Vernon Shetler

Vernon George Shetler
(Moose)

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 3", Weight 205 lb.

• Born January 19, 1919 in Navarre, OH USA
• Died May 18, 2005 in Covington, KY USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

First baseman/outfielder Vernon Shetler spent 13 seasons in the minor leagues, beginning in 1936 at the age of 17. He didn't play from 1937 to 1939, then rattled off a .302 average and .547 slugging perentage with 13 triples and 9 home runs in 79 games for the Bristol Twins in 1940. Between the Knoxville Smokies and Elizabethton Betsy Red Sox in 1941, he hit .324 with 24 home runs, 29 doubles and 14 triples in 127 games. He slumped to .280 in 1942, then missed 1943 to 1945 due to World War II. He returned with a bang with the New Bern Bears in 1946, hitting a Coastal Plain League-leading .362 with 20 home runs, 31 doubles, 11 triples and 95 RBI in 123 games. The Portsmouth Cubs took him in the 1946 Rule V Draft and the next year, he hit 20 home runs, 32 doubles and 12 triples with 116 RBI and 106 runs scored, though his slash line fell to .291/.370/.500. He tied Leonard Morrison for the Piedmont League lead in homers.

With the Franklin Cubs in 1948, he hit .362 with 21 home runs, 37 doubles, 11 triples and a Virginia League-leading 150 RBI in 126 games. He also spent time with Portsmouth, though his numbers with them are unavailable. He was selected by the Quebec Alouettes in the 1948 Rule V Draft. In 1949, he hit .320/.395/.489 with 17 home runs and a Can-Am League-leading 133 RBI in 138 games for the Quebec Braves (previously the Alouettes) and the next year, he hit ~.321 between three clubs. After an off year in 1951 (though he hit 19 home runs), he rebounded to .302 in 1952, then hit .308/.397/.520 with 23 home runs and 107 RBI in 122 games for the Hot Springs Bathers in 1953. His final year was 1954. He batted .307/.401/.504 with 17 home runs and 118 RBI in 118 games for the Meridian Millers.

He managed the Owensboro Oilers for part of 1952 and the Hot Springs Bathers in 1953.