Ted Williams : In Florida in 1998

My wife, Chiaki Mukai, is an astronaut and has flown twice on the space shuttle. Her second space flight was the nine-day STS-95 mission on the space shuttle Discovery from October 29 to November 7, 1998. One of her crewmates on that flight was John Glenn.

The STS-95 crew members. John Glenn is on the far right, and Chiaki Mukai is in the center. (Ⓒ JAXA/NASA)

John Glenn, a top Marine Corps pilot, was selected as one of America's first seven astronauts in 1959, and in 1962 became a national hero by becoming the first American to orbit the Earth in space. After retiring from astronaut status, he served as a U.S. Senator from Ohio for more than 20 years. In 1998, at the age of 77, John Glenn, still a senator, flew in space again, this time on STS-95, where my wife was also a crew member. The purpose of his space flight was to study the effects of weightlessness on the elderly.

John Glenn and Chiaki Mukai working together in space. (Ⓒ JAXA/NASA)

The whole of America was excited by the news that John Glenn, a national hero, would be flying in space again, even before the flight actually took place. There was a lot of excitement even after the successful completion of the STS-95 mission. Celebration parties and parades were held many times and in many places. Not only John Glenn but all the crew members participated in these parties and parades, including my wife.

A few days before the celebration party at the hotel in Florida, John Glenn said to Chiaki,

"Hey, Chiaki, I've specially invited a friend of mine to the party in Florida. I'll introduce him to you, but he's a guy you've never even heard of."

Chiaki asked Glenn.

 "Who is he?"

 "His name is Ted Williams. You don't know him, do you?"

 "Oh, I know him. He was the last .400 hitter, right?"

 "Huh, how do you know that, Chiaki?"

 "My husband is a big fan of Major League Baseball. So he always tells me about Ted Williams.”

"Oh, is that so?"

 "Where did you meet Ted Williams, John?"

 "Ted and I are comrades in arms."

When the Korean War broke out, Ted Williams participated as a Marine Corps pilot. At that time, the Marine Corps had a top pilot, John Glenn. The two were comrades in arms who fought together in the Korean War.

By the way, Ted Williams served in the military twice during the prime of his career as a major leaguer. In World War II and the Korean War. Some people (I am one of them) say that if he had not served in the military twice (a total of about four years), Ted Williams would have been able to break Babe Ruth's career record of 714 home runs. Additionally, I would like to point out that only two major leaguers, Ted Williams and Bob Kennedy, served in both World War II and the Korean War. Jerry Coleman also served in both World War II and the Korean War, but I think he was a minor leaguer during World War II, not a major leaguer.

MY LIFE IN PICTURES  TED WILLIAMS WITH DAVID PIETRUSZA (2001, TOTAL Sports Illustrated). In this book, Ted Williams mentions John Glenn, and includes a photo of the two of them meeting as old men. He also writes that he and Bob Kennedy are the only two MLB players to have served in both World War II and the Korean War, and includes a photo of the two of them together.

Now, the celebration party was held at a hotel in Florida. Ted Williams, who was living out the rest of his life in Florida, came to the hotel at the invitation of John Glenn. And Chiaki met Ted Williams. And then....Chiaki called me internationally to tell me what had happened at the party. When I heard it, I was deeply moved.

On the day of the celebration party in Florida, a waiting room was prepared for John Glenn and the other crew members. Ted Williams came to visit John Glenn in the waiting room. John Glenn was 77 years old, and Ted Williams was 80 years old. The two old comrades were engaged in a friendly conversation.

After a while, John Glenn introduced the crew to Ted Williams. When Chiaki extended her hand to shake hands, Ted Williams said, "Oh, so you're the Japanese woman who flew with John. You look like a very lively woman."  His hand was really big and warm. As they shook hands, Chiaki said to Ted Williams.

 "My husband is a big fan of yours. He's told me about your record over and over again."

Ted Williams must have heard this kind of thing hundreds or thousands of times to the point of getting bored. But Ted Williams looked into Chiaki's eyes and smiled happily.

The time had finally come for the celebration party to begin. The crew left the waiting room and headed to the big celebration venue.

After some congratulatory speeches, John Glenn gave a speech on behalf of the crew. At the beginning of his speech, John Glenn said, "Today, I would like to introduce someone to you all. My comrade-in-arms, Ted Williams, whom you all know well!  Ted, can you say hello for a moment?"  The hall was filled with applause and cheers. Everyone looked for Ted Williams. But no one could find him. Ted Williams had left the hotel.

Ted Williams probably came because he could see his comrade in arms. He probably came to the hotel for that reason alone. He probably didn't need to be surrounded by applause and cheers at the celebration hall. He had experienced such things many times during his time as a major league player. Besides, the main character who should have been surrounded by applause and cheers at the celebration hall that day was John Glenn. Ted Williams probably didn't want to steal John Glenn’s thunder.

When my wife told me the story, I was deeply moved. And I thought, "Ted Williams is everything I expected him to be“.  To be completely honest, Ted Williams is the only major leaguer I've loved from the bottom of my heart.

Ted Williams passed away in 2002 at the age of 83.

John Glenn passed away in 2016 at the age of 95. The crew of STS-95 attended the funeral, including my wife.

( If I’ve made a mistake or left out something important, please let me know. I’ll try to make corrections or additions.)