Williams was just 24 years old, and had already hit .400, won
a Triple Crown, two RBI titles, two home run titles, and led the league three
times in runs scored. After the season, he and Joe DiMaggio and many
others went off to war for three years. Williams was a pilot,
and is said to have been the most accurate bomber in the Air Force.
Williams returned in 1946, and picked up
right where he left off; his 1942 and 1946 seasons were almost identical.
He remained the best hitter in baseball until 1951, when again he was called
into service in the Korean War. Williams was 33 years old when he left
for Korea; before he left, he hit a home run in his final at bat, what
many thought would be the final hit of his career.
Williams spent almost two full years in
the Korean War; he returned at age 35, and was once again the best hitter
in baseball. But he was older now, and was slowed by a myriad of ailments sustained
during the war. He never again played a full season. Williams managed to
win three more batting titles, then retired in 1960, at age 42. He once
again hit a home run in his final at bat, and his career ended for good.
Williams retired with a career .344 batting average, a career .483 on-base
percentage, 521 home runs, 2654 hits, and almost five full years of his
career lost to war service.
As I write this, it seems that Williams' reputation
has dramatically improved over the years. There are a number of reasons
why; for one, he lived into his 80's, and remains in the public's memory.
His statistics are in a class of their own, and he is almost
always considered the greatest hitter in baseball history (with good reason).
The five years of war service only increase his reputation as a hero. And
chances are, most of the people who hated him (and there were many) have
probably died.
In various End-Of-The-Century polls, Williams
seems to have eclipsed both Musial and DiMaggio as the greatest player of
the era, and ranks behind only Ruth and Mays as the greatest of all time.
But he wasn't always so popular; in his day, Williams was perceived as a
cocky and arrogant S.O.B. He had few other skills on the ball diamond beyond his hitting; he also
hated the local media, and they hated him as well. As for the fans, Williams
once took enough time out of his day to spit on one of them.
His teams never won anything. They were regularly
beaten by the Yankees, despite having at least as much talent as the Bombers.
I have great respect for Williams as a hitter; had he not gone to war, he
could easily have hit 700 homers in his career, or hit .400 on another occasion.
But if I were to make up a list of the greatest ever players, I doubt I would
put him among my top ten; I would rather have both DiMaggio and Musial, plus
Aaron, Mays, and Mantle, and probably some infielders, such as Gehrig and
Wagner. That he was in a class of his own as a hitter, I do not disagree
with.
It is too bad that Gordon is remembered for leading the league in errors and strikeouts, because his season was a monster. And with his defence,
an argument can be made that he was the MVP. I'm not going to make
that argument; Teddy Ballgame was just too good a hitter. Gordon
entered the service after the 1943 season and spent two years overseas.
What a wonderful time it was for young shortstops in the American League.
Both Johnny Pesky and Vern Stephens were rookies, Phil Rizzuto a
sophomore. Lou Boudreau was only 25. Of course, both Pesky and
Rizzuto spent the next three years in the service. Pesky came back
in 1946 and led the league in hits two more years; he led in that
category his first three years in the majors, though it took him
six years to do it.
