Ultimate Mets Database - Memories of Ron Hodges

Dan
Here's a memory from "The Dark Ages": 1980, second game of a doubleheader up in Montreal. WOR did not televise the second game, so I was listening to it on the radio. Tim Raines on first, Craig Swan on the mound, and Bob Murphy's call went something like this: "Swan delivers. . .Raines is off. . .Hodges comes up throwing. . .oh! The throw hit Swan in the back! Raines is safe at second and Craig Swan is on the ground in pain. Ron Hodges just plunked Craig Swan in the back trying to throw Tim Raines out at 2nd base! I've never seen anything like that!" None of us did, Murph.

Mr. Sparkle
I remember after the Mets traded Duffy Dyer management said that Ron would remain their 3rd string catcher and that they were looking for a good number two behind Grote. How bad do you have to be to be third out of two?! He sucked. How did he stay on the team so long? When he was finally cut he was surprised that no other team was interested in his services. What a pisser!

Andy S.
I remember in the mid 70s the Post or News published their annual mid year team report card. He was the only player to receive an "F" with the editorial comment "Class Clown." I guess it just shows being a left handed hitter can keep you in the bigs for 12 years. He went from a big time stiff to a valuable veteran left handed hitter off the bench.

Jujo
Ron Hodges is one of those born and bred Mets players that years later you laugh about; he was one of the gang that made up baseball's annual doorsteps during the 70's. But hey, I have fond memories about our Mets teams, no matter what. They kept me entertained and I rooted for them even though they sucked.

Half-Greek Jim
January 19, 2001
Ron Hodges was THE quintessential Met of the 1970's. A bonafide Mets legend who had 3 great moments.

1. A World Series career On-Base of 1.000 as a rookie! 2. I remember an extra inning 3 run homer in 1982(?) which earned him a standing ovation and a visit to Kiner's Korner. Does anyone have the video? 3. He won some stupid cow milking contest at Shea. Must of been a 'drink milk" promotion.

Bill James defended him in his 1984 edition of Baseball Abstract as a much maligned but a good handler of pitchers and a guy who had a good eye at the plate.

Bill
January 28, 2001
During the 1973 pennant drive, Hodges was the catcher on a ball that a Pittsburgh Pirate (Dave Augustine maybe), hit off the top of the left field wall and bounced back to Cleon Jones. A runner was nailed at the plate for the third out, and I remember the lat, great Lindsey Nelson saying that there "was a hint of 1969 in the air". In truth, Hodges had some big hits in limited opportunities, and I think could have had a fine career if given the chance early enough in his career. Called up in 1972 from Double A due to injuries, he was rushed, and never developed. Joe Torre buried him behind Stearns and Alex Trevino, by the time Bamberger noticed him it was too late.

Greg
February 21, 2001
I remember I was about 13 , and was heckling Hodges, who was warming up pitchers in the bullpen, and he looked up at the 4 or 5 of us and grabbed his crotch, and said something like " right here!!" Then the time he hit Craig Swan in the back trying to throw a runner out. How this guy remained on team as long as he did is beyond me. My all-time least liked Met.

Paul S.
March 24, 2001
In this day of free agency, it's usually refreshing to see a player spending most or all of their career with one team. However, how someone with Hodges' lackluster statistics was able to stick around for 12 years is beyond comprehension.

paul
September 10, 2001
One saving grace for Hodges...he homered off Bob Gibson in 1974.

Weird trivia about Hodges: Although he had no relation to Gil Hodges at all, he was a roommate of Gil's son in the minor leagues. Now that's a coincidence.

jay schwartz
September 21, 2001
I remember a game winning hit two out bottom 9,at Shea ,vs. cincinatti-1-1,alex trevino on first-hodges pinch hits a double up the left center gap,scoring trevino as the whole dugout empties on to ronnie.Then a grand slam in pittsburgh off of grant jackson to win a game,and then the one off of san frans alan fowlkes,that got him on to kiners korner-where he sat there with kingman and said "i turned on it pretty good."Hodges was my favorite met,he never got the chance he deserved,if he got 500 abats,any year,he would have put up 15-75-.265- Go Ronnie!

RAY AYLING
November 7, 2001
He was what he was. He served the Mets well.

Rich Sheridan
November 12, 2001
Aside from him breaking Craig Swan's rib, I remember that Ron Hodges hit the first Met home run at Shea after they had placed the stupid apple in the hat outside of the right-center field wall. If memory serves me correctly, the Mets made lots of fanfare about how the apple would light up and pop out of the hat after every Mets homer. Of course, the power- starved Mets obliged my not slugging a homer at Shea for numerous games. Management, apparently impatient with not being able to show off their new toy, finally gave in at the end of a home stand and decided to have the apple pop out of the hat during the seventh inning stretch. Of course, Hodges promptly homered in the bottom of the seventh during that game.

Mike
November 16, 2001
What can I say? He was one of my favorite players during a period of Mets futility. I was at Shea in August 1984 during a game against the Pirates when he pinch-hit a bases loaded double up the left-center field alley. Hodges got an idea about stretching it into a triple, then ... oops ... got tagged out in a pickle between second and third. If you recall, '84 was the year the Mets began to play winning baseball. Unfortunately, it was Hodges' final season. I also remember the July 4, 1980 game against Montreal when Mike Jorgensen nearly got beaned. Needless to say, some bad blood existed between the two clubs. Later in the game Hodges tried to bowl over someone covering first (I think on a bunt play) and tumbled into right-field, separating his shoulder. He was out for the year. I supposed those two plays epitomized

Jim Snedeker
November 20, 2001
I liked him. He did good.

