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Goose Goslin was a 20-year old when he broke in with the Washington Senators in 1921. In his first season as a regular two years later, Goslin hit .300 and led the league with 18 triples.

He was just getting started.

In 1924 Washington owner Clark Griffith tabbed Goslin’s 27-year old teammate Bucky Harris as manager. Goose responded by leading the league with 129 runs batted in. It was the first of his 11 seasons topping the 100-RBI plateau. Goslin slashed a team-leading .344/.421/.516. He also paced Washington in hits, triples, homers, OPS and total bases.

With Goslin’s offense and Walter Johnson’s 23 wins, the Senators edged the Yankees for the AL crown. Goslin matched his .344 regular season average in the Fall Classic. With a double and three homers, he slugged .656, and had a cool 1.000 OPS.

The World Series against John McGraw’s New York Giants was a thriller. Johnson took losses in Games 1 and 5. The Senators beat New York in Game 6 to force a Game 7.

In the decider, the Giants held a 3-1 lead heading into the bottom of the 8th. Washington player/manager Harris tied the game with a two-RBI single to left.

Johnson came on to pitch in the ninth, just two days removed from a complete game in Game 5. He held the Giants at bay through the 12th. Washington pushed across the winning run in the bottom half to make him the Game 7 winner. It was the Senators’ only World Series triumph.

In three separate stints with Washington covering a dozen seasons, Goslin hit .323. He remained productive into his 30s. From his age-30 year through his age-36 campaign, Goslin drove in 100 or more runs five times.

Shown above is a letter written and signed by Bucky Harris. Dated 17 days before the opening of the 1925 World Series, the letter reads, “As the World Series approaches we need your help to have a winning team. Hope you have made arrangements to come at once. You will be a great help to the team. The players seem to have more courage and pep when you’re around. Please do not fail us. Sincerely, Stanley ‘Bucky’ Harris”.

Letters from this era handwritten by members of the Hall of Fame are rarely seen.

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The Washington Senators were a charter member of the American League in 1901. Their stay in DC lasted through the 1961 season before the became the Minnesota Twins.

In the 60-year history, the team boasted four batting champions. Ed Delahanty became the first when he hit .376 in 1902. The Washington faithful waited more than a quarter century for their next champ.

Leon “Goose” Goslin is the second Senators batting leader. In 1928 he set the Washington record with a .379 clip.

Seven years later second baseman Buddy Myer joined the pair by reigning supreme with a .349 average. The next two Senators crowns were worn by Mickey Vernon who topped all Juinor Circuit batters by hitting .353 in 1946 and a .337 in 1953.

Shown above is an affidavit signed by Mickey Vernon with his legal first name of James. The notarized document is dated August 20, 1947. In it Vernon denounces the “derogatory and malicious statements written about our manager…”.

To read more about the episode, click here to go to Vernon’s page.

 

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Hall of Fame left fielder Goose Goslin was a batting champion who drove in at least 100 runs in eleven seasons. A two-time World Series champion, he also teamed with first baseman Joe Judge to accomplish a 20th-century first.

On May 26, 1930 the Senators teammates became the first duo to hit back-to-back home runs twice in the same game. They did it in grand style – at Yankee Stadium against a Hall of Fame pitcher.

The game didn’t start off well for the Senators. Lou Gehrig slashed a bases-loaded double in the first inning to put the Yankees ahead 3-0. The next time he came up, the Iron Horse slugged an opposite-field triple to tack on another run.

Then Goslin and Judge started their power display.

Goose led off the top of the fourth against pitcher Lefty Gomez with a homer. Hitting in the three-hole right behind Goslin was Judge. He followed Goslin with a homer over the right field fence to cut the New York lead in half.

The next Washington turn at bat Goslin came up with two on and two out. The left fielder smacked a three-run homer to put the Senators ahead 5-4. Judge followed with a homer of his own to close out the power display.

Though not a Cooperstown man, Judge was a fine player. A veteran of 20 big league seasons, Judge ranked in the AL’s top ten in hits (2,328), doubles (431), triples (158), and walks (958) when he retired.

Judge also held multiple defensive records for American League first basemen when he left the game. His 2,056 games, 19,021 putouts, 2,184 assists, 1,476 double plays, and .993 fielding percentage all were tops in AL history. His eight seasons leading Junior Circuit first basemen in fielding percentage was also a record.

Shown here is a government postcard from 1951 signed by Judge. More on Goslin’s teammate and friend Judge can be found by clicking here.

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Goose Goslin finished his career as one of the greatest players in Washington Senators history. He ranks in the top five for many offensive categories for the franchise that was in Washington from 1901-1960.

The left fielder ranks third in triples and WAR to Sam Rice, and Joe Judge. His Washington RBI total trails only Rice, Mickey Vernon and Judge. In two-base hits, Goslin ranks fifth behind Rice, Judge, Vernon, and Buddy Myer.

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Goose Goslin played for the Tigers from 1934-1937. In his first two years in Detroit, the team won the American League pennant. The 1934 campaign ended in a World Series loss to the St. Louis Cardinals’ Gas House Gang.

For Goose and Detroit, the 1935 season was magical. Behind the hitting of Goslin, Charlie Gehringer, and Al Simmons and the 23-win performance of Tommy Bridges, the Tigers won the pennant.

In the World Series against Charlie Grimm’s 100-win Cubs, Bridges had two complete games, one coming in the deciding Game 6. For the first time in team history, the Tigers were World Series champions.

Goslin’s final 100-RBI season came in 1936. He had 24 homers, 125 RBI, and 301 total bases – all team-leading numbers. The 35-year old had his highest OPS+ in five seasons.

Goslin retired two seasons later in 1938 with a .316 average, 2,735 hits, 1,482 runs, and 1,612 RBI. His career on-base and slugging percentages stand at .387 and .500 respectively.

Goose Goslin’s baseball excellence was rewarded when he received a plaque in Cooperstown in 1968.

Goslin’s flowing signature is on display in the autographed picture above.