Ronald Roy Stillwell (December 3, 1939 – January 25, 2016) was an American

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), ...

player who played parts of two seasons for the Washington Senators. A

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists who ...

, he batted and threw

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

, stood tall and weighed . Stillwell also help build the baseball programs at

Thousand Oaks High School Thousand Oaks High School (TOHS) is a high school in Thousand Oaks, California, United States. Established in 1962, it is part of the Conejo Valley Unified School District. It has a suburban campus with one story buildings primarily accessed by co ...

Moorpark College Moorpark College is a public community college in Moorpark, California. It was established in 1967 with enrollment of 2,500 students and enrolled 14,254 students in 2014. An Exotic Animal Training and Management center houses over 200 animals o ...

and

California Lutheran University California Lutheran University (CLU, Cal Lutheran, or Cal Lu) is a private university in Thousand Oaks, California. It was founded in 1959 and is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, but is nonsectarian. It opened in 1960 ...

. As a player, he played shortstop at

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

(USC) and captained its 1961 national championship team. A week after graduating, he signed a contract with Major League Baseball’s Washington Senators. His MLB career was limited to fourteen games. Born in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, Stillwell attended

John Burroughs High School John Burroughs High School is a public high school located in Burbank, in Los Angeles County. It is known for its notable alumni, and being the filming location for many television shows. History The school was built in the 1920s, but was n ...

Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank has a population of 107,337. The city was named after David Burbank, w ...

and the

, where he co-captained the national champion 1961

USC Trojans The USC Trojans are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC), located in Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ' ...

varsity baseball team. He was signed by the Senators as an amateur

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

during the season—the inaugural season of that incarnation of the Senators—and made his big league debut on July 3 against the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

Griffith Stadium Griffith Stadium stood in Washington, D.C., from 1911 to 1965, between Georgia Avenue and 5th Street (left field), and between W Street and Florida Avenue NW. The site was once home to a wooden baseball park. Built in 1891, it was called Bounda ...

. Starting at shortstop in back-to-back games, both Washington victories, he collected one

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from ''Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization in ...

in eight total

at bats 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 batt ...

, a

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * Th ...

off

Don Schwall Donald Bernard Schwall (born March 2, 1936) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher for the Boston Red Sox (1961–62), Pittsburgh Pirates (1963–66) and Atlanta Braves (19 ...

. That was Stillwell's only MLB

extra-base hit In baseball, an extra-base hit (EB, EBH or XBH), also known as a long hit, is any base hit on which the batter is able to advance past first base without the benefit of a fielder either committing an error or opting to make a throw to retire anot ...

in 38 at bats and 42

plate appearances In baseball statistics, a player is credited with a plate appearance (denoted by PA) each time he completes a turn batting. Under Rule 5.04(c) of the Official Baseball Rules, a player completes a turn batting when he is put out or becomes a runner ...

. He notched three

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

. Stilwell retired after five

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

seasons in 1965. He became a teacher, and was baseball coach at

and

. He died of cancer on January 25, 2016. His son, Kurt, had a nine-season MLB career.

Early life

Stillwell attended

Burbank Burbank may refer to: Places Australia * Burbank, Queensland, a suburb in Brisbane United States * Burbank, California, a city in Los Angeles County * Burbank, Santa Clara County, California, a census-designated place * Burbank, Illinois, ...

, where he was student body president and played both basketball and baseball. He graduated in 1957. His high school career included being selected to the All Foothill League team as a shortstop in baseball and guard in basketball.

Playing career

He graduated with a BA from the

(USC) in 1961, the same university where he received his MA in 1967. During his time as a

Trojan Trojan or Trojans may refer to: * Of or from the ancient city of Troy * Trojan language, the language of the historical Trojans Arts and entertainment Music * ''Les Troyens'' ('The Trojans'), an opera by Berlioz, premiered part 1863, part 1890 ...

at USC, he was awarded the Wills Hunter Award for best GPA of a USC athlete. He was an All PAC in shortstop and captained the 1961 NCAA Championship team. A week after graduation, at age 21, he signed a contract with the Washington Senators. Stillwell played parts of two seasons with the Washington Senators. His career was cut short due to a collision during a game.Maulhardt, Jeffrey Wayne (2007). ''Baseball in Ventura County''. Arcadia Publishing. Page 107. .

Coaching career

Thousand Oaks High School

He began a 25-year career in the Conejo Valley School District in 1965, coaching varsity baseball, freshman basketball and cross country at

. He was hired in 1964 when the school still was part of the

Oxnard Union High School District The Oxnard Union High School District (OUHSD) is a union high school district in Ventura County, California. The district serves students in grades 9–12 on the Oxnard Plain, including the cities of Oxnard, California, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Cali ...

. He taught at Thousand Oaks High for 33 years, coaching for 25. Stillwell also taught physical education at Thousand Oaks High School for over twenty-five years.

California Lutheran University

While still a teacher at Thousand Oaks High School, Stillwell was hired by Robert Shoup and became the head baseball coach at

in 1972, where he remained until 1978. He had a record 139-100-1 (.581) at Cal Lutheran and was named the 1976 NAIA Coach of the Year.

Moorpark College

Stillwell was a walk-on coach at

from 1985-1989. He resigned as baseball coach in his fifth season for Moorpark College in 1989.

Personal life

Ron and his wife Jan had three children, Scott, Rod and Kurt. Kurt played nine seasons in Major League Baseball, his best being 1988 when he was selected to the American League All-Star Team. He was the second pick for the 1983 amateur draft by the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

. Stillwell’s younger son, Rod, named after

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

baseball coach

Rod Dedeaux Raoul Martial "Rod" Dedeaux (February 17, 1914 – January 5, 2006) was an American college baseball coach who compiled what is widely recognized as among the greatest records of any coach in the sport's Amateur baseball in the United States, amat ...

, played college ball at Arkansas and advanced to the

College World Series The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is an annual baseball tournament held in June in Omaha, Nebraska. The MCWS is the culmination of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divisi ...

in 1989. He was drafted by the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stillwell, Ron 1939 births 2016 deaths Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from Los Angeles Cal Lutheran Kingsmen baseball coaches Charlotte Hornets (baseball) players Deaths from cancer in California Denver Bears players Major League Baseball infielders Richmond Virginians (minor league) players Sportspeople from Ventura County, California Syracuse Chiefs players USC Trojans baseball players Washington Senators (1961–1971) players York White Roses players