Williams was born in Enfield, New Hampshire, on September 14, 1936.[1][2] He was the youngest of four children of Irving, a construction worker, and Evelyn. The Williams family moved to Denver when he was three years old. He attended East High School, where he played baseball and football.[1] He was signed as an amateur free agent by the Brooklyn Dodgers before the 1954 season.[2]
Williams had a significant impact in two Dodgers playoff series. After finishing in a tie for first place with the Milwaukee Braves in 1959, the teams met in a best-of-three playoff. After winning the first game, the Dodgers rallied with three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to tie game 2 at 5–5. Williams came on in the 10th inning and tossed three scoreless innings without allowing a hit; he was the winning pitcher as the Dodgers scored in the bottom of the 12th to win the pennant.[1][5]
In the 1962 best-of-three playoff against the San Francisco Giants, Williams was not as successful. In game 2, he blew the save as the Giants tied the game with two runs in the eighth inning, but earned the win when the Dodgers scored in the bottom of the ninth to win 8–7.[6] In the decisive third game, the Dodgers were leading in the top of the ninth 4–2. Williams entered the game with the score 4–3, bases loaded, and one out. Williams gave up a sacrifice fly to Orlando Cepeda that tied the game, then threw a wild pitch and issued an intentional walk that re-loaded the bases. He then walked Jim Davenport to force in what turned out to be the series winning run before he gave way to Ron Perranoski.[1][7]
Although his control often kept him from being a top pitcher, Williams' presence on the mound was huge, and many batters around the league feared the six-foot, five-inch right-hander, who had a blistering fastball and was not afraid to pitch inside.[1] In 1961, Williams finished second in the National League in strikeouts with 205, behind teammate Sandy Koufax (269). Yet another Dodger pitcher, Don Drysdale, finished third that year (182).[9]
Williams was a key member of the Indians' pitching staff from 1967 to 1969. He had a 13–11 record in 1968, and led the Indians' staff in appearances in 1969. In 1970, he went 10–1 on the season in relief, with a 1.99 ERA, for the Twins. Williams played his final major league game on August 1, 1972, just over a month before his 36th birthday. He finished his final season with a 6.23 ERA and three strikeouts in just three games for the Boston Red Sox.[2]
Williams appeared in two World Series as a player. In 1959, facing the Chicago White Sox, he threw two hitless innings in relief of Koufax in Game 5.[10] Chicago won that game, 1–0, but the Dodgers took the next game to win the world championship.[11] Williams later played as a Yankee against the Dodgers in the 1963 series. In Game 1, he came in for Whitey Ford, with Los Angeles leading 5–0. Williams allowed only one hit over three innings, but the Dodgers prevailed 5–2 behind Koufax' 15 strikeouts.[12] They eventually swept the Yankees in four straight games.[13]
Pitching coach
After retiring from playing, Williams served as a pitching coach for 14 MLB seasons, with the Red Sox, Yankees, White Sox, Seattle Mariners and Cincinnati Reds. More recently he was an advance scout for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays until he was let go at the end of the 2006 season. He was an advance scout for the Washington Nationals in 2010, before retiring from baseball altogether.[1]
Tommy John observed that Williams did not relate well to sinkerball pitchers, like John, because Williams's style of pitching had been to throw hard. However, John respected Williams for his work ethic and noted that he was a great pitching coach for pitchers like Ron Guidry.[14]
Later life
Williams was inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in April 2013. He resided in Lakewood, California, before relocating to Nevada in December 2020. He died on February 20, 2021, at his home in Laughlin, Nevada. He was 84, and suffered from cardio-pulmonary illness prior to his death.[15]
