Jimmy Williams (second baseman)
| Jimmy Williams | |||
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| Second baseman | |||
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Born: December 20, 1876 St. Louis, Missouri |
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Died: January 16, 1965 (aged 88) St. Petersburg, Florida |
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| MLB debut | |||
| April 15, 1899, for the Pittsburgh Pirates | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| October 3, 1909, for the St. Louis Browns | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .275 | ||
| Home runs | 49 | ||
| Runs batted in | 796 | ||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
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James Thomas Williams (December 20, 1876 – January 16, 1965) was a second baseman in Major League Baseball from 1899 to 1909. He played for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Baltimore Orioles, New York Highlanders, and St. Louis Browns. The power-hitting Williams set several records during his rookie season and led a major league in triples three times. He stood at 5' 9" and weighed 175 lbs.
Williams was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He first played semi-pro baseball in 1892 and started his professional baseball career in 1896. In 1897, he established himself as a premiere power hitter, slugging 31 home runs for the Western Association's St. Joseph Saints. He hit more homers than any two other players in the league combined, and he also paced the circuit in slugging percentage and total bases. In 1898, Williams' power dropped off when he moved up to the class A Western League. However, he did raise his batting average to .343 (third in the league) and still led the WL in slugging percentage at .494.
Williams was then purchased by the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was the team's starting third baseman in 1899 and made an immediate impact. In May and June of that year, he ran off a 26-game hitting streak. He continued to rip extra-base hits throughout the entire season and eventually ranked sixth in the National League in doubles (28), first in triples (27), and third in home runs (9). In August and September, Williams had another long hitting streak, this time reaching 27 games before being stopped. The streak set an MLB rookie record that was not broken until 1987; it is still a Pittsburgh Pirates team record. The 27 triples are also an MLB rookie record. Williams ended the season with a .354 batting average.
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