Monster Card Monday: 1948 Ted Williams

Along with Babe Ruth and Rogers Hornsby, I’ve probably done more Monster Card Monday columns on Ted Williams than anyone.  He was actually the first official one I did.  When Pastor Rich posted this 1948 Williams card on Facebook, I double checked to make sure I hadn’t written one up on it.  Nope. 

By the way, Rich was pretty excited about getting this card along with the rest of the 1948 Red Sox from Ken Schulz who sent the team to him.  Rich is on his way to building his collection.  It’s no coincidence that he’s such a resource when it comes to Monster Cards!

Pretty much any Williams card you pick will be a Monster card even when he is injured.  His 1948 season is no exception.  That year, he led the AL in hitting (.369), slugging (.615) and on base average (.497).  On top of that, he paced the league with 44 doubles and 126 walks. His homerun power was slightly down with 25 dingers (he led the AL the year before and the year after). 

Williams only struck out 41 times for a BB/K ratio of more than 3:1. 

Without sounding too cynical, this is a typical Ted Williams APBA card.  He’s got power numbers, a good amount of hit numbers, lots of 14s, and an absence of 13s. 

His four powers of 1-5-6-6 aren’t super by Ted Williams’ standard but do the trick.  However, his .369 batting average gives him three 7s all the way out to 15.  Historically, one of Thumper’s best assets is his ability to get on base and this card doesn’t let us down.  It has a total of seven 14s. 

How many 13s does Williams’ 1948 card have?  Zero. 

One nitpick:  I’m surprised that Williams doesn’t have two 31s.  The one player who made it his life’s goal to perfect hitting the ball should have at least two, shouldn’t he? 

Fun numbers:  15-7, 21-14, 24-14

Check out Ted Williams’ other Monster Card Monday columns I’ve done. 

1941 | 1953 | 1955 | 1957

Thanks Rich (and Ken)!