Ted Williams Museum contains piece of Maine

There is a little piece of Maine in the rolling farmlands of Hernando, Fla., about 37.5 miles from nowhere.

Here, for reasons unknown, is the home of the Ted Williams Museum and Hitters Hall of Fame. Here are the bats, balls and awards to commemorate the greatest Red Sox player of all time, who wanted to be remembered, even as a teenager, as “the best hitter who ever lived.”

Who wants to argue? Williams was the last player to bat over .400 (.406), had 521 home runs, batted a lifetime .344 (behind only Ty Cobb, Rogers Hornsby and Joe Jackson) despite losing several years to military service in both World War II and Korea.

In a corner of the museum is an exhibit dedicated to the third love of Williams – after baseball and the Marines – fishing. Smack dab in the middle of that exhibit is a picture of the slugger with one of his favorite fishing partners, Bud Leavitt, the late and legendary sports editor of the Bangor Daily News.

“Bud was a big part of Ted’s life,” said David McCarthy, the museum’s new executive director. McCarthy also was a big part of Ted’s life, leading his security detail for 12 years after a career as a major on the New Hampshire State Police force. The director proudly shows a framed picture of Williams, which states that McCarthy was his “best friend.” The director said “That was a lie, but I saved it anyway.”

The addition of an audio-video wing of the museum was a result of the generosity of Maine native Harold Alfond, for whom the auditorium was named.

“I swear that half the people who come through here are from Maine, especially Bangor. I think it’s because it is so cold up there,” he said.

Fortunately, while the museum is far off the beaten track, it is close to Interstate 75, which leads frozen Maine tourists to the promised land, Fort Myers, and the spring training home of those lovable losers, the Boston Red Sox.

Once you have memorized the map and taken the correct turn off Route 41, you can’t miss the place. Just take the left into Citrus Springs after the Memorial Chapel and Crematory and the dour church sign which reminds us that “Eternity in Hell is a long time.”

Florida.

The controversy over the bizarre death and disposal of the famous slugger has not hurt the museum or tarnished his memory, McCarthy said.

“Anything, positive or negative which keeps his name before the public, creates more interest in the museum. We are all trying to move forward and leave that behind,” he said. The museum is looking into expanding into the Boston area, possibly near Fenway Park.

The museum inducts a few outstanding players into the hall of fame each year. This year it was past greats Rod Carew and Monte Irvin, along with current players Carlos Delgado and Albert Pujols.

In the Alfond-Tamposi auditorium, a tape of the original induction of the top 20 hitters includes a shaky appearance by Mickey Mantle just before his death. Out of respect, Williams did not include himself among these legends. But emcee Bob Costas in a closing comment said Williams would have finished “no worse than second,” after Babe Ruth but before Lou Gehrig. At that dedication, former President George Bush, in a tribute to Williams’s military and baseball career, called him “one of the greatest heroes who ever lived.”

When the skinny kid from California arrived in Fenway Park, they called him “The Splinter” a nickname that stuck through his career. He said from that first day that his aim was to be called “the greatest hitter who ever lived” when he walked by.

At a museum on a side road in Hernando, Fla., despite the macabre details of his passing, Ted Williams’ fans still call him that every day.

With the possible exception of Bob Costas, who is sticking with Babe Ruth.

A Yankee fan, no doubt.

Send complaints and compliments to Emmet Meara at emmetmeara@msn.com.