A song for Ted Williams

This is a song written in tribute to the late, great Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox, who passed away on Friday, July 5, 2002.

(Note: Based on the tune of Don McLean's "American Pie")

A song for Ted Williams

A long, long time ago... I can still remember how His homers used to make me smile. And he knew if he took a whack, That he could make those people clap, And maybe they'd be happy for a while. That fateful Friday made me shiver, With every paper I'd deliver, Bad news on the doorstep... I couldn't take one more step. I can't remember if I cried About the death of this great guy But something touched me deep inside, The day The Splinter died. Oh my, my, Teddy was a great guy, he Got the most out of life and said his final good-byes He was a rookie back in '39 But I guess this is the day that he died, Guess this is the day that he died.

Teddy Ballgame gave it his all Do you think God is playing ball With Teddy and Joe D? Did Ted achieve his lifelong goals? Can baseball save your mortal soul? Is Teddy looking down on me? Well I know that Boston's not the same Gone is Ted Williams but not his name I still can't believe the news And now I've got the blues He was a lonely teenage broncin' buck With a golden swing everybody loved But I knew that he was out of luck Today, Ted Ballgame died.

I started singin'... Oh my, my, Teddy was a great guy, he Got the most out of life and said his final good-byes He was a rookie back in '39 But I guess this is the day that he died, Guess this is the day that he died.

Oh, and while The King was looking down, on The winner of two Triple Crowns He took Ted's life away, Yes, Ted saw the light that day Ted definitely left his mark, But the game went on at Fenway Park They all sang dirges in the dark Today, Ted Williams died.

We were singin' Oh my, my, Teddy was a great guy, he Got the most out of life and said his final good-byes He was a rookie back in '39 But I guess this is the day that he died, Guess this is the day that he died.

Sewell's pitching in a summer duel The Splendid Splinter keeps his cool He hits an eephus* pitch into the stands Teddy circled the base path Cleats kicking up some chunks of grass We all stood up so we could give him a hand The ballpark air was sweet perfume While the organist played a snappy tune We all got up to cheer But we never got the all-clear 'Cause the players tried to take the field, The starting pitcher refused to yield Do you recall what was revealed, The day The Splinter died?

We started singing Oh my, my, Teddy was a great guy, he Got the most out of life and said his final good-byes He was a rookie back in '39 But I guess this is the day that he died, Guess this is the day that he died. There we were all in one place Staring at his youthful face Watching his story on ESPN Ted was immature but fun Had 521 home runs And left behind many very close friends. As I watched Ted leave The Stage My hands were clenched in fists of rage No angel born in hell Could break that Satan's spell And as flames climbed high into the night To light the sacrificial rite I saw Satan laughing with delight Today, The Splinter died. I met a girl who sang the blues And I asked her for some happy news But she just smiled and turned away I went down to the sacred field Where I'd seen Ted shed some tears But the man there said that Ted had gone away.

And in the streets the fans all screamed The Red Sox cried and children dreamed But not a word was spoken The church bells all were broken And "The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived" The winner of six batting clips In '41 he hit .406 Today, Ted Ballgame died.

They were singin' Oh my, my, Teddy was a great guy, he Got the most out of life and said his final good-byes He was a rookie back in '39 But I guess this is the day that he died, Guess this is the day that he died.

* Eephus: According to SportsJones.com, the eephus pitch was "a high, hanging floater that falls through the strike zone like a rain drop." It was developed by pitcher, Rip Sewell in 1944.

According to BaseballLibray.com, Sewell was one of the dominant N.L. pitchers during World War II. He pitched for the Pittsburgh Pirates. In 1940, part of his foot was shot off in a hunting accident, which kept him out of the war. Because of the injury, he developed a blooper pitch, which was called the "eephus" by teammate Maurice Van Robays. In the 1946 All-Star Game, Ted Williams hit an eephus pitch for his second home run of the game.