Man sells $5k worth of Williams memorabilia to pay car bill

A northwest suburban man sold his family's collection of Ted Williams memorabilia, valued at $5,000, in order to pay for a $200 car repair bill, police said. About Dec. 29, a resident of the 1100 block of Columbus Parkway told Buffalo Grove police that his 20-year-old son sold a family collection of Williams collectibles and used the money pay for car repairs, according to a police report.

The 20-year-old man was paid $200 for the memorabilia, which was valued at about $5,000, according to the report. As of Monday afternoon, no complaints had been filed signed and the incident was being treated as civil matter, the report said.

Williams, known as "The Splendid Splinter," played for the Boston Red Sox from 1939-60. He was a two-time American League MVP winner who led the league in batting six times and won the Triple Crown twice. The Baseball Hall of Fame member had a career batting average of .344, with 521 home runs. He is the last player in Major League Baseball to bat over .400 in a single season. Williams died in 2002 and on the official Ted Williams website, signed photos of cost $525-$1,500, while signed bats go for $1,950-$5,000.