The two most obsessive students of hitting of all time, in the same room, cutting up and admiring each others' greatness. Unreal spectacle, just unreal.
I admire Roger Staubach, Bill Russell, Vince Lombardi, Al Davis, Hank Stram, Willie Lanier and, of course, Ranger Pat Tillman. I REVERE Ted Williams, one of the greatest men this country ever produced. No wonder Tony Gwynn is so in awe of the great man. Gwynn was a historian and he was always reverent to the greats.
I grew up in South Philly back in the forties and I idolized Ted like he was a God, I loved the man and went to see him every chance I had, one Saturday I went to a game at Shibe Park and after the game I don't know how I did it but I got outside the Red Sox locker room, there were about twenty or thirty people waiting for Ted and he opened the door and said "Oh No" and closed the door. About two minutes later he came out and said "back up everybody back up" and then proceeded to sign his name for everyone of us. I used to write to him every year and every year I would get a reply and one of them said "keep rooting Teddy". It's long gone but I never forgot the experience.
As a red Sox fan who stands in awe of ted williams I would like to thank Tony Gwynn for being such a good friend to number 9...I was really happy to see Tony holding up ted at epic 99 Fenway All star game and it is hard to believe Tony is now with ted. You would not think that Gwynn would be 2nd best hitter to come out of sd....Ted Williams was a real life John Wayne and true baseball immortal, RIP to 2 great men
You know you love hitting when you can remember your last at bat pitch by pitch. Ted Williams is such a cool dude. I read his biography as a kid (31 now) and he just is a straight shooter, no nonsense kinda guy. He had "swag" before it was called swag. Great video!
This is great. My son asked my a while ago who was the greatest player I ever saw play live at at a stadium. I thought about it for a while. Gwynn was the answer. The man could hit and was as smart a ballplayer as they come. Privileged to see him in his time at Shea in New York. Great upload.
Wow! The last pitcher to face Ted Williams was Jack Fisher. I had no idea. As a kid Fisher (#22) for the NY Mets had some lean years and tough games. But he always gave it his all, right up until his last out. RIP to all these great men. Thanks for the upload.
Believe this or not... Both of these greats wore #19 for the San Diego Padres. Ted was the first (1936...PCL), and Tony of course, will always be the last.
@@dienotale @Huawei is a criminal organization. You're very welcome. I happened to live in San Diego for 10 years. I was privy to a lot of local stories. And the old PCL was fascinating! All the best.
Crazy fact - By modern standards, Williams batting average in 1941 would have been 0.413. Up until 1953, sacrifice fly counted against batters. Williams had eight sac flies in 1941.
An exchange between Ty Cobb and a reporter at the 1949 Old Timers' Game at Yankee Stadium: 'How much do you think you would hit if you were playing today?' came another question. 'About .320,' he said. 'Why that low?' the startled reporter asked. 'You have to remember I'm 62 years old,' said Cobb without the trace of a smile.
Oh, oh! He made a boo-boo! When Ted Williams batted .406 in 1941, he wasn't the first major leaguer to hit .400 in 17 years. That would take us back to 1924 when Rogers Hornsby hit .424. But after that, Rogers Hornsby hit .403 in 1925, and Bill Terry hit .401 in 1930. They were both National League players. The last American League player to hit .400 before Ted Williams is Harry Heilmann who hit .403 in 1923.
Good video but the footage they used for Ted’s final home run is inaccurate. That day was overcast and only ~10,000 fans were there. They show people in the sun with short sleeved shirts. Not sure why they changed it.
Mr. Williams lost 2.5 years of his career due to military service, his states would have been even better if not for that. His manger Joe Cronin, didn't want Williams to play the final game of the season to preserve his.400 average, Ted played.
It was so much easier for Teddy. There were no specialty pitchers, no middle relievers, no closers. Tony Gwynn had to deal with all of that and more with specific lefties and all of it. It isn't even close as to who the best hitter of al time is.
@@greysonG10 They definitely did. Sliders were being thrown by some pitchers as early as the 1920s and had probably been in use for a couple of decades by then. Curveballs were thrown even earlier than that. However, the average pitcher back then probably threw much slower pitches and didn't pitch as well. The average fastball speed in the majors went up one mile per hour just from 2008 to 2018, so we can safely assume that the average velocity in the '40s was at least several miles per hour slower than it is now. Plus, farm systems hadn't existed for very long at that point, and scouting was much less thorough than it is today. That's not even going into how much integration improved the game. Think about how many of the best players today are from Latin America, and then consider what the quality of the major leagues would be like if you replaced all of them with a bunch of guys from AA or AAA. Scherzer and deGrom would probably strike out 400 batters every single year. I have no doubt that Ted Williams would still be a great hitter today, though. He did an excellent job of adjusting to changes in the game during his own time and continued to hit very well until he retired in 1960. He also took an extremely analytical approach to hitting, which would work to his advantage. He'd never hit .400 if he played now, but I think he'd probably be one of the better hitters in the game.
