Ronald Dale Kittle (born January 5, 1958) is an American former
left fielder
In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...
and
designated hitter
The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. The position is authorized by Major League Baseball Rule 5.11. It was adopted by the American League in 1973 and later by th ...
in
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). He was known for his
home run
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 ...
hitting power, and was named the 1983
AL Rookie of the Year
In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is given annually to two outstanding rookie players, one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL), as voted on by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). The aw ...
. Kittle played for the
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...
(1982–86, 1989, 1991),
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
(1986–87),
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
(1988) and
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
(1990). He batted and threw right-handed. Kittle was also a manager for the minor league
Schaumburg Flyers
The Schaumburg Flyers were a professional baseball team based in Schaumburg, Illinois, in the United States. The Flyers were to be charter members of the North American League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, but the team fol ...
.
Career
A former steelworker who made his MLB debut at nearly 25 years old, Kittle was a popular player on the 1983 "
winning ugly" Chicago White Sox when they won 99 games and made their first playoff appearance since the
1959 World Series
The 1959 World Series featured the National League champion Los Angeles Dodgers beating the American League champion Chicago White Sox, 4–2. Each of the three games played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum drew record crowds, Game 5's atte ...
. That season, Kittle was selected an
All-Star and won
Rookie of the Year honors after hitting 35 home runs (club record for a rookie) and 100 RBI.
Kittle also hit 50 homers in the minor leagues with the
Edmonton Trappers
The Edmonton Trappers were a minor league baseball team in Edmonton, Alberta. They were a part of the Triple-A level in the Pacific Coast League, ending with the 2004 season. Their home games were played at Telus Field in downtown Edmonton.
The ...
and has his jersey retired in
Edmonton
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...
at
Telus Field
RE/MAX Field (formerly Edmonton Ballpark, and Telus Field) is a baseball stadium in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It has served as home to several minor league baseball clubs; its last affiliated tenant was the Edmonton Trappers, a AAA Pacific Coas ...
. He was voted winner of 1982's
Pacific Coast League Most Valuable Player Award
The Pacific Coast League Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual award given to the best player in Minor League Baseball's Pacific Coast League based on their regular-season performance as voted on by league managers. From 1932 to 1947, the ...
.
Kittle maintained his home run power, but after 1983 his
batting average
Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic.
Cricket
In cricket, a player's batting average is ...
declined and his
strikeout
In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...
s increased. Kittle left the White Sox after 1986 and played part of 1986 and all of 1987 with the New York Yankees. Kittle then played 1988 with the Indians. He briefly returned again to the White Sox in
1990
File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
, sharing playing time at
first base
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 ...
with
Carlos Martínez.
["Kittle rips trade to Baltimore," ''United Press International'' (UPI), Monday, July 30, 1990.](_blank)
Retrieved December 7, 2021 He batted .245 with 16 homers and 43
RBI but struck out 77 times in 277
at-bat
In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a bat ...
s through the first four months of that season.
[Sheinin, Dave. "Orioles Strike Deal Bradley Traded for Kittle," ''The Washington Post'', Tuesday, July 31, 1990.](_blank)
Retrieved December 7, 2021
Kittle was acquired by the
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
from the White Sox for
Phil Bradley
Philip Poole Bradley (born March 11, 1959), is an American former professional baseball outfielder / designated hitter who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the American League (AL) Seattle Mariners, Baltimore Orioles, and Chicago White S ...
on July 30, 1990.
He was resentful of the trade which brought forth the possibility of
Frank Thomas being promoted from the minors.
In need of a right-handed power hitter, the Orioles received a player with a $550,000 salary as opposed to the $1.15 million that Bradley was earning. Baltimore general manager
Roland Hemond
Roland A. Hemond (October 26, 1929 – December 12, 2021) was an American professional baseball executive who worked in Major League Baseball. He served as the scouting director of the California Angels, general manager of the Chicago White Sox ...
was criticized by the ''
Daily Press'' for bringing on too many ex-White Sox like Kittle,
Greg Walker,
Kevin Hickey
Kevin John Hickey (February 25, 1956 – May 16, 2012) was an American left-handed pitcher who spent six seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Chicago White Sox (1981–1983) and Baltimore Orioles (1989–1991). It was with the White S ...
,
Tim Hulett and
Dave Gallagher
David Thomas Gallagher (born September 20, 1960) is an American former professional baseball journeyman outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for seven teams, during his nine-year big league career (–).
Early life
Gallagher w ...
. He became a free agent again in the off-season when the Orioles, who had earlier signed
Dwight Evans Dwight Evans may refer to:
* Dwight Evans (baseball) (born 1951), American former baseball player
* Dwight Evans (politician) (born 1954), American politician
{{hndis, Evans, Dwight ...
, elected not to exercise the option on his contract on December 15, 1990.
"Orioles choose not to exercise opion on Kittle's contract," ''United Press International'' (UPI), Saturday, December 15, 1990.
Retrieved December 7, 2021
He returned to the White Sox again and finished his career in Chicago in . Kittle appeared in 843 games over the course of his 10–year MLB career. He recorded 176 home runs and 460 runs batted in.
Managerial career
In 1998, Kittle was hired as the first manager of the non-affiliated minor league Schaumburg Flyers
The Schaumburg Flyers were a professional baseball team based in Schaumburg, Illinois, in the United States. The Flyers were to be charter members of the North American League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, but the team fol ...
of the Northern League. During the early years of the Flyers franchise, Kittle did a series of TV commercials to promote the team, using the gimmick " Ma Kittle," where he played both himself and his "Ma Kittle." The ads were successful at sparking some initial interest in the team as the Flyers hoped to steal away fans from the nearby Kane County Cougars
The Kane County Cougars are an independent professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play their ho ...
, then a Florida Marlins
The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park.
The franc ...
Class A team. The ad mimicked the highly successful Converse
Converse may refer to:
Mathematics and logic
* Converse (logic), the result of reversing the two parts of a definite or implicational statement
** Converse implication, the converse of a material implication
** Converse nonimplication, a logical c ...
ads where Larry Johnson starred as both himself and "Grandmama." Kittle resigned his position in 2001.
Personal life
Kittle was married from 1984 until 2010 and has two children.
Kittle's memoirs, ''Ron Kittle's Tales from the White Sox Dugout'', was published in 2005. Co-written with Bob Logan, who also co-wrote Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...
's book ''Come Fly with Me'', the book features anecdotes from Kittle's time as a major leaguer, mostly with the White Sox.
Kittle builds custom collectible benches out of baseballs, bats and bases. He also works in public relations for the White Sox.
References
External links
Ron Kittle's website
Ron Kittle's Celebrity Annual Golf Outing website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kittle, Ron
1958 births
Living people
American expatriate baseball players in Canada
American League All-Stars
Appleton Foxes players
Baltimore Orioles players
Baseball players from Gary, Indiana
Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players
Chicago White Sox players
Cleveland Indians players
Columbus Clippers players
Clinton Dodgers players
Edmonton Trappers players
Glens Falls White Sox players
Knoxville Sox players
Lethbridge Dodgers players
Major League Baseball designated hitters
Major League Baseball left fielders
Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award winners
New York Yankees players
Northern League (baseball, 1993–2010) managers
People from Chesterton, Indiana
People from Valparaiso, Indiana
Pacific Coast League MVP award winners
Vancouver Canadians players