Ted Williams was born Theodore Samuel Williams in San Diego, California on April 30, 1918 and he died on July 5, 2002. He was the son of Samuel Williams, owner of a photography shop, and May Venzor, a Mexican American Salvation Army worker. He was uncomfortable with his father's alcoholism and his mother's religious zeal, Ted soon discovered his natural athletic ability and escaped into sports. Ted was inspired by his uncle who had played semiprofessional baseball; Ted quickly became the best baseball player in the history of San Diego's Hoover High, batting .583 during his junior year. An indifferent student but obsessed with baseball, the skinny left-hander was thrilled when his mother signed a contract on his behalf to play for the San Diego Padres of the Pacific Coast League while he was still in high school. In 1938 the Boston Red Sox signed the nineteen-year-old to a two-year deal worth $7,500. Ted Williams came into baseball as a tough guy. He had multiple confrontations with the press, including an incident when he spit at the press box.
Shortly after Ted’s career in Boston begun, he was drafted by the military. Ted was able to get out early, but this came with a lot of criticism. People were calling him yellow bellied and unpatriotic, so he reenlisted as a navy pilot. He took pilot training at nearby Amherst College while continuing to play major league baseball. Ted won the 1942 triple crown with a batting average of .356, 36 home runs, and 137 RBIs, he finished second in the American League MVP race. On 2 May 1944 Williams received his wings as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps. Ted had a very successful career as a pilot he was a WW2 and Korean war veteran, he flew 39 missions during the Korean War. Ted’s years of being in the military could have been his prime years, but that still didn’t stop him from being one of the best baseball players that ever lived. Ted was discharged from the service in January 1946, in time for the first postwar baseball season.
The 1946 Boston Red Sox won the American League pennant for the first time since 1918, and Williams won the MVP. In 1947 he won his second triple crown, with a batting average of .343, 32 home runs, and 114 RBIs. In 1949 he won his second MVP and became the highest-paid player in baseball, with a salary of $100,000. His reputation for vulgar defiance was reinforced in 1950 when after being booed heavily; he made repeated obscene hand gestures to the Fenway crowd. In 1952 during the Korean War during a combat mission over North Korea in early 1953, his F-9 Panther jet took enemy fire. Williams barely managed to maneuver his burning plane back to base and was forced to crash-land. The famous ballplayer's heroism made front-page news all over America.
His reputation partially restored, Williams was given a hero's welcome in Boston in 1954 and again began to produce All-Star statistics, and also angry headlines. In 1956 after his four hundredth career home run he spit at the press box. Ted was fined 5,000 dollars. On 28 September 1960, in his final at bat at Fenway Park, Williams struck a towering home run that drew a game-stopping four-minute ovation from the Boston crowd. Ted’s number 9 was the first jersey retired by the Boston Red Sox. Ted finished out his life saltwater fishing off Islamorada in the Florida Keys and raising money for the Boston-based childhood cancer charity the Jimmy Fund.
Shortly after Ted’s career in Boston begun, he was drafted by the military. Ted was able to get out early, but this came with a lot of criticism. People were calling him yellow bellied and unpatriotic, so he reenlisted as a navy pilot. He took pilot training at nearby Amherst College while continuing to play major league baseball. Ted won the 1942 triple crown with a batting average of .356, 36 home runs, and 137 RBIs, he finished second in the American League MVP race. On 2 May 1944 Williams received his wings as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps. Ted had a very successful career as a pilot he was a WW2 and Korean war veteran, he flew 39 missions during the Korean War. Ted’s years of being in the military could have been his prime years, but that still didn’t stop him from being one of the best baseball players that ever lived. Ted was discharged from the service in January 1946, in time for the first postwar baseball season.
The 1946 Boston Red Sox won the American League pennant for the first time since 1918, and Williams won the MVP. In 1947 he won his second triple crown, with a batting average of .343, 32 home runs, and 114 RBIs. In 1949 he won his second MVP and became the highest-paid player in baseball, with a salary of $100,000. His reputation for vulgar defiance was reinforced in 1950 when after being booed heavily; he made repeated obscene hand gestures to the Fenway crowd. In 1952 during the Korean War during a combat mission over North Korea in early 1953, his F-9 Panther jet took enemy fire. Williams barely managed to maneuver his burning plane back to base and was forced to crash-land. The famous ballplayer's heroism made front-page news all over America.
His reputation partially restored, Williams was given a hero's welcome in Boston in 1954 and again began to produce All-Star statistics, and also angry headlines. In 1956 after his four hundredth career home run he spit at the press box. Ted was fined 5,000 dollars. On 28 September 1960, in his final at bat at Fenway Park, Williams struck a towering home run that drew a game-stopping four-minute ovation from the Boston crowd. Ted’s number 9 was the first jersey retired by the Boston Red Sox. Ted finished out his life saltwater fishing off Islamorada in the Florida Keys and raising money for the Boston-based childhood cancer charity the Jimmy Fund.