Just got word of the passing of baseball legend Ted Williams, one of the
greatest players to ever grace a baseball field. "The Slendid Splinter," as he
was affectionately known, despite two tours of duty as a Marine fighter pilot
in WWII and Korea, put up some of the greatest offensive numbers in the
annals of the game. One shudders to think of what his stats would have been
had he not lost all of that time to combat duty. Williams is regarded by most
as the greatest pure hitter to ever play the game. His eyesight was so keen
he could actually pick-up the rotation of the ball upon the pitcher's release
and so be able to tell what pitch was coming!!! (fastball, curveball, etc.) He
was the last to bat .400 for the season and the likelihood of that happening
again is increasingly remote. Williams is justifiably uttered in the same
breath that mentions Cobb, Ruth, Mays, DiMaggio (and others) and he
makes the top five in most "greatest ever" lists. More importantly, he
conducted his life as a gentleman, both on and off the field, and left no
tarnish to his legacy. Exemplary as an athlete and, more importantly, as a
person. Ted Williams loss today will be felt by every true baseball fan, but
my heart goes out especially, to all those Boston Red Sox fans in New
England, including Flatlander amd wow who have lost their most
noble spirit. It must have been a treasure, wow, to have had the opportunity to see the "Splendid Splinter" play. Carl Yastremski was the new Red Sox icon by the time I started watching the game. But he lived a long, fulfilling life, and we can be thankful we had Ted Williams to grace our baseball fields with his sterling achievements.

Today I, and I would think, all of the Baseball world, is a Red Sox fan. The
sport will never see anything the likes of Ted Williams again, that's for sure.
I'll never forget the tribute they had for him at the All-Star game a couple of
years back...one of those moments of emotional grandeur that anyone who
loves the Game will carry happily in their heart till the end of their days.

And, today, and the day of his memorial, just for once, I will wear a Boston
Red Sox cap in his honor.