View source for Lefty Williams

{{Short description|American baseball pitcher (1893–1959)}}
{{ about|the baseball player Lefty Williams|Lefty Williams (musician)|Lefty Williams (musician) }}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
|name=Lefty Williams
|position=[[Pitcher]]
|image=LeftyWilliams.jpg
|caption=Williams in 1916
|bats=Right
|throws=Left
|birth_date={{birth date|1893|3|9}}
|birth_place=[[Aurora, Missouri]], U.S.
|death_date={{death date and age|1959|11|4|1893|3|9}}
|death_place=[[Laguna Beach, California]], U.S.
|debutleague = MLB
|debutdate=September 17
|debutyear=1913
|debutteam=Detroit Tigers
|finalleague = MLB
|finaldate=September 25
|finalyear=1920
|finalteam=Chicago White Sox
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=[[Win–loss record (pitching)|Win–loss record]]
|stat1value=82–48
|stat2label=[[Earned run average]]
|stat2value=3.13
|stat3label=[[Strikeout]]s
|stat3value=515
|teams=
* [[Detroit Tigers]] ({{mlby|1913}}–{{mlby|1914}})
* [[Chicago White Sox]] ({{mlby|1916}}–{{mlby|1920}})
|highlights=
* [[World Series]] champion (1917)
}}

'''Claude Preston''' "'''Lefty'''" '''Williams''' (March 9, 1893 &ndash; November 4, 1959) was an American [[pitcher]] in [[Major League Baseball]]. He is probably best known for his involvement in the [[1919 World Series]] fix, known as the [[Black Sox Scandal]].

==Career==
Williams was born in [[Aurora, Missouri]], to William and Mary Williams.<ref name="SABR">[http://bioproj.sabr.org/bioproj.cfm?a=v&v=l&pid=15254&bid=1709 "Lefty Williams"]. ''sabr.org''.</ref> He began his major league career on September 17, 1913, with the [[Detroit Tigers]].

Williams' breakthrough season came in 1915, while with the [[Salt Lake City Bees]] of the [[Pacific Coast League]]. That year, he pitched 418.2 innings, leading the league in wins (33) and [[strikeout]]s (294), while featuring mostly his mid-90s [[fastball]] and swooping curve. His contract was then purchased by the [[Chicago White Sox]].<ref name="SABR"/>

With the White Sox, Williams settled into the starting rotation and helped the team win the pennant in 1917, going 17–8. After spending 1918 working in [[United States Navy|Navy]] shipyards, he came back strong in 1919 with his greatest performance, going 23–11 with a 2.64 [[earned run average]]. The White Sox again won the [[American League]] pennant. However, before that year's [[World Series]], he was involved in the Black Sox Scandal when teammate [[Chick Gandil]] offered him $10,000 to [[match fixing|lose]] his starts. Williams only received $5,000, half of what he was promised, a sum that was still almost double his 1919 salary of $2,600.

In the series, Williams went 0–3, with an earned run average of 6.63. His three losses were a World Series record.<ref name="SABR"/> That was equaled in the 1981 Series when [[George Frazier (pitcher)|George Frazier]] lost three games. ''[[Eight Men Out]]'' author [[Eliot Asinof]] wrote that Williams eventually turned against the fix as he prepared for his final Series start; Asinof later admitted that this particular anecdote was made up.<ref name="SABR"/>

In 1920, Williams went 22–14, but was caught up in the indictments handed down that autumn. Though acquitted by a jury, Williams and the seven other "Black Sox" were banned from organized baseball by [[Baseball Commissioner|Commissioner]] [[Kenesaw Mountain Landis]].

Afterwards, Williams barnstormed and played in outlaw leagues for a few years,<ref>[https://johndonaldson.bravehost.com/pdf/01622.pdf "Spencer Loses to Sherburn," ''Spencer Reporter'', Spencer, IA, Wednesday, August 22, 1923, Page 1, Columns 3 and 4]</ref> and he played briefly for the Fort Bayard Veterans team in [[New Mexico]] which was part of the Copper League or Cactus League. He supposedly took to drinking heavily. It was reported that the between-inning "nips" made him an intimidating pitcher to the batters.

Williams is listed as a manager of the [[San Bernardino Pioneers|Anaheim/San Bernardino Valencias]] for part of the 1948 season of the Class-C Sunset League.

Williams spent his later years in [[Laguna Beach, California]] where he died in 1959, operating a garden nursery business.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Register |first=Gary A. Warner, The Orange County |date=2006-09-20 |title=Betting he'll never be found: Black Sox player buried at a secret spot in Southern California |url=https://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/local/betting-hell-never-be-found-black-sox-player-buried-at-a-secret-spot-in-southern/article_ca6a51c7-c921-5d64-8ef2-b69105610513.html |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=The Wenatchee World |language=en}}</ref>

Williams was portrayed by actor [[James Read]] in the 1988 film ''[[Eight Men Out]]''.

Williams was reinstated by Commissioner [[Rob Manfred]] on May 13, 2025 along with other deceased players who were on the ineligible list.

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography}}
* [[List of people banned from Major League Baseball]]
* [[List of Chicago White Sox team records]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{commonscat}}
{{baseballstats|br=w/willile01|brm=willia004cla}}

{{Chicago White Sox Opening Day starting pitchers}}
{{1917 Chicago White Sox}}
{{Black Sox Scandal}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Lefty}}
[[Category:1893 births]]
[[Category:1959 deaths]]
[[Category:Major League Baseball pitchers]]
[[Category:Detroit Tigers players]]
[[Category:Chicago White Sox players]]
[[Category:Morristown Jobbers players]]
[[Category:Nashville Vols players]]
[[Category:Sacramento Wolves players]]
[[Category:Mission Wolves players]]
[[Category:Salt Lake City Bees players]]
[[Category:Sportspeople banned for life]]
[[Category:Baseball players from Missouri]]
[[Category:People from Aurora, Missouri]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]