Ted Williams

Theodore Samuel Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002), nicknamed "The Splendid Splinter", "Teddy Ballgame", "The Thumper" and "The Kid", was an American left fielder in Major League Baseball who played 19 seasons, twice interrupted by military service as a Marine Corps pilot, with the Boston Red Sox. It has been argued that he was the greatest hitter in the history of baseball. Williams was a two-time American League Most Valuable Player (MVP) winner, led the league in batting six times, and won the Triple Crown twice. He had a career batting average of .344, with 521 home runs, and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1966. An avid sport fisherman, he hosted a television show about fishing, and was inducted into the Fishing Hall of Fame.

Retirement

After retirement from active play, Williams served as manager of the Washington Senators, continuing with the team when they relocated and became the Texas Rangers after the 1971 season. Williams best season as a manager was 1969 when he led the expansion Senators to an 86-76 record, which would mark their only winning season in Washington. Williams would go on to win the Manager of the Year award after the 1969 season. However, like many great players who later manage, he became impatient with ordinary athletes' abilities and attitudes, and his managerial career was short and largely unsuccessful. Before and after leaving Texas (which would be his only manager job) he occasionally appeared at Red Sox spring training as a guest hitting instructor.

Related Topics:
Washington Senators - 1969

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He was much more successful in fishing than in managing. An avid and expert fly fisherman and deep-sea fisherman, he spent many summer vacations after baseball fishing the Miramichi River, in Miramichi, New Brunswick, Canada. Williams was named to the International Game Fish Association Hall of Fame in 2000, leading many people to opine that Williams was a rare individual who, in his day, might have been the very best in the world in three completely different disciplines: baseball hitter, fighter jet pilot, fly fisherman.

Related Topics:
Fly fisherman - Miramichi River - Miramichi, New Brunswick - Canada

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Williams reached an extensive deal with Sears where Williams agreed to lend his name and talent toward marketing, developing and endorsing a line of in-house fishing and baseball equipment. He was also heavily and extensively involved in the Jimmy Fund, having lost a brother to leukemia, and spent much of his spare time, effort and money in support of the organization.

Related Topics:
Sears - Jimmy Fund

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In his later years, Williams became a frequent fixture at autograph shows and card shows after his son, John Henry Williams took control of his career, becoming his de facto manager. The younger Williams provided structure to his father's business affairs, and rationed his father's public appearances and memorabilia signings carefully, to better maximize his father's earnings potential. Although many felt that Ted was being used by his son, there is no real evidence that the younger Williams was doing anything illicit or unsavory with his father's earnings.

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One of Ted Williams's final, and most memorable, public appearances was at the 1999 All-Star Game in Boston. No longer able to walk anything longer than very short distances, Williams was brought out to the pitcher's mound in a golf cart. From the moment he emerged, Williams proudly and prominently waved his cap to the crowd - a gesture he had never done as a player. Fans in attendance responded with a sustained standing ovation that lasted for several minutes. Upon reaching the pitcher's mound he was surrounded by players on both teams for several minutes, and carried on coversations with many players, including Tony Gwynn, a hitter often compared favorably to Williams. Ultimately the ceremony had to be cut short, as Williams's appearance would delay the start of the game by several minutes.

Related Topics:
1999 All-Star Game - Tony Gwynn

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In his last years Williams suffered from poor health, specficially cardiac problems. He had a pacemaker installed in November 2000 and underwent open-heart surgery in January 2001. After suffering a series of strokes and congestive heart failures, he died of cardiac arrest in Crystal River, Florida, on July 5, 2002.

Related Topics:
Stroke - Cardiac arrest - Crystal River, Florida - July 5 - 2002

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