Lou Merloni Mourns Passing Of Jimy Williams: ‘He Gave Me A Chance’

Former Boston Red Sox infielder Lou Merloni holds ex-manager Jimy Williams in high regard, and expressed that feeling following the passing of the longtime Major League Baseball skipper.

Williams died Friday at 80 years old. He posted a 910-790 record across 12 seasons at the helm for the Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros. He added two World Series rings — as a third-base coach for the Atlanta Braves (in 1995) and as a bench coach with the Philadelphia Phillies (in 2008) — and was named American League Manager of the Year in 1999 with Boston.

Merloni, who played for Williams for four seasons, shared a heartfelt message on Monday.

“I’ll always be thankful to this man,” Merloni published on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter. “A great teacher of the game and an even better man. He was my 1st Big League Manager and gave me a chance. That’s all we can ask for. RIP Jimy.”

Williams spent five seasons as manager of the Red Sox, helping lead the organization to two postseason appearances, including a trip to the AL Championship Series against the New York Yankees in 1999. Williams beat out several candidates for the gig in Boston before taking over in place of Kevin Kennedy.

In the end, Williams compiled a 414-352 record with the Red Sox before parting ways in August of 2001.

In 1998, Williams gave Merloni his first big league shot, which resulted in a three-run home run in the very first at-bat of the then-27-year-old’s career at Fenway Park.