Longtime MLB manager Jimy Williams died Friday at age 80, the Boston Red Sox announced.
Williams passed away at AdventHealth North Pinellas Hospital in Tarpon Springs, Florida, due to a brief illness. Williams resided in Palm Harbor.
After a brief stint as a major league player (a shoulder injury cut him short), Williams quickly became a coach and eventually prepared to manage the Toronto Blue Jays.
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A portrait of Manager Jimy Williams #22 during the Houston Astros media day at the Osceola County Stardium in Kissimmee, Florida (M. David Leeds/Getty Images)
It was the first of his stops during his managerial career, which began in the minors in Class A Quad Cities of the Midwest League for the California Angels.
Williams replaced Bobby Cox in Toronto in 1982, but after Cito Gaston replaced him in 1998, he joined Cox with the Atlanta Braves to serve as their third base coach. Williams did that from 1991 to 1996, where his most famous moment came in Game 7 of the 1992 National League Championship Series against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Williams sent Sid Bream home after Francisco Cabrera singled and beat Barry Bonds' throw from left field to win the game in the bottom of the ninth.
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Williams would return to the manager's position in 1997, replacing Kevin Kennedy in the Red Sox position. He would win only 78 games in his first season, but it was the start of something good in Boston.
The Red Sox went 92-70 in Williams' second season with the club, and after going 94-68 in 1999, he won the American League Manager of the Year award.
“I probably look at life a lot differently than when I was with Toronto, maybe not as excited, from the standpoint of having to say something all the time,” Williams said after winning the Manager of the Year award.
Boston Red Sox manager Jimmy Williams walks into the locker room with champagne after his team's 12-8 victory over the Cleveland Indians in game five of the American League Division Series on Oct. 11, 1999 in Cleveland, OH. The Red Sox will advance to the American League Championship Series against the New York Yankees. (JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP via Getty Images)
Williams would spend two more seasons with the Sox before being hired by the Houston Astros after being released in August 2001.
The Astros kept him for two and a half seasons before waiving him with a 44-44 record in 2004.
While Williams didn't win a World Series ring as a manager, he was able to capture one after that coaching stint came to an end. After serving as a traveling instructor with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2005 and 2006, Williams joined Charlie Manuel's staff with the Philadelphia Phillies as a bench coach.
He would win the World Series in 2008 in his second season with the club, although he could have had two if not for the New York Yankees winning it over the Phillies in 2009.
Jimy Williams of the Philadelphia Phillies poses during photo day on February 24, 2007 at Brighthouse Networks Field in Clearwater, Florida. (Al Bello/Getty Images)
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He spent four seasons north of the border, compiling a 281-241 record in 523 games.
