Most Major League Baseball fans would agree that Babe Ruth is the greatest player all-time. He pitched 10 seasons with a winning record with impressive stats and his hitting has spoken loud and clear for decades. However, was he a better hitter than perrenial batting title champ of the Boston Red Sox, the legendary great Ted Williams?
Maybe, but not so fast! As an avid and historic Major League Baseball fan I have always thought one of them was the better hitter. Even though it’s close, but still one stood above the other for me with his bat. In this podcast show I decided to dig in and do some close analysis to see which of these two iconic MLB Hall of Famers was the better hitter.
Upon further review, my mind was changed.
Ruth or Williams – Background Story
During my research, I came across some interesting similarities in their backgrounds, not just their stats. Both played baseball from the time they were very young and had great mentors along the way. The most striking similarity was that both were relentless when it came to throughly studying and knowing the strike zone. So much so that some umps were hesitant to call a strike if Ted Williams didn’t swing at the pitch while Babe Ruth in his early years punched a home plate umpire in the head because he throughout the ump was wrong on balls and strikes call.
Each had their own tough love story with their parents growing up. However from the moment they were signed to play pro ball in the minor leagues, they thrived. Each blossomed further once in the big leagues. By age of 20 they were already making their mark; Ruth so impressive on the mound while Williams even at 19 was already dominating.
Babe Ruth vs Ted Williams – Who Was The Better Hitter?
A naked eye on the lifetime stats of either player instantly reveals a remarkable masterpiece Major League Baseball All-Time performance. One glance at the Player Stat columns from their Baseball Classics Baseball Game All-Time Greats cards shows their bold talents.
In this podcast a deep dive explores through their key offensive batting stats explaining the comparisons. I’ll explain to use their Baseball Classics player cards to ultimately come up with a fair conclusion. Near the end of the show I share which of these two all-time greats was the better hitter and why!
Let’s see if you agree or disagree. Leave your comments or questions on this Baseball Classics Podcast!
Baseball Classics Resources Used For This Podcast
Baseball Classics Baseball Game – www.BaseballClassicsBaseballGame.com
Baseball Reference – www.baseball-reference.com
Society For American Baseball Research – www.sabr.org
I agree. Ruth was a better hitter than Williams. Williams even put Ruth #1 in his all time hitter list. Now I do think the numbers would be closer if Ruth and Williams played at the same time and without war interruptions. But of course, Ruth missed out a little early on due to being a pitcher and due to the dead ball.
Numbers wise, Williams and Lou Gerhig are much closer. I think Lou Gerhig gets overlooked as how great of a hitter he was. But if you compare the numbers Williams’ and Gerhig’s number are very, very close.
l agree. Ruth was better. I even saw him play
Gehrig surely is one of the very top MLB hitters all-time. I agree, with his lifetime .340 batting average among other key offensive batting stats, they are very close. Thanks for your comment David.
Really interesting podcast! I was browsing for baseball podcasts and found this one by chance. Very good analysis and interesting trivia and back stories. It was also neat the way you tied it to your baseball statistics formulas related to your board game. I will definitely listen to the rest of your podcasts and will be sure to pick up your baseball classics game as well. In the future too, I would like to hear more player and team comparisons across the eras. Very cool.