Ted Williams

Author: Leigh Montville
Publisher: Anchor
ISBN: 0767913205
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 562

Book Description
The Kid. The Splendid Splinter. Teddy Ballgame. One of the greatest figures of his generation, and arguably the greatest baseball hitter of all time. But what made Ted Williams a legend – and a lightning rod for controversy in life and in death? Still a gangly teenager when he stepped into a Boston Red Sox uniform in 1939, Williams’s boisterous personality and penchant for towering home runs earned him adoring admirers and venomous critics. In 1941, the entire country followed Williams's stunning .406 season, a record that has not been touched in over six decades. Then at the pinnacle of his prime, Williams left Boston to train and serve as a fighter pilot in World War II, missing three full years of baseball, making his achievements all the more remarkable. Ted Willams's personal life was equally colorful. His attraction to women (and their attraction to him) was a constant. He was married and divorced three times and he fathered two daughters and a son. He was one of corporate America's first modern spokesmen, and he remained, nearly into his eighties, a fiercely devoted fisherman. With his son, John Henry Williams, he devoted his final years to the sports memorabilia business, even as illness overtook him. And in death, controversy and public outcry followed Williams and the disagreements between his children over the decision to have his body preserved for future resuscitation in a cryonics facility--a fate, many argue, Williams never wanted. With unmatched verve and passion, and drawing upon hundreds of interviews, acclaimed best-selling author Leigh Montville brings to life Ted Williams's superb triumphs, lonely tragedies, and intensely colorful personality, in a biography that is fitting of an American hero and legend.

The Kid

Author: Ben Bradlee Jr.
Publisher: Little, Brown
ISBN: 0316084484
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 804

Book Description
From acclaimed journalist Ben Bradlee Jr. comes the epic biography of Boston Red Sox legend Ted Williams that baseball fans have been waiting for. Williams was the best hitter in baseball history. His batting average of .406 in 1941 has not been topped since, and no player who has hit more than 500 home runs has a higher career batting average. Those totals would have been even higher if Williams had not left baseball for nearly five years in the prime of his career to serve as a Marine pilot in WWII and Korea. He hit home runs farther than any player before him -- and traveled a long way himself, as Ben Bradlee, Jr.'s grand biography reveals. Born in 1918 in San Diego, Ted would spend most of his life disguising his Mexican heritage. During his 22 years with the Boston Red Sox, Williams electrified crowds across America -- and shocked them, too: His notorious clashes with the press and fans threatened his reputation. Yet while he was a God in the batter's box, he was profoundly human once he stepped away from the plate. His ferocity came to define his troubled domestic life. While baseball might have been straightforward for Ted Williams, life was not. The Kid is biography of the highest literary order, a thrilling and honest account of a legend in all his glory and human complexity. In his final at-bat, Williams hit a home run. Bradlee's marvelous book clears the fences, too.

No Easy Way

Author: Fred Bowen
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101642661
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 40

Book Description
Ted Williams hit .406 for the season in 1941? a feat not matched since. In this inspirational picture book, authentic sportswriting and rich, classic illustrations bring to life the truly spectacular story of the Red Sox legend, whose hard work and perseverance make him the perfect role model for baseball enthusiasts of all ages.

My Turn at Bat

Author: Ted Williams
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 0671634232
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 276

Book Description
Ted Williams tells of his childhood, his military experience, and his baseball career.

There Goes Ted Williams

Author: Matt Tavares
Publisher: Candlewick Press
ISBN: 0763627895
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 41

Book Description
Profiles the iconic baseball hitter, including his rigorous practice schedule as a youth, military service in two wars, and stellar career that led to an unmatched season in 1941.

Facing Ted Williams

Author: Dave Heller
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1613217986
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 280

Book Description
“The Splendid Splinter,” “Teddy Ballgame,” “The Kid”—no matter the nickname, Ted Williams was one of the most accomplished hitters in baseball history. He was the last man to hit .400 in a single season, a nineteen-time All-Star, a two-time MVP and Triple Crown award winner, and an inductee into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1966 . . . all while serving his country in World War II and the Korean War. Far from a conventional biography, Facing Ted Williams aims to offer a different perspective with testimonials from teammates and opponents alike on how Williams was regarded among his peers. See Ted Williams through the eyes of pitchers struggling to put a fastball past his bat, the infielders and outfielders adjusting their positions in the hopes that they can fill the hole where a frozen rope might land, and the catchers as they strategize a Williams at-bat, pitch-by-pitch. Facing Ted Williams provides riveting insights from many baseball legends, including: Bob Feller Mudcat Grant Bobby Richardson Don Larsen Bob Friend And many more! Whether you’re a Red Sox fanatic, a casual baseball fan, or perhaps just an admirer of the fabled war hero and slugger, this book is sure to be a fresh and compelling look at this classic baseball icon. Much like Williams himself, Facing Ted Williams is sure to be a home run for all walks of baseball fandom, so don’t swing and miss! Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Sports Publishing imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in sports—books about baseball, pro football, college football, pro and college basketball, hockey, or soccer, we have a book about your sport or your team. Whether you are a New York Yankees fan or hail from Red Sox nation; whether you are a die-hard Green Bay Packers or Dallas Cowboys fan; whether you root for the Kentucky Wildcats, Louisville Cardinals, UCLA Bruins, or Kansas Jayhawks; whether you route for the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, or Los Angeles Kings; we have a book for you. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Science of Hitting

