Ted Williams Dead at 83

kfwb news ^ | 7-5002 | dfu

[doug from upland]

Baseball great Ted Williams has died at 83. More to follow.

[big'ol_freeper]

I knew this day was coming but it was still a shock. I grew up with Carl Yastrzemski as my baseball hero and always knew that, as great as Yaz was, he did not measure up to the Splendid Splinter. Sad day for the Red Sox Nation.

[Ipberg]

I was born in 1975 so I don't remember Williams but he was definitely one of the greatest athletes of the 20th Century.

[clintonh8r]

One of the finest pieces of nonfiction writing I've ever read was John Updike's report on Williams's last game. I'll never forget the title, it was in newspaper headline syntax...

HUB FANS BID KID ADIEU

Semper fi, slugger...

[JimVT]

Just found this.

Ted

[ST.LOUIE1]

We could use more 'Ted's' in baseball today.

Fine player AND gentleman.

God speed, Mr. Splendid Splinter.

Thanks, Doug.

[SMEDLEYBUTLER]

I was listening to Blanquita Cullum on Radio America today. She was interviewing a reporter from Court TV and he made a point of mentioning Williams service in the Corps. There are those who appreciate what he did. It will be interesting to see how Palestine Pete, Blather and Brokejaw or whatever talking heads are reading the news deal with his passing and career tonight.

[Gil4]

As I recall reading in my youth, Ted had 20-15 vision -- that is perfect for watching a baseball come toward you

From The New (2001) Historical Baseball Abstract by Bill James (probably the best baseball history book ever):

Hundreds of sources, in discussing Williams' greatness as a hitter, will talk about what amazing eyesight he had, how he could see the seams on the ball..., etc. Williams explicitly stated in his autobiography, "My Turn at Bat," that this was completely false, that his eyesight was good but normal, and that his eyes had little or nothing to do with his hitting ability. And, since he is the only one who would know, I might suggest we should perhaps take his word for it.

[BluesDuke]

The story Jim Bouton liked to tell about Ted Williams in the batting cage taking his practise cuts...

He'd go into the cage, wave his bat at the pitcher, and start screaming at the top of his voice, "My name is Ted Flucking Williams and I'm the greatest hitter in baseball."

He'd swing and hit a line drive.

"Jesus H. Christ Himself couldn't get me out."

And he'd hit another.

"Here comes Jim Bunning. Jim Flucking Bunning and that little shit slider of his"

Wham!

"He doesn't really think he's gonna get me out with that shit."

Blam!

"I'm Ted Flucking Williams.

Sock!

- From Ball Four.

[mware]

That wasn't all he did.

Indeed, he lost several years of his playing career serving in the U.S. Marines during WW2 and Korea.

He was also was know to despise Clinton, so I have heard.

[bogeybob]

We worshiped him Down East. A true American hero from another time. He could stroke the ball. And he played a very nice defensive left field, by the way.

I often wonder how many home runs he would have hit if he was a right handed batter in friendly Fenway with it's wall only 315' from home down the line?

[big'ol_freeper]

[mware]

He was also know to despise Clinton.

Class always tells.

[BluesDuke]

I often wonder how many home runs he would have hit if he was a right handed batter in friendly Fenway with it's wall only 315' from home down the line?

Actually, if he'd been hitting righthanded Fenway would have killed his home run production - Williams hit the booming liner rather than the parabolic bomb; that high wall would have taken quite a few home runs away from him. If you read Allen Barra's excellent Clearing the Bases, he makes a very good case that Fenway Park is actually a better park for lefthanded hitters than is usually believed, and that Williams was not necessarily hurt by the park.

[metesky]

In 1957, in midsummer, the Braves came back to Fenway for the Jimmy Fund charity game. In those days the outfit my old man was working for had skyline box seats right above first base.

They had a homerun hitting contest before the game. Check this out:

For the Braves; Joe Adcock, Eddie Mathews and Hank Freepin Aaron.

For the Sox; Jimmy Peirsal(sp), Jackie Jenson and Teddy Ballgame.

The memory of that night...The emerald green field under the lights (my first night game), the perfectly white balls flyingb out of the park one after the other.

The strange thing is that I can't remember who actually won the contest, but I think it was Eddie Matthews.

Williams last game was televised all over N.E. and millions of people can now say, "I saw Ted Williams hit a homerun in his last at bat."

One of a kind.

[surely_you_jest]

Bump for later reading.

[JimVT]

....that high wall would have taken quite a few home runs away from him

Quite right...and he had the advantage of the Pesky pole in short right field...about 310' down the line...although I don't think he hit that many shots in that area.

I think the bull pen received more of his 4-baggers than any other area.

I don't have the figures right with me but I'll wager he picked up a whole lot of doubles off the Green Monster.

[Cap'n Crunch]

That's what I want to know; something wrong with the infantry?

[ken5050]

What's a realy interesting statistical exercise re Ted is to take his career average for hits, RBI's and HR's, and extrapolate them for the 5 seasons he missed due to military service in WWII and Korea....especially since those were his prime years, one can well make the case that he would have the career lead in HR's and RBIs....

[JimVT]

Baseball great Ted Williams has died at 83. More to follow.

Just saw the opening ceremonies for tonight's BOS-DET game on TV.

That is the first time EVER that I can recall the National Anthem being sung all the way to the conclusion before the applause started...a beautiful a cappela version by a lady I don't know.

Taps was blown and there was not a sound in the house.

Beautiful......I'll bet Ted doffed his cap for that one.

[freedomtrail]

Oronic, isn't it? Teddy ball game was born in 1918. The last year the sox won the big one.