Ron Davis (pitcher) | Today's AI Wiki

1. Early Life and Background

Ronald Gene Davis was born on August 6, 1955, in Houston, Texas. He later became a father to Ike Davis, who would follow in his footsteps to become a professional baseball player, making them a unique father-son duo in Major League Baseball history.

2. Professional Baseball Career

Ron Davis's professional baseball journey spanned over a decade, encompassing his time in both Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball, beginning with his draft by the Chicago Cubs and culminating in his retirement after a stint in the Senior Professional Baseball Association.

2.1. Minor League and Early MLB Career

Davis began his professional career when he was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the third round, 56th overall, of the 1976 Major League Baseball draft. While still in the minor leagues, he was traded to the New York Yankees in 1978. He made his Major League Baseball debut on July 29, 1978, in a game against the Minnesota Twins at Yankee Stadium, entering in the seventh inning as the second relief pitcher. His first MLB win came on May 28, 1979, against the Milwaukee Brewers, where he pitched 2.2 innings of scoreless relief. He recorded his first save on June 20, 1979, against the Toronto Blue Jays.

2.2. New York Yankees (1978-1981)

During his time with the Yankees, Davis established himself as a hard-throwing right-handed relief pitcher, standing 6 in tall. He served as the team's closer after an injury sidelined All-Star relief pitcher Rich Gossage, who was involved in an altercation with teammate Cliff Johnson. Davis was also one of the pioneering pitchers to be exclusively used as a middle-inning "set-up" pitcher, preceding the team's closer. For the 1980 and 1981 seasons, Davis and Gossage formed a highly effective relief tandem, a pitching strategy that many teams have since adopted. On May 4, 1981, against the California Angels, Davis set a Yankees team record by striking out eight consecutive batters in a single game, which also stands as the record for most strikeouts by a relief pitcher in a single game for the Yankees. This record was later tied by Michael King on April 22, 2022. Davis was selected to the American League All-Star team in 1981, a testament to his performance during this period.

2.3. Minnesota Twins (1982-1986)

In April 1982, Davis was traded to the Minnesota Twins alongside Greg Gagne and Paul Boris in exchange for Roy Smalley. Among Twins fans, he earned the nickname "Boom-Boom" Davis. Despite consistently finishing among the top five in saves in the American League in three of his five seasons with the team, his name became synonymous with ineffective relief pitching for some Twins supporters. In 1984, he tied the MLB record for most blown saves in a single season with 14, a record that has not been surpassed since. His performance began to decline significantly in his final year with the Twins in 1986. After recording two saves in April, which would be the last of his career, he struggled in subsequent appearances. In one game against the California Angels, he hit the first batter he faced, loaded the bases, and then allowed the tying run to score on a wild pitch, ultimately surrendering a three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth to lose the game. In another instance against the Boston Red Sox, he entered in a save situation in the ninth inning, recorded two outs, but then loaded the bases before issuing a walk to force in the tying run, followed by hitting the next batter to force in the winning run. Following these struggles, Davis lost his closer's role and was traded to the Chicago Cubs mid-season.

2.4. Later MLB Career (1986-1988)

After being traded to the Chicago Cubs in mid-1986, Davis was used sparingly in relief roles for the remainder of his Major League career. He pitched briefly for the Cubs before moving to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1987, and then the San Francisco Giants in 1988. His appearances diminished considerably during these final years, marking the end of his prominent role in the Major Leagues.

2.5. Nippon Professional Baseball (1989)

In May 1989, Davis joined the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), taking over the closer role after Juan Eichelberger was released due to poor performance. He displayed a notable affinity for pitching against the Hanshin Tigers, achieving a strong record of two wins, one loss, and six saves with a 1.37 ERA over 19.2 innings in 12 games. However, his performance against other teams was less consistent, with two wins, four losses, and only one save, coupled with a 5.35 ERA over 37 innings in 24 games. Overall, he recorded a total of seven saves for the season and was released by the Swallows after just one year. His first appearance in NPB was on June 3, 1989, against the Chunichi Dragons. He secured his first NPB win on June 15, 1989, against the Hanshin Tigers, and his first save on June 20, 1989, also against the Tigers.

2.6. Retirement and Post-Playing Career

After his stint in Japanese baseball, Davis continued his professional playing career briefly. In 1990, he played for the Sun City Rays in the short-lived Senior Professional Baseball Association. He also played for the Columbus Clippers, which was the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees, in 1990. He officially retired from professional baseball after the 1990 season.

3. Pitching Style and Characteristics

Ron Davis was known for his distinctive sidearm delivery, a pitching motion where the arm slot is low, almost parallel to the ground. This delivery made his pitches difficult for batters to track. His repertoire of pitches included a slider, a forkball, a "rising fastball" (a fastball that appears to move upwards due to backspin), and a "sinking fastball" (a fastball that appears to move downwards).

4. Personal Life

Outside of his baseball career, Ron Davis maintained a strong connection to the sport through his family. His son, Ike Davis, became a professional baseball player himself, selected 18th overall by the New York Mets in the 2008 Major League Baseball draft. As a youth, Ike attended a five-day baseball fundamentals camp run by his father, and Ron coached Ike's little league team until Ike was 14 years old. Ron even pitched batting practice to his son during Ike's high school years. When Ike debuted in MLB for the Mets in April 2010, Ron and Ike became the 197th father-son combination to have both played in the major leagues.

