The 1949 American League Batting Race
In 1949 Ted
Williams was poised to become the first man to win three Triple Crowns. He
had won the Triple Crown, for leading the league in batting, homers, and RBI, in
1942 and 1947. The latter year was his first season back to baseball after World
War II.
In 1949 Williams seemed set to duplicate that
amazing feat and in the process join Ty Cobb
as the only men to win five batting titles. On September 18 Williams clubbed two
homers and batted in six runs, taking the AL lead in the three categories. He
had a comfortable ten-point lead in the batting race. There were ten games left
in his season.
There seemed to be few challenges to Williams
claim of his third Triple Crown. Detroit's George
Kell languished ten points behind on September 23, when he returned to the Tiger
lineup after jamming his thumb ten days prior. Kell stroked two hits in three
at-bats and raised his average a single point to .342, still far from the Red
Sox leader.
That same weekend, Williams blasted two home runs
against the Yankees in Fenway Park.
The Red Sox and Yanks were in a tight battle for the pennant. After winning
their third straight game against New York, the Red Sox were in first place.
While Detroit had four off-days leading up to the
final weekend of the season, the Red Sox played a pair in Washington
and two more in New York. Williams went 2-for-12 in those four games, including
a slew of walks. As always, Williams refused to chase questionable pitches. His
selection would ultimately cost him.
On Friday Williams went hitless against Bob
Feller and the Indians, dropping
his average to .346. In Detroit, Kell went 1-for-2 on Saturday as Williams was
collared against the Yanks. Going into the final day, Kell trailed .344 to .341.
The Yanks and Red Sox were deadlocked for the AL lead.
Kell came to the park on that final day with a
chance to win the batting title - something he never would have thought possible
just a week before. Williams walked in his first at-bat against the Yanks. He
then popped out twice before batting for the final time in the ninth inning.
With the Yanks leading 5-0 and three outs from the pennant, Williams walked. The
Red Sox rallied to score three runs before Birdie Tebbetts fouled out to end the
season and give New York the AL flag. Williams had went 0-for-2 with two walks.
His walks had helped his team stay in the game, but had not helped his triple
crown chances.
In Detroit, Kell singled in his first at-bat
against Bob Lemon. In his second chance
he doubled off Lemon. In the sixth Kell was walked by Bob Feller (why Feller was
relieving we do not know!), and in the seventh he flied out. In the ninth Kell
was scheduled to bat fourth. Neither he or his teammates knew if he was ahead or
behind in the batting race. But his manager did. Red Rolfe had assigned a Detroit
Free Press sportswriter to stay on the phone with reporters in New York and
report down to the Tiger dugout on the status of Williams.
With Kell in the on-deck circle in the ninth,
Rolfe received word that Williams and Kell were tied for the batting title but
that Kell would win by less than two thousands of a point. But if Kell batted
and made an out - he would lose. Rolfe prepared to use a pinch-hitter, but Eddie
Lake bounced into a game-ending and season-ending double play and rendered the
move moot. Kell had won with a mark of .3429 to Williams' .34275.
Kell had not backed into the batting race at all.
In his final three games he went 3-for-8. In four games he played with a sore
thumb he was 5-for-11. It wasn't until the off season that he learned Rolfe was
not going to let him bat in the ninth. Williams was denied his third Triple
Crown. He would win three more batting titles but he would never again lead his
league in homers or RBI.
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