~ The Old Sachem ~ Johnny Vander Meer’s pitching feat

By Bill Stewart

You probably never heard of Johnny Vander Meer, but you should have. He is the only major leaguer to throw consecutive no-hitters. He was born in Prospect Park, New Jersey, on November 2, 1914, and his family moved to Midland Park, N.J., when he was 18.

He was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as an amateur free agent in 1933 and assigned to the Dayton Ducks. His contract was then sold to the Boston Bees, the Boston National League team. The Bees sent him to their minor league team, Scranton Miners of the New York-Pennsylvania League. He didn’t do well there and was traded to the Cincinnati Reds’ minor league team, the Nashville Volunteers. Nashville sent him to the Durham Bulls.

The manager of the Bulls at the time was Johnny Gooch, who was also the team’s catcher. Gooch was pretty astute with young pitchers and he worked tirelessly to improve Vander Meer. Johnny’s major problem was wildness and Gooch set out to lower the numbers.

Vander Meer made his major league debut on April 22, 1937. During the season he had 3 wins and 4 losses and was sent back to Syracuse for most of the season. He was recalled in September of that year and he had back-to-back no-hitters in 1938. On June 11 he pitched against the Boston Bees and got his first no-hitter. Four days later, he went against the Brooklyn Dodgers in New York and duplicated his prior effort, a second no-hitter in a row. It was the first night game ever played in Ebbets Field, home of the Dodgers.

This double no-hitter earned him the honor of being the starting pitcher in the All-Star game for the National League. He pitched three scoreless innings, allowing just one hit, and the Nationals went on to win 4-1. He finished the season with a 15-10 record and a 3.12 earned run average. He needed hospitalization later in the season – being treated for boils.

He had a disappointing 1939 season after a great rookie season. He was 5-9 in 1939 with an ERA of 4.67. As the 1940 season got underway, he felt ill during spring training then later suffered an injury, slipping on a wet mound, and the Reds were not impressed with his accuracy. He was sent down to the Indianapolis Indians, where he had a record of 6-4. Cincinnati brought him back up in September and he had a 3 and 1 record that included a 12-inning game against the Phillies.

The win got the Reds the National League Pennant. Pitchers batted in this period, so Vander Meer led off the 13th inning with a double. He advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt, remained at third on a single, then scored the winning run for the Reds. He made a single appearance in the 1940 World Series against the Detroit Tigers in the fifth inning of game five with the Reds trailing 7-0. He pitched three scoreless innings, but the Reds lost 8-0. This was the singular appearance of Vander Meer in a postseason game.

He had a pretty good year in 1941 where he won 16 games and lost 12. On June 6, 1941, he pitched against Philadelphia and allowed a single hit. He later stated that it should have been a no-hitter because an error by the shortstop; Eddie Juist picked up a grounder then dropped it before tossing to first base.

Vander Meer was an All-Star pitcher for the Nationals in 1942 and again pitched three scoreless innings. He finished the season with a record of 18-12. In 1943 his record was 15-16 for the second-place Reds, and he led the league for the third consecutive time in strikeouts. He joined the US Navy on March 3rd, 1944 and was stationed at the Sampson Naval Training Station in New York, where he played for the Navy baseball team.

He returned to pitch for the Reds in 1946, but was never again the great pitcher of earlier days. He was traded to the Cubs in 1950 then was released. He was signed by the Cleveland Indians in 1951 and released in June. He then spent some time in the minor leagues, but was never the great pitcher again. He retired in 1951 and became a minor league manager for the Reds for 10 seasons and retired in 1962.

We will probably never again see a pitcher toss two no-hitters in a row, especially now that they only throw for five to seven innings. I think that they now throw at 95 mph and their arms suffer and they retire early.

  (Editor’s Note: Bill Stewart, who is better known to Saugus Advocate readers as “The Old Sachem,” writes a weekly column – sometimes about sports. He also opines on current or historical events or famous people.)