Billy Williams was born on Wednesday, June 15, 1938, in Whistler, Alabama. Williams was 21 years old when he broke into the big leagues on August 6, 1959, with the Chicago Cubs. His biographical data, year-by-year hitting stats, fielding stats, pitching stats (where applicable), career totals, uniform numbers, salary data and miscellaneous items-of-interest are presented by Baseball Almanac on this comprehensive Billy Williams baseball stats page.
"Each time I was in a slump it seemed like I'd have to go out and face a (Don) Drysdale, a (Sandy) Koufax, or a (Juan) Marichal that particular afternoon. It never failed." - Billy Williams in The New Yorker (Volume 57, Issue 7-14, 1981, Page 54)
Billy Williams![]() Billy Williams Autograph on a 1970 Topps Baseball Card (#170 | Checklist) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Biographical Data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Billy WilliamsBilly Williams Pitching Stats |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Year | Age | Team | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD |
| - | - | Did Not Pitch | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Career | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD | ||
Billy WilliamsBilly Williams Hitting Stats |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| Year | Age | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| 1959 | 21 | Cubs | 18 | 33 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .152 | .176 | .212 |
| 1960 | 22 | Cubs | 12 | 47 | 4 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .277 | .346 | .489 |
| 1961 | 23 | Cubs | 146 | 529 | 75 | 147 | 20 | 7 | 25 | 2 | 86 | 45 | 11 | 70 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 11 | .278 | .338 | .484 |
| 1962 | 24 | Cubs | 159 | 618 | 94 | 184 | 22 | 8 | 22 | 0 | 91 | 70 | 3 | 72 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 11 | .298 | .369 | .466 |
| 1963 | 25 | Cubs | 161 | 612 | 87 | 175 | 36 | 9 | 25 | 0 | 95 | 68 | 9 | 78 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 12 | .286 | .358 | .497 |
| 1964 | 26 | Cubs | 162 | 645 | 100 | 201 | 39 | 2 | 33 | 1 | 98 | 59 | 8 | 84 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 11 | .312 | .370 | .532 |
| 1965 | 27 | Cubs | 164 | 645 | 115 | 203 | 39 | 6 | 34 | 1 | 108 | 65 | 7 | 76 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 20 | .315 | .377 | .552 |
| 1966 | 28 | Cubs | 162 | 648 | 100 | 179 | 23 | 5 | 29 | 0 | 91 | 69 | 16 | 61 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 12 | .276 | .347 | .461 |
| 1967 | 29 | Cubs | 162 | 634 | 92 | 176 | 21 | 12 | 28 | 0 | 84 | 68 | 8 | 67 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 13 | .278 | .346 | .481 |
| 1968 | 30 | Cubs | 163 | 642 | 91 | 185 | 30 | 8 | 30 | 1 | 98 | 48 | 10 | 53 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 13 | .288 | .336 | .500 |
| 1969 | 31 | Cubs | 163 | 642 | 103 | 188 | 33 | 10 | 21 | 0 | 95 | 59 | 15 | 70 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 15 | .293 | .355 | .474 |
| 1970 | 32 | Cubs | 161 | 636 | 137 | 205 | 34 | 4 | 42 | 1 | 129 | 72 | 9 | 65 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 13 | .322 | .391 | .586 |
| 1971 | 33 | Cubs | 157 | 594 | 86 | 179 | 27 | 5 | 28 | 0 | 93 | 77 | 18 | 44 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 17 | .301 | .383 | .505 |
| 1972 | 34 | Cubs | 150 | 574 | 95 | 191 | 34 | 6 | 37 | 1 | 122 | 62 | 20 | 59 | 0 | 8 | 6 | 14 | .333 | .398 | .606 |
| 1973 | 35 | Cubs | 156 | 576 | 72 | 166 | 22 | 2 | 20 | 0 | 86 | 76 | 14 | 72 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 13 | .288 | .369 | .438 |
| 1974 | 36 | Cubs | 117 | 404 | 55 | 113 | 22 | 0 | 16 | 1 | 68 | 67 | 12 | 44 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 9 | .280 | .382 | .453 |
| 1975 | 37 | Athletics | 155 | 520 | 68 | 127 | 20 | 1 | 23 | 0 | 81 | 76 | 7 | 68 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 9 | .244 | .341 | .419 |
