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FSL Fort Myers Mighty Mussels

Rick Williams to be Inducted into Killebrew Root Beer Southwest Florida Professional Baseball Scouts Hall of Fame

June 23, 2023 - Florida State League (FSL)
Fort Myers Mighty Mussels News Release


FORT MYERS, Fla. - Killebrew Root Beer and the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels are excited to announce the selection of Rick Williams as the 2023 inductee into the Killebrew Root Beer Southwest Florida Professional Scouts Hall of Fame.

Williams will be honored at Hammond Stadium prior to the Mighty Mussels' September 8 game against the Bradenton Marauders. Williams will become the 18th member of 'The Wall' outside of Gate 2 at Hammond Stadium.

Williams was nominated by several members of the existing group of Hall of Fame members and became an easy choice for the Hall of Fame committee.

"Willie is the perfect example of how a scout should work," Hall of Fame member Mike Russell said. "He represents himself and his club in a professional manner in every manner. He respects the game and his hard work shows up by the positive results that he has had during his long career."

With over 40 years of coaching, scouting and front office experience, Williams has impacted six different Major League organizations and won two World Series rings since he transitioned from pitching to coaching in 1981.

Williams quickly learned from many fellow scouts - including Russell and fellow Hall of Fame members Murray Cook and Dan Jennings.

"Their wording, their reports all helped," Williams said. "Those guys have a status for me that is way up there. Basically, I was just trying to mimic how they did things. They were leaders. They didn't know the influence they would have."

Williams served as a pitching coach for the Expos, Marlins and Devil Rays before transitioning to his long-term role as a professional scout and front office executive. He advised some of the best and most accomplished executives in baseball history - including Dave Dombrowski (Marlins), Chuck LaMar (Devil Rays), Omar Minaya (Expos), Andrew Friedman (Rays), Brian Cashman (Yankees), Alex Anthopoulos (Braves) and currently Perry Minasian (Angels). He played an integral role in the capturing two World Series Championships with the 1997 Marlins and 2009 Yankees.

He has lived in the Tampa Bay area full-time since beginning his tenure with the Devil Rays in 1998. Previously, he worked in Melbourne and stayed at various locations in Florida during his father's spring trainings as a youth.

Williams grew up in the clubhouses of his father's (Dick Williams) teams. As a teenager, he learned from the pitching coaches and players of the 1972 and 1973 World Champion Oakland Athletics as well as members of the '70s Red Sox and Expos. Williams credits Grover Resinger and Harvey Dorfman as Major League coaches who shaped his baseball acumen.

With knowledge well beyond his years, Williams pitched for the University of South Alabama before earning a professional contract with the Montreal Expos. He pitched four seasons in the Expos organization, reaching the Triple-A level.

In 1981, he transitioned into coaching and re-ascended through each level of the Expos system, meeting his wife Susanne during his first stop in Calgary. After stints in West Palm Beach, Jacksonville and Indianapolis, Williams became the Expos' pitching coordinator in 1987 and helped develop Randy Johnson, Mel Rojas and many other Major League pitchers. He held that role for four years before Dave Dombrowski sought to hire him with the expansion Florida Marlins.

Major League Baseball stepped in to limit Dombrowski's hiring of his former Expos colleagues and forced Williams to finish his contract with Montreal. It was that season that Rick realized his love for scouting. The Expos transitioned Williams away from their prospects and instead used him as a professional scout.

"I enjoyed it. I loved it. It was unique," Williams said. "I didn't like the idea of it at first, but I learned from other guys. I watched their actions. The travel was unique and hard. But it was good exposure to Major League players and writing up Major League players."

After helping Dombrowski build the Marlins' first roster, Williams served as Larry Rothschild's assistant pitching coach in the Major Leagues. In 1997, he went to Triple-A Charlotte and made a major impact on the club's pitching depth. His work with Livan Hernandez played a vital role in the Marlins' 1997 World Series, with Hernandez capturing the MVP of both of NLCS and World Series.

In 1998, Rothschild brought Williams to Tampa Bay to serve as pitching coach for the expansion Tampa Bay Devil Rays. After being relieved of his duties in 2000, Williams settled into a tenure of over two decades as a professional scout and front office executive. After another stint with Montreal, Williams worked under both Chuck LaMar and Andrew Friedman in Tampa Bay. In 2008, he joined the New York Yankees as a professional scout.

Williams was assigned to significant advance-scouting assignments in 2009, helping New York capture their most recent World Series title. He remained with the Yankees until 2014 when he was hired by John Hart in Atlanta. Williams remained in the organization until after the 2020 season, helping Alex Anthopoulos rebuild the Braves into a perennial power.

Rick currently works alongside Perry Minasian in the Los Angeles Angels' front office, where he has once again has helped lead a struggling franchise to success this season.

Despite working for the Angels, Williams still makes Southwest Florida his home and the place where he raised his children - Rick and Marissa.

"I love the water, I love to fish, paddle boarding, kayaking," Williams said. "The convenience of having baseball in some form all around was very comfortable. There's a lot of talent on the amateur side. Travel inside the state is easier. There's always a game to go to."

He looks forward to attending his induction ceremony on September 8.

Killebrew Root Beer Southwest Florida Professional Baseball Scouts Hall of Fame

(In Order of Induction)

Tom Kotchman, Rudy Santin, John Barr, Allen G. Goldis, Terry Ryan, Dave Yoakum, Jack Gillis, Dan Jennings, Mike Russell, Jorge Posada Sr., Luke Wrenn, Tim Wilken, Larry Corrigan, Marty Scott, Murray Cook, Mike Radcliff, Joe McDonald

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