Life's a ball for pitcher Jerome Williams
By Josh Suchon
Special to The Advertiser
SAN FRANCISCO — Returning home to Hawai'i, Jerome Williams quickly learned the difference between life as a minor league pitching prospect and a successful major-league pitcher who was frequently on ESPN.
Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser
"It was crazy," said Williams, a 1999 graduate of Waipahu High. "Everywhere I went, people went, 'Hey, you're that guy!' Yeah, that's me. A lot of people were congratulating me on a good season. They told me how good it was for the people of Hawai'i and what kind of role model I am for them, especially the kids. It was a good feeling."
"It's a trademark. I have to keep them on now," Waipahu High graduate Jerome Williams says of his puka shell necklace.
The best feeling of his newfound celebrity was probably the treatment he received in restaurants.
"I kept getting stuff for me," Williams said. "I'd sit down and the manager would say, 'You're that guy. It's on the house.' That's great."
Williams was one of the major reasons the San Francisco Giants won 100 regular-season games last season. He compiled a 7-5 record and 3.30 ERA in 21 starts. But the end of the season ended bitterly for Williams and the Giants.
Williams started Game 4 of the division series against the Florida Marlins. It was a chaotic scene after Game 3 and before Game 4, as the Giants waffled on whether Williams would start or Jason Schmidt would pitch on shorter rest.
The Giants finally settled on Williams, who lasted just two innings. The Giants made it a game with a gutty rally, but their season ended on a home-plate collision with catcher Pudge Rodriguez tagging out J.T. Snow.
Advertiser library photo • Aug. 19, 2003
"Being taken out in the second inning really hurt me," Williams said. "Once we lost that game, I was the first one bawling in tears. Guys came up to me and told me, 'It's all right. You're going to have a lot more chances.' That showed me that I'll be here to stay and gave me confidence this year."
Jerome Williams wants to improve his rookie season's 7-5 record and 3.30 ERA.
Giants pitchers and catchers report to spring training in Scottsdale, Ariz., on Thursday. It will be a much different spring for Williams. He was seventh on the starting pitching depth chart last year, was sent to minor-league camp in early March and only came up to the majors to stay June 3 because of injuries.
This year, the 22-year-old Williams is penciled into the No. 3 spot in the rotation, following Schmidt and Kirk Rueter, and ahead of Brett Tomko and Dustin Hermanson.
With Schmidt coming off elbow surgery, Williams' performance will be more critical.
"I just have to go out there and pitch," he said. "Everybody will expect things out of me. I will expect things out of myself, based on my performance last year. I just want to do the same thing I did last year and try to get better."
Williams pitched better than his numbers indicated as a rookie. He went six innings or more in 15 of 21 starts. The Giants were 12-9 in his 21 starts, and five losses were by two runs or less.
With Schmidt, Rueter, Kurt Ainsworth and Jesse Foppert injured at some point, and Damian Moss a disappointment, Williams was in many respects San Francisco's most dependable starter.
"I'm a lot smarter pitcher now," Williams said. "When you are young and around guys like Robb (Nen) and Schmidt, all these veteran guys, it's a great thing. You get to ask questions. I learned something new every day."
Williams spent three months of his offseason in Honolulu. His No. 33 jersey was retired at Waipahu High, making good on a deal he made with his basketball coach when he left the Islands.
Earlier this month, he married Sarah, whom he met while at Triple-A Fresno. They're expecting their first child during the season. Teammates and Giants officials kidded him that Hawai'i residents can't return to the Islands for honeymoons.
Should he not follow their advice, he learned something important about going incognito back home.
"I did take off the puka shells for a week and people didn't know me," Williams said. "Once I put them back on, people recognized me again. It's a trademark. I have to keep them on now."
