Encyclopedia Dubuque
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MCWILLIAMS, Bill
MCWILLIAMS, Bill. (Dubuque, IA, November 28, 1910--Garland, TX, Jan. 21, 1997). McWilliams, son of the manager of WALES HOTEL, grew up in Chicago. (1) He threw and batted right-handed.
McWilliams began his professional baseball career appearing in two major-league games for the Boston Red Sox in 1931. After wrapping up his time in the big leagues, the four days that embraced his two games, he went to the minor leagues, where he played for 10 seasons. In the minors, he appeared in 1,157 games and collected almost a hit per game – 1,117 (95 of them home runs) for a career .274 batting average. McWilliams was primarily a third baseman, but in his final season (1941) he played at second base and in the outfield. (1)
McWilliams had played football at the University of Iowa before choosing baseball. (2) In the fall of 1934, he shifted sports to play for the NFL's Detroit Lions. He had six attempts to advance the football and gained a total of 16 yards, thus averaging a little less than 2.7 yards per carry. (6) McWilliams did not appear in any other NFL game.
McWilliams began the 1941 season as playing manager for Dayton for only part of the season. He hit .236 in 50 games, but he also played for Durham (63 games, .259) and Springfield again (.243 in just 10 games). That was his last season in organized baseball.
After his sports career was over, he lived in Chicago for 35 years and retired as playground director for the City of Chicago Park District. (3)
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Source:
1. Nowlin, Bill. "Bill McWilliams," Society for American Baseball Research, Online: http://sabr.org/bioproj/person/2d5d6976
2. "Bill McWilliams," Baseball Reference, Online: https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Bill_McWilliams
3. Nowlin