Williams, a Cy-Fair High School graduate and University of Houston alumnus, began his career pitching in relief until he was moved to a full-time starter in 1997. On December 12, 1998, he was traded to the San Diego Padres with minor leaguer Peter Tucci and Carlos Almanzar for right-handed pitcher Joey Hamilton. He worked exclusively as a starter in San Diego until he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for outfielder Ray Lankford on August 2, 2001.\n', '

After he was traded, Williams\' career took off. While in San Diego that season, he posted an 8–8 win–loss record with a 4.97 ERA in 23 starts, but with St. Louis, Williams went 7–1 with a 2.28 ERA in 11 starts.\n', '

On August 10, 2003, Williams hit into an unassisted triple play against the Atlanta Braves. As a result, Atlanta\'s shortstop Rafael Furcal became the 12th player in Major League history to make one of the rarest plays in baseball, while Williams was the first big league pitcher to ever hit into an unassisted triple play. He continued to pitch well for St. Louis, making the 2003 All-Star Game and starting Game 1 of the 2004 World Series.\n', '

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