Bernie Williams | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Center fielder | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born: San Juan, Puerto Rico | September 13, 1968||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Batted: Switch Threw: Right | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MLB debut | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
July 7, 1991, for the New York Yankees | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Last MLB appearance | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
October 1, 2006, for the New York Yankees | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MLB statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Batting average | .297 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hits | 2,336 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Home runs | 287 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Runs batted in | 1,257 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stats at Baseball Reference | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Teams | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medals
|
Bernabé Williams Figueroa Jr. (born September 13, 1968) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player and current musician. He played his entire 16-year career in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the New York Yankees from 1991 through 2006.
A center fielder, Williams was a member of four World Series championship teams with the Yankees. He ended his career with a .297 batting average, 287 home runs, 1,257 runs batted in (RBI), 1,366 runs scored, 449 doubles, and a .990 fielding percentage. He was a five-time All-Star and won four Gold Glove Awards, a Silver Slugger Award, the American League (AL) batting title in 1998, and the 1996 AL Championship Series Most Valuable Player Award. Known for his consistency and postseason heroics, Williams is one of the most beloved Yankees. The team honored him by retiring his uniform number 51 and dedicating a plaque to him in Monument Park in May 2015. Williams is widely regarded as one of the greatest switch-hitting center fielders in history.
Williams is also a classically trained guitarist. Following his retirement from baseball, he has released two jazz albums. He was nominated for a Latin Grammy in 2009.