His replacement, a rookie named Babe Dahlgren, homered and doubled and the Yanks won 22-2. (Coincidentally, pitcher Fred Hutchinson of the Tigers, later a World Series manager and well-loved figure, made his big-league debut in the same game, and it was a disaster for him. Hutchinson surrendered five walks, four hits, and eight runs in two-thirds of an inning.)

On June 20, Gehrig was diagnosed at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., as suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), an incurable form of paralysis which became known as Lou Gehrig's disease. When he appeared in front of nearly 62,000 fans at Yankee Stadium for Lou Gehrig Day two weeks later, the visitors were the Washington Senators. Gehrig gave his stirring "luckiest man on earth" speech, during the course of which he reflected on the courage and support displayed by his wife and family throughout his ordeal, and the good fortune he had to be associated with some of the finest men in baseball. "I might of had a bad break," he concluded, "but I have an awful lot to live for." Less than two years later, a few days short of his 38th birthday, Lou Gehrig was dead. (The Washington Senators by Tom Deveaux.)

I don't have anything with the Iron Horse on it; here's a 1939 photo of Jack Dempsey signing for the Big Train):

[GeoPoto]

Player #163: Peter W. "Pete" Appleton. He was born Peter Jabionowski and was sometimes known as "Jabby". He changed his name in 1934. Pitcher for the Washington Senators in 1936-1939 and 1945. 57 wins and 28 saves in 14 MLB seasons. He debuted with the Cincinnati Reds in 1927-1928. His best season was 1936 with Washington as he posted a 14-9 record with a 3.53 ERA in 201.2 innings pitched.

We will use Appleton's SABR biography to highlight his career and time in Washington: In September 1927, the Cincinnati Reds brought up a 23-year-old right-handed pitching prospect named Pete Jablonowski for a late-season look-see. Although he made a good first impression, going 2-1 with a 1.82 ERA and a shutout victory, Jablonowski struggled the following year in 31 games. In 1930-1931, however, he saw considerable service with the Cleveland Indians, posting a combined 12-11 log over two seasons of spot starting and relief work. But Jablonowski was thereafter cast adrift again, with only a brief stint with the Boston Red Sox and a single game appearance for the New York Yankees preceding his return to the minors.

Three seasons and one legal name change later, he resurfaced as Pete Appleton, notching a career-best 14 wins for the 1936 Washington Senators. For the next nine years, with time out for World War II naval service, Appleton remained in uniform, hurling his final major-league game as a 41-year-old in September 1945. The remainder of his life was likewise devoted to the game, first as a player-manager in various minor leagues and thereafter as a fulltime scout for the Senators and Minnesota Twins. By the time of his death in early 1974, Pete Appleton had spent 47 years associated with professional baseball. . . .

. . . That winter (after the 1935 season), appreciative (for Appleton's 23-9, 3.17 season helping Montreal win the International League pennant) Montreal owner-manager Frank Shaughnessy cleared the way for Pete to get another major-league shot, selling his rights to the Washington Senators for $7,500.

The 5’11” and 183 lb. veteran was now almost 32 years old. As described by Washington Post sports columnist (and soon-to-become ardent Pete Appleton booster) Shirley Povich, Appleton was a deliberate worker who did not throw hard, delivering his assortment of pitches via an over-the-top motion. But while his stuff was still adjudged no more than adequate by major-league standards, Washington brass hoped that Pete, if used judiciously, would prove a useful addition to a Senators pitching corps in serious decline from the pennant-winning performance of three seasons earlier. Alternating between the rotation and the bullpen, Appleton vindicated his acquisition, going 14-9, with 12 complete games and a creditable 3.53 ERA for the 1936 season, one that saw the Senators (82-71) post a 15-win improvement over the previous campaign. Unhappily for the DC faithful, neither the Senators nor Appleton would continue the good work, with the 1937 season seeing both the club (73-80) and the pitcher (8-15) headed in the wrong direction. The following two years, Appleton worked primarily in relief, turning in sub-par (7-9 and 5-10) logs for second division Washington teams.

In December 1939, Appleton was a throw-in in the trade that sent hard-hitting Taft Wright to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for outfielder Gee Walker.

[GeoPoto]

Player #164A: George W. Case. Outfielder for the Washington Senators in 1937-1945 and 1947. 1,415 hits and 349 stolen bases in 11 MLB seasons. 4-time All-Star. 6-time AL stolen base leader. Only player to ever lead MLB in stolen bases for five consecutive years (1939-1943). His best season was probably 1942 for Washington as he posted a .377 OBP with 101 runs scored and 44 stolen bases in 563 plate appearances.

We will start with Deveaux on Case and then continue on in tomorrow's introduction: On the Washington club of 1939, the revelation was second-year outfielder George Case. Indeed, Case caused a sensation throughout baseball, stealing 51 bases, the highest total in the majors since Ben Chapman's 61 eight years earlier. Case would become the greatest base stealer of his time; in the 40-year period from 1921 to 1961, no one would pilfer more bases than the 61 he would swipe in 1940. For five straight years beginning in 1939, Case would lead both major leagues in steals, a feat unprecedented in major-league history. He did incur numerous injuries while sliding, but in 1948, hobbled by pains which were bringing his career to an abrupt end at age 31, he would win a sixth league title.