Baseball Great Ted Williams Dead (1 Viewer)

[Dheiner]

Goodbye, Teddy Baseball.

Now, you can go play in Iowa, with Joe.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Geroge Brett came fairly close in 1980 (or was it '81?) by batting .380--with only the minimum required at bats. The .400 mark could very well be reached again, but what would it mean, given the nature of today's game? Batting safely in 56 consecutive games, on the other hand, is a more forimidable challenge.

Either way, none of the talent we are looking at today matches the all-'round excellence of Ted Williams. As has been noted, he wasn't some Rod Carew-ish leadoff, contact hitter who could win the AL batting title without ever connecting for a single home run.

Versatility is not the hallmark of the present talent pool.

 

[Joseph S]

[FIRST SENTENCE EDITED OUT BY ADMIN.]
There will be no funeral and there will be no attempt to fulfill Ted's wishes to be cremated. John Henry Williams is having Ted frozen. Who knows, maybe he'll add a Lenin style casing and add this to the Ted Williams museum.
What a disgrace. http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/18..._frozen+.shtml

 

[Michael*K]

Boy, I can't believe that Williams' son is going against his father's own wishes. On the other hand, he's the same guy who shamelessly guilted his way into a minor league job with the Red Sox a few weeks ago. Anything to ride on his dad's coattails, I guess. What a gold digger.

 

[Johnny wilson]

He had a tough last few years. RIP Teddy Ballgame.:frowning:

 

[Calvin Watts III]

All of New England will miss him. And it's a shame that the siblings have to fight like this.
RIP, Teddy Ballgame...


Calvin

 

[Carlo_M]

This hit me a lot harder than I thought. When I heard on morning radio that "a baseball legend passed away today at 83" my first thought was Please No, Not Ted Williams...and it was. Don't know why his name popped in my head so quick, I did not know that he was in bad shape in recent years.

Of all the great hitters I've studied and read about (being 28 I was not around to watch them in person) Ted Williams always impressed me the most. There is no doubt in my mind that if he had not been such an upstanding American and played baseball rather than serve his country, he would have eclipsed Babe Ruth's home run record. And to hit for a .344 lifetime average is pretty damned impressive, as was his one-season OBP of .483 and of course winning the triple crown and batting .406 - wow!

I was saddened when DiMaggio passed, and we lose living legends all the time, but for some reason Ted's passing really struck a chord with me. I didn't even know I'd feel so strongly about it until it happened. Weird.

You'll be missed, Teddy Ballgame!

 

[KeithH]

Jack, George Brett batted .390 in 1980, but he only played in around 117 games and accrued only around 450 at bats. He missed playing time that season, if you can believe this, due to surgery for hemorrhoids. Anyway, Brett fell short of .400 in '80, but had he played the whole season, I think he would have fallen further from the mark.

 

[Jack Briggs]

I agree, Keith--and you're right: .390, not .380. And I remember all too well the reason! "My problems are behind me now," he said in pregame interview with a wink and a smile. If he had had more at bats that season, his average would have declined, not increased.

 

[John Thomas]

 

[Mike Frezon]

There goes the greatest hitter who ever lived.
And a great patriot.
And a great man.
Two triple crowns -- 1942 & 1947! (and didn't win the AL MVP either year! )
And in 1941, he was 1st in batting -- .406, 1st in on-base % -- .553, 1st in slugging -- .735!, 1st in runs -- 135, 1st in HR -- 37, and 1st in walks -- 147. (he didn't win the AL MVP in 1941 either! )

 

[Bill Slack]

And he didn't win because the local Boston writers despised the man. He didn't even get voted on most of their ballots. Sheesh.