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Mailbag Is John Henry Williams a ballplayer ... or a joke?Posted: Friday July 04, 2003 2:33 PM
News of her stepbrother playing pro ball is laughable to Ted Williams’ oldest daughter, Bobby-Jo Ferrell. The siblings have been disagreeing publicly, of course, since John Henry Williams had their father’s remains frozen in a Scottsdale, Ariz., cryonics lab. According to Mark Ferrell, as part of a settlement reached in December, his wife, Bobby-Jo, agreed to no longer criticize John Henry about what he did to her father's body. In turn, he said, John Henry and half sister Claudia agreed not to sell Ted Williams’ DNA or to permit any testing of the body or body fluids. But the deal didn’t silence evaluation of John Henry’s baseball talents, and Bobby-Jo was among those responding to a column on his struggle with the Selma Cloverleafs of the Southeastern League. So on to the mailbag ...
Interesting piece about John Henry Williams. He just can't seem to stop his lies, or maybe it’s the only thing he does do -- well? I can promise you this, Ted Williams knew when he saw talent -- either raw or superstar prospect. If TW had a son who showed even a tiny bit of talent, TW would have done everything to encourage JHW. He never minced words nor left you sitting there wondering. My dad never gave anyone false hopes because that wasn't the way he was.
My dad knew JHW had no talent, and I'm quoting Daddy's exact words that I heard him say so many times. It was told to me by one of my daddy’s caretakers that one day a writer came to Dad's home and JHW was at the door before Dad. The writer asks JHW if he could swing the bat like his dad and JHW says, "You bet." Jogging quickly to the garage where all the thousands of autographed bats were, he got one and ran back to the front door and began swinging. As Dad rounded the corner and saw this sight, he screamed, "JH get the hell back in this house and stop." I’ve heard Daddy say a number of times, “John-Henry, I have seen you play and you’re lousy."
The stories that JHW makes up for the press are nothing short of amazing. How he drove the tractor and mowed baseball diamonds in the fields [as a child growing up in Vermont]? Come on. Doesn't this take you right down memory lane, to the movie Field of Dreams? Once JHW put the big league batting cage onto Dad's property, my father wasn't able to do anything at all. He was on his deathbed. He never ever went out or even looked out to watch JHW practice -- and I promise you this! He never regained himself, health-wise, after having open heart surgery. He was on a breathing apparatus and kidney dialysis and was completely incapable of doing these functions.
There are so many other people who loved my dad and have spoken up about their knowledge of JHW and everything else that they SAW happening in Dad's house -- behind closed doors. Why were all my father's lifelong friends denied their calls or visits after JH decided they weren't important? My father was dying and very, very lonely. JHW alienated my daddy during this crucial endtime in a person's life. They sent his presents to me, his cards to me -- because they knew I'd give them all to him, read them to him and remind him of these cards or presents, not throw them into a can.
I am thrilled that there are those who haven't forgotten Ted Williams. I'm thrilled they get the big picture and have read enough to have a clear understanding of what happened to my great daddy -- a great ball player, a war hero in TWO wars, a famous man, but also someone whom people can identify with because old Ted Williams never got spoiled by any of it. We sent questions regarding this letter to John Henry Williams via Southeastern League commissioner James Gamble, but Williams declined comment.
As a favor to Red Sox fans, baseball fans, and normal human beings who don't
feel that freezing your father’s remains to someday unthaw them at a premium
is OK, do not write one favorable word about John Henry Williams. He is a
shell of a human being and the only reason anyone is listening to the stuff coming out of his mouth and his swing is because of who his father is. He is a joke of an athlete -- hell, he isn't even an athlete. We’ll let others weigh in on the wisdom of freezing the Splendid Splinter, though we must admit it seems pretty cold. As for the kid’s athletic prowess -- boy, it’s tough calling a 34-year-old a kid -- JHW has his father’s determination, if not his swing. At last check, he’s hitting .029 (a single in 34 at-bats, with 18 K's). We'd have thought he would have packed up and gone home by now.
Why does ANYONE waste a moment talking about this guy's baseball ex(pletive)ploits?
Who really cares? Write something about the Detroit Tigers and their kiddie corps of pitchers, who despite poor support from their hitters, are pitching very well. I'm more of a Tiger fan this year than ever before simply because of the pitchers' efforts. Give Mike Maroth the support that Cory Lidle gets up in Toronto and we'd be talking All-Star Game starting pitcher.
