A Chat With Sam McWilliams, Hat Stove, Story Time!

 

 

 With December in mid-swing the hot stove is heating up, Willy Adames got a payday and Blake Snell found a new home as well. Today we hear from an old friend and a new one, with several good tales told.

MR FREDERICK'S STORY TIME!

This summer I was in contact with the wonderful Mr. Frederick. A longtime baseball fan, Mr. Frederick has sent along some stories that I will be very happy to share, in regular installments going forward. We start with a great one about Yogi Berra.

YOGI FEELS THE HEAT

Fifty years after the event, Yogi Berra told a story to Tim Russert on TV about a hot night in August in the 1950s at Fenway Park. According to Yogi, the temperature was still 90 degrees or better at 9pm that night. The Yankees had a 9-0 lead about the 6th inning and Yogi was wishing he could come out of the game and take a shower to cool off. Yogi knew that Casey Stengel would not take him out of the game at his request, so he started maligning the home plate umpire hoping to get ejected from the game. 

Without taking his mask off, Yogi started making statements like "You must be blind to call a pitch like that a ball" and calling the ump names so the ump could hear him. After a little while, the home plate ump, one of the most veteran and best umpires in the American League, told Yogi, "Yogi, it's open season on me tonight; you can cuss me and call me any name in the book, but I'm not throwing you out of the game - if I gotta stay out here in this heat, you gotta stay out here too!"

 

BISCUITS HOT STOVE HATS UP

After my old man rant in the last post here, the Biscuits went to work. I immediately got an email that offered season ticket holders a Biscuits cap for just $15 if we would pay up on our tickets for next year. While it seemed like a good offer, the hats involved have been on the sale rack for months at twenty bucks, so the incentive to grab one is greatly diminished. Most of us season ticketholder folks have plenty of hats, in fact I wore a different cap to each game last summer and still didn't have to scrape the bottom of my hat barrel.

And while I got an email for that, I didn't get an email about the Kimchi jersey auction, which I probably would have participated in had I known about. 

But if you missed out like I did, don't try going to the team store for one. I'm told that the morning after the auction closed, all the unsold Kimchi jerseys were purchased in bulk by someone who was tipped off that the jerseys would be offered on the cheap. 

Thanks a lump fellas, ya'll really know how to look out for those of us who have been supporting the team for twenty years.

A CHAT WITH SAM MCWILLIAMS

Sam McWilliams with Biloxi 2024

I recently had a great conversation with former Biscuits pitcher Sam McWilliams about his time with the Biscuits and beyond. The tall, affable righthander has an easy manner and cheerful disposition when not hurling orbs between the chalk, where he is a formidable opponent. Pitching with the Biscuits in 2018 and early in 2019, Sam was an important part of the Montgomery starting rotation. 

Sam was with Biloxi for one game at the end of the year this past summer, helping out the Shuckers in the postseason against Montgomery. He had agreed to an interview and I was glad to have a chance to chat with him this past weekend as we both were getting our holidays started.

I didn't record our convo, so the quotes here may not be exact, but are in the best of my memory, accurate and non-incriminating.

ON BRADY &THE 2018-2019 BISCUITS: Sam was succinct when asked about the former skipper, saying simply "Nails." and "Playing for Brady Williams is easy." McWilliams mentioned how Brady has a way of making players feel at ease by being just one of the guys, a sentiment echoed over and over again by those who have played for Brady Williams. 

McWilliams in the rain

 

Sam was happy to talk about the 2018 club and its success, remarking on his continued friendship with Biscuit teammates from that season, mentioning Curtis Taylor and Matt Krook in particular, as well as Brett Sullivan and Mike Brosseau.

On former Biscuits pitching coach R.C Lichtenstein, Sam pointed to how R.C. could help a pitcher mentally, with a talent for knowing how to approach each player and work with them individually 

"He's able to get to know you, then to get you, mentally, to do more on the field, to challenge yourself." 

STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS - I asked Sam to tell us a story, something we didn't know about. He cheerfully reminisced about the scene Biscuits clinch of 2018, smoking cigars and drinking beer while taking over the ballpark train for a victory lap around the park with Biscuits players packing the cars and riding on the roof. I was glad to hear him tell the story, as I partook in that celebration and it is indeed one of the most epic of Biscuit postseason glories.

Jesus Sanchez at Rickwood Field

Sam had a few stories and was very fond of that 2018 club: 

"So many of those guys are major leaguers now!" and he offered a tidbit on outfielder Jesus Sanchez. "So Jesus is, well, he doesn't like dogs, they scare him I guess. So my little pug was in the clubhouse one day, Sanchez is running around and climbing onto the training table to get away from it. Puggie is only about twenty pounds, but Jesus had to get away from that!"

 

 

ZOMBRO - I asked McWilliams if he keeps up with any of his former teammates, and mentioned Tyler Zombro, aka Coach Z. Expecting a discussion of analytics and pitching mechanics, the thing Sam mentioned about his former teammate and training advisor was how much he appreciates Zombro's friendship.  

Tyler Zombro, pitching guru, at Rickwood Field

"The first thing is that he has been the greatest friend, we talk all the time, a few times a week at least. That's been the best." Sam and I talked about how happy we both were to hear that Zombro had been signed as a special assistant for the Cubs organization. "It's been coming for some time" Sam said "he's a great mind in baseball." 

 I could not agree more, Sammy!

 

AB'S I asked Sam about his hitting. In 2021 Sam picked up his first two at bats in his career, doing it with two different clubs! After six seasons in the game how did he feel about getting to hit?  

