[...]... to guide and nurture young Ted, to, in effect, fill the role of substitute father Chick Robert, a game warden, taught Ted how to fish Johnny Lutz, a neighbor, instructed Ted on how to fire a rifle Baseball and the outdoors Ted Williams grew up getting more than his share Soon enough, in February 1934, the almost six-foot-tall Ted Williams was ready for Hoover High School Ted was not a particularly... sweet-swinging Ted Williams 23 24 TED Williams “His dealings with writers is his business,” Tom Yawkey, the Red Sox owner, told the press, as related in Ted Williams: A Baseball Life “Bad language, not hustling on the field is ours I feel sorry for him He had the writers and the fans, practically the whole world, at his feet Now he is tossing it all away, and he is the only loser.” Ted Williams, barely... student—barely TED Williams This series of photographs, taken in 1957, when Ted Williams won the American League batting title, shows Williams s powerful swing As a youngster he used to wish: “Please, let me be the hitter I want to be.” The Pro Kid Yet Ted was well liked by both his peers and his teachers Bob Breitbard, one of Williams s closest friends at the time, offers snippets of Ted in his Hoover... first saw Ted Williams swing a bat, I knew he would be one of the best,” he told the press, as revealed in Ted Williams: A Baseball Life “He’s loose and easy, 1941: The Year of Magical Happenings Ted Williams receives congratulations from Joe DiMaggio (left) and coach Marv Shea after hitting a home run that gave the American League the win in the 1941 All-Star Game at Briggs Stadium in Detroit Williams. .. in December 1937, looking to sign young Ted Years later, Collins would report that, throughout his negotiations with May and Sam Williams, Ted never got up from his mohair chair to shake hands or say hello Williams, it turned out, was too ashamed to stand up By remaining seated, Ted covered up the hole in his chair’s cushion Nonetheless, a contract was signed Williams would get $3,000 his first year... Minneapolis,” Williams later wrote 15 16 TED Williams and pulled out a $5 bill “The Kid” would need to eat on his trip to Daytona Beach Minor Engagement Ted Williams threw right-handed but hit left-handed No one knows for sure, not even Williams himself, why that came to be “I don’t know why, but from the time I was old enough to carry a bat to the sandlots of San Diego, I hit lefty,” he recounted in his... TED Williams First on the Field of Play Ted Williams was born on August 30, 1918, just a few miles north of the Mexican border, in then small-town, but always sunny, San Diego His mother, May Venzor, had a Mexican mother and a French father Ted s dad, Sam Williams, was a mixture of Welsh and English In 1910, May and Sam married May devoted her entire life in service to... businessmen can toss off their cares and become excited over a stolen base or a long throw from center, the solution of the more weighty problems of the day will remain in pretty safe hands.” 10 TED Williams Ted Williams also developed an affinity for other sports while growing up At age 20, Williams takes aim during a hunting trip near San Diego (above) Baseball and the outdoors would be his two big... was at home in his little California bungalow on Utah Street The Williams family acquired the 11 12 TED Williams house for $4,000 in 1924 It was never to be the cozy sanctuary it could have been for Ted or his younger brother, Danny With Mom out proselytizing for the Lord all day and Dad staying away at work, the Williams home degenerated into a hovel: dark and dingy, with shabby and frayed furniture... Yonkers, New York As Williams remembers, it was a quiet day and everyone was just lounging around playing cards “Hell,” Williams told Harry Grayson, as related in Ted Williams: A Baseball Life, “you can live like this and retire with 21 22 TED Williams a pension Here I am hitting 340 and everybody’s all over me Maybe I shoulda been a fireman.” Although the Yankees were not the first to pick up on this . Robinson Babe Ruth Curt Schilling Ichiro Suzuki Bernie Williams Ted Williams Ted Williams Ted Williams Ronald A. Reis BaseBall superstars TED WILLIAMS Copyright © 2008 by Infobase Publishing All. 1941- Ted Williams / Ronald A. Reis. p. cm. — (Baseball superstars) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-7910-9545-4 (hardcover) 1. Williams, Ted, 1918-2002. 2. Baseball. Who could say—maybe someday, someday in the majors, Ted Williams would, could, do that again. 4 TED WILLIAMS FIRST ON THE FIELD OF PLAY Ted Williams was born on August 30, 1918, just a few miles