December 19 – Happy Birthday Walt “No Neck” Williams
Walt Williams got his nickname from Paul Richards, the one-time GM of the old Houston Colt 45s. Richards and Houston coach, Eddie Robinson were meeting with all of Houston’s prospects during spring training and when Willams walked into his appointment, Richards supposedly said, “Look Eddie, this guy’s got no neck.” Despite the lack of an important anatomical appendage, Williams did OK on a baseball field. Born in Brownwood, TX, in 1943, he was a steady big league performer for ten seasons. A .270 lifetime hitter, Walt ended his career as a Yankee reserve outfielder during the 1974 and ’75 seasons. His Yankee teammates enjoyed the affable, always optimistic Williams. When no other big league team wanted him, Walt went on to play in both Mexico and Japan.
“No Neck” shares his December 19th birthday with this former Yankee super scout, this recent Yankee closer and this former Yankee starting pitcher hopeful.
| Year | Tm | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | NYY | 43 | 56 | 53 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 10 | .113 | .127 | .113 | .240 |
| 1975 | NYY | 82 | 200 | 185 | 27 | 52 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 23 | .281 | .320 | .400 | .720 |
| 10 Yrs | 842 | 2555 | 2373 | 284 | 640 | 106 | 11 | 33 | 173 | 34 | 126 | 211 | .270 | .310 | .365 | .675 | |
| CHW (6 yrs) | 603 | 1918 | 1776 | 208 | 481 | 86 | 9 | 20 | 116 | 23 | 103 | 147 | .271 | .314 | .363 | .678 | |
| NYY (2 yrs) | 125 | 256 | 238 | 32 | 58 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 19 | 1 | 9 | 33 | .244 | .278 | .336 | .614 | |
| CLE (1 yr) | 104 | 371 | 350 | 43 | 101 | 15 | 1 | 8 | 38 | 9 | 14 | 29 | .289 | .316 | .406 | .722 | |
| HOU (1 yr) | 10 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 | |
Pinstripe Birthdays 