Ted Williams’ Presidential Medal of Freedom, which was presented to him by fellow World War II naval aviator George H.W. Bush, is among the items up for auction from the memorabilia collection of the ballplayer’s daughter.
The medal is expected to fetch $25,000-$50,000. Other lots include Williams’ 1946 AL Most Valuable Player Award and the silver baseball bat he earned for winning the AL batting title in 1958 (both estimated to go for $150,000-$300,000).
The items in the auction belonged to the Hall of Famer and had been held by his daughter, Claudia, who died in December. A first batch of items from the collection went up for auction in 2012 at Fenway Park and garnered more than $5 million.
Also included in the auction was the “hitter.net” hat that Williams wore for a pregame ceremony at the 1999 All-Star Game in Boston, when the current players were so eager to meet him that they had to be told to let him leave the field so the game could begin.
Fernando Valenzuela, the Dodgers pitching ace who helped the team win the 1981 World Series, died of septic shock last month, according to his death certificate.
TMZ Sports obtained the document on Tuesday. Valenzuela died on Oct. 22 at age 63, a few weeks after stepping away from his job on the Dodgers’ Spanish-language television broadcast and days before the Dodgers began their run to the team’s eighth World Series championship. No cause of death was provided at the time.
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s office listed septic shock as the immediate cause of death. It is a life-threatening condition that occurs when organs malfunction, leading to dangerously low blood pressure. Each year, at least 350,000 people in the U.S. die of the condition, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The medical examiner listed decompensated alcoholic cirrhosis and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis cirrhosis as underlying causes. Also listed as a significant condition contributing to Valenzuela’s death was “probable” Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, a rapidly progressive brain disorder.
The document also shows Valenzuela was cremated. A public Mass was held last week at Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles.
TENNIS
Carlos Alcaraz had his drop shot clicking and it helped him overcome physical issues to claim a 6-3, 7-6 (8) victory over Andrey Rublev at the ATP Finals on Wednesday in Turin, Italy.
The win put Alcaraz back into contention for a spot in the semifinals of the year-ending tournament for the top eight players, after he was beaten by Casper Ruud in straight sets in his opener.
Also, Alexander Zverev made it two wins in two matches by beating Ruud 7-6 (3), 6-3.
Zverev leads the group, Alcaraz and Ruud have one win each, and Rublev dropped to 0-2 after losing to Zverev in their opener.
Top-ranked Jannik Sinner leads the other group ahead of Taylor Fritz, Daniil Medvedev and Alex de Minaur.
The top two finishers in each round-robin group advance to the semifinals.
Alcaraz said after the Ruud match on Monday that he hadn’t been feeling well and was “uncomfortable in the stomach.” The Spaniard then cut short a practice session on Tuesday.
BOXING
Mike Tyson wasn’t in the mood for talking in the final news conference before the 58-year-old former heavyweight champion faces YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul.
Tyson had terse answers for all the questions Wednesday night, two nights before the fight against Paul, who is 31 years younger, at the home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.
The issue of Tyson’s health didn’t come up in a small concert venue about 20 miles from AT&T Stadium. A bout originally scheduled for July 20 was postponed to Friday night after Tyson had to be treated for a stomach ulcer when he fell ill on a flight.
Tyson said in a documentary promoting the fight that he lost 26 pounds while recovering, but Nakisa Bidarian, co-founder with Paul of Most Valuable Promotions, said Tyson had been cleared medically for weeks.
Bidarian also said Tyson was going through the same regular medical checkups of any sanctioned pro fight in Texas.
Several states wouldn’t sanction the bout. Texas agreed to a fight that was eight rounds instead of 10 or 12, with two-minute rounds instead of three, and heavier gloves designed to lessen the power of punches.
“I’ve said everything I had to say,” Tyson said. “I’m just looking forward to fighting.”
GOLF
Caitlin Clark brought her golf game and a big buzz to the LPGA Tour on Wednesday when the basketball star played in a pro-am that attracted a bigger crowd than the tour often gets for its tournament rounds.
Clark played nine holes with Nelly Korda, the No. 1 player in women’s golf who is competing for the first time in nearly two months after a minor neck injury. She played the back nine at Pelican Golf Club with Annika Sorenstam, host of a tournament called The Annika.
During a brief interview with Golf Channel, the WNBA rookie of the year was asked if she picked up any tips from Korda.
“I’ve watched and she’s amazing,” Clark said. “But golf is hard.”
The gallery packed behind the ropes to watch Clark, and she signed autographs for hundreds of fans when the pro-am was over.
“She’s definitely very talented,” Korda said. “She was picking the ball really clean. She was losing a couple shots to the right, but I asked her how many times a week she plays and I think with the amount of obligations she has she probably gets to the golf course once a week.”