Dick Williams

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Dick Williams bigraphy, stories - American baseball manager

Dick Williams : biography

May 7, 1929 – July 7, 2011

Richard Hirschfeld "Dick" Williams (May 7, 1929 – July 7, 2011) was an American left fielder, third baseman, manager, coach and front office consultant in Major League Baseball. Known especially as a hard-driving, sharp-tongued manager from 1967 to 1969 and from 1971 to 1988, he led teams to three American League pennants, one National League pennant, and two World Series triumphs. He is one of seven managers to win pennants in both major leagues, and joined Bill McKechnie in becoming only the second manager to lead three franchises to the Series. He and Lou Piniella are the only managers in history to lead four teams to seasons of 90 or more wins. Williams was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2008 following his election by the Veterans Committee.

Personal life

His son, Rick Williams a former minor league pitcher and Major League pitching coach is currently a professional scout for the Yankees. Before Dick Williams became a Major League manager in 1967, he successfully appeared on the television quiz shows The Match Game and the original Hollywood Squares. According to Peter Marshall’s Backstage with the Original Hollywood Squares, Williams won $50,000 as a contestant on the latter show. Marshall’s son, Pete LaCock, played nine seasons (1972–1980) in the Major Leagues – but never for Williams.

Arrest

In January 2000, Williams pleaded no contest to indecent exposure charges in Florida. This occurred just weeks before the Baseball Hall of Fame Veterans Committee’s vote in that year’s inductees.

"What happened to me down in Fort Myers when I was arrested evidently hurt me quite a bit," Williams told the New York Times in a telephone interview. "What came out on that in the papers was not true. I was not masturbating on the balcony. I’m going to issue a statement about it so the explanation goes across the country."

Biography

Playing career

After growing up in St. Louis, Missouri, and Pasadena, California, Williams signed his first professional contract with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, and played his first major league game with Brooklyn in 1951. Initially an outfielder, he separated a shoulder making a diving catch early in his career, weakening his throwing arm. As a result, he learned to play several positions (he was frequently a first baseman and third baseman) and became a notorious "bench jockey" in order to keep his major league job. He appeared in 1,023 games over 13 seasons with the Dodgers, Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Athletics and Boston Red Sox. A right-handed batter and thrower, Williams had a career batting average of .260 with 70 home runs.

He was a favorite of Paul Richards, who acquired Williams four different times between 1956 and 1962 when Richards was a manager or general manager with Baltimore and the Houston Colt .45s. Williams’ stay in Houston during the 1962–63 offseason was brief, because he was soon traded to the Red Sox for another outfielder, Carroll Hardy.

His two-year playing career in Boston was uneventful, except for one occasion. On June 27, 1963, Williams was victimized by one of the greatest catches in Fenway Park history. His long drive to the opposite field was snagged by Cleveland right fielder Al Luplow, who made a leaping catch at the wall and tumbled into the bullpen with the ball in his grasp.]

, October 14, 1985]