@@greysonG10 The same teams saw each other a lot. Only 8 teams per league and no interleague play back in Ted Williams time. Having 160+ major league pitchers opposed to the current 320+ major league pitchers would dilute the talent. Good players will succeed in any era. Imagine if MLB had only 16 teams now. Lot of good players would be left out. Think about how good MLB was then, when it was the number one sport in the nation. It was good, so don't disparage those players.
Gwynn was a marvel in the pre-OPS days, but his career WAR is surpassed by a lot of players deemed much more mediocre. If I said to you, who was a better hitter in terms of production for his team, Fisk or Gwynn? Fisk is regarded as a solid hitter (but not great) with good power. Gwynn is regarded as a historically great hitter, but Fisk wins more games than Gwynn. Cal Ripken wins more games than Gwynn. Guys like Jorge posada win about the same amount as gwynn on a per-year basis, which makes fisk's numbers more exceptional - catching wore posada out.
But no disrespect to Tony meant by any of that. If I was young again playing baseball, I'd study Gwynn and Williams before many of the guys who have better season-by-season WARs than tony.
I would also definetely study gwynn over ripken & posada & those other guys lol. Not to mention the only reason he didnt win more games for the Padres was because they never built around them. Put him with a winning team & the RBI production would of stood out more
@@rn4l713 I mean he went to the world series... It wasn't like the Padres were bad. They just had to play one of the best teams of all time in the WS. Kinda like the Chargers had to play the 49ers with Young and Rice.
Not a fan of Ted Williams. Great hitter, not great baseball player. Terrible runner, not a great fielder, didn't have a great arm. Wasn't liked by the fans too much either. Still refused to tip his cap to the fans. Ted was in the big leagues over twenty seasons. He stole 24 bases total in his entire career. That's pathetic. Incredible liability on the base paths. War hero, pilot, and prob sacrificed the best 5 years of his career due to the war. Not doubting his hitting ability, it was great. Just not a complete ball player. I'd pick rickey Henderson over williams
Opinions are like assholes every has one. Rickey Henderson is completely overated and definitely is under ped suspension. Plus he hit over 80 points lower his on base is 402 compared to Williams 482 and Williams slugging 634 dwarfs Henderson by over 200 points let's not even discuss ops. Henderson struck out a shit ton and was caught stealing a ridiculous amount and once again played with most of the biggest steroid users in mlb history.
The two most obsessive students of hitting of all time, in the same room, cutting up and admiring each others' greatness. Unreal spectacle, just unreal.
Jake Johnson Bought my son the book a year ago. Great read!
@The Universe Galaxy
Ty Cobb was obsessed with Ted Williams beating the shift. He talked to Ted and wrote him notes about it.
and BOTH from san diego
I admire Roger Staubach, Bill Russell, Vince Lombardi, Al Davis, Hank Stram, Willie Lanier and, of course, Ranger Pat Tillman. I REVERE Ted Williams, one of the greatest men this country ever produced. No wonder Tony Gwynn is so in awe of the great man. Gwynn was a historian and he was always reverent to the greats.
Never got to see Ted Williams, but Tony Gwynn was the purest hitter I ever saw. I have a good feeling these 2 men are the purest hitters ever.
I can listen to Ted williams talk baseball all day
I grew up in South Philly back in the forties and I idolized Ted like he was a God, I loved the man and went to see him every chance I had, one Saturday I went to a game at Shibe Park and after the game I don't know how I did it but I got outside the Red Sox locker room, there were about twenty or thirty people waiting for Ted and he opened the door and said "Oh No" and closed the door. About two minutes later he came out and said "back up everybody back up" and then proceeded to sign his name for everyone of us. I used to write to him every year and every year I would get a reply and one of them said "keep rooting Teddy". It's long gone but I never forgot the experience.
Tony looks like a little kid talking to his hero. This is awesome.
Tony freezing before answering "early or late" because he's afraid to give the wrong answer is too good.
