Ron Davis – Baseball Player Biography, Career, Net Worth Information

Ron Davis put together an 11-year run in Major League Baseball as a relief pitcher, playing from 1978 until he hung up his cleats in 1988. At 6-foot-4, Davis threw hard and built a reputation as both a closer and a setup man during that golden era of specialized bullpen roles.

He played for five different big league teams—New York Yankees, Minnesota Twins, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, and San Francisco Giants. Davis racked up 130 saves and even made the All-Star team in 1981. His stats paint a picture of a guy who could be lights-out or volatile: he finished with a 47-53 record and a 4.05 ERA in 481 games.

The Houston native saw both the highs and lows that defined relief pitching in the 1980s. He set Yankees strikeout records, but also became infamous for blown saves in Minnesota. Davis really lived through the pressure cooker that is closing games in pro baseball.

Early Life and Background

Ronald Gene Davis was born August 6, 1955, in Houston, Texas. He found his love for baseball early on and kept chasing it through his college days at Blinn College, where he sharpened the skills that eventually took him to the majors.

Childhood and Education

Davis grew up in Houston during the 1960s and early ’70s. The city’s baseball scene gave him the perfect place to develop as a young player.

Even as a kid, Davis showed real promise on the field. By his teens, his athletic ability was obvious. He pitched for his high school team, and his coaches quickly picked up on his potential.

Standing at 6’4″, Davis really stood out on the mound. That height gave him a natural edge when he pitched. It helped make him a top prospect for college programs.

While he worked on his pitching, Davis kept up with his schoolwork too. Like a lot of young athletes, he had to juggle classes and baseball. His family backed him up, making sure he didn’t lose sight of his studies.

Blinn College Baseball Career

Davis took his game to Blinn College in Brenham, Texas, where he played college ball. Blinn’s got a solid baseball tradition, and that competitive environment helped Davis grow as a pitcher.

At Blinn, Davis focused on refining his stuff as a right-hander. The coaches there worked with him on his mechanics, fastball velocity, and control.

His college performance caught the eye of MLB scouts. The Chicago Cubs ended up drafting him while he was still getting better at Blinn. That draft pick was a real sign his hard work was paying off.

College ball taught Davis a lot about competition, teamwork, and sticking with it. Those lessons stuck with him throughout his 11 years in the majors.

MLB Debut and Early Career

Ron Davis started his pro journey when the Chicago Cubs picked him in the third round of the 1976 draft. But he actually made his big league debut with the New York Yankees in 1978. A trade changed his path and set him up to become a relief pitcher.

Draft by Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs grabbed Davis in the third round of the 1976 draft, 56th overall. He was just 20, still playing at Blinn College.

The Cubs saw real potential in the tall righty from Houston. Davis spent some time developing in their minor league system.

His stint with the Cubs didn’t last long, though. They decided to trade him before he could make a real mark in their system.

That early time with Chicago set the stage for his pro career. The Cubs’ scouts clearly liked his talent, but the organization had other plans.

Trade to New York Yankees

In 1978, the Cubs traded Davis to the Yankees while he was still in the minors. That move turned out to be a huge shift in his career.

The Yankees saw something they liked and brought him up to the majors pretty quickly.

Davis made his MLB debut on July 29, 1978, for the Yankees at age 22. That was the start of his 11-year big league career.

Landing in New York gave Davis a better shot at developing his game. The Yankees had a reputation for building up pitchers back then.

He showed promise in his first outings with the Yankees. Their coaches worked with him to sharpen his skills and figure out his role.

Transition to Relief Pitcher

Davis turned into a hard-throwing righty out of the bullpen for the Yankees. His size and power made him a good fit for relief work.

When All-Star reliever Rich Gossage got hurt in a fight with a teammate, the Yankees used Davis as their closer.

He also helped pioneer the middle-inning “set-up” role that’s now a staple in baseball.

In 1980 and 1981, Davis and Gossage were a tough relief duo. That setup became a blueprint for other teams.

The move to relief pitching worked out for Davis. He pitched in 481 games, all in relief, and totaled 130 saves in his career.

New York Yankees Tenure

Davis really made his mark as a relief pitcher with the Yankees from 1978 to 1981. He set records, became an All-Star, and shifted from middle reliever to closer, helping the team in the postseason.

