In this handwritten letter, Jocko Conlan has high praise for fellow Hall of Famers Bill Klem and Billy Evans.
Conlan got his start as an umpire after his playing career ended when the National League offered him a job for the 1941 season. Bill Klem was the supervisor of the NL arbiters at the time. Klem quickly took Conlan under his wing becoming his mentor and friend.
In the letter Conlan writes, “I’m glad you put me in with Klem whom I broke in with. He was the greatest of us all.”
Conlan also mentions Billy Evans, another Cooperstown umpire. “Evans was great and a fine man.”
Conlan enjoyed a 25-year umpiring career, officiating five World Series, six All Star games, and four NL playoffs.
At the start of the letter, Conlan talks about his nemesis Leo Durocher in content surrounding their shin-kicking incident.