'I've been a very lucky guy'
Ted Williams looks back on 80 memorable years
Posted: Monday August 31, 1998 01:40 PM
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Williams says he never realized how important hitting .400 would be in his life CNN/SI |
Sports Illustrated senior writer Leigh Montville sat down with Hall of
Fame hitter Ted Williams, who turned 80 on August 30, to talk about his
playing days and the challenge of hitting .400 and to reflect on his career
and his life.
Ted Williams: I get nervous when I think about my young life, as a
young player, how hard it was. They can say, "Oh, there was nothing to it.
No sweat." The hell there wasn't any sweat, and a lot of disappointments
and great jubilation at times. I made it too high and too low, instead of
trying to keep some kind of high level.
Leigh Montville: You just attacked things when you were a kid,
didn't you?
TW: I don't know. They say that, but hell, I tell you it was hard
for me. It wasn't an easy thing. I think I had just enough grit in me that
certainly if any pitcher tried to intimidate me, I was a bitter hitter.
LM: Every time you went up there, you thought you were going to win
the battle?
TW: I didn't think it was a battle. Isn't that funny? I didn't think
of it as "Am I going to win the battle?" I was saying, "Geez, I hope I can
do something against this guy." When I went in there with that type of
attitude, I was far and away better than if I said "Just get it over, old
buddy."
LM: Were you thinking what he was going to pitch to you every pitch?
TW I tell you, there are three things in my life that are
exceptional. This is the first time I've ever said this to anybody on tape.
LM: I can't believe that.
TW: All right. I can't hardly believe it either. But there's so many
things to happened during my career that made me have to sum it up. Number
one, I was extremely lucky. Number two, I was even accused of that by my
teammates. Number three, I was a terrific guess hitter. Now because I was
such a good guess hitter, I formed a lot of deductions that I didn't have
to worry about and concentrate on what I thought I was going to get. And
they didn't know when I first started to play, whether I was a better
high-ball hitter or a better low-ball hitter. A lot of guys said I was a
better low-ball hitter, so I got a lot of high fastballs. Then I started
making a little history up there, now they're going down again. Now I'm
making more history. Then they say, "We don't know how to pitch this guy."
And then -- this is the first time I've ever said this -- finally, it came
down that there was a new pitch in my career, that was getting everybody
out.
LM: Was that the slider?
TW: Certainly, it was the slider. I could hit the slider just as
good as I could hit any ball, so I started looking for sliders and here
they came, and boy, I was laying for it and I was ready for it and I was
crashing it.
LM: Do you think you would have been a better player today than you
were when you played?
TW: No, I don't. I would have tried to do things a little better
than I did. But I absolutely wouldn't want to go through my life again as a
baseball player. It was too hard for me. It was too disappointing. It was
too grindy! Oh! And still I'd be so happy when I'd had a good day, or our
club was on a winning streak or something. No, I don't think I'd do any
better today. I might hit a few more home runs, and if I had to do it over
again, they ask me the first thing I'd ever do if I had to do it over
again, and I said "I would have tried to get stronger." I was quick enough
and I'm strong enough, but I'd try to be even stronger.
LM: Nobody did that then, though, did they?
TW: Not that many. The only thing I did -- I did a lot of push-ups.
On my fingers, this kind of stuff, that's the only thing I ever did.
LM: So, on the last day of the season, you're hitting .3996 or
whatever, which would have rounded off to .400, and you could have batted
.400 without even playing. Why'd you play then?
TW: [Hall of Fame Red Sox manager Joe] Cronin asked me, "If you
don't want to play today, it's all right." I thought, "What the hell is he
talking about?" I never even gave it a thought. But, I've got to say this:
I didn't really realize how much .400 would mean to my life.
LM: You didn't know it would be the last time anybody would do it.
TW: That's right. It will be done again. I've always said it will
be. It will be.
LM: It's been a while though. So at the time, it wasn't as important
in your head?
TW: It only happened 10 years ahead of me. I was sure -- well, I
wasn't sure of anything then -- but I felt that there certainly would be
other .400 hitters.
LM: Over your whole life, do you have many regrets about anything?
TW: The biggest regret I've got is that I wasn't successful in the
World Series. My playing performance was terrible. I hit .220.
LM: But as a life, it's been a terrific life, hasn't it?
TW: I've been a very lucky guy. Even I know how lucky I've been,
especially in my baseball career. Anybody who thinks he's had great success
or outstanding success, he's a lucky guy. You're damn right.
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