As a red Sox fan who stands in awe of ted williams I would like to thank Tony Gwynn for being such a good friend to number 9...I was really happy to see Tony holding up ted at epic 99 Fenway All star game and it is hard to believe Tony is now with ted. You would not think that Gwynn would be 2nd best hitter to come out of sd....Ted Williams was a real life John Wayne and true baseball immortal, RIP to 2 great men
The great David Halberstam called Ted Williams the real John Wayne. A brilliant assessment.
The two best hitters in the history of the game, in the same room. Priceless footage. Probably one of the highlights of Bob Costas' career and life.
Two of the best!
Being Yankees fan.Ted Williams greatest hitter all time.Tony Gwynn was greatest hitter my generation.
You know you love hitting when you can remember your last at bat pitch by pitch. Ted Williams is such a cool dude. I read his biography as a kid (31 now) and he just is a straight shooter, no nonsense kinda guy. He had "swag" before it was called swag. Great video!
Some of the best and most substantial conversation about hitting, you will ever absorb
this is gold
Great watch. Very sad Tony passed away so young.
Saw them both at the Murph.
Miss them both dearly.
This is great. My son asked my a while ago who was the greatest player I ever saw play live at at a stadium. I thought about it for a while. Gwynn was the answer. The man could hit and was as smart a ballplayer as they come. Privileged to see him in his time at Shea in New York. Great upload.
Wow! The last pitcher to face Ted Williams was Jack Fisher. I had no idea. As a kid Fisher (#22) for the NY Mets had some lean years and tough games. But he always gave it his all, right up until his last out. RIP to all these great men. Thanks for the upload.
The only thing that beats this is the Sports Illustrated sit-down withWade Boggs, Don Mattingly and Ted Williams -- no correspondent. Pure magic.
This is precious...I remember when it aired...two of the greatest swingers ever having a nice discussion. They are both gone now.
Very sadly
I knew I should have never stopped guessing the pitch on mlb the show. Thanks Ted. Lol.
TG: well I say late.
TW: WELL I SAY LATE TOO, HAR HAR.
Lolol
Two great hitters. I'm a great admirer of both.
Sure miss both these guys.
You're an average admirer.
Believe this or not...
Both of these greats wore #19 for the San Diego Padres. Ted was the first (1936...PCL), and Tony of course, will always be the last.
Thank you for sharing this beautiful piece of history
@@dienotale
@Huawei is a criminal organization.
You're very welcome. I happened to live in San Diego for 10 years. I was privy to a lot of local stories. And the old PCL was fascinating!
All the best.
To me Tony is the best hitter of both. In the 90s you got very wicked and talented pitchers compare to the pitching of 40s and 50s
Ted had so much more power, though. He was also much more agressive.
2 San Diego legends
Teddy Ballgame was a goddamn savant when it came to hitting.
Crazy fact - By modern standards, Williams batting average in 1941 would have been 0.413. Up until 1953, sacrifice fly counted against batters. Williams had eight sac flies in 1941.
I find these interviews so incredible and mystical at he same time because these okauers are immortal mlb has changed now
Ted was a classic know-it-all.
An exchange between Ty Cobb and a reporter at the 1949 Old Timers' Game at Yankee Stadium:
'How much do you think you would hit if you were playing today?' came another question.
'About .320,' he said.
'Why that low?' the startled reporter asked.
'You have to remember I'm 62 years old,' said Cobb without the trace of a smile.
this is fucking brilliant.
Two great men.
Adore this video.
Two great hitters sharing ideas about their craft. AND TG took TW's advice to heart about turning on inside pitches --
Both fellow San Diegans!
Linda Minton I think Tony even said San Diego is his hometown even tho he wasn’t actually born there.
Three incredible baseball mind talking right here!
Man I love this video
two people who hate baseball and hate life disliked this video
LOL scrolled through all the comments, and the very last one was the best haha. Amazing vid.
This is gold!
Oh, oh! He made a boo-boo! When Ted Williams batted .406 in 1941, he wasn't the first major leaguer to hit .400 in 17 years. That would take us back to 1924 when Rogers Hornsby hit .424. But after that, Rogers Hornsby hit .403 in 1925, and Bill Terry hit .401 in 1930. They were both National League players. The last American League player to hit .400 before Ted Williams is Harry Heilmann who hit .403 in 1923.
Legend worthy
Love it
BORN IN 1937 I IDOLIZED TED...& I WAS BORN IN BOSTON....SIGH...
Ralph Kiner always talked about guessing and also going up the middle with two strikes
Very bright men.
