| Kenny Williams | |
|---|---|
 Williams in 2016 | |
| Outfielder | |
| Born:April 6, 1964 Berkeley, California, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 2, 1986, for the Chicago White Sox | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| October 4, 1991, for the Montreal Expos | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .218 |
| Home runs | 27 |
| Runs batted in | 119 |
| Teams | |
As player
As general manager | |
Kenneth Royal Williams (born April 6,1964) is a former outfielder in Major League Baseball and a former Executive Vice President of the Chicago White Sox.
Selected by the White Sox in the third round of the 1982 amateur draft,Williams made his debut in 1986 and spent three years in Chicago,primarily as a center fielder,before being traded to the Detroit Tigers in 1989. The Tigers waived him during the 1990 season,and he was claimed by the Toronto Blue Jays. Williams remained a bit player with the Blue Jays,usually coming on as a pinch-runner due to his speed. He was the starting center fielder when Dave Stieb threw his only no-hitter,the first no-hitter in Toronto history. He is best remembered as a player for a bizarre incident during the 1990 season,where a series of wild throwing errors resulted in him (on base as a pinch-runner) rounding third base and mauling over third base coach John McLaren,knocking him out in the process (Williams himself was winded,but eventually ended up scoring the run). This humorous clip would be played over and over in blooper reels for years to come. The Blue Jays then put him on waivers during the 1991 season,with Canada's other major league team,the Montreal Expos,picking him up. Williams decided to retire from baseball after being released by Montreal following the 1991 season.
In November 1992,Williams rejoined the White Sox organization as a scout. Named special assistant to Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf in 1994,he spent some time as a studio analyst for Sox games on SportsChannel Chicago before becoming the team's director of minor league operations in 1995. In 1997,he was named vice-president of player development,a position in which he remained until 2000.
In October 2000,Williams replaced Ron Schueler as the general manager of the White Sox. [1] Williams inherited [2] Jerry Manuel as his first manager,who had just led them to 95 wins and a division title prior to Williams being promoted to GM. At the conclusion of the 2003 season Manuel was fired [3] despite a winning record of 86–76. Williams then hired popular former Chicago shortstop Ozzie Guillén [4] as the team's manager in 2003. Since becoming the White Sox GM,Williams has become known for his aggressive moves to bolster the Sox lineup. This reputation was strengthened following the 2004 season,when Williams completely made over the White Sox team by switching its on-field focus from home runs to pitching,defense,and speed. Accordingly,he acquired players which excelled in those areas,through free agent signings (Orlando Hernández,Dustin Hermanson,Jermaine Dye,A. J. Pierzynski,Tadahito Iguchi),trades (Scott Podsednik,JoséContreras,Freddy García) and the farm system (Joe Crede,Aaron Rowand). Both Crede and Rowand were drafted by Schueler. Williams's off-season maneuvers were reflected in an extremely successful 2005 campaign for the South Siders,one in which they held the best record in all of baseball for most of the year,and finished with the best record in the AL to clinch their first AL Central Division title since 2000,their first American League pennant since 1959,and their first World Series since 1917.
In the off-season prior to the 2006 season,Williams set out to improve his world championship team further by acquiring pitcher Javier Vázquez from the Arizona Diamondbacks and slugger Jim Thome from the Philadelphia Phillies. In addition,Williams was cognizant of the large role that the bench played under Ozzie Guillén and solidified it by trading for Rob Mackowiak and Alex Cintrón. Because of these maneuvers,the White Sox were once again favored [5] [6] to win the 2006 American League Central. At the All-Star break,the White Sox were tied with the Detroit Tigers for first place and held a 6-game lead over the New York Yankees for the wild card. The lead evaporated in the second half of the season and despite winning 90 games,they fell short and finished in third place in their Division behind the Detroit Tigers and Minnesota Twins,thereby not making the playoffs.
