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Jimy Williams managed the Toronto Blue Jays from 1986 to 1989. Source: https://torontosun.com/sports/baseball/ (May be subject to copyright) |
They broke through in 1985, winning their first division title, and recording the most wins in a single season in franchise history, a club record that still stands.
However, just as the Blue Jays had taken that next step, and fell just one game short of a trip to the World Series, their manager bolted. Bobby Cox, the manager who turned around their fortunes, went back to Atlanta, the club he had come from before joining the Jays.
All eyes turned to Jimy Williams, who had been the third base coach for the Jays.
It should have been a seamless transition and, in many ways, it was.
But, after just 3.5 seasons, Williams was gone as fast as he came. By the end of the decade, the Blue Jays had just suffered more heartbreak along the way.
I heard today that Jimy Williams passed away a couple days ago, and it brought back all these memories, both good and bad, of the Blue Jays under his tenure.
He was 80 years old.
Third base coach
By the time I really got into watching the Toronto Blue Jays, Jimy Williams was a fixture at third base. He had joined the Blue jays in 1980, and had been with the Jays right through to the end of the 1985 season.
By the time I really got into watching the Toronto Blue Jays, Jimy Williams was a fixture at third base. He had joined the Blue jays in 1980, and had been with the Jays right through to the end of the 1985 season.
It had been a successful one, as the Blue Jays had won their first American League East Division after coming close the previous two seasons. Sadly, the season had ended in disappointment as the Jays lost the American League Championship Series in seven games, after taking a 3-1 series lead. What was even harder to stomach was Major League Baseball had expanded the series to seven games from five. Had it still been five, the Jays would have gone to the World Series.
But they didn’t.
Then they suffered more heartbreak. Bobby Cox, the manager who made the Jays a contender and took them to that American League Championship Series, left Toronto to manage the Atlanta Braves. That was the team he came from when he joined the Blue Jays in 1982.
The Jays then named Jimy Williams their new manager.
The 1986 season
It is never easy repeating as a champion, no matter what the sport, and the Blue Jays found that out in 1986. They had a good year, winning 86 games and losing 76 games, leaving them fourth in the tough American League East, 9.5 games behind first-place Boston, four games back of second-place New York, and one game behind third-place Detroit. It was disappointing as Toronto had gone 99-63 the previous season.
It is never easy repeating as a champion, no matter what the sport, and the Blue Jays found that out in 1986. They had a good year, winning 86 games and losing 76 games, leaving them fourth in the tough American League East, 9.5 games behind first-place Boston, four games back of second-place New York, and one game behind third-place Detroit. It was disappointing as Toronto had gone 99-63 the previous season.
Still, the Jays were 10 games over .500 and loaded with talent, so there was reason to be optimistic going into the next season.
Heartbreak
Of all the heartbreak the Blue Jays and their fans suffered from 1983 to 1990, none is more bitter than the 1987 season.
Of all the heartbreak the Blue Jays and their fans suffered from 1983 to 1990, none is more bitter than the 1987 season.
The Jays battled the Detroit Tigers for the division lead. With 10 games to go, they had the division lead and hosted the Tigers at Exhibition Stadium in a pivotal four-game series. The Jays took three of four from the Tigers, and it seemed they had the division locked up.
In that series, Toronto won the first three games, then lost the finale. The Milwaukee Brewers then came to Toronto for a three-game set and swept the Jays. The division tightened, but Toronto still had a one-game lead over Detroit with just three games remaining. The problem was the Jays had to go to Detroit to play their last three games of the season in Tigers Stadium.
Detroit won the first game. The teams were now tied atop the division. Detroit won the second game, and now had a one-game lead. Still, if Toronto won the final game of the season, the teams would be tied and forced to play a one-game playoff for the division.
That would never happen.
Detroit pitcher Frank Tanana outdueled Toronto’s Jimmy Key in a classic. The Tigers won by a score of 1-0 as Tanana went the distance for the victory.
The Jays were done for another year, even with a 96-66 record.
Beantown again
The Jays had another good season in 1988, but did not reach the heights of 1987. In a tight, five-way race they finished fourth with a record of 87-75, two games back of first-place Boston; one game back of second-place Detroit; and tied with third-place Milwaukee, but finishing fourth on a tie-breaker.
The Jays had another good season in 1988, but did not reach the heights of 1987. In a tight, five-way race they finished fourth with a record of 87-75, two games back of first-place Boston; one game back of second-place Detroit; and tied with third-place Milwaukee, but finishing fourth on a tie-breaker.
It was another season of close but no cigar for Jimy Williams.
Fans and the organization were getting restless. The Jays had come close so many times, yet had nothing to show for it.
All eyes were on Jimy Williams who had been at the healm for those disappointments, especially in the previous two seasons.
It seemed to everyone, the Jays would have to perform in 1989.
End of the line
The Jays would battle the Baltimore Orioles for the AL East Division, but it wasn’t much of a battle to start the season.
The Jays would battle the Baltimore Orioles for the AL East Division, but it wasn’t much of a battle to start the season.
Toronto lost more than they won, and it was getting serious. When the team fell to 12-24, management had enough of Williams. He was fired, and his tenure with the Toronto Blue Jays was over. His final record with the Jays was 281 wins and 241 losses.
The time after
The Jays named batting instructor Cito Gaston manager of the Blue Jays and he got the job done, taking the team to a 77-49 record the rest of the way to win the division, before falling in five games to the Oakland A’s in the American League Championship Series. Gaston would go on to lead the Jays to division titles in 1991, 1992 and 1993, winning the World Series in 1992 and 1993.
The Jays named batting instructor Cito Gaston manager of the Blue Jays and he got the job done, taking the team to a 77-49 record the rest of the way to win the division, before falling in five games to the Oakland A’s in the American League Championship Series. Gaston would go on to lead the Jays to division titles in 1991, 1992 and 1993, winning the World Series in 1992 and 1993.
Williams joined Cox and the Braves in 1991, and would win a World Series with them in 1995. He also managed the Boston Red Sox and Hoston Astros, winning manager of the year in 1999 with Boston. He finished his career as bench coach of the Philadelphia Phillies after the 2008 season.
Parting thoughts
Jimy Williams took a lot of heat as manager of the Jays. I know I was critical of him. He just didn’t always seem to have a handle on the game.
Jimy Williams took a lot of heat as manager of the Jays. I know I was critical of him. He just didn’t always seem to have a handle on the game.
Yet, to be fair, there were a lot of factors beyond his control, most notably injuries. In that 1987 collapse, the Jays lost catcher Ernie Whitt and shortstop Tony Fernandez to injuries during that stretch.
More than anything, given his success after leaving Toronto, maybe the Blue Jays were just not the right fit for Jimy Williams, and vice versa.
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