Net54 Photo Gallery

[Scott Garner]

Here are a few more I'd like to share....

Two photos of Vandy meeting Babe Ruth for the first time prior to his 2nd consecutive no-hitter- Ebbets Field NY. The 2nd photo also features his teammate Paul Derringer that obviously is enjoying watching the whole scene. The Babe sat on the Cincinnati bench for the entire game and was the first to greet Vandy in the dugout following the game.

OT-Vander Meer expressed later in life that one of his greatest baseball thrills was getting the opportunity to meet, and become good friends, with his childhood hero Babe Ruth. After initially meeting, Vander Meer and Ruth, along with Babe's baseball roomie Harry Harper and Smoky Joe Wood,
hunted and fished many times from 1938 until Ruth's death in the 1947. Vander Meer, an avid sportsman, stated that Ruth's hunting skills were "unparalleled". He would allow Vandy, who Babe always referred to as "lefthander" (never by name-LOL), to take the first shot. Vandy would typically miss the target, but Ruth, by Vandy's account, virtually always brought the prey down with the follow up shot delivered by Babe and his trusty hunting rifle "Long Tom".

Several photos that were taken at the Vander Meer home in Midland Park, NJ with locals the day following his historic 2nd no-hit game. I believe that these were used in a magazine article, but I'm not sure which one. Whoever the photographer was IMHO had tremendous skill. Each one of these photos could have been painted by Norman Rockwell.

Original fan snapshot of the celebration on the field at Ebbetts following the 2nd no-hitter. I love this photo for many reasons...

2 photos of early Vandy by Mr. Conlon-1937 (right) and 1938 (left).

Enjoy!