THAT IS NOT WHAT TED WOULD DO

[tony la]

Today gives me a great opportunity to bring up one of  my favorite baseball players that I never saw play.  But first I have to bring up a modern day coward, Jose Reyes.  This guy sat out after one at bat yesterday so he would have a better chance at winning the batting title for 2011.  I can't believe nobody is writing about it in the news today.  Especially since he plays for the Mets. I know it was probably a bonus on his contract, and I know he is going to be a free agent next year.  But c'mon.  Today's society is not outraged like they would be just a few years ago.  Now my favorite story.  Many people my age know this story, but for the ones that don't here it goes, and I hope it never dies.

Ted Williams is the last player to hit over .400 in 1941.  Only 4 players have hit as high as .380 since that.
On the morning of the final day of the 1941 season Ted Williams had a .3996 average which rounded off to .400.  Red Sox manager Joe Cronin gave Williams the option to play that day.  Knowing that if Ted had a bad day at the plate he would not hit .400 for the year.  Williams said "If I can't hit .400 from the beginning of the season to the end of a season I don't not deserve it."
That day was also a double header.  Ted went 4-for-5 in the first game and 2-for-3 in the second game making him 6-for-8 on the day, lifting his average to .406.  His manager even asked him at the end of the first game to stay out when he was already at .404.  No Ted played until the end of the season.   My only hope is that any kid that is in sports today take note of this.  Understand that this is right, not the guy who sits the last day of the season.  Nothing to be proud about sitting the last day.  If stories like Ted's does not stay alive, then stories like Jose Reyes's will soon become acceptable behavior. Congratulations Ted...................

[Bonster]

While I completely agree, at the very least Ryan Braun is still playing. 
I'm sure if the Brew Crew goes on to greater things he won't care about this individual award.

Batting Average isn't such a great measuring tool of hitting anymore.   One can have a good BA yet still be a fairly useless hitter.  Usually those at or near the top are great hitters all around, but there are many with lower BAs who are much more dangerous and desirable to have on your team.  I'll take someone with a .280 BA and .350 on base percentage over someone hitting .305 with a .330 OBP.    Or, someone with a .259 BA slugging .530 over someone at .300 and hovering around .400 SLG.


ps. Ryan Braun had a slugging pct nearly 100 points higher than Reyes while having a greater on base percentage.    No brainer.

pps.  When I first saw this thread I thought it was about Ted Korbos.

[mustang54]

  Ken Griffey jr. years back was slightly ahead of Bill Madlock and did not start the last game of the season. When word got out Madlock was 2 for 2 Griffey was put into the game. Griffey went 0 for 2 while Madlock went 4 for 4 and won the batting title.

[tony la]

Guys that is not the story here.  The story is on doing the right thing.  Bon I totally understand and agree with your point.  My point is that what Reyes did on the field could easily be imitated in life.  Young kids need to know what is right and what is wrong.  This story and comparison tells it all, and really needs to live forever so that young people really know the difference.