While he might be a name that you associate with the good years of the 1990s Yankees, Gerald Williams never played on a Yankees’ championship team. (He was on the 1996 Yankees, but was traded away during the season, although he was awarded a ring.) He had some good seasons, but he was never an outstanding player, putting up 6.5 career rWAR with an 82 OPS+. However, between his friendship with several beloved Yankees and by all account him generally being a really good guy and teammate, he’s a name that resonates
with a lot of fans.
Were it not for his sad passing, Williams would be celebrating his 60th birthday today, so let’s give some love to “Ice.”
Gerald Floyd Williams
Born: August 10, 1966 (New Orleans, LA)
Died: February 8, 2022 (Sarasota, FL)
Yankees Tenure: 1992-96, 2001
Williams was born in Louisiana as one of 13 kids. After his time at East St. John High School in Reserve, Louisiana, he earned a spot on the baseball team at Grambling State University. Williams was a star at Grambling, hitting .409 in 1987. That got him on the pro radar, as he was then selected by the Yankees in the 14th round of the ensuing MLB Draft.
Slowly but surely, Williams worked his way through the minors, and was even considered a top 100 prospect by Baseball America before the 1993 season. Along the way, he also developed a close friendship with several future Yankee teammates. The most notable among them were Bernie Williams and Derek Jeter.
No relation to Bernie, but the two often roomed together in their minor league days. Most notably, he also became a dear friend and something of a mentor figure to Jeter. Their relationship began in spring training 1993, when Williams helped put a stop to some hazing of the young shortstop. Williams then took Jeter out to dinner, cementing their friendship. In his book, Jeter said “I felt like I had been the last kid on the playground waiting to be picked for a game, and finally someone had selected me.”
Williams eventually made the majors as a September call-up in 1992. He hit well enough in that cameo, but he spent the next couple years going up and down to the minors and being a bench player. He started to get more playing time in 1995, appearing in 100 games and posting a 105 OPS+.
As mentioned earlier, Williams would end up traded during the 1996 season was over, but he did produce a couple memorable moments before then. On May 1st, in a 15-inning win against the Orioles, Williams recorded six hits. That’s tied for the most in franchise history in one game, even with Myril Hoag on June 6, 1934 and Johnny Damon on June 7, 2008. Then on May 14th, he made a running, over the shoulder catch to rob Alex Rodriguez and preserve Dwight Gooden’s no-hitter.
However, the Yankees did include him in a trade with the Brewers that August, that sent a couple players to New York, most notable of which was Graeme Lloyd. Williams spent that year and the next in Milwaukee before being traded to the Braves ahead of the 1998 season. He produced arguably his best career year there in 1998 and helped Atlanta to the 1999 World Series, where they fell to his former Yankee teammates.
Williams became a free agent after ‘99 and signed with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. In 2000, he partly kicked off a brawl against the Red Sox, when he charged the mound after being hit with a Pedro Martínez pitch.
Williams struggled at the plate in 2001, leading to his release by Tampa Bay. He then returned to the Yankees, serving as a backup on the 2001 and ‘02 teams. He again left after that season, and was on the 2003 Marlins. While Williams again didn’t appear when the team won the World Series, he did win a second World Series ring with Florida. Williams spent two last seasons with the Mets before retiring.
Following his baseball career, Williams remained close friends with several Yankees’ teammates. He was notably among those invited to the 2014 game where the Yankees retired Jeter’s number as part of his retirement tour. Williams had settled in Florida, where he resided with his wife, Liliana. He lived there until 2022, when he passed away from cancer at the way too young age of 55. His death brought forward a lot of tributes, as Williams was clearly loved by those who played with him.
Remarking on his friend, Jeter said “If I had to make a model out of the type of person to have as a friend, a person you can lean on or joke with, it would be Gerald.”