Set-Up Role and Closer Duties

The Yankees brought Davis in through a trade with the Cubs for Ken Holtzman in June 1978. They switched him from starting to relief pitching right away.

His breakout year came in 1979, when he went 14-2 with a 2.85 ERA. Davis broke the American League record for rookie relief pitcher wins, notching 14 and passing Wilcy Moore’s 1927 mark.

At first, Davis worked as a setup guy and long reliever while Gossage was injured. When Gossage returned, Davis shifted roles as needed.

His sidearm delivery made him tough on both righties and lefties. He put up strong stats for the Yankees, especially in big spots.

1981 All-Star Selection

Davis made the All-Star team in 1981 with the Yankees. That season, he’d proved himself as one of the league’s steadiest relievers.

That All-Star nod was probably the high point of his career. By then, Davis had become a reliable piece of the Yankees bullpen.

His selection showed just how important he was to the team’s pitching staff in the early ’80s. Manager Billy Martin valued Davis’s ability to pitch multiple innings or close games.

Yankees Strikeout Record

Davis earned a reputation for striking guys out while playing for the Yankees. His fastball and tricky sidearm delivery led to a lot of swings and misses.

He often ranked among the Yankees’ best in strikeouts per nine innings for relievers. Those numbers stood out, since he split time between setup and closing.

His fastball-slider combo worked well against American League hitters. Davis’s strikeouts were a big part of the Yankees’ pitching strength during his four years there.

Postseason Performances

Davis pitched in several postseason games while with the Yankees. He helped the team in late-inning spots during their playoff runs in the late ’70s and early ’80s.

He got experience in both the ALCS and the World Series. Davis handled the pressure of October baseball pretty well for New York.

The Yankees leaned on him to bridge the gap between starters and Gossage, especially when both were healthy. His playoff work fit right in with the Yankees’ championship tradition back then.

Minnesota Twins Era

Davis’s time with the Minnesota Twins from 1982 to 1986 was, well, pretty rough. He struggled on the mound, blew some high-profile saves, and drew a lot of heat from fans.

Trade Details and Expectations

In April 1982, the Twins picked up Davis from the Yankees in a big trade. The deal sent Roy Smalley to New York, and Minnesota got Davis, Greg Gagne, and Paul Boris.

Davis arrived in Minnesota with strong credentials from his Yankees days. He actually held the team record for most consecutive strikeouts in a game—eight, set on May 4, 1981, against the Angels. The Twins hoped he’d anchor their bullpen as the main closer.

On paper, the trade looked like a win. Davis had the All-Star nod and a knack for strikeouts. Minnesota counted on his velocity to bring stability to their late innings.

Performance and Blown Saves Record

Things didn’t go as planned for Davis in Minnesota. Between 1984 and 1986, he posted a staggering -6.6 Win Probability Added (WPA), which really hurt the team’s chances to win.

His worst stretch came in 1985. Through the first 62 games, he was 1-4 with six saves and an ERA near 6.00. He just couldn’t get it done in big moments.

He managed to improve a bit later on. In his last 100 outings, Davis went 1-1 with 19 saves and dropped his ERA to 3.48. Still, his reputation had already taken a serious hit.

Notable Games and Fan Perception

Fans in Minnesota started calling Davis the worst reliever in Twins history. He just couldn’t finish games when it mattered, and frustration boiled over in the stands and clubhouse.

One oddball thing about Davis—he liked singing “Jimmy Crack Corn.” That quirk became part of his image with the team. When the Twins finally traded him to the Cubs in 1986, Kirby Puckett led the guys in singing the tune as a send-off.

May 13, 1985, stands out as a particularly bad day for Davis, when both he and Met Stadium seemed to fall apart. Performances like that really defined his Minnesota stint.

Departure from the Twins

The Twins traded Davis to the Cubs during the 1986 season. Honestly, it was a relief for everyone—fans and the organization alike.

That trade closed the book on one of the toughest bullpen chapters in Twins history. Davis and the team both needed a fresh start.

The Cubs gave Davis a chance to get away from the constant criticism in Minnesota. He spent four and a half seasons with the Twins, but just couldn’t live up to the expectations that came with the original trade.

