Ron Villone – Updated December 2023

Ron Villone is a retired MLB left-handed relief pitcher and current United States minor league coach. In his 12-team career, Ron Villone ranks third all-time, trailing only Octavio Dotel and Edwin Jackson, pitcher Mike Morgan and outfielder Matt Stairs.

Early life

Ronald Thomas Villone Jr, better known as Ron Villone, was born in January 16, 1970, in Englewood, New Jersey, United States of America. According to his date of birth, Ron is 52 years and has an American nationality.

He has the birth sign of Capricorn and his ethnicity is unknown. Apart from this, there is no more information about his parents, siblings, and his childhood life. Looking at his successful career, we can assume that his parents raised him well when he was a child.

College career

Talking about his academic career, he attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was a star in two sports: baseball and football. When he was a football player, he excelled as a tight end.

He was chosen to the 1990 Yankee Conference All-Tight Ends First Team. On the pitcher’s mound, he was naturally at his best. He won the Atlantic-10 Left-Handed Pitcher of the Year award in 1991.

Not only did he pitch for Team USA at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics but he was also selected to the All-American Third Team after striking out 89 batters in just 591 innings.

Professional life

Seattle Mariners

The Seattle Mariners selected Ron Villone in the first round of the 1992 Major League Baseball Draft, 14th overall. He improved his negotiating position while playing for the Bourne Braves of the Cape Cod Baseball League. The Mariners optioned him to Riverside, their Advanced-A affiliate at the time, in 1993. He pitched 831⁄3 innings, allowing 74 hits, 62 walks and 82 strikeouts.

While in Jacksonville, his walks per nine innings pitched, as well as his walks and hits allowed per inning pitched, decreased. However, he averaged more than one strikeout in each inning and his strikeouts per nine innings pitched increased to 9.33. He remained in Jacksonville through the 1994 season, going 6-7 with a 3.86 ERA.

He pitched 79 1⁄3 innings in 41 games, striking out 43, walking only 19 and allowing 56 hits. Additionally, he made eight saves in 1994 despite not being the primary closer. Due to his outstanding 1994 season, Seattle promoted him to their AAA affiliate, Tacoma, beginning with the 1995 season.

On April 28, 1995, he pitched a scoreless ninth inning in his major league debut. He struck out Tigers pitcher Travis Fryman for the first time in his career during that inning. In 1994, he saved 13 games and hit 43 batters in 22 outings as the Seattle Mariners’ primary closer.

San Diego Padres

On July 31, 1995, Mariners General Manager at the time, Woody Woodward, traded Greg Keagle and Andy Benes to San Diego in a trade for Ron and Marc Newfield. The remainder of the season was spent with the Padres, where Ron went 2-1 with a 4.21 ERA.

He pitched 252⁄3 innings, allowing 24 hits, 11 walks and 37 strikeouts. He began the 1996 season with Las Vegas, San Diego’s AAA affiliate. San Diego called him up after seeing that he had the potential to be dominant.

With the Padres, he was just as effective, going 1-1 in 21 games with a 2.95 ERA. During his 181⁄3 innings of pitching, he had 17 hits, 7 walks and 19 strikeouts.

Milwaukee Brewers

Ron Villone was traded by the San Diego Padres to the Milwaukee Brewers on July 31, 1996. He pitched in 23 games for the Brewers, going 1-0 with a 3.28 ERA. He remained in the majors through the 1997 season, pitching in 50 games and allowing 54 hits and 36 walks. For the second year in a row, he averaged less than a strikeout per inning pitched.

Cleveland Indians

He once again had to leave home on December 8, 1997, when Milwaukee traded him, Ben McDonald and Mike Fetters to Cleveland. They had moved him for the third year in a row, but this was the first time they hadn’t moved him mid-season.

Ron had a difficult 1998, especially since he spent his time between the major league team and Buffalo (Cleveland’s AAA affiliate). In Buffalo, where he made 23 appearances, he went 2-2 with a 2.01 ERA. Furthermore, he allowed 30 hits and his clean batting average was 6.00. On April 2, 1999, the Indians freed him.

Cincinnati Reds

He was signed by the Cincinnati Reds three days later and began pitching again as a starter/long reliever. In 1999, he pitched in 29 games (22 starts) pitching 142⁄3 innings. In 2000, he wasn’t as effective, but managed a 10-10 record.

