Memories of Ted Williams

12:00AM / Wednesday, July 10, 2002Print Story | Email Story

As millions of baseball fans, including the current Red Sox manager, never saw Ted Williams in action, I feel compelled to share my memories of the Splendid Splinter in action at Fenway Park. What I lacked in actual diamond experience as a kid in pre-World War II Windsor, I made up in radio and newspaper accounts of major league baseball. In truth, in that pre-TV era of limited finances and limited sports choices, baseball was big, perhaps bigger than life for the average Great Depression denizen. Although kidsâ€™ baseball in Windsor was limited to five or six to a team and a Crane Community School field imposing such challenges as a three-foot high bank in back of second base and a huge lilac bush in center field, I could quote the daily batting average of the entire Red Sox team, as well as such figures as Babe Ruth and Lou Novikoff (Cubs, 1940, BA .300). At Dalton High School in my freshman tryout for the baseball team, I landed a spot on the skimpy 11-member squad and batted an amazing .500 (one for two). After longtime coach Bob Boyd informed me that â€œyou canâ€™t bat and canâ€™t throw,â€ in quite the then large team my soph year and managed to make the Windsor town team, as most of its able-bodied players were entering the service. The highlight of my baseball career, however, was the annual visit to my sister in Boston during spring vacations in 1941-42 and 43. Each year i attended one game at Fenway Park and one game at the former Braves Field. Williams was a super star by 1941, when he hit the historic and never matched .406 and he was around in â€˜42, batting .356. The Braves had stars too, such as hulking catcher Ernie Lombardi, NBL leader in 1942 at .330. My views of Williams were from at least 100 feet, but I had an electrifying meeting in front of a Boston photo studio in â€˜42, a huge portrait of Williams. I stood no more than two feet from the picture of the slender, handsome, wavy-haired son of a Hispanic father for at least 10 minutes. In 1943, we both enlisted and my hero worshiping was transferred to more pressing Army duties, but nothing compared to his second heroâ€™s career as a marine fighter pilot, including his miraculous survival of a crash in the Korean War. In the mid-fifties, while a reporter and sometime baseball writer for the Berkshire Eagle, I attended two Red Sox games and each produced unforgettable memories of a less slender Williams. The first took place in my left field seat, when several disrespectful fans devoted their entire energies to heckling Williams, heckling him for a multitude of alleged deficiencies, including his ancestry (although they did not disparage his Spanish blood). Ted muffed a tough fly to the outfield and a torrent of taunts ensued. â€œHe hears us, thatâ€™s for sure, look at his neck, itâ€™s turning purple,â€ one of the tormentors exclaimed. A year or two later, as his career approached the end, I had received a raise at the Eagle and could afford a seat closer to home plate. Ted was not having a stellar day at bat and for some reason hurled his weapon high in the air. He was fined a then huge $5,000. On a previous time at the plate, his bat slipped from his hands and struck an elderly lady in the face. She apparently was not seriously injured and exclaimed, â€œThatâ€™s okay Ted.â€ She was identified as the housekeeper for general manager Joe Cronin. I have seen only one Red Sox game since Williams retired and that was way back when Bucky Dent was playing for the White Sox, before he beat the Red Sox as Yankee with one of his few home runs. In June, 1943, I attended a personally historic game at Fenway Park, when Dalton High took on Norwood for the state high school championships. Fellow seniors Marty Oâ€™Gara and Bud Oâ€™Keefe, along with juniors Walt Murray and Jake Brennan were the stars for Dalton, but they lost 3-2. Norwoodâ€™s huge pitcher, Ray Martin, immediately signed a contract with the Braves. Recent stories have told of Tedâ€™s visit to the Louisville plant turning out baseball bats and his search for a dozen perfect bats. My grandfatherâ€™s brother, Charley Leslie, produced bats in his West Worthington workshop for Spaulding and Babe Ruth reportedly would visit the rustic Leslie home for a few days once a year, to select bats and to fish in the nearby stream. As a kid, I was the proud possessor of several Leslie bats, but they were too heavy for me to swing, even for the Windsor town team. Ted Williams could always generate big news and his death last week produced reams of copy and air time. Sadly, his look-alike son, John Henry, is not cut of the same mold and his plans to have his father or his fatherâ€™s head put in deep freeze for possible sale of his DNA is a sad ending to a career which inspired many young people, including me. In Tedâ€™s day, baseball was truly the National Pastime and now the sport hovers on the edge of extinction, its image and attraction irreparably tarnished by greedy owners, millionaire under-achieving players bloated by steroids, and a public with just too many other sports to watch or play. Golf is one of baseballâ€™s chief rivals, along with soccer, auto racing and even fishing. Perhaps baseball fans will regain interest in live games, now that Pittsfield has its Black Bears at ancient Wahconah Park and North Adams counters with its Steeple Cats at Joe Wolfe Field. Golf fans have two great choices this week, with the Vermont Amateur taking place at the historic and very private Ekwanok Country Club in Manchester and the Womenâ€™s Futures Tour starting tomorrow at the Green Mountain National on Route 100, just north of the Killington Resort, with its own 18 holes. Ekwanok, founded by a group including Robert Todd Lincoln more than 100 years ago, was the scene of the U.S. Amateur in 1914, won by Francis Ouimet. This yearâ€™s event celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Vermont Golf Association. The Futures Tour is the next step to the LPGA and some 150 of the worldâ€™s top young golfers will be in action at GMN, rated as one of the top municipal courses in the Northeast. Not all heroes make the headlines, such as recent cancer victim John Gaudreau of North Adams, a longtime member of the Waubeeka Golf Links Club who also served as bartender. Prior to his death, he established the John Gaudreau Foundation to help under-privileged boys and girls participate in youth basketball. Donations may be left with Mark Mills, Waubeeka manager, or mailed to the foundation at Waubeeka Golf Links, P.O.Box 511, Williamstown, MA 01267. Gaudreau will also be remembered at the Waubeeka Member Guest Tournament Friday,Saturday and Sunday and at the Ladies One-Day Tournament July 21. John Hitchcock of Williamstown writes frequently about the area sports scene.

