Johnny Oates enjoyed an 11-year big league playing career as a catcher for five different clubs. He played in two World Series before playing in his last game in 1981. In the collection is this letter from Oates describing his greatest thrill. He writes, “My greatest thrill in baseball was one of two. Getting a hit my first at bat in the big leagues or hitting a home run my first time on national television. It would be hard for me to decide between the two. They both mean very much to me.”

Because the date of the letter is unknown, it’s impossible to tell if Oates had embarked on his managerial career at the time he wrote this. As a skipper, Oates guided the Texas Rangers to the franchise’s first post-season appearance as the AL Western Division champs. In all he would pilot Texas to three division crowns. The team retired his #26 — the second retired jersey after Nolan Ryan’s #34 – and inducted him into their team’s Hall of Fame. After succumbing to a brain tumor in 2004, Oates was posthumously voted into the Orioles Hall of Fame in 2010.

Oates is also in both the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in and the state of Virginia’s Sports Hall of Fame.