European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 30, 1968, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sports scene a Popup Don t let anyone Monkey with your swing Ted Williams told Yaz. Inset Yaz with one of trophies. Player in High school posting an aver age of better than 30 Points a game his senior year. But baseball was his first love and the game that offered the most potential in future earnings groomed As a new Ted Williams Yastrzemski encountered Many crises in his fight from the minors to Fenway nobody had to introduce us. Became Over from his Corner of the room held out his hand and said i m Ted Williams my name s Carl Yastrzemski " i know i know All about you he said. Look kid Don t every understand me he raised his voice Don t Ever let anyone Monkey with your swing " As Long As i live i la never forget1967, our Miracle year the year of the underdog the year of the impossible dream the year some were kind enough to Call the year of the against such powerhouses As the Bush Wicks the House of David and out standing Industrial teams. Carl probably was one of the youngest players Ever to make it with a first class Semi pro club. He was an out by Ben Abrams staff writer he biggest name in baseball in 1967 was just that a Tongue twister with s s and a z mixed in among a few vowels. Carl Yastrzemski was or. Big As the Boston red sox won the american league Pennant and fought the St. Louis cardinals Down to the wire in the world series. Yaz won the american league Bat Ting championship and total bases championships outright and shared the Home run laurels with Harmon Kille brew of the Minnesota twins. The 28-year-old a pox hero carved his Niche in baseball in his seventh year As Ted Williams successor. His feat were so epic that he deemed it Neces sary to write his autobiography Yaz co authored by Al Hirshberg Viking pres from which the quotations on this Page Are taken. The son of a Long Island Farmer who was frustrated in his own desires to be a professional ballplayer Yastrzemski i m told that when i was 18months old my dad got me a tiny baseball Bat which i dragged around wherever i vent the Way other babies drag blankets or favorit toys. My first Clear memory is hitting Tennis balls in the Back Yard against his pitching every night after dinner when i was about  the poles my people Are nearly All potato Farmers. They work Long hard hours for a precarious Liv ing that makes nobody Rich but rarely leaves anyone poor. Since they raise their own food they never starve fielder in his first season Only because some of the older relatives on the club were stubborn and would t admit that they no longer could cavort around the infield. Although i be been an outfielder throughput my big league career i did t like playing there for the White eagles. We often performed on Fields without fences which meant playing the Good hitters about a mile out because anything that went past the outfielder was a sure Home run Yaz wrote. He moved to shortstop his second sea son with the eagles but the eagles were Only going to last for one mor Campaign. In 1965, the Lack of Competition became so pronounced that the club had to travel 60 Miles to Lake Ronkonkoma to gel games. But Carl was now of High school age and High school baseball on Long Island semifinal game on a monday and com ing Back on thursday with a no hitter and 20 strikeouts while delivering game winning Home run. By this time Yaz was the target fall the major league clubs. It was in the height of the Bonus and scouts kept battering Down the doorway to get to sign , he had no Choice in the matter. He was legally too Young to negotiate such matters and his father was Ada Mant. An old family Friend father Joe Ratkowski had admonished Yastrzemski senior not to permit his son to sign any contract for less than six  the Yankees gave him a tryout audit was a fulfilment of a life s dream to Young Carl. But they would to top $45, the spiked shoes impressed me most. Each locker with identifying names and numbers had at least five pairs and some had More. Looked Down at my one beat up pair which i had used in dry weather and wet in heat and in cold in the Field and at the plate. What in the world do they do with five pair of spikes i thought. Of Well this is the big league " Park. He ran into hitting problems with the red sox but found out that Ted was Only too glad to help i advancing  with the red sox was t exactly a bowl of cherries for Carl  could t see Eye to Eye with Man agers Johnny Pesky and Billy Hermann several occasions and made the mis take of spouting off without thinking of the , 1967 was peaches and Cream. The red sox were destined according tothe so called experts for another Sec Ond division finish. Dick Williams waste new manager and the club haunt made enough changes to hint at any Kinclow improvement least of All an Ameri can league championship. But the club jelled in july and Wito big Yaz leading the Way came int september definitely a Pennant threat. The american league race was a Iran had something working for him that probably no other baseball player in his tory has had a baseball team geared to his prospects of becoming a big  Bridgeport White eagles a Long Island Semi pro team composed of  Skonieczny Jasinskis and Borkowskisr All branches of the family tree and managed by his Short Stop playing dad played in a Strong suf Folk county league and travelled All Over the Island for non league games Page 10 ". Now i could compete with any kids of High school age. I really had an amazing season especially at the plate. I ended up with a .650 baking average and at one Point had a Streak of 15 straight  Long has been very competitive heals was a big lad for his age and in High school baseball the biggest kid i usually the Pitcher. And what a Pitcher Yastzemski was he pitched Bridgeport High school to the Long Island Schoolboy title fanning19 batters while giving up one hit in a 000. Carl s dad merely shrugged his shoulders and said it s not  family had never seen that kind of Money but it was being nonchalantly refused. The offers climbed but dad never relented. He weakened when the Phillie approached $100,000 and went Over it when College expenses and a big league contract were thrown in. Or. Yastrzemski tentatively accepted that offer but he asked for a guarantee of an additional$10,000 should Carl for one reason or another not finish school. This time the Phillies walked. Johnny Murphy director of scouting for the red sox at that time and currently general manager of the new Yor Kmets finally got Yastrzemski s name on the line. It Cost Tom Yawkey $115,000,a two year triple a contract at $5,000 a year and the rest of Carl s education. Yaz was also a standout basketball we had just beaten to Minne Sota twins to pull into a tie vim them for the first place on the next to Tulasi Day of the 1967 season Milyou d think we had clinched the pen Nant. It was a wild mad night night of happiness and apprehension a night of Hope and fear night of crazy quilt colors of blues and reds and Whites and yellows and greens and Blacks and purples an mixed up. Tic one. Going into the last week of play the red sox twins Chicago White Box and Detroit tigers All had visions or world series Green. Fun the White sox faded first de Roit took it in the neck Midway through the wee and now it was the red sox and twins battling head to head in the Fina a games of the season. It went 11 o the final game and Yastrzemski deliver Lett a key Home run his 44th of the t  blow gave the kid with the Toi be twister name 44 for the Moabon him with Killebrew but it also As fitting Climax to a inuit a e bae Yaz was on everyone s Tongue me Ball hero of the year. A everyone but me dam d night. I m probably the Only it the world who can t daw.,  stars and stripes sunday june 30, 1968