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— Scott Allison and George Goethals
My Aunt Janice would certainly agree that Ted Williams is a hero. She’s his biggest fan. 😀
Personally, I don’t know much about baseball, but that percentage of times he made it on base is amazing.
In 1941 Williams refused to sit for the final two games. That year his batting average was at exactly .400 going into the final games. He wanted to reach the milestone the proper way and he did. Very heroic if you ask me.
Ted Williams is the last player to have a batting average over .400 for a whole season. This feat and his other accomplishments put him in the discussion for the greatest hitter of all time. The effort and work he put forth in order to become a great hitter are heroic along with the fact that he was a great player into his 40’s
It is interesting that by writing one article, John Updyke not only upheld a great hero in the sport of baseball, but made himself a hero as well. By writing about baseball in a new way, he brought a new perspective to the sport, perhaps reaching those who hadn’t appreciated the sport in the past. This is a great example of how a single action can cause a whole host of reactions.
I had honestly never heard of Ted Williams until reading this blog, or at least had never marked his name as very special in my mind. Babe Ruth is definitely known as more of a legend, but this doesn’t seem fair if Ted’s stats are better. I think it’s because of Babe’s famous center field shot which he “called” just before cracking it out of the park.
Even though I am a Yankees fan I will be the first to admit and admire who Ted Williams was as a player. I would agree completely that based on his character as a player, Ted Williams was a hero. He was the best of the best. He was also a hero off the field as he fought in WWII during arguably the best years of his career. While there were some arguable events that happened after his retirement that questioned his integrity, Ted Williams is still a sports hero in this Yankees’ Fan’s mind.