Backup Shortstop
Arky Vaughan (with Pirates from 1932-1941)
.324/.415/.472, 1411 G, 6182 PA, 141 OPS+ (with Pirates)
There have been so many good outfielders in Pirates history that the all-time team is loaded at the position. It’s much harder to find good backup infielders. Arky Vaughan is a lock, though. He would be the starting shortstop on many teams. He just happens to be slotted behind Honus Wagner, the greatest shortstop of them all. FanGraphs WAR has Wagner as the #1 shortstop of all-time and Arky Vaughan at #7, just above Derek Jeter. Wagner and Vaughan playing for the same franchise is much like Ted Williams (#3 left fielder) and Carl Yastrzemski (#7 left fielder) both playing for the Red Sox.
For this all-time 25-man roster, Vaughan will have to handle shortstop and second base. When he’s at short, Honus Wagner can shift over to first base to give Willie Stargell a day off.
Vaughan was born in Arkansas, but moved to California when he was a child. When his childhood friend’s learned he had been born in Arkansas, he was given the nickname Arky and was known by that name for the rest of his life. He was a multisport star in high school. In January of 1931, he was signed by Pittsburgh Pirates scout Art Griggs.
Vaughan took over the shortstop position as a 20-year-old in 1932 and was successful right from the start, hitting .318/.375/.412. The legendary Honus Wagner played his last game for the Pirates in 1916. Between the end of Wagner’s career and the beginning of Vaughan’s career, seven players were regular starters, including Rabbit Maranville and George Wright, who both put up some good years, but nothing compared to Wagner and Vaughan.
The 1935 season was Vaughan’s best season. He led the league in the triple-slash categories, hitting .385/.491/.607. He also walked 97 times against just 18 strikeouts. This ability to draw a walk would help Vaughan finish his career with an on-base percentage over .400. He also rarely struck out, averaging one strikeout every 28 plate appearances in his career.
During Vaughan’s 10 years with the club, the Pirates finished in second place three times, but never made the World Series. They came closest in 1938 when they finished just two games behind the Chicago Cubs. The key series for the Cubs was a three-game sweep at Wrigley Field that included a home run by Gabby Hartnett that’s known as the “Homer in the Gloamin’”.
One of Vaughan’s biggest moments on the diamond came during the 1941 All-Star Game at Briggs Stadium in Detroit. Vaughan was 3-for-4 with two home runs, two runs scored, and four RBI. He hit a two-run homer in the top of the seventh to put the National League ahead 3-2. He followed that with a two-run homer in the top of the eight that extended the NL’s lead to 5-2. He likely would have been the MVP of the game if not for a game-winning, three-run homer by Ted Williams with two outs in the bottom of the ninth.
The 1941 season was the last in Pittsburgh for Vaughan. The team traded him to the Dodgers for four players. He played two years with the Dodgers, then took three years off. He returned for two seasons as a part-time player in 1947 and 1948. Jackie Robinson credits Vaughan with being one of the players on the Dodgers who welcomed him to the team when he broke the modern color barrier in 1947. He said of Vaughan, “He was one of the fellows who went out of his way to be nice to me when I came in here as a rookie. Believe me, I needed it. He was a fine fellow.”