Davis's son Ike, while playing for the New York Mets

During the 1981 Major League Baseball strike, Ron Davis worked as a waiter at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Kansas City. On July 18, 1981, the hotel experienced the Hyatt Regency walkway collapse, a catastrophic structural failure that resulted in 114 fatalities. Media outlets reported that Davis actively participated in the subsequent rescue efforts, assisting victims and emergency personnel.

5. Notable Incidents and Anecdotes

Ron Davis's career was marked by several unique incidents and personal characteristics. When he joined the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, he was assigned jersey number 27. This was notable because, after Hirofumi Negoro, Davis was the only non-catcher to wear number 27 for the Swallows (and the first non-catcher since Yukihiko Machida in the National Railways Swallows era). The number 27 was considered a "catcher's number" in Japan. The reason for Davis being assigned this number is unclear, especially since other numbers like 7, 13, 42, 50, and 69 were available, with 16 (Juan Eichelberger's former number) being intentionally avoided. Atsuya Furuta, a prominent catcher, succeeded Davis in wearing the number for the Swallows.

Despite his gentlemanly appearance, often sporting silver-rimmed glasses, Davis was a staunch supporter of his teammates. During a game against the Hanshin Tigers, when his teammate Larry Parrish was involved in a brawl following a beanball, Davis swiftly ran from the bullpen to the field to support him.

6. Career Statistics and Records

Ron Davis's career spanned 11 years in Major League Baseball and one season in Nippon Professional Baseball. His statistical achievements include his All-Star selection, setting a Yankees record for consecutive strikeouts, and tying an MLB record for blown saves.

6.1. Major League Baseball Statistics

Year	Team	G	W	L	SV	W-L%	BF	IP	H	HR	BB	IBB	HBP	SO	WP	BK	R	ER	ERA	WHIP
1978	NYY	4	0	0	0	----	12	2.1	3	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	4	3	11.57	2.57
1979	NYY	44	14	2	9	0.875	357	85.1	84	5	28	9	1	43	1	0	29	27	2.85	1.31
1980	NYY	53	9	3	7	0.750	544	131.0	121	9	32	3	5	65	5	1	50	43	2.95	1.17
1981	NYY	43	4	5	6	0.444	285	73.0	47	6	25	3	0	83	1	1	22	22	2.71	0.99
1982	MIN	63	3	9	22	0.250	458	106.0	106	16	47	12	1	89	5	1	53	52	4.42	1.44
1983	MIN	66	5	8	30	0.385	382	89.0	89	6	33	3	3	84	4	1	34	33	3.34	1.37
1984	MIN	64	7	11	29	0.389	364	83.0	79	11	41	9	2	74	8	0	44	42	4.55	1.45
1985	MIN	57	2	6	25	0.250	285	64.2	55	7	35	6	4	72	8	1	28	25	3.48	1.39
1986	MIN	36	2	6	2	0.250	198	38.2	55	7	29	8	4	30	4	0	42	39	9.08	2.17
1986	CHC	17	0	2	0	0.000	91	20.0	31	3	3	0	0	10	0	1	18	17	7.65	1.70
1986 totals		53	2	8	2	0.200	289	58.2	86	10	32	8	4	40	4	1	60	56	8.59	2.01
1987	CHC	21	0	0	0	----	144	32.1	43	8	12	1	0	31	1	2	23	21	5.85	1.70
1987	LAD	4	0	0	0	----	25	4.0	7	0	6	2	1	1	2	0	4	3	6.75	3.25
1987 totals		25	0	0	0	----	169	36.1	50	8	18	3	1	32	3	2	27	24	5.94	1.87
1988	SF	9	1	1	0	0.500	72	17.1	15	4	6	0	1	15	0	0	10	9	4.67	1.21
MLB Career (11 years)		481	47	53	130	0.470	3217	746.2	735	82	300	56	22	597	39	8	361	336	4.05	1.39

6.2. Nippon Professional Baseball Statistics

Year	Team	G	GS	CG	SHO	W	L	SV	W-L%	BF	IP	H	HR	BB	IBB	HBP	SO	WP	BK	R	ER	ERA	WHIP
1989	Yakult	36	0	0	0	4	5	7	0.444	249	56.2	57	3	31	6	4	34	0	1	26	25	3.97	1.55
NPB Career (1 year)		36	0	0	0	4	5	7	0.444	249	56.2	57	3	31	6	4	34	0	1	26	25	3.97	1.55

6.3. Key Records and Achievements

Selected to the MLB All-Star Game: 1 time (1981)
Yankees team record for most consecutive strikeouts in a single game (8 strikeouts on May 4, 1981), also the team record for most strikeouts by a relief pitcher in a single game.
Tied the MLB record for most blown saves in a single season (14 in 1984).

6.4. Jersey Numbers

53 (1978-1979)
39 (1979-1981, 1982-1987)
34 (1982)
54 (1987)
33 (1988)
27 (1989)