Author: Ted Williams
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 0671621033
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 96

Book Description
Advice on how to improve your turn at bat and become the best hitter possible.

What Do You Think of Ted Williams Now?

Author: Richard Ben Cramer
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 0743247892
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 102

Book Description
Richard Ben Cramer, Pulitzer Prize winner and acclaimed biographer of Joe DiMaggio decodes baseball icon Ted Williams and finds not just a great player, but also a great man. When legendary Red Sox hitter Ted Williams died on July 5, 2002, newspapers reviewed the stats, compared him to other legends of the game, and declared him the greatest hitter who ever lived. In 1986, Richard Ben Cramer spent months on a profile of Ted Williams, and the result was the Esquire article that has been acclaimed ever since as one of the finest pieces of sports reporting ever written. Given special acknowledgment in The Best American Sportswriting of the Century and adapted for a coffee-table book called Ted Williams: The Seasons of the Kid, the original piece is now available in this special edition, with new material about Williams's later years. While his decades after Fenway Park were out of the spotlight -- the way Ted preferred it -- they were arguably his richest, as he loved and inspired his family, his fans, the players, and the game itself. This is a remembrance for the ages.

Ted Williams, My Father

Author: Claudia Williams
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0062259598
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 273

Book Description
In this poignant memoir, Claudia Williams, the last surviving child of legendary Boston Red Sox great and Hall of Famer Ted Williams, tells her father’s story, including never-before-told anecdotes about his life on and off the field that reveal the flesh and blood man behind “The Kid.” Born after her father retired from baseball, Claudia Williams grew up with little idea that her dad was one of the most revered sports figures of all time—until she finally saw him in uniform at Fenway Park, receiving the adulation of thousands of fans. Now in this moving and surprising memoir, Claudia offers an unexpected look at Ted Williams, viewed from a unique and fresh perspective. Here she recalls her childhood growing up with a baseball legend after his heyday, capturing their loving yet tumultuous relationship, and shares the beloved stories he passed on to her. Reconciling his talent on the field with his life off of it, Claudia reveals the myriad passions—including baseball and much more—which shaped who he was. She also speaks candidly for the first time about his controversial choice to be cryogenically preserved after his death. Complete with sixteen pages of never-before-seen color photographs, told with sincerity and heart, Claudia William’s poignant memoir is a love letter to New England and one of its greatest sons—Ted Williams—the champion, the man, and most importantly, the father.

The Cloudbuster Nine

Author: Anne R. Keene
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 168358208X
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 436

Book Description
In 1943, while the New York Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals were winning pennants and meeting in that year's World Series, Ted Williams, Johnny Pesky, and Johnny Sain practiced on a skinned-out college field in the heart of North Carolina. They and other past and future stars formed one of the greatest baseball teams of all time. They were among a cadre of fighter-pilot cadets who wore the Cloudbuster Nine baseball jersey at an elite Navy training school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. As a child, Anne Keene's father, Jim Raugh, suited up as the team batboy and mascot. He got to know his baseball heroes personally, watching players hit the road on cramped, tin-can buses, dazzling factory workers, kids, and service members at dozens of games, including a war-bond exhibition with Babe Ruth at Yankee Stadium. Jimmy followed his baseball dreams as a college All-American but was crushed later in life by a failed major-league bid with the Detroit Tigers. He would have carried this story to his grave had Anne not discovered his scrapbook from a Navy school that shaped America's greatest heroes including George H. W. Bush, Gerald Ford, John Glenn, and Paul "Bear" Bryant. With the help of rare images and insights from World War II baseball veterans such as Dr. Bobby Brown and Eddie Robinson, the story of this remarkable team is brought to life for the first time in The Cloudbuster Nine: The Untold Story of Ted Williams and the Baseball Team That Helped Win World War II.