Ronnie Dwayne Gideon (born January 13, 1964) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. He is the first base coach for the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB).

Career

In his playing days (1984–90), Gideon was a

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

and

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

in the

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

organizations of the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

and

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

. He batted .250 over his career—slugging 25

home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

in his best season, 1987 with the Class A

Lynchburg Mets Lynchburg is a toponym that may refer to: *Lynchburg, California *Lynchburg, Mississippi *Lynchburg, Missouri *Lynchburg, North Dakota *Lynchburg, Ohio (in Clinton and Highland counties) *Lynchburg, Columbiana County, Ohio *Lynchburg, South Carolina ...

—and losing four of five decisions with an

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

of 2.97 on the mound. He threw and batted left-handed, standing tall and weighing . Gideon became a coach and instructor in the Mets' system after his retirement as a player, and managed in the minor leagues from 1993 to 2005, joining the Rockies' system in 1996. He managed at every level but Triple-A before moving to the field coordinator of instruction post for the Rockies in 2006. On May 29, 2009, Gideon was also named manager of the

Tulsa Drillers The Tulsa Drillers are a minor league baseball team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers major-league club. Stadium The Drillers play at ONEOK Field (pronounc ...

of the Double-A

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

, part of a chain reaction of promotions in the Rockies' organization that followed the firing of Colorado pilot

Clint Hurdle Clinton Merrick Hurdle (born July 30, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) outfielder and manager. Hurdle played for the Kansas City Royals, Cincinnati Reds, New York Mets, and St. Louis Cardinals, and managed the Colorado Rock ...

. Hurdle was replaced by Jim Tracy as Colorado's MLB manager, Triple-A skipper

Tom Runnells Thomas William Runnells (born April 17, 1955) is an American former infielder, coach and manager in Major League Baseball. Biography Runnells attended the University of Northern Colorado and originally signed with the San Francisco Giants. He pla ...

became Tracy's bench coach, Tulsa manager Stu Cole took over Runnells'

Colorado Springs Sky Sox The Colorado Springs Sky Sox were a Minor League Baseball team in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The team played in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and was the Triple-A affiliate of the major league Milwaukee Brewers (2015–2018), Colorado Rockie ...

, and Gideon took the reins in Tulsa. During the 2010 baseball season, Gideon continued to hold the twin posts of Tulsa manager and field coordinator, but was strictly the Rockies' field coordinator in 2011–12. In 2013, he was named the "development supervisor " of the Rockies' Short Season-A affiliate, the

Tri-City Dust Devils The Tri-City Dust Devils are a Minor League Baseball team in the northwest United States, based in Pasco, Washington. The Dust Devils are members of the Northwest League and are affiliated with the Los Angeles Angels. Tri-City plays their home gam ...

. In February 2013, the Rockies announced an innovation to their

system, appointing a development supervisor at all levels of their organization; Gideon's role as player development supervisor was to "work with the manager, staffs and players to make sure that the Rockies' development philosophies are being carried out and communication and team building take place." Gideon was promoted to the major league coaching staff in 2017. He became the Rockies first base coach prior to the 2019 season.

Personal life

Gideon now lives in

Hallsville, Texas Hallsville is a city in Harrison County, Texas, United States, located west of the county seat, Marshall, on U.S. Highway 80. The population was 3,577 at the 2010 census, up from 2,772 at the 2000 census. The 2020 census revealed that Hallsvi ...

with his family. He has been married to his wife Kim since 1986. He has 3 children, Shelby Dawson married to Kevin, Bailey Benge married to Dylan, and Ronnie Jr. married to Mikayla. He has 6 grandchildren: Luke, Katie, Brooklyn,Baylor, Blakely and Owen.

References

External links

Colorado Rockies coaching bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gideon, Ron 1964 births Living people Asheville Tourists managers Baseball coaches from Texas Baseball players from Texas Bend Phillies players Colorado Rockies executives Colorado Rockies (baseball) coaches Jackson Mets players Lynchburg Mets players Major League Baseball first base coaches Minor league baseball coaches Panola Ponies baseball players Peninsula Pilots players People from Hallsville, Texas People from Tyler, Texas St. Lucie Mets players