In the offseason before the 2007 season,Williams traded away Freddy García to the Phillies and acquired prospects,Gavin Floyd and Gio González,in return. [7] He also signed veteran free agent Darin Erstad to a one-year,$1 million contract. [8] Williams has also stated that the team needs to get younger and improve its scouting. In early January 2008,he traded Gio González,Fautino de los Santos,and Ryan Sweeney for Nick Swisher.
With pitcher Jake Peavy being acquired at the trade deadline for the 2009 season,Williams was referred to by Gordon Edes of Yahoo Sports as a "stealth bomber" for his under the radar moves. [9] On August 10,2009,Williams made another under-the-radar move,[ citation needed ] by claiming OF Alex Ríos off the waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays. On September 29,2011,Ozzie Guillén was traded to the Miami Marlins,along with minor league pitcher Ricardo Andres. The Marlins assumed the last year on Guillen's contract,in exchange for minor league pitchers Jhan Mariñez and Osvaldo Martinez. On October 6,2011,Kenny Williams hired Robin Ventura as the new manager of the Chicago White Sox.
On October 26,2012,Williams was promoted to executive vice president of the Chicago White Sox while assistant GM Rick Hahn was promoted to general manager. [10]
On December 6,2016,Williams oversaw the trade in which he sent Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox for Michael Kopech,Yoan Moncada and Luis Alexander Basabe.[ citation needed ]
The White Sox fired Hahn and Williams on August 22,2023. [11] [12]
Kenny resides in Naperville,Illinois. He has 5 children:
Kenny also has one granddaughter. He remarried [19] television journalist Zoraida Sambolin in July 2014.[ citation needed ] Williams has two new stepchildren,Sambolin's son Nicolas and daughter Sofia.
Oswaldo JoséGuillén Barrios is a Venezuelan-American former professional baseball player who is the current manager of Tiburones de La Guaira of the Venezuelan League. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop for 16 seasons,primarily with the Chicago White Sox,from 1985 to 2000. During that time,he won the American League Rookie of the Year Award and also a Gold Glove. He was considered one of the best defensive shortstops of his era. Guillen later managed the Chicago White Sox from 2004 to 2011,winning the World Series in 2005 and then moving to the Miami Marlins in 2012.
Jerry Lorenzo Manuel Sr.,nicknamed "the Sage",is an American former professional baseball second baseman and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers,Montreal Expos,and San Diego Padres,managed for the Chicago White Sox and New York Mets,and coached for the Expos,Florida Marlins,and Mets. He currently works as an analyst for MLB Network. He is the father of fashion designer Jerry Lorenzo,founder of the streetwear label Fear of God.
JoséManuel Cora Amaro is a Puerto Rican former Major League Baseball player with an 11-year career in MLB spanning the years 1987 and 1989–1998 and current third base coach for the Detroit Tigers. He played for the San Diego Padres of the National League and the Chicago White Sox,Seattle Mariners and Cleveland Indians of the American League. He primarily played as a second baseman.
The 2005 American League Championship Series (ALCS),the second round of the 2005 American League playoffs,which determined the 2005 American League champion,matched the Central Division champion Chicago White Sox against the West Division champion Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The White Sox,by virtue of having the best record in the AL during the 2005 season,had the home-field advantage. The White Sox won the series four games to one to become the American League champions,and faced the Houston Astros in the 2005 World Series,in which the White Sox swept the Astros in four games to win their first World Series championship in 88 years;as a result of the 2005 All-Star Game played in Detroit,Michigan at Comerica Park on July 12,the White Sox had home-field advantage in the World Series. The series was notable both for a controversial call in Game 2 of the series,and the outstanding pitching and durability of Chicago's starting rotation,pitching four consecutive complete games;the +2⁄3 of an inning Neal Cotts pitched in the first game was the only work the White Sox bullpen saw the entire series.
Michael Robert Sirotka is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball from 1995 to 2000. He is an alumnus of Louisiana State University.
