A Pitcher He Feared on Sight

They say there never was a pitcher that Ted Williams feared, but was it true? Bill Madden of The Sporting News put the question to the Hall of Fame slugger.

“Well, maybe,” Williams said. “But there was one guy who got my attention. Ryne Duren. He had those thick glasses and threw the ball in the high 90s. When I first faced him in 1959, the guys who knew him told me he threw hard and was mean. But I could see his ball good, so I wasn’t all that impressed.

“Then, a few weeks later, I see old Ryno at the All-Star Game and, just to make some conversation with him, I ask him how he pitched to the guy taking batting practice, Al Kaline. I tell him, ‘The guy just murders us.’

“So Duren bends over, looks to the batting cage and starts squinting and says to me, ‘Who is it?’ Well, all of a sudden, I realize this guy really can’t see.

“After that, I was more worried than ever when I faced Ryno.”

Add Williams: Gene Mauch told Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post: “Ted’s stance was a thing of beauty. He was so balanced, so commanding. And he changed on every pitch, depending on the count and the situation.”

He added: “No one ever ruined as many hitters as Joe DiMaggio. He looked so wonderful with his wide stance and his hands high that, for years, we all thought you had to hold your hands that way. We couldn’t imagine Joe’s way was only his way, not the right way.”

Trivia Time: What does PG3B28 stand for? Where is it displayed? (Answer below.)

As Ty Cobb grew older, did the competitive fires begin to cool? Hardly.

Writes Harry Atkins of the Associated Press: “During a 1947 old-timers game in New York, when Cobb was 60, he stood at the plate and suggested that catcher Wally Schang step back, explaining that it had been a long time since he had swung a bat and that it might slip from his grasp. When Schang obliged, Cobb laid down a bunt in front of the plate.”

Pete Rose told Ira Berkow of the New York Times that the toughest part of managing is sending a player to the minors.

“I was never optioned in my life, so I wasn’t sure how it was done,” Rose said. “People told me to make it quick, but I couldn’t. Sometimes I’d have tears in my eyes, and if a guy wanted to talk, I’d let him talk all day. I wasn’t going anywhere.”

Recalling when he sent down Carl Willis, Rose said: “I told him I was sure he’d be back soon and help us win a lot of games. I asked if he had anything to say.

“He said, ‘Yeah, first, I want to thank you for the opportunity to pitch here. And the other thing is, I wondered what had taken you so long. I’ve been stinkin’ up the joint for two weeks.’ ”

Now-it-can-be-told dept.: Said Ohio State quarterback Jim Karsatos, recalling when USC was trying to recruit him out of Sunny Hills High School in Fullerton: “John Robinson called and told me Sean Salisbury was going to sign with USC, but he said they still wanted to offer me a scholarship. I said, ‘Thanks, but I’ll see you in the Rose Bowl.’ ”

Trivia Answer: It stands for Pedro Guerrero, third base, No. 28. It is displayed on his personalized license plates on his Mercedes. Next year, of course, the 3B should become LF.

Quotebook

Philadelphia Eagle quarterback Ron Jaworski, after telling a reporter that Cleveland Brown rookie Bernie Kosar looked a little hesitant and stiff in Saturday’s exhibition game: “I can see the headlines now: ‘Jaworski says Kosar is a stiff.’ ”