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In 1942, he enlisted in the United States Navy to fight in World War II, and became a fighter pilot in the Pacific Theater. [73] While on the baseball team, Williams was sent back to Fenway Park on July 12, 1943, to play on an All-Star team managed by Babe Ruth. [124] Williams hit 28 home runs and drove in 83 runs[37] while being named the "Comeback Player of the Year. Williams' average season, 1939-42 and 1946-49: 148 G, 186 H, 33 HR, 130 RBIs, 138 BB, 9.0 bWAR. Later in the year, he was among the members of the Major League Baseball All-Century Team introduced to the crowd at Turner Field in Atlanta prior to Game Two of the World Series. After having hit for the league's Triple Crown in 1947, Williams narrowly lost the MVP award in a vote where one Midwestern newspaper writer left Williams entirely off his ten-player ballot. Like his famous namesake, Williams loathed the nickname Teddy. Just the same, fans fondly referred to him as Teddy Ballgame.. Support provided by Market New York through I LOVE NY/ New York States Division of Tourism as a part of the Regional Economic Development Council awards. Ted Williams was sworn into the Marine Corps in 1942 and spent three years learning to fly and serving as a pilot instructor during World War II . Ted Williams: A Look At The Aircraft He Flew In The Korean War It was the second-best thing that ever happened to me. One of the letters details how he crash-landed his F9F Panther during the Korean War. He finished the season with 366 career home runs. After completing his training - and setting records for gunnery scores thanks in part to his remarkable 20/10 eyesight - Williams received his wings and Marine Corps commission on May 2, 1944. . He also led the league in walks, another rookie record. As a further indication, of the ten best seasons for OPS, short for On-Base Plus Slugging Percentage, a popular modern measure of offensive productivity, four each were achieved by Ruth and Bonds, and two by Williams. By seasons end hed managed a hit one of every three times at bat, with 31 home runs and 145 runs batted in, making him the first rookie to lead the American League in RBIs. . . [23] Unknown to Williams, he had caught the eye of the Boston Red Sox's general manager, Eddie Collins, while Collins was scouting Bobby Doerr and the shortstop George Myatt in August 1936. [20], Throughout his career, Williams stated his goal was to have people point to him and remark, "There goes Ted Williams, the greatest hitter who ever lived. Ted Williams served two stints as a Marine Corps pilot during his career, including a combat assignment during the Korean War. Williams was talented as a pilot, and so enjoyed it that he had to be ordered by the Navy to leave training to personally accept his American League 1942 Major League Baseball Triple Crown. "[21], Williams played back-up behind Vince DiMaggio and Ivey Shiver on the (then) Pacific Coast League's San Diego Padres. Williams returned to baseball in 1946 and picked up right where he left off, earning the American League MVP award. [5] He later amended his birth certificate, removing his middle name,[5] which he claimed originated from a maternal uncle (whose actual name was Daniel Venzor), who had been killed in World War I. The maternal, Spanish-Mexican side of Williams's family was quite diverse, having Spanish (Basque), Russian, and American Indian roots.