| 1976 | 38 | Athletics | 120 | 351 | 36 | 74 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 41 | 58 | 15 | 44 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 | .211 | .320 | .339 |
| Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
| 18 Years | 2,488 | 9,350 | 1,410 | 2,711 | 434 | 88 | 426 | 8 | 1,475 | 1,045 | 182 | 1,046 | 8 | 73 | 43 | 200 | .290 | .361 | .492 | ||
Billy WilliamsBilly Williams Fielding Stats |
||||||||||||||||
| Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| 1959 Cubs | LF | 10 | 7 | 195 | 18 | 1.8 | 18 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.49 |
| 1960 Cubs | LF | 12 | 12 | 327 | 28 | 2.3 | 27 | 27 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .964 | 2.23 |
| 1961 Cubs | LF | 111 | 111 | 291 | 199 | 1.8 | 190 | 184 | 6 | 9 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .955 | 17.63 |
| 1961 Cubs | RF | 26 | 22 | 615 | 39 | 1.5 | 37 | 36 | 1 | 2 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .949 | 1.62 |
| 1962 Cubs | LF | 159 | 159 | 477 | 297 | 1.9 | 288 | 271 | 17 | 9 | 4 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .970 | 16.30 |
| 1963 Cubs | LF | 160 | 160 | 480 | 314 | 2.0 | 310 | 297 | 13 | 4 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .987 | 17.44 |
| 1964 Cubs | CF | 2 | 2 | 27 | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.00 |
| 1964 Cubs | LF | 162 | 159 | 474 | 257 | 1.6 | 244 | 230 | 14 | 13 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .949 | 13.90 |
| 1965 Cubs | CF | 29 | 29 | 765 | 70 | 2.4 | 68 | 68 | 0 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .971 | 2.40 |
| 1965 Cubs | LF | 33 | 29 | 813 | 46 | 1.4 | 43 | 43 | 0 | 3 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .935 | 1.43 |
| 1965 Cubs | RF | 106 | 106 | 2,835 | 194 | 1.8 | 189 | 179 | 10 | 5 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .974 | 1.80 |
| 1966 Cubs | LF | 11 | 10 | 297 | 27 | 2.5 | 25 | 23 | 2 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .926 | 2.27 |
| 1966 Cubs | RF | 152 | 152 | 405 | 304 | 2.0 | 298 | 290 | 8 | 6 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .980 | 19.87 |
| 1967 Cubs | LF | 161 | 159 | 459 | 275 | 1.7 | 272 | 269 | 3 | 3 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .989 | 16.00 |
| 1967 Cubs | RF | 6 | 3 | 78 | 4 | 0.7 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.38 |
| 1968 Cubs | LF | 138 | 120 | 3,306 | 185 | 1.3 | 178 | 176 | 2 | 7 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .962 | 1.45 |
| 1968 Cubs | RF | 47 | 43 | 1,035 | 87 | 1.9 | 85 | 83 | 2 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .977 | 2.22 |
| 1969 Cubs | LF | 151 | 130 | 3,594 | 227 | 1.5 | 219 | 208 | 11 | 8 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .965 | 1.65 |
| 1969 Cubs | RF | 30 | 29 | 615 | 48 | 1.6 | 44 | 41 | 3 | 4 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .917 | 1.93 |
| 1970 Cubs | LF | 154 | 149 | 4,113 | 259 | 1.7 | 257 | 244 | 13 | 2 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .992 | 1.69 |
| 1970 Cubs | RF | 10 | 10 | 237 | 17 | 1.7 | 16 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .941 | 1.82 |
| 1971 Cubs | LF | 151 | 148 | 3,918 | 287 | 1.9 | 281 | 273 | 8 | 6 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .979 | 1.94 |
| 1971 Cubs | RF | 4 | 4 | 108 | 8 | 2.0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .875 | 1.75 |
| 1972 Cubs | 1B | 5 | 5 | 129 | 46 | 9.2 | 46 | 42 | 4 | 0 | 5 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 9.63 |
| 1972 Cubs | LF | 144 | 142 | 3,762 | 244 | 1.7 | 240 | 231 | 9 | 4 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .984 | 1.72 |
| 1973 Cubs | 1B | 19 | 19 | 477 | 189 | 9.9 | 187 | 167 | 20 | 2 | 14 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .989 | 10.58 |
| 1973 Cubs | LF | 138 | 132 | 3,408 | 265 | 1.9 | 261 | 247 | 14 | 4 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .985 | 2.07 |
| 1974 Cubs | 1B | 65 | 64 | 1,671 | 624 | 9.6 | 615 | 566 | 49 | 9 | 48 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .986 | 9.94 |