iBerkshires.com Text Ads

rk MILES Blding Materials

Are You Ready to Update Your Home? Start With rk MILES. 4 Locations (800)670-7433

www.rkmiles.com

RIBCO Supply

Check out our great lineup of Boss Plows, and spreaders. 2 Locations Clarksburg & Pittsfield!

ribcosupply.com

Budhaus Cannabis Store

Open 9:00am Mon–Sat An elevated cannabis company providing highly crafted product & personal touch

www.budha.us

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Friday Front Porch Feature: A Charming House Like New

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
06:57PM / Friday, December 19, 2025

The home prior to renovations.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Are you looking for a newly renovated home with great space? Then this might be the perfect fit for you!

Our Friday Front Porch is a weekly feature spotlighting attractive homes for sale in Berkshire County. This week, we are showcasing 100 Autumn Drive.

This three-bedroom, two-bathroom split level was built in 1965 and is 1,396 square feet on 0.32 acres.

The house was completely renovated recently. It includes a one-car garage, and comes with appliances including a dishwasher and stove/oven, and other major appliances.

The house is listed for $359,500.

We spoke with owners Michael Zeppieri and Chris Andrews, who did the renovations. Zeppieri is an agent with Alton and Westall Real Estate Agency.

What was your first impression when you walked into the home?

Zeppieri: I purchased this home to do a full renovation flip and saw tremendous potential in this mid-century split level home that had not been updated since it was built in the 1960s, in a great North Adams neighborhood.

Andrews: The house was a much different house when we first purchased it in 2022 (photo attached is from about 2010.) The interior was painted all in dark colors and we brightened it up with neutral colors. The transformation makes you feel like you are in a totally different house.

What were the recent renovations, any standout design features?

Zeppieri: The house has had a complete reconfiguration including new kitchen with high-end appliances, ceramic tiled baths, hardwood floors, new windows and roof ... just to name a few. All a buyer has to do is move in and enjoy.

Andrews: Yes, we renovated the entire house. New windows, new roof, all new custom black gutter system, new blacktop driveway, hardwood floors were installed through out the house. New kitchen and bathrooms as well as painting the exterior and interior of the house. New paver patio in the back yard.

What kind of buyer would this home be ideal for?

Zeppieri: The buyer for this home could be a first-time homebuyer or a retiree ... the location is close to attractions in North Adams ... and the property is located in Autumn Heights, which is a very small residential development with several long-term owners.

Andrews: This home is truly ideal for a variety of buyers. Whether a first-time homebuyer, a small family or even someone looking to downsize from a larger home.

What do you think makes this property stand out in the current market?

Zeppieri: The location, price and move-in condition of this home make it a true market leader in the North Adams Market.

Andrews: This house is completely renovated and in a desirable location of North Adams. The natural light in the home really makes the interior pop. And with all the upgrades the home stays quite cool in the summer months.

Do you know any unique stories about the home or its history?

Zeppieri: This home was built for the Gould family in 1969 and they lived there till 2010. It was always a family home during that time in which the Goulds had two children ... and Virgina Gould managed Mohawk Forest Apartments and was a very active resident of North Adams.

Andrews: Built in about 1965.

What do the current owners love about this home?

Zeppieri: As the current owner it was a fun project to transform this home and get it ready for its next adventure with a new family to enjoy for many years.

Andrews: No one has lived in the house since we purchased the home. The new owners would be the first to live in the house since the renovations have been completed.

What would you say to a buyer trying to imagine their life in this space?

Andrews: I would suggest seeing the house either on a sunny day or at twilight to really get a vision of how special the home feels.

You can find out more about this house on its listing here.

*Front Porch Feature brings you an exclusive to some of the houses listed on our real estate page every week. Here we take a bit of a deeper dive into a certain house for sale and ask questions so you don't have to.

View Full Story