Manager of the 1967 ‘Impossible Dream’ team passed away Thursday at the age of 82.
Dick Williams was one of the greatest managers in Red Sox history and his death has sent waves through the community. Williams helped turn around a Red Sox franchise that flailed through the better part of the 1960’s.
Williams signed a one-year contract to manage the 1967 Red Sox and came with the reputation of a no-nonsense manager who would get results through fundamentals and the discipline of baseball.
When Williams came aboard, things were so bad in Boston that Tom Yawkey started floating out the idea of moving the team. The Red Sox were in the midst of eight-straight losing seasons (unfathomable to this generation’s Red Sox fan) and were considered lackadaisical and careless.
Williams changed that perception very quickly when he stormed in and stripped the captaincy from Carl Yazstremski while simultaneously implementing structure and accountability into the organization. Many referred to the Red Sox locker room as a ‘country club’. That wasn’t happening on Williams’ watch.
In some ways, Williams saved baseball for the Red Sox because things today wouldn’t be as we know them without him. The 1967 ‘Impossible Dream’ team went all the way to Game 7 of the World Series against the Bob Gibson-led St. Louis Cardinals before losing a heart-breaker. That improbable run helped etch baseball back into the hearts of the region and set a new standard of expectations. Williams was the reason.
In 2008, the former Red Sox manager threw out a ceremonial first pitch at Fenway Park and requested that Terry Francona serve as his catcher for the event. Francona once played for the hard-nosed Williams and was happy to oblige.
In an interview with the Providence Journal, Francona re-told a story from when he was with the 1981 Montreal Expos. “It was one of my first at-bats in the major leagues and I didn’t get a bunt down. He got on me so bad it got to the point where I teared up,” Francona said. Yet Francona said he and other young players had respect for their tough manager.
“We all knew he was ahead of the game,” Francona said. “He’d tell you who was going to be pinch-hitting in two innings and why.”
Williams was elected the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee and won two World Series in his career. He was a legend in Boston history and will forever have an important thumb print on baseball in the Hub.
Rest in peace, Dick.