Pittsburgh Pirates Rookie year Vaughan began the 1932 season as the backup to the Pirates' starting shortstop,
Tommy Thevenow. Through the first 13 games of the season, Vaughan appeared only twice, once as a late-game replacement for Thevenow and once as a pinch-hitter. However, Thevenow was still suffering the effects of a season-ending ankle injury he had suffered in 1931, which opened up the door for Vaughan to take over the job. When Thevenow returned at the end of May after missing a month, he found himself in a reserve role. Vaughan, who was the youngest player in the
National League in 1932, His .607 slugging percentage led the NL, as did his 97 walks. His 19 home runs were eighth in the league, his only time in the top ten, and his 99 RBI were sixth. He also earned the first of his six starts in the All-Star Game. Defensively, he finished in the top half of the league in fielding percentage for the first time while finishing second in both
putouts and
assists. Although he was third in
National League MVP voting behind
Gabby Hartnett and
Dizzy Dean, he was named Player of the Year by
The Sporting News. The season has been called the best ever by a shortstop other than
Honus Wagner.
Remaining Pirates career Over the next six seasons, Vaughan continued to be one of the best-hitting shortstops in the game, batting over .300 in every season, and regularly being at or near the top of the league in most offensive categories. By the time Vaughan reached the age of 25, he had accumulated 1,057 hits, the 18th highest total for a 25-year-old in MLB history. He also continued to improve defensively, as he led the league in
total chances in 1938–39 while finishing in the top three in fielding percentage four times. He again finished third in the MVP voting in 1938, when the Pirates finished second and had their best record during his tenure with the team. In 1940, Vaughan was appointed team captain by new
manager Frankie Frisch. Although he led the league in runs scored and triples again, he slumped to a career-low .300 batting average. This prompted Frisch to replace Vaughan as starting shortstop with
Alf Anderson to start the 1941 season. However, Anderson didn't hit, and Vaughan was quickly back in the starting lineup. In the
1941 All-Star Game, Vaughan hit two home runs, but was upstaged by a ninth-inning, three-run homer by
American Leaguer
Ted Williams. Vaughan finished the year batting .316 in 106 games. That would be his last year with the Pirates who wouldn't see a star as bright as Vaughan for almost two decades. The fans were outraged at his trade to Brooklyn and his mysterious death years later helped coin the phrase "The Ghost of Arky" when times got tough.
Brooklyn Dodgers A new position On December 12, 1941, after a decade as the Pirates' starting shortstop, Vaughan was traded to the Brooklyn Dodgers for
Pete Coscarart,
Luke Hamlin,
Babe Phelps, and
Jimmy Wasdell. Since
Pee Wee Reese was already at shortstop for the Dodgers, the plan was to move Vaughan to
third base. Vaughan's tenure with the Dodgers got off to a rough start, as he failed to hit .300 for the first time in his career, finishing at .277 with just two home runs. He also established new lows in several other categories, including a career-worst .348 OBP. Durocher subsequently fed false claims to the press that Newsom had thrown an illegal spitball after being instructed not to. After the season, Vaughan left the team, retiring to his ranch. He went on to sit out the next three years.
Comeback After Durocher was suspended before the 1947 season, Vaughan decided to try a comeback. Serving as something of a utility player, Vaughan played in 64 games and batted .325. He played in his only
World Series that season, which the Dodgers lost to the
New York Yankees. Vaughan appeared in three games in the
1947 World Series, all as a pinch hitter, reaching base twice on a walk and a double. Even with Durocher's suspension over, Vaughan returned to the Dodgers in a similar capacity in 1948. However, after batting a career-low .244 in 65 games, he was released at the end of the season. and the batting average is a 20th-century record for National League shortstops. Vaughan is the 26th greatest non-pitcher in major league history, according to
win shares. He hit for the cycle twice in his career as a member of the Pirates. In 14 seasons, he hit .300 or better 12 times, only missing the mark in 1942 and 1948. In 1981,
Lawrence Ritter and
Donald Honig included Vaughan in their book
The 100 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time. In his
New Historical Baseball Abstract, published in 2001,
Bill James rated Vaughan as the second-best shortstop in major league history, behind fellow Pirate and mentor
Honus Wagner. == Personal life ==