Teddy Ballgame
A look at the exceptional life and career of Ted Williams
Bygone baseball by C. Philip Francis
A man has to have goals – for a day, for a lifetime – and that was mine, to have people say, “There goes Ted Williams, the greatest hitter who ever lived.” – Ted Williams.
Baseball has just lost one of its greatest players - The Kid, The Thumper, The Splendid Splinter, or Teddy Ballgame, and regardless of what he was called, he became one of the best hitters of all time.
Theodore Samuel Williams was born to Sam and May Williams on August 30, 1918 in San Diego, California. The parents did not get along, and were away much of the time. Ted spent little time with his only sibling, a younger brother named Danny. In his early years Ted’s mother gave him a bat and ball that he used for hours at nearby North Park that is now called the Ted Williams Park. The youngster soon realized he was good at the game, and became obsessed with hitting the ball. To him hitting was a science.
When he learned that the new Herbert Hoover High School would soon open, Ted urged his parents to send him there hoping he would have a better chance of making the baseball team. He not only made the team he became an excellent outfielder and pitcher, and soon scouts found their way to the school. When Ted hit a gigantic home run that broke a faraway store window a New York Yankee scout was there to see it, and the St. Louis Cardinals invited the six-foot-three-inch, 160-pound left-hand hitter to a tryout. The Yankees and Cardinals lost interest after Ted’s demand for a $1,000 signing bonus, but following high school graduation and on the urging of assistant general manager Bill Evans the Southern California teenager was signed by the Boston Red Sox.
“Hitting a pitched baseball is the hardest single feat in sports.” - T.W.
In June of 1936 the Red Sox sent seventeen-year-old Ted Williams to the nearby San Diego Padres of the tough Pacific Coast League where he was paid $150 per month. In his first professional baseball game Ted struck out on three pitches thrown by Cotton Pippen who later had a brief major league career with the Cardinals and Tigers. Williams hit .271 in 42 games that year. Williams never hit .300 in his two years with the Padres, but his exceptional eyes and strong wrists gave him a great baseball future. (It was said that Williams was able to read the label on a spinning record.) During a trial at the 1938 Red Sox spring training it was obvious that the team had a brash and cocky teenager. When informed that he was being farmed out Ted shouted at the veteran three starting outfielders, “ Someday I’m going to make more money in this game than all of you put together!” He was right.
Baseball is the only endeavor where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer. - T.W.
The Red Sox sent the emotional outfielder to the Minneapolis Millers of the American Association where Ted worked with batter instructor, Rogers Hornsby, who taught “Always get a good ball to hit.” Williams won the AA Triple Crown with a .366 batting average, 43 home runs, 142 RBIs, and was now ready for the big leagues. The twenty-one-year-old rookie arrived in Boston for the 1939 season, and the immensely talented Williams compiled statistics that awed much of baseball. After hitting .327 in his rookie year and .344 the following season, Ted had his greatest year.
He started slowly at the plate, and then caught on fire. When the sun rose on the last day of the season Williams’ average was .39955, or .400 when rounded out. Manager Joe Cronin invited his slugger to sit out the scheduled double-header, but Ted would accept only an authentic .400. Ted played both games and went 6-for-8 to finish at .406, the last man to do so.
…I made up my mind a long time ago not to get too excited, no matter which way the crowd goes. I get paid for playing left field and for hitting that baseball. I am not a participant in a popularity contest. – T.W.
Williams did not win a MVP award in 1941 when the country was hypnotized by Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak, nor did he after the two Triple Crowns seasons. His cocky demeanor, arrogance, apparent lack of team play, and questionable outfield defense never made him a favorite with the Boston press whom Williams called the Knights of the Keyboard.
In May of 1942 Williams enlisted in the Navy’s aviation program. He spent his war years at Pensacola, Florida training pilots, playing baseball, and where he began a longtime passion of deep-water fishing. In 1952 the country again went back to war, this time in Korea where the now 34-year-old combat flyer flew 39 missions. After one sortie Williams walked away uninjured after he crash-landed his blazing airplane. He had now given five years of prime playing time to his government.
The 41-year-old Boston superstar finished the 1959 season with a career-low .254, and although he was now expected to retire it was not his style. He played one more year, and was able to walk off the playing field with .316 and a home run on his last ever at-bat.
If there was ever a man born to be a hitter it was me. – T.W.
In his nineteen playing years all with the Red Sox, the outspoken Boston idol earned six American League batting titles, two Triple Crowns, led the league four times in home runs, won two MVPs, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1966. Did he become the greatest hitter who ever lived? Maybe not, but he certainly made a remarkable impact on professional baseball.