Whether Ted wanted to be cryogenically frozen is an argument for someone else to have. The one thing that cannot be disputed, regardless of whose decision it was, is that Ted Williams will forever be a joke. The great service he did for his country as a Marine and the great career as a hitter will never again be mentioned without the snicker of being a “Popsicle" or whatever insult anyone can think up. I never had the privilege of watching Ted Williams play baseball. I have seen his numbers, and I've heard stories from older relatives, friends and co-workers. Through these stories, he became, in my mind, a hero and a very important piece of baseball and the Red Sox. Because I am only able to judge by what I hear or read, I say now that Ted Williams has no meaning to me as a baseball player. And because this hero was taken away from all of us by the ludicrous events of the recent past, there had to be a villain. His name is John Henry. I never saw Teddy Ballgame swing a bat for real, either, but he’s always been a John Wayne, larger than life-type character for me. And so it’s sad now hearing his name a punchline for late-night comics.
Your point about an institution that pays football players to strictly play football being in existence -- called the NFL -- is true. It is also true, in my opinion, that the NFL should finance the college football players, inasmuch as the NFL uses the NCAA as its farm system. Nice idea, but look for Paul Tagliabue to book a Caribbean cruise with Al Davis before his league considers underwriting college football. Or paying college players. Why tinker with a good thing unless you have to?
Why can't North Carolina hold a basketball coach? The alumni ran off the previous coach. Their athletic director has no spine because he should not have called a meeting for the players. That is the coach's job. Roy Williams will be fired there within three years. Dean Smith should stay retired rather than trying to run the program from the back seat. UNC will be UCLA east. There’s no doubt the Carolina program has been trying to find itself since Dean Smith stepped down. I’m not sure Matt Doherty was the answer, either -- not when players are revolting annually. I suspect Roy Williams will get things straight and won’t be looking for another job anytime soon.
Let me begin by saying that I am a Tar Heel fan. The ACC has begun to make a mockery of a once classy conference. I used the think that the ACC was the one conference that did everything right. Now it is painfully obvious that the same erosion of principle in college sports has seeped into the ACC. To only now invite Tech because it would halt the lawsuit is downright despicable. I can’t argue with you. But look at it this way: The Tar Heel faithful finally have something in common with Duke Blue Devil fans. Neither wanted any part of this seedy business, nor were they interested in growing a football conference at the expense of basketball.
How do you see this affecting Virginia Tech in the long run, with regards to
the Cavaliers' ability to recruit and face the kind of schedule they've not seen
before and also regarding their integrity? Is this a simple matter of
looking out just for No. 1? According to the definition of integrity, they do
not appear to have shown any level of "strict honesty" or "unity" for their
fellow Big East compatriots, despite their highly principled statements.
Just my personal opinion, but I think they have made fools out of themselves.
They got their way but showed that they are more than willing to conspire,
deceive and just plain lie to achieve their goals. Don’t worry about Virginia Tech’s ability to compete with the ACC football powers. Frank Beamer is one of the top coaches in the game and has given Miami fits in the Big East. Basketball-wise, it’s a totally different story -- although the move could be a shot for recruiting. As far as integrity, school officials were caught speaking from both sides of their mouth, but then they can argue they had to look out for No. 1. I’ll let others decide if it’s worth it.
I am a graduate of West Virginia University, so I obviously have an interest in the results of the ACC-proposed expansion. However, the thing that bothers me most about the interview with George Allen is his complete lack of concern regarding ethics and that he clearly considers lying just part of the job. Well, the proposal is now in the books, and Sen. George Allen, R-Va., can gloat about helping Virginia Tech land an invite. It was still cheesy to rip Big East schools contemplating a move while using political clout, including the University of Virginia’s vote, to get your own offer from the ACC. But, I suspect, that’s just business in politics and big-time college sports.
Assuming Sammy Sosa is found guilty of intentionally using a corked bat, he should be expelled from baseball for life. There simply should not be any tolerance for this level of cheating. This incident calls into question every home run in his career. It calls into question the three seasons of 60 or more home runs. It calls into question the famous Mark McGwire vs. Sosa home run barrage. It calls into question his "nice guy" image. Worst of all, it calls into question his character. Forgive me, for I HATE to use overused and obvious analogies, but in this case it should be done: If Sammy Sosa is allowed to be in baseball, so should Pete Rose and Joe Jackson. Before today, Sosa would have been an obvious lock for the Hall of Fame. However, Cooperstown should not be a safe haven for egregious cheaters. You’re right on challenging Sammy Sosa’s character and good-guy persona. It’s probably also fair to question his longball heroics. And I don’t buy the story that he made a mistake in grabbing a practice bat. That said, Sosa didn’t commit a crime, and the numbers in Cooperstown would take a hit if every colorful character who ever corked a bat or doctored a ball were to be tossed out. Mike Fish is a senior writer for SI.com.
Comments? To e-mail Fish, click here.
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