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Johnny Vander Meer broke into the big leagues in 1937 with the Cincinnati Reds under manager Bill McKechnie. The hurler won 84 games under the Hall of Fame manager and established himself as a bonafide star.

Vandy’s second year with McKechnie was like none other in the history of the game. On June 11 he threw a no-hitter against the Boston Bees. His next turn on the hill came four days later in the first night game in New York baseball history. The Ebbets Field faithful watched in amazement as Vander Meer toss his second-straight no-hit game.

No pitcher has yet to match his consecutive gems.

Three-and-a-half weeks later Vandy was named the National League’s starting pitcher in the All Star Game. In the first inning he retired the side in order, getting leadoff man Mike Kreevich and Hall of Famers Earl Averill and Charlie Gehringer. The second inning was another 1-2-3 frame for Vandy featuring a Jimmie Foxx strikeout and a pair of groundouts by Joe DiMaggio and Bill Dickey.

The 23-year old retired 9 of the 10 men he faced including 7 Cooperstown men. His efforts earned him the victory in the Mid Summer Classic.

In the collection is this two-page handwritten letter from Vandy about his much-admired mentor McKechnie.

“Bill McKechnie was a great MGR as his record indicates. He had the rare ability of players great respect rather than fear…Was known to be able to play for that 1 run to beat you and when to bring in his ace relieve man. Did not mess with players who did not put out 100% or take care of themselves.”

High praise indeed from Vander Meer about the man who was his manager for seven seasons.

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Johnny Vander Meer was a four-time All Star who won 119 big league games. He’s best remembered for doing the impossible – tossing no-hitters in consecutive starts in 1938.

He accomplished the feat in his second Major League season under Hall of Fame manager Bill McKechnie. In fact, all four of Vandy’s All-Star seasons came under McKechnie’s guidance. Shown here is the second page of Vander Meer’s handwritten recollections of the skipper. In this portion of the letter, the pitcher raves about the manager’s character.

“He was my kind of a man – in short you never heard a bad word about the Decon (sic) as he was called. If you did, check the source you heard it from.”

Vander Meer has added his signature boldy after that. Below that is this post script, “If you meet Mr. McKechnie’s standard of life you will become quite a young man…”

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When Johnny Vander Meer made baseball history by pitching no-hitters in consecutive starts, it was Ernie Lombardi who caught both games. Vandy pitched his first gem against the Boston Braves on June 11, 1938. His next start four days later he victimized the Brooklyn Dodgers.

The ’38 campaign was Lombardi’s finest. He set career highs in hits, doubles, RBI. The catcher’s league-leading .342 batting average was also his best. For his efforts, Lombardi was voted the National League’s MVP.

He retired after the 1947 season with a .306 career average and a .358 lifetime on-base percentage. Lombardi’s 126 OPS+ over 17 big league seasons is a fine mark for a man whose only defensive position was behind the plate.

Lombardi died in 1977 at age 69 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame nine years later. Here the catcher signs a small photo in a Cincinnati uniform.

 

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Johnny Vander Meer’s historic 1938 campaign that featured back-to-back no-hit games also had an All Star Game to remember. Named the contest’s starting pitcher by NL skipper Bill Terry, Vandy pitched three scoreless innings. He retired nine of the ten AL stars he faced, allowing only one hit to the Red Sox’ Joe Cronin.

Cronin started at shortstop for the Junior Circuit lineup that boasted Cooperstown men at all but third base and left field. Despite the star power, the American League submitted to the National Leaguers 4-1.

Shown here is a telegram sent from Tigers owner Walter Briggs to American League President William Harridge. It is dated June 20, 1938, sixteen days before the Mid Summer Classic. The correspondence informs the AL chief that Detroit skipper Mickey Cochrane’s suggested starting lineup for the game has been mailed.

Why Cochrane felt the need to weigh in remains a mystery. The 1938 season was Cochrane’s last as Detroit skipper. He was fired by the Tigers on August 5th and never again donned a big league uniform.

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Johnny Vander Meer threw his last big league pitch in May of 1951. After his release, he hooked on with the PCL’s Oakland Oaks for the remainder of the season. In 13 appearances for the Triple-A club, Vandy pitched to a 5.14 ERA.

After a year away from the game in ’52, Vandy signed as pitching coach with the Reds’ Double-A affiliate in Tulsa. He also pitched in 24 games for the Texas League team, going 11-10 with a 2.31 ERA. In July he threw his third professional no-hit ball game against Beaumont.

Vandy continued to pitch in the minors until after his 40th birthday in 1955. He also managed and coached in the bushes for more than a decade after leaving the big leagues as a player.

In the collection is this government postcard signed by Vander Meer in 1953.

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Shown here is the back of the government postcard signed by Vander Meer. Notice the USPS postmark of August 29, 1953 in Burlington, Iowa.

Three years removed from his last big league pitch, the 38-year old Vander Meer was the pitcher/manager of the Class-B Burlington Flints in ’53. As skipper, Vander Meer guided the team to a 49-69 record. On the hill he went 3-4 with a 3.21 ERA in 19 games. A .152 career hitter in the majors, Vander Meer hit .308 with a .400 on-base percentage in 31 plate appearances for the Flints in ’53.

Vander Meer enjoyed corresponding with fans over the years. Though his signature is by no means rare, vintage examples like this remain difficult to find.