Cliff Stearns: “Today we will honor Ted Williams, the baseball legend, here on the House floor. I am here this morning to also honor…”

“Today we will honor Ted Williams, the baseball legend, here on the House floor. I am here this morning to also honor him. On July 5, of course, of this year, he died. He is one of baseball's greatest legends. He was known as the ``Splendid Splinter,'' ``Teddy Ballgame,'' ``the Kid,'' ``the Thumper''; he was a man who turned the art of batting into a science. Mr. Speaker, he began his major league career with the Boston Red Sox on December 7, 1937, and played for the team exclusively for 19 years. He retired with a career high .344 batting average, and was, of course, the last player to hit over 400 for a full season in 1941. Ted Williams is tied for 11th all time, with 521 home runs, and 11th with 1,839 RBIs. He won two Triple Crowns, and was a two-time MVP. He held six American League batting championships and received 18 All-star game selections. These tremendous achievements, Mr. Speaker, were reached despite Ted missing five seasons serving his country as a naval aviator in World War II, and then later he went on to become a Marine aviator, flying 39 combat missions in Korea and earning an Air Medal and two Gold Stars. On January 20, 1966, Ted Williams was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, and on May 29, 1984, the Red Sox formally retired his number 9. In 1994, the so-called ``Einstein of batting'' opened the Ted Williams Museum and Library in Hernando, Florida, becoming the number one tourist attraction in Citrus County.”