| 1974 Cubs | LF | 43 | 41 | 1,029 | 75 | 1.7 | 73 | 69 | 4 | 2 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .973 | 1.92 |
| 1975 Athletics | 1B | 7 | 5 | 108 | 34 | 4.9 | 33 | 30 | 3 | 1 | 5 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .971 | 8.25 |
| 1976 Athletics | LF | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 |
| Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| LF Totals | 1,739 | 1,668 | 26,949 | 3,003 | 1.7 | 2,926 | 2,810 | 116 | 77 | 18 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .974 | 2.93 | |
| RF Totals | 381 | 369 | 5,928 | 701 | 1.8 | 680 | 656 | 24 | 21 | 6 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .970 | 3.10 | |
| 1B Totals | 96 | 93 | 2,385 | 893 | 9.3 | 881 | 805 | 76 | 12 | 72 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .987 | 9.97 | |
| CF Totals | 31 | 31 | 792 | 71 | 2.3 | 69 | 69 | 0 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .972 | 2.35 | |
| 18 Years | 2,247 | 2,161 | 36,054 | 4,668 | 2.1 | 4,556 | 4,340 | 216 | 112 | 96 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .976 | 3.41 | |
Billy WilliamsBilly Williams Miscellaneous Stats |
||||||||||||
| Baserunning Statistics | Other Positions | Common Hitting Ratios | Common Pitching Ratios | |||||||||
| Team | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
| 1959 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 7 | 1 | n/a | 0.0 | 4.7 | 16.5 | - | - | - |
| 1960 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 23.5 | 3.9 | 6.7 | - | - | - |
| 1961 Cubs | 6 | 0 | 1.000 | 13 | 0 | n/a | 21.2 | 7.6 | 6.2 | - | - | - |
| 1962 Cubs | 9 | 9 | .500 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 28.1 | 8.6 | 6.8 | - | - | - |
| 1963 Cubs | 7 | 6 | .538 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 24.5 | 7.8 | 6.4 | - | - | - |
| 1964 Cubs | 10 | 7 | .588 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 19.5 | 7.7 | 6.6 | - | - | - |
| 1965 Cubs | 10 | 1 | .909 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 19.0 | 8.5 | 6.0 | - | - | - |
| 1966 Cubs | 6 | 3 | .667 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 22.3 | 10.6 | 7.1 | - | - | - |
| 1967 Cubs | 6 | 3 | .667 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 22.6 | 9.5 | 7.5 | - | - | - |
| 1968 Cubs | 4 | 1 | .800 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 21.4 | 12.1 | 6.6 | - | - | - |
| 1969 Cubs | 3 | 2 | .600 | 4 | 0 | n/a | 30.6 | 9.2 | 6.8 | - | - | - |
| 1970 Cubs | 7 | 1 | .875 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 15.1 | 9.8 | 4.9 | - | - | - |
| 1971 Cubs | 7 | 5 | .583 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 21.2 | 13.5 | 6.4 | - | - | - |
| 1972 Cubs | 3 | 1 | .750 | 3 | 0 | n/a | 15.5 | 9.7 | 4.7 | - | - | - |
| 1973 Cubs | 4 | 3 | .571 | 4 | 0 | n/a | 28.8 | 8.0 | 6.7 | - | - | - |
| 1974 Cubs | 4 | 5 | .444 | 12 | 0 | n/a | 25.3 | 9.2 | 5.9 | - | - | - |
| 1975 Athletics | 0 | 0 | .000 | 8 | 0 | 145 | 22.6 | 7.6 | 6.4 | - | - | - |
| 1976 Athletics | 4 | 2 | .667 | 20 | 0 | 106 | 31.9 | 8.0 | 8.6 | - | - | - |
| Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
| 18 Years | 90 | 49 | .647 | 79 | 1 | 251 | 21.9 | 8.9 | 6.3 | - | - | - |
Billy WilliamsBilly Williams Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
||||
| Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
| 1959 Chicago Cubs | 4 | $7,000.00 | - | - |
| 1960 Chicago Cubs | 41 | $7,000.00 | - | - |
| 1961 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $9,500.00 | - | - |
| 1962 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $14,000.00 | Stats | - |
| 1963 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $20,000.00 | - | - |
| 1964 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $27,000.00 | Stats | - |
| 1965 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $34,000.00 | Stats | - |
| 1966 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $45,000.00 | - | - |