"It was great! The guy I faced, I was with El Paso, the guy led me off with a fastball. I just watched it go and thought 'It doesn't look too hard' and was ready to take a cut at the next one, I was ready to swing. So the next pitch... I'm ready.. and he throws.. its up and inside. I swung and I don't remember if I broke the bat or what, but it was a weak two-hopper back to the mound. I was just like, aww man! I should have done better! Then the second at bat I struck out and there wasn't much to it. I was a starter and with NL clubs, it was the last season pitchers were hitting, so yeah it was fun!"

 

Sammy in SI

SPORTS ILLUSTRATED - Sam was interviewed for a piece in Sports Illustrated, written by Tom Verducci in late 2020 after he signed a major league deal with the Mets for an unheard-of price tag of $750k. I had to quiz him on how it felt and what he thought of the article, which kind of shades him in places. 

Sam says "Yeah it was kind of funny, Tom Verducci calls and is really buddy-buddy, I know he wants his story. But when I read it now its kind of funny, I had stopped throwing my two-seam fastball then and now I am adding it back and throwing it again, so the whole thing has kind of come full circle!" 

Sam explains he decided to stop throwing his two-seamer and rely on his four seam fastball and slider, the idea being that the two seam fastball movement is splitting the difference between the two other pitches and is easier for hitters to adjust to.  

"My four seam and two seam fastball's were both, well, kind of vanilla, so to speak. Like, I felt that not throwing the two seam made my other pitches look better. My slider had more break compared to the four seamer, which had more zip." 

But that was then, this is now. "I've started throwing the two seamer again, using it to set up my other pitches. Guys seemed to kind of be waiting on me, either jumping out to get the slider or sitting on the heater, so having that two seam action now and then gives you something else to make them look for."

Sam McWilliams starting pitcher in 2018

 

K'S GO UP - I had noticed Sam had increased his punchouts as he moved up the ladder, improving his strikeout numbers noticeably as he climbed from lower levels to triple-A. As this is sort of backwards from some guys who light up lower levels and struggle as they move up, I wanted to find out what Sam's thoughts on the strikeouts were and his answer was simple.

"Yeah I just think, over time, you learn where to improve and apply it. You get more confidence and experience and know how to utilize your pitches better." 

Age and experience over youth and talent, errytime!

MEXICO - I knew Sam had made appearances in the Mexican league in 2023, and asked about his time there.  

McWilliams at Rickwood Field 2019

"I actually threw one inning and got that opportunity." Sam said, laughing a little "I did a favor for a friend, they had a game here (in Tennessee where McWilliams lives) that was basically a tryout for Mexican League teams, they needed someone to throw one inning for them. I was like, sure, and went and threw and it felt gooood. A couple days later they called me and were like, 'Can you come to Mexico, like right now?' and I had to ask 'Can I call my wife first?'"

Sam had actually been in retirement when the Mexican League called. 

"I had hung em up, hung up my spikes for good. I was even to the point where I was at peace with it. But my wife, shes great, she says 'Chase that dream!' and so I was going to Mexico. It was fantastic there, they just want to win, the people and the city and the team, its not about anything other than how do you win today's game. It was just what I needed, really."

Following the Mets signing, the weight of expectations had weighed heavily on McWilliams. 

"I had struggled in 2021, so after that season I addressed a lot of the physical and mechanical stuff. I fixed the mechanics, but I wasn't able to fix the mental side, you know, there was still stuff going on.

I wouldn't call it 'The Yips' but that's really what it was. It wasn't like I was throwing the ball into the stands or anything, but I certainly wasn't throwing strikes. And it got stuck in my head that I didn't know where the ball was going. And then pitching wasn't fun anymore." 

After the Mets DFA'd him in May of '21, the Padres picked him up to finish that year, then he signed for a stint with the Reds in 2022. But after an 0-5 start to the season with a lofty 10+ ERA, Sam was released in June and went home to enjoy his family.

"It took a long time. I would watch games and didn't think much about it, there wasn't much desire there. But after a while it was just starting to creep in again, watching my buddies playing on tv and thinking 'I can do that. I WANT to do that!'" 

Sam McWilliams with 2019 Biscuits

And that's when Sam's phone rang with an unexpected opportunity.

It was that one inning in a pickup game, set up for other guys to try out for teams in Mexico. Following the time in Mexico, he says he spent a few weeks in the Dominican League. Pitching south of the border, Sam McWilliams was rejuvenated and soon found opportunity knocking again.

"In Mexico there were no scouts, just fans and they were really into the games. It was only about winning that game, that day. You would pitch and the next day be inactive, a day off. I enjoy getting out in the daytime and it really helped me get back into the groove to have that down time. I was feeling good and the games were fun, it was fun to pitch again. Then, when I went to the Dominican League there were scouts crawling all over, so I guess they saw me and liked what I was doing. My pitching felt great there and I really got my swagger back, so they must have seen that too." 

So whats up next for Sam McWilliams? 

"Stay in the strike zone. Change speeds in the zone. I feel good and just want to do what I know I can do. It's baseball, you just go out and do what you can and let it happen. But it's fun again so I'm really looking forward to getting to spring training and going out to take the mound in whatever role they (the Milwaukee Brewers) want me. The confidence is back and I have my stuff back too, so we just have to see where it goes."

As we ended our chat, I made sure to thank him and mentioned that there are a lot of us supporting him, folks who he maybe doesn't see or hear, but we are rooting for him. We see the work that goes in, the effort and struggle and adjustments and emotions. I told him to keep doing what he's been doing,  opportunities in baseball don't appear by accident and we are looking forward to seeing what the next opportunity will bring for Sam McWilliams.