Yankees Great Bernie Williams Goes From Baseball to Jazz
Making the move from baseball player to jazz musician has been quite a challenge for Bernie Williams.
“It did not matter how many home runs I hit,” the Yankees legend told Cheddar. “What mattered was, can this guy play [music]?...I had to work very hard to get my [music] degree and I’m very proud of it.”
The Latin Grammy nominee says that winning baseball games was easier than his second career. He earned a degree in jazz performance from the Manhattan School of Music in 2016 and describes the process as “one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.”
Williams, a four-time World Series champ and five-time MLB All Star, is prepping for a debut at Café Carlyle on March 6.
And he said maybe surprisingly, the process isn’t much different from what he was used to on the field.
“A lot of the things that I did in baseball, outside of the physical aspect of it, came from the same source,” Williams said. “It’s a commitment to discipline, work ethics, no shortcuts, learning from your mistakes, and taking yourself seriously in both disciplines.
“The only difference is that when playing baseball, I can detach from the fans, I could detach from the audience … As a musician, you have to go on stage and invite everybody into your world.”
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/yankees-great-bernie-williams-is-ready-for-his-cafe-carlyle-debut).
After six games and 240 minutes of pure dominance that ran through March, then part of April, it finally became clear there was only one thing that could stop the UConn Huskies. The final buzzer.
It's opening day for Major League Baseball and with the new season comes new and revamped rules aimed at accelerating game-play and boosting fan interest in the game.
The final four games of March Madness are this weekend, and Kristina Lavallee, founder and CEO of The Cake Girl, has some basketball-themed baking ideas for fans who are hosting viewing parties. The Instagram-famous baker recently got a special order from Tom Brady for his 45th birthday.
Now, the No. 5 seed Hurricanes (29-7) have a date with No. 4 seed UConn on Saturday night in Houston. Two more Final Four newbies, fifth-seeded San Diego State and No. 9 seed Florida Atlantic, will play in the other national semifinal.
