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A forgotten star, Mickey Vernon was outstanding at bat and in the field. Twice a batting champion, and seven times an All Star, Vernon played in four different decades starting in the 1930s.

By the time he retired, Vernon had 2,495 hits and held the Major League record for career double plays by a first basemen. He also held the American League marks for career games, putouts, assists, and total chances at his position.

One of the most liked and respected men of his era, Vernon also missed his age-26 and age-27 seasons due to his service in World War II.

In the collection is this handwritten letter penned and signed by Vernon. Dated October 26, 1992 just two days after the Blue Jays beat the Braves in the Fall Classic, the letter refers to Vernon’s allegiance to the AL.

Vernon writes, “Well, the American League won another World Series and I was glad because I get tired of the Phila. talk show hosts refer to the Amer League as a Mickey Mouse league. They are always saying that the Nat is a better league and I don’t buy it.”

Vernon spent 18 of his 20 years playing in the AL before becoming the first manager in the history of the expansion Washington Senators.

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After winning the batting title in 1946, Mickey Vernon experienced difficulty in ’47. So did his club. On May 1st he was hitting .275, 75 points lower than his .353 the year before.

The Senators didn’t fare well either. Two games below .500 at the start of May, Washington faded as the season wore on.

By the end of July the Senators were 20.5 games out of first place. It got worse.

Starting on August 7th Washington lost 14 out of 15. On August 20th, the team hit rock bottom. After dropping the first two games in Cleveland, the Senators had a chance to even the series in a Sunday double header.

Instead, Washington lost both contests in walk-off fashion. Now 20 games below the break-even mark, Washington slipped 27 1/2 games behind the first place Yankees.

After the twin bill disaster an article appeared in the Washington Evening Star ripping the Senators and attributing their poor play to manager Ossie Bluege. The players and coaches came together and gave Bluege a much-needed vote of confidence.

Shown above is an affidavit signed by Mickey Vernon with his legal first name of James. The notarized document is dated August 20, 1947, the day of the Senators 11th straight loss. In it Vernon denounces the “derogatory and malicious statements written about our manager…”.

The rest of the month Vernon went .328 with 6 multi-hit games, four home runs, and 12 RBI. Mickey backed his skipper with words and actions.

Though Vernon’s signature is by no means rare, vintage examples from the 1940s such as this remain difficult to come by.

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Mickey Vernon played 14 of his 20 years with the Washington Senators. Six of his seven All Star campaigns came in DC as did both of his batting crowns.

After his final season as a player in 1960, the Senators relocated and became the Minnesota Twins. They were replaced in the nation’s capital by the expansion club that bore the name the fans were familiar with – the Washington Senators.

Fresh on the fans’ mind and finished as a player, Vernon as offered the manager’s job. He took it. Predictably, the expansion team did not fare well. In his first two seasons, Vernon guided the club to 100-loss campaigns. In his third season the Senators won just 14 of their first 40 games. Vernon was mercifully fired.

He never managed again.

In the collection are four Mickey Vernon autographed Topps cards, including his first as a manager.

The card on the top right is from 1957, his final year with the Boston Red Sox. That season also snapped a streak of four straight All Star appearances.

The next card features the two-time batting champ with the Indians in the final of his seven All Star seasons.

On the bottom left is the 1959 edition, Vernon’s final Topps card as a player while the bottom right is from the 1961 set, his first card as a manager.

Vernon has neatly signed each of the four cards.