| 1967 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $47,500.00 | - | - |
| 1968 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $57,000.00 | Stats | - |
| 1969 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $75,000.00 | - | - |
| 1970 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $85,000.00 | - | - |
| 1971 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $100,000.00 | - | - |
| 1972 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $115,000.00 | Stats | - |
| 1973 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $150,000.00 | Stats | - |
| 1974 Chicago Cubs | 26 | $150,000.00 | - | - |
| 1975 Oakland Athletics | 28 | $150,000.00 | - | - |
| 1976 Oakland Athletics | 28 | $150,000.00 | - | - |
| Billy Williams Stats by Baseball Almanac | ||||

Billy Leo Williams was a Major League Baseball player with the Chicago Cubs (1959-1974) and Oakland Athletics (1976-1976). In 1961, Jack Curtis received 6% of the votes for Rookie of the Year, Joe Torre received 31% of the votes for Rookie of the Year and Billy Williams received 62% of the votes, winning National League Rookie of the Year — the first Chicago Cubs player to receive the baseball award.

Billy Williams Rookie Card | 1961 Topps Baseball Card (#141 | Checklist)
Baseball Almanac Research Library
Did you know that only seven players in baseball history have ever been able to play in at least 1,000 consecutive games? The "Iron Seven" are Cal Ripken, Jr. (2,632 GP), Lou Gehrig (2,130 GP), Everett Scott (1,307 GP), Steve Garvey (1,207 GP), Miguel Tejada (1,152 GP), Billy Williams (1,117 GP), and Joe Sewell (1,103 GP). Join Baseball Almanac as we take a look at some additional numbers of interest as they relate to Sweet Swinging Billy:
3: Billy Williams hit a career high three home runs in a game on September 10, 1968, tying the Cubs record for most home runs in a game.
4: Billy Williams once hit four doubles in the same game, on April 9, 1969, tying the National League record for doubles in a game.
18: Billy Williams played eighteen years in the big leagues and after stepping off the field, he had been paid $1,243,000 in contracts (A couple million shy of what the average Major League player makes for one year of work in this era.)
26: Billy Williams wore #26 with the Chicago Cubs from 1961 through 1974. On August 13, 1987, the Chicago Cubs retired his number, joining at that time only one other Cubbie, Ernie Banks, who had his #14 retired on August 22, 1982.
162: Billy Williams stood in left field during 162 games in 1964, the first and only Cub to ever appear in that many games in left field during a single season, and, the first player from any National League team to ever appear in left field 162 times during the same season (since passed by Pete Rose, and matched by Gary Matthews, Luis Gonzalez and Carlos Lee).
164: Billy Williams played in a Cubs franchise record 162 games in 1964, 1966, and 1967 - the first Cubbie to ever appear in 162 games during a single season. In 1968, and 1969, Williams had 163 games played, but neither mark is the current record; Billy set that in 1965, when he played in a 164 games, the most ever in team history.
205: Billy Williams had 201 hits in 1964, 203 hits in 1965, and 205 hits in 1970 - the most hits in a single season by a left-handed Chicago Cubs hitter in franchise history.

Billy Williams | National Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque | Class of 1987 (HOF)
Billy Williams hit a single in the first inning of a game at Busch Stadium on July 17, 1966, Art Mahaffey was pitching. In the top of the third inning, Billy Williams hit a double, off Don Dennis, who also surrendered a triple to Sweet-Swinging Billy from Whistler in the fifth. The Cardinals, down 6-1 versus the Cubs, switched pitchers again, but it made no difference as Billy Williams homered off Hal Woodeshick in the seventh inning to complete a natural cycle - the only natural cycle (1B, 2B, 3B, HR) ever hit by a player from the Chicago Cubs.