Donald James Cooper is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher who spent parts of four seasons with the Minnesota Twins (1981–1982),Toronto Blue Jays (1983) and New York Yankees (1985). He was the pitching coach for the Chicago White Sox from July 22,2002,until the end of the 2020 season. Under his tutelage,both Mark Buehrle and Philip Humber pitched perfect games,Lucas Giolito pitched a no-hitter,and the White Sox won the 2005 World Series. On October 12,2020,Cooper and the White Sox parted ways after 32 seasons with the organization at various levels.
Brian Nikola Anderson is an American former professional baseball player. He played all or part of five seasons in Major League Baseball with the Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox as an outfielder,a position he played professionally until before the 2010 season. He also played for the Kansas City Royals and New York Yankees organizations as a pitcher. He is currently an assistant coach at Northwestern.
Sean Patrick Tracey is a former American professional baseball right-handed pitcher. He appeared in seven games with the Chicago White Sox in 2006,all as a relief pitcher.
The White Flag Trade was a trade made between two Major League Baseball teams in 1997. On July 31,1997,the Chicago White Sox traded three veteran pitchers to the San Francisco Giants for six minor league players. At the time,the trade was maligned by the vast majority of White Sox fans,who saw it as a sign that owner Jerry Reinsdorf was giving up on the team,even while they were only 3+1⁄2 games behind the Cleveland Indians for the American League Central Division lead.
Scott Brian Fletcher is an American former professional baseball player who played shortstop and second base in Major League Baseball from 1981 to 1995. Fletcher is related to Michael Barrett,who also played for the Chicago Cubs. Fletcher graduated from Wadsworth High School in Wadsworth,Ohio,in 1976.
Lawrence Austin Himes is an American former general manager (GM) for two Major League Baseball (MLB) teams:the Chicago White Sox (1986–1990);and the Chicago Cubs (1991–1994). Himes is likely best known for trading for Sammy Sosa during each tenure as GM. Prior to becoming a general manager,he was the California Angels scouting director (1981–1986). During his nine-year playing career (1961–1969),Himes was a catcher in eight minor league baseball farm systems,batting .251 in 725 games played.
Christopher Ryan Getz is an American professional baseball executive and former player. A second baseman,Getz played in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox,Kansas City Royals and Toronto Blue Jays from 2008 to 2014. Getz currently serves as the vice president and general manager for the White Sox.
JoséLuis Paniagua Sánchez is a Dominican former professional baseball relief pitcher. He appeared in Major League Baseball from 1996 through 2003 with the Montreal Expos,Seattle Mariners,Detroit Tigers,and Chicago White Sox from 1996 to 2003.
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team based on the South Side of Chicago. They are one of eight charter members of the American League,having played in Chicago since the inaugural 1901 season. They have won six American League pennants and three World Series titles,most recently in 2005.
The 2004 Chicago White Sox season was the White Sox's 105th season,and their 104th season in Major League Baseball. They finished with a record of 83–79,good enough for second place in the American League Central,9 games behind the champion Minnesota Twins.
Ronald Richard Schueler is an American former professional baseball pitcher,pitching coach,executive and scout. Over the course of his eight-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB),Schueler played for the Atlanta Braves,Philadelphia Phillies,Minnesota Twins and Chicago White Sox.
Rick Hahn is an American former baseball executive who most recently served as the Senior Vice President/General Manager of the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball.
Jhan Carlos Mariñez Fuente is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Conspiradores de Querétaro of the Mexican League. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida Marlins,Chicago White Sox,Tampa Bay Rays,Milwaukee Brewers,Pittsburgh Pirates,Texas Rangers,and Baltimore Orioles.
The 2023 Chicago White Sox season was the club's 124th season in Chicago,their 123rd in the American League and their 33rd at Guaranteed Rate Field. It is also the team's first season under the management of Pedro Grifol.
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