| Jimmy Williams | |
|---|---|
.jpeg) | |
| Coach | |
| Born:(1926-05-25)May 25, 1926 Toronto,Ontario, Canada | |
| Died: June 6, 2016(2016-06-06) (aged 90) Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| Teams | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Member of the Canadian | |
 Baseball Hall of Fame | |
| Induction | 1991 |
James Bernard Williams (May 25, 1926 – June 6, 2016) was a Canadianprofessional baseballoutfielder,coach andmanager. He played, coached, and managed in theminor leagues, and was afirst base coach inMajor League Baseball (MLB), primarily with theBaltimore Orioles. AToronto native, Williams threw and batted right-handed, stood 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and weighed 180 pounds (82 kg). He is an inductee of theCanadian Baseball Hall of Fame.
Williams played in the farm system of theBrooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers during 1947–1964 and although he never was called to the major leagues as a player, Williams enjoyed several highly productive seasons. In his first year as a professional, split between three Dodgersfarm teams in the lower minors, Williamsbatted a composite .367 with 15triples, 121runs batted in, 24stolen bases and 12home runs. He played three seasons (1955–1957) of Triple-A baseball in his native Canada with theMontreal Royals of theInternational League, batting .329 in 1955 with 93runs scored, 33doubles, eight triples, 13 homers, and 21 stolen bases, and also exceeded the .300 mark with the 1958Spokane Indians of thePacific Coast League.
Williams began managing in the Dodgersfarm system in 1963, then went on to manage in minor league baseball through 1980, where he compiled a record of 1,155 wins and 1,156 defeats (.499). His seventeen years of managing in the minors was interrupted by a brief period of coaching with the Major-LeagueHouston Astros for a season in1975. His most significant achievement was his tenure coaching first base with theBaltimore Orioles (1981–1987), a run which included their historic1983 World Series win.
Williams then followed former Baltimoregeneral managerHank Peters to theCleveland Indians, where Williams served as director of field operations in the club's farm system. He retired in 1988.[1]
Williams graduated fromDe La Salle College School of Toronto, where he played varsitybaseball,hockey (as aright wing),football andlacrosse.
Williams met his first wife, Lorraine Elliott, while playing for thePueblo Dodgers in 1949, with whom he had three children, Chris, Kirk and Julie. When he was not playing winter baseball inCaracas,San Juan orHavana they made their home inPueblo, Colorado. He was very handy with tools, worked construction (building houses), and was frequently adding rooms or moving walls in their home. In 1988, he married Carole Garrett ofBaltimore, and continued his home-improvement work in the off season; their wedding date was inscribed on the front porch of their home inJoppa, Maryland.
In 1991, Williams was inducted to theCanadian Baseball Hall of Fame.[2] Williams died in 2016 at age 90 in Baltimore, survived by his wife Carole and their son Jamie.