Colorado Rockies and Houston Astros

He was traded to the Colorado Rockies on November 8, 2000, in exchange for Justin Carter and Jeff Taglienti. Additionally, he had a 1-3 record and a 6.36 ERA as a starter and long reliever. He pitched 462⁄3 innings in 22 games (6 starts), allowing 56 hits, 29 walks and 48 strikeouts.

Subtitle: Ron Villone pitching for his club in a game (Source: Zimbio)

In addition, he was traded five times, the last time on June 27, 2001. This time he was sent to the Houston Astros in exchange for Jay Powell. He continued to struggle, going 5-7 with a 5.56 ERA.

On the Astros pitching staff, he continued to be a long reliever and starter. He allowed 77 hits in 68 innings, but his walk total dropped to 24 and he struck out 65 batters. On November 5, 2001 he gained free agency.

Pittsburgh Pirates and Arizona Diamondbacks

He signed a one-year contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates on February 16, 2002. Additionally, he had a 4-6 record and a 5.81 ERA with the Pirates. He pitched 93 innings in 45 games (seven starts), allowing 95 hits, 34 walks and 55 strikeouts.

On October 29, 2002, he was granted free agency. He landed a minor league contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks five months later. They sent him to Tucson, one of their AAA affiliates. Ron had a 1-1 record and a 3.55 ERA while in Tucson.

However, he was tasked with pitching solely out of the bullpen. In 251⁄3 innings, he struck out 22 batters and allowed 20 hits and 12 walks. He was discharged on May 15, 2003, despite his limited achievements.

Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners

Ron Villone signed a one-year contract to join the Astros on May 19, 2003. Additionally, he was given the AAA New Orleans job. He was promoted to the major leagues after posting a 3-1 record with a 1.23 ERA in 5 starts (291⁄3 innings), where he had a 6-6 record and a 4.13 ERA.

With the Astros, all 19 appearances were starts, for a total of 1,062 3 innings. He had 91 strikeouts, 48 ​​walks and a total of 91 hits. Later, he decided to test the free agent market once again on November 2, 2003. The Mariners offered him a one-year contract. With them, Ron had a good season, finishing 8-6 with a 4.08 clean performance average.

At the end of the season his contract expired and he once again declared himself free to sign with whoever he wanted. On December 19, 2004 he signed a new one-year contract with the Mariners. Ron had a 2005 record of 2-3 with a 2.45 ERA.

New York Yankees and other clubs

Likewise, Ron Villone signed a contract with the New York Yankees on February 13, 2007. Ron was offered the opportunity to compete for a spot in the Yankees’ bullpen during spring training in 2007, but was stopped by Sean Henn. won the last vacancy. But in mid-May they called him again.

He was later signed by the St.Louis Cardinals in 2008 and was invited to spring training. He was a member of the Opening Day roster after training camp. On February 27, 2009 he signed with the New York Mets and was invited to spring training. He was released on March 27 as he did not make the team. He subsequently signed a deal with the Washington Nationals on April 10 and was assigned to Triple-A Syracuse.

coaching career

In 2012, Ron Villone was hired as pitching coach for the Peoria Chiefs’ Single-A affiliate. He spent the 2013 season as pitching coach for the Cubs’ new Single-A club, the Kane County Cougars, which was announced in December 2012.

Additionally, he spent many seasons as the pitching coach for the Daytona Cubs of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League after being elevated to that position in December 2013. He is the Triple-A pitching coach for the Iowa Cubs. starting in 2021.

Awards and Net Worth 2023

As a retired baseball player and coach, Ron Villone has gained a large following. Playing for so many years and spending time on the baseball field, he has yet to earn any major awards or recognition.

Playing in several franchises and training in several, he has collected a good sum of money in his profession. As of 2022, his net worth is estimated to be around $6 million.

civil status

Caption: Ron Villone with his wife Brooke (Source: Ellwood City Ledger)

He is a married man and married his wife, Brooke, in 2004. With the marriage, the couple has three children, whose names are Megan, Ronald Thomas III, and Sofia Francesca. Furthermore, his wife also appeared on the VH1 reality show. Baseball Wives,” which premiered in 2011.

Ron Villone – Body Measurement

Player Ron Villone is 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighs around 104 kg. Furthermore, he has brown eyes with black hair and there is no other information about the other body statistics of him.

Ron Villone – Social Networks

At the moment, this former baseball player and coach is not active on social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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