Good video but the footage they used for Ted’s final home run is inaccurate. That day was overcast and only ~10,000 fans were there. They show people in the sun with short sleeved shirts. Not sure why they changed it.
I bet they’re batting .400 every year in heaven.
I had Teds book Science of Hitting.
any transcript?
RIP Mr. Padre
Mr. Williams lost 2.5 years of his career due to military service, his states would have been even better if not for that.
His manger Joe Cronin, didn't want Williams to play the final game of the season to preserve his.400 average, Ted played.
what year was this? NE one?
1996
It was so much easier for Teddy. There were no specialty pitchers, no middle relievers, no closers. Tony Gwynn had to deal with all of that and more with specific lefties and all of it. It isn't even close as to who the best hitter of al time is.
I FAILED TO MENTION MY ADMIRATION FOR TONY AS A PLAYER & A MAN..."SCUSE ME>
Let's be real, Tony would have hit .700 in the 40's.
Lol 😂😂
@@jed5135 Seriously though, did they even throw breaking balls back then?
@@greysonG10 They definitely did. Sliders were being thrown by some pitchers as early as the 1920s and had probably been in use for a couple of decades by then. Curveballs were thrown even earlier than that. However, the average pitcher back then probably threw much slower pitches and didn't pitch as well. The average fastball speed in the majors went up one mile per hour just from 2008 to 2018, so we can safely assume that the average velocity in the '40s was at least several miles per hour slower than it is now. Plus, farm systems hadn't existed for very long at that point, and scouting was much less thorough than it is today. That's not even going into how much integration improved the game. Think about how many of the best players today are from Latin America, and then consider what the quality of the major leagues would be like if you replaced all of them with a bunch of guys from AA or AAA. Scherzer and deGrom would probably strike out 400 batters every single year.
I have no doubt that Ted Williams would still be a great hitter today, though. He did an excellent job of adjusting to changes in the game during his own time and continued to hit very well until he retired in 1960. He also took an extremely analytical approach to hitting, which would work to his advantage. He'd never hit .400 if he played now, but I think he'd probably be one of the better hitters in the game.
@@NantenKnight89
Bullshit. Bullshit.
BullshitBullshitBullshit.
Bullshit.
@@greysonG10 The same teams saw each other a lot. Only 8 teams per league and no interleague play back in Ted Williams time. Having 160+ major league pitchers opposed to the current 320+ major league pitchers would dilute the talent. Good players will succeed in any era. Imagine if MLB had only 16 teams now. Lot of good players would be left out. Think about how good MLB was then, when it was the number one sport in the nation. It was good, so don't disparage those players.
Gwynn was a marvel in the pre-OPS days, but his career WAR is surpassed by a lot of players deemed much more mediocre.
If I said to you, who was a better hitter in terms of production for his team, Fisk or Gwynn? Fisk is regarded as a solid hitter (but not great) with good power. Gwynn is regarded as a historically great hitter, but Fisk wins more games than Gwynn.
Cal Ripken wins more games than Gwynn. Guys like Jorge posada win about the same amount as gwynn on a per-year basis, which makes fisk's numbers more exceptional - catching wore posada out.
But no disrespect to Tony meant by any of that. If I was young again playing baseball, I'd study Gwynn and Williams before many of the guys who have better season-by-season WARs than tony.
I would also definetely study gwynn over ripken & posada & those other guys lol.
Not to mention the only reason he didnt win more games for the Padres was because they never built around them. Put him with a winning team & the RBI production would of stood out more
@@rn4l713 I mean he went to the world series... It wasn't like the Padres were bad. They just had to play one of the best teams of all time in the WS. Kinda like the Chargers had to play the 49ers with Young and Rice.
Not a fan of Ted Williams. Great hitter, not great baseball player. Terrible runner, not a great fielder, didn't have a great arm. Wasn't liked by the fans too much either. Still refused to tip his cap to the fans. Ted was in the big leagues over twenty seasons. He stole 24 bases total in his entire career. That's pathetic. Incredible liability on the base paths. War hero, pilot, and prob sacrificed the best 5 years of his career due to the war. Not doubting his hitting ability, it was great. Just not a complete ball player. I'd pick rickey Henderson over williams
Opinions are like assholes every has one. Rickey Henderson is completely overated and definitely is under ped suspension. Plus he hit over 80 points lower his on base is 402 compared to Williams 482 and Williams slugging 634 dwarfs Henderson by over 200 points let's not even discuss ops. Henderson struck out a shit ton and was caught stealing a ridiculous amount and once again played with most of the biggest steroid users in mlb history.