Was Ted Williams Latino? The case for
Over the course of the 2018 season we have been celebrating the top ten Latino players in the history of each franchise. Only one remains: the team with the best regular season record this year, the Boston Red Sox. When considering the ten best Latino players in Red Sox history, one name is consistently part of the conversation. In this first part of a two-piece conversation we consider whether or not we consider Ted Williams a Latino member of Red Sox history.
Debating the merits of favorite players is a hallmark of any fandom in baseball. The conversations can even become irrational and angry each January when the newest class of the National Baseball Hall of Fame is announced.
One recent Hall of Fame debate was different, though. This one focused on identity while looking back at a different era when this country wasn’t as welcoming to Latinos.
As is often the case when this subject comes up, the debate became somewhat intense when La Vida Baseball’s Editor-in-Chief, Adrian Burgos, Jr, brought up the greatest hitter of all-time.
Was Ted Williams Latino?
Mother Knows Best
I always answer this query with another question: How could you possibly not consider the mother?
Williams’ mother, May Venzor Williams, was a Mexican-American native of El Paso, Tex.
Moreover, one of Venzor’s brothers is the uncle – dare we call him tio? – who gave the “Splendid Splinter” his first batting lessons.
Williams was one of America’s most iconic figures of the 20th Century, both for his on-field exploits in Boston and his exemplary record in the U.S. military. In the 21st Century he surely would have been more open about his Latino roots.
Context is Key
It’s important to understand the era and circumstances when considering why Williams didn’t discuss his mother’s Mexican and Basque heritage.
“If I had my mother’s name, there’s no doubt I would have run into problems in those days, (with) the prejudices people had in Southern California,” Williams wrote in his biography My Turn at Bat.
Nonetheless, Williams had credited his uncle, Saul Venzor, with teaching him to hit and throw a baseball.
There was no doubt that Williams bristled as a child when his mother dragged him to the Salvation Army’s tent revivals in his native San Diego, Calif. That much has been chronicled often by the authors who have written about baseball’s greatest hitter.
Williams didn’t cringe about his mother’s roots, however. He simply didn’t trumpet that side of his background at a time when some would have used it against him.
He made his professional debut in the minors in 1936 and his big league debut in 1939, eight years before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. Some would note that Latinos and even natives of Mexico had already played in the majors by the time Williams made his debut, but let’s not pretend that the baseball world was wholeheartedly welcoming to people of color in those days.
At the time, Williams knew that life would be easier if he didn’t highlight his mother’s roots.
He never denied his mother’s roots during his legendary playing. He simply didn’t promote the Mexican side.
The Greatest
There was no questioning Williams’ place in the game. He played 19 seasons in the majors from 1939 to 1960; he missed three seasons to serve in World War II (1943-46) and one for his service in the Korean War (1952-53) with the U.S. Navy and Marines. He was a 19-time All-Star, winning two American League MVP awards as well.
In this era, surely someone with those credentials would feel able to embrace his heritage. He would even be celebrated for it openly.
As far as Williams was concerned, he merely wanted to be known as the greatest hitter who ever lived. He earned that moniker with 521 home runs, 2,654 hits in a career that was robbed of three prime seasons because he was a decorated fighter pilot.
He’s the last man to hit .400, accomplishing the feat with a .406 average in 1941.
He is truly the greatest hitter to ever live. That’s actually the best way to remember the greatest Latino ballplayer who ever lived. His Mexican-American mom and his tios were quite proud.
Featured Image: Hulton Archive
Correction: A previous version of this article stated Williams missed three seasons only for his service in the Korean War and misstated the years of that war. The error was made in editing.