Jimy Williams

James Francis Williams was born on October 4, 1943, in Santa Maria, California. He was one of seven children; his father was a cattle rancher and his mother was a teacher. Williams' father died when he was a teenager. Williams, a former infielder who threw and batted right-handed, graduated from Arroyo Grande High School in Arroyo Grande, California, and California State University, Fresno, where he played college baseball for the Fresno State Bulldogs. He first spelled his name "Jimy" as a prank in high school. At Fresno, Williams earned a bachelor's degree in agribusiness in 1964. After the 1968 season, the Montreal Expos selected Williams in the 1968 expansion draft; then he played the 1969 AAA season for the Vancouver Mounties. ==Coaching and managerial career==

Early career, Toronto Blue Jays, and Atlanta Braves Williams's playing career ended due to a shoulder injury. He was the Blue Jays' manager until the 1989 season, when he was fired May 14 and replaced by Cito Gaston after the team got off to a 12–24 start. Under Gaston, the Blue Jays went 77–49 for the rest of the season and won the American League East title. Williams finished with a record of 281 wins and 241 losses. Williams rejoined Cox as their third base coach for the Braves in 1991. He was their third base coach through the 1996 season, including the Braves 1995 World Series championship season. While with the Braves, Williams developed a reputation as an outstanding teaching coach, especially adept at working with infielders. Boston Red Sox On November 19, 1996, the Boston Red Sox hired Williams as their new manager; the team had fired Kevin Kennedy immediately after the season ended, and Williams was hired by general manager Dan Duquette after a lengthy search that saw many names considered (such as Grady Little and Whitey Herzog). The 1997 team was hindered by injuries and went 78–84. The following year, they went 92–70, which was good enough for second best in the American League and a wild-card spot. They lost to the Cleveland Indians in the Division Series. In 1999, the Red Sox went 94–68 and clinched a wild card spot again. On August 14, Williams, having seen ace Pedro Martinez arrive late for his scheduled start, elected to not let him pitch in the game despite the objections of Martinez. Nine innings later, Martinez had received the win after being called to pitch in the 6th inning and threw four innings in relief. The Sox reached the American League Championship Series after beating the Indians in an ALDS rematch, but lost to their arch-rivals, the New York Yankees in five games. Williams won the 1999 Major League Baseball Manager of the Year Award for the American League. Williams' relationship with general manager Dan Duquette soured, with players such as Carl Everett also having disagreements with Williams, who liked to constantly change the batting lineup for games. Williams developed a feud with Everett, which saw Duquette back Everett publicly in the late stages of the 2000 season, which saw them go 85–77 and miss the playoffs handily. The ensuing disagreement soured the already tense dynamic between Williams and Duquette, to the point where team CEO John Harrington had to call a meeting between Williams and Duquette to try and smooth things over. When the Red Sox—depleted by injuries—slumped in August 2001, Duquette fired Williams. The club then lost 27 of 43 games under Duquette's appointee, Joe Kerrigan. Williams finished his tenure as Red Sox manager with a record of 414 wins and 352 losses. The other reported candidates were Jim Fregosi and Tony Pena. The Astros went 84–78 in 2002 and were not a particularly serious threat that season. At one point in his tenure, he apparently came up with a suggestion to name the foul poles at Minute Maid Park "fowl poles" and do branding with chicken restaurants. Williams was replaced by Phil Garner, who Hunsicker had contacted about taking the job earlier. Garner would lead the Astros to the 2004 National League Championship Series, but they fell one game short of going to Houston's first ever World Series (the following year, Garner led the Astros to the World Series). Williams finished with a record of 215 wins and 197 losses. On October 16, 2006, Williams was named the Philadelphia Phillies bench coach and continued with that role through the Phillies 2008 World Series championship season. Managerial record ==Personal life and death==

Williams and his wife, Peggy, had four children. Two of his sons are former professional baseball players who have managed teams in the minor leagues. Brady was chosen by the Red Sox in the 45th round of the 1999 Major League Baseball draft and had a seven-year playing career as an infielder in minor league and independent league baseball. He managed in the Tampa Bay Rays' system from 2009 to 2022, and in was named third-base coach of the MLB Rays. Shawn Williams also had a seven-year playing career (2006–2012), including four years in the Tampa Bay organization; primarily an infielder, he played every position but center fielder. He has been a manager in the Phillies' farm system since 2014. Williams was a distant relative of Red Sox great Ted Williams. Williams lived in Palm Harbor, Florida. He died after a short illness at age 80, on January 26, 2024, at AdventHealth North Pinellas in Tarpon Springs, Florida. == See also ==