The greatest Red Sox player who ever lived—and the greatest hitter to boot—would have been 95 years old today if he had lived.
Ted Williams is unquestionably the best thing that ever happened to the Carmine Hose. A 'raw' kid of 20 when he debuted in 1939, Williams hit .327 with 31 HRs and 145 RBIs. If they
had the Rookie Of The Year award back then, he would have been a shoe-in. He also had 44 doubles and 11 triples in that first campaign—with an OPS (which nobody knew anything about in 1939) of 1.045. During a career in which he effectively missed
five years to military service (WWII
and Korea), he still managed 521 HRs in 19 seasons. Your humble scribe was blessed to have seen 'The Splendid Splinter' play at Fenway at the end of his career. And he did not go out with a whimper! In his final season—
at age 41 in 1960—he hit .316 with 29 HRs and 72 RBIs. Of course, everyone cites his .406 season in 1941, but it's almost more amazing that he could be so productive into his 40s. Thankfully, due to the diligent efforts of the
BoSox Club's
Bruce Donahue, the US Postal Service recognized Ted with a commemorative stamp in 2012. He had already "stamped" himself in the hearts of every Red Sox fan. We miss you, Ted.