Later MLB Career and Retirement

Ron Davis’s last years in Major League Baseball were a bit of a slog. After losing his closer job with the Twins in 1986, he bounced around three National League teams before calling it quits in 1988.

Chicago Cubs Period

Davis joined the Cubs in mid-1986 after Minnesota sent him packing. The Cubs hoped he’d steady their bullpen.

Things didn’t really work out in Chicago. Davis rarely got used in big spots and never found his old form. The Cubs kept him around through 1987, but he wasn’t trusted in tight games anymore.

He pitched in a handful of games for the Cubs. His numbers stayed shaky, and he didn’t notch any saves during his time there. Eventually, the team decided to move on from the veteran pitcher.

Stints with Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants

In 1987, Davis joined the Los Angeles Dodgers, looking for a fresh start in the National League. His stint with the Dodgers didn’t last long and, honestly, not much happened.

He only played in a few games and just couldn’t get comfortable on the mound. The Dodgers let him go before the season wrapped up.

Davis didn’t waste time—he signed with the San Francisco Giants almost right away. Another shot, another city, but the same troubles followed him.

He kept struggling with the Giants too. Davis played his final MLB game on September 24, 1988.

By then, everyone could see his career was winding down. The Giants didn’t offer him a contract after that season.

Retirement from MLB in 1988

After the 1988 season, Davis called it a career and retired from Major League Baseball. He spent 11 years in the big leagues, pitching 481 games—all in relief.

He finished with 47 wins, 53 losses, and a 4.05 ERA. Davis racked up 130 career saves and struck out 597 batters.

Sure, the last few years were rough, but during his best days with the Yankees and Twins, he really got the job done. After MLB, Davis wasn’t quite finished with baseball.

He played for the Sun City Rays in 1990, part of the short-lived Senior Professional Baseball Association. That gave him one last chance to play before he finally hung up his cleats for good.

Legacy and Personal Life

Ron Davis left behind a complicated legacy—part trailblazer for relief pitchers, part reminder of how tough blown saves can be. After baseball, he dabbled in a few ventures, but what meant the most to him was seeing his son Ike make it to the majors too.

Reputation in MLB History

Ronald Gene Davis carved out a unique spot in baseball history as one of the first pitchers used only as a middle-inning setup man. In 1980 and 1981, he teamed up with Rich Gossage, and together they shaped a pitching strategy that teams still use.

Davis set a couple of Yankees records that show what he could do. On May 4, 1981, he struck out eight batters in a row against the California Angels.

That gave him the Yankees’ record for consecutive strikeouts and the most strikeouts by a reliever in one game. Still, his time with the Twins really changed how fans saw him.

Twins fans started calling him “Boom-Boom” Davis because of his struggles in save situations. In 1984, he tied the record for most blown saves in a single season—14.

Nobody’s broken that record since. Even though he finished in the top five for saves three times with Minnesota, people mostly remember the blown saves.

Life After Baseball

Davis didn’t stop playing right after MLB. In 1989, he went to Japan and pitched for the Yakult Swallows.

He finished his single season in Nippon Professional Baseball with a 4-5 record, a 3.97 ERA, and seven saves. Then Davis came back to the U.S. and played for the Sun City Rays in 1990.

That league didn’t last, but it gave older players a shot to keep playing. Later on, Davis turned his focus to youth baseball.

He ran a five-day fundamentals camp for kids ages 5-14. The camp aimed to teach basic skills and proper techniques—just the essentials for young ballplayers.

Family and Ike Davis

Ron Davis might say his greatest legacy is his son, Ike Davis, who the New York Mets picked 18th overall in the 2008 MLB draft.

Ron coached Ike in little league until he turned 14, and he even threw him batting practice back in high school.

As a kid, Ike went to his dad’s youth baseball camp, picking up fundamentals from Ron and the other instructors.

That early hands-on training definitely shaped Ike as a player.

In April 2010, Ike made his MLB debut with the Mets.

Father and son became the 197th duo to both play in the major leagues.

Ron felt a deep pride watching his son make it to the majors, and honestly, it must have felt like a full-circle moment in his own baseball journey.

He stayed involved in Ike’s career, always offering guidance and support as Ike moved through the professional ranks.