Vern Stephens

Vernon Decatur Stephens (October 23, 1920 – November 4, 1968) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop from through . An eight-time All-Star, Stephens was notable for being the American League home run champion and was a three-time American League RBI champion. He was the cleanup hitter for the only St. Louis Browns team to win an American League pennant in , and was a top power hitter for the Boston Red Sox. Nicknamed "Little Slug", "Junior", and "Buster", Stephens batted and threw right-handed. He was inducted into the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2006.

Baseball career

Stephens was born in McAlister, New Mexico while his parents were en route from Oklahoma to California.

In August 2008, he was named as one of the ten former players who began their careers before 1943 to be considered by the Veterans Committee for induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in 2009. He was not selected.

Death Vern Stephens died on November 4, 1968 from a heart attack in Long Beach, California at 48 years of age.

Highlights 8-time All-Star (1943–1944, 1945 [non-official game], 1946, 1948–1951) Six times in the Top 10 in MVP voting (1942–1945, 1948–1949) Led the American League in home runs during 1945 Three times led the American League in RBI (1944, 1949–1950) Collected 440 RBI within three consecutive seasons (1948–1950) Three times in the Top 10 in batting average (1942–1943, 1946) Twice led the American League in games played (1948–1949) Was inducted into the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2006 Only man to play for the 1944 American League Champion St. Louis Browns and the Baltimore Orioles, the team the Browns franchise became after it moved to Baltimore in 1954 Holds the MLB record for RBI in a season by a shortstop, with 159 in 1949 Became the first shortstop to hit 30 home runs in a season, with 39 in 1949 Attended Polytechnic High School, Long Beach, California (also attended by Tony Gwynn, Chase Utley, Milton Bradley, etc.)