Travis Williams named president of the Pittsburgh Pirates

PITTSBURGH — Travis Williams has been named president of the Pittsburgh Pirates, according to team officials.

Williams will officially take over the job on Nov. 1 of overseeing the day-to-day operations of the organization.

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He comes to the Pirates organization after having spent nearly a dozen years leading the Pittsburgh Penguins executive team as Chief Operating Officer and after working for the New York Islanders as president of business operations.

Williams joined the Penguins in 2008 after working as a partner at Reed Smith LLP. He graduated from Penn State with another doctorate degree from Duquesne University. He said his family is looking forward to returning to Pittsburgh.

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“Travis’ leadership abilities, experience and passion for Pittsburgh sports makes him the ideal choice for this position,” said Bob Nutting, Pirates Chairman of the Board.  “Travis was an integral part of the Penguins leadership team over the past decade of success.  He has a keen understanding of Pittsburgh and appreciates how important our fans are.  He will drive a culture of success within our organization.”

Williams issued a statement following his acceptance of the job:

"This is a homecoming for me, both personally and professionally.  It is a tremendous opportunity to come back to a city and a team that I love.  I am excited about working with Bob and the rest of the Pirates family to return this franchise to a winning tradition. Today, we turn the page and start writing a new chapter in the history of the Pirates.

"We are committed to a refresh of our entire operations.  The first step in this process is to immediately begin the search for new leadership of our baseball operations. Within our business operations, we will focus on enhancing our relationships with the fans, the ballpark experience and our commitment to the Pittsburgh community."

The announcement of Williams as the new team president follows the firing of General Manager Neal Huntington by team officials Monday morning.

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