I just noticed that his career (1973-1984) saw the Mets go from pennant winners to doormats to the point to where they were just about to become pennant contenders again. He saw the glory days at the beginning and the end, but never really got to enjoy either. Instead, he endured years and years of futility as the Mets frumped around.

If that kind of thing build character, then this is the guy I want my daughter to marry!

Joe Beyrer
December 15, 2001
Very good handler of pitchers... called a good game... a true gentleman. I wrote to him recently and his responses were great... any guy who signs the letter Lets Go Mets and then his name is o.k. by me.

Yorkwriter
January 17, 2002
I've gotta stick up for my man Ron. He was a gentleman and was great for the fans. He lived in my town on Long Island during the season and he would give kids (including me and my friend) autographs at his front door without complaint. Also, Ron re-made himself as a quality pinch hitter in '83 and '84. He had some big hits in '84 during the pennant race. He was also the catcher who received the throw in '73, completing the "Ball off the Wall" miracle play. This resume certainly qualifies him as an all time great Met.

Mike G.
February 15, 2002
I was at a game where he hit 2 dingers! I will never forget that. All I know is that growing up as a kid, it seemed like he was with us forever.....

shawn
March 10, 2002
I remember watching the game of his major league debut, when Lindsay Nelson clearly stated "He is of no relation to the Met's former manager Gil Hodges". He was with us for 12 years, but did not distinguish himself at all, except that he batted lefty.

Kevin
March 26, 2002
Look at those walks -- today he'd be considered an OBP machine and getting lots of PT with Oakland!

Larry Burns
May 15, 2002
My best memory of Ronny was not a particularly bright spot. On a Friday night game he committed a couple of errors and struck out a bunch of times. He basically cost them the game. I was there with a group of friends and we were getting loud and boisterous. In a fit of anger I stood on my chair and screamed, "My grandmother could catch better than Ron Hodges...and she has been dead for 3 years." Completely classless on my part, but the section I was sitting in certainly found it entertaining.

Ernie
June 8, 2002
I think someone asked on the thread how Ron Hodges lasted for 12 years. The reason is simple actually, he was a left handed hitting catcher, which is not that common in baseball. His .240 lifetime average is was not bad really for a backup catcher in the 70's and 80's.

Kevin
September 13, 2002
I don't believe I took the time to figure this out, but Ron's OBP in 1982 was about .360, and in 83 it was about a sizzling .381!

Joe Figliola
December 4, 2002
In terms of service, Ron is probably the most underrated. When you think of players who played a long time with the Mets, you think of Ed Kranepool, Cleon Jones, Tom Seaver, or even John Franco. But was Ron's 12 years with the Amazin's quiet? No way.

He was the catcher who tagged out Richie Zisk in the wild "ball-off-the-wall" play in Sept. 73... when he returned to the Mets in Sept. '75, I remember him turning on the home run power... before Rusty Staub, he was becoming the Mets' premier pinch-hitter before he separated his shoulder in that wild five-game set with the Expos in July, '80... yeah, yeah, he pelted Swannie in the ribs with that throw on that steal attempt in '81... and how about his first grand slam against the Pirates in '82, not to mention the home run he hit when I was in attendance in a rout of the Cardinals on a Saturday night in June of that year.

Put it this way, Ron definitely had his loud moments.

vermerf
February 6, 2003
Best thing about this guy is in the beginning of the Mets broadcasts back in the 70"s, while Meet the Mets" was playing, they had a montage of Mets moments. There was one of "Ronnie Ballgame" making a barehanded catch of a popup bunt.

Vito
May 27, 2003
It's hard to badmouth Ron Hodges. He was the ultimate scrub on teams full of scrubs. You knew that when Ron Hodges got in the game it was pretty much over.

I'll go out on a limb and say that there may never again be a backup catcher that plays 12 years for one team without ever being a starter. In this day and age of high salaries, free agency, and no allegience to long-time employees, I can't envision another Ron Hodges coming along.

Doug
June 2, 2003
Longest in longevity on the Mets behind Ed Kranepool during the Mets' first 30 years of existence, yet he was NEVER a starter. Never did a player make such a long career out of so little.

Kenny M
August 29, 2003
Ron definitely was involved in some exciting moments, but, like Doug Flynn, was one of the most unexciting players that you would have to endure. It always seemed as if he was loafing and not hustling, and you would think that he had numerous chances at becoming a starter (when Grote, Dyer, Trevino, etc. departed) if he only had played with energy, but always seemed cavalier and lethargic. I always wondered how he wasn't groomed to replace the great Jerry Grote, as if they always wanted him to be a back-up. But he simply wasn't even near Grote's skill level. Bill Plummer and Bob Montgomery also come to mind as career backups. I remember going to a few games at Shea each year and a few times being disappointed looking up at the vertical lineup on the scoreboard and seeing 42 C posted instead of 15 C.

Nishna
October 3, 2003
I'll never forget the Father's Day game in '73, Mets beat the Padres (3-0 I think?) and Hodges hit a rocket of a HR, might even have been his first career HR. I knew right then he was the next great Mets star! (Hey, come on, how's a 9-year old supposed to know? )

But he wasn't anywhere near as bad as people will have you believe. Didn't hit much, but he did manage to get on base a lot and he handled pitchers well. If I remember right, the staff always had a lower ERA with him than with Stearns.

Bob P
October 10, 2003
Nishna, great memory! That was the first home run of Ron Hodges' career, and he would go on to hit 18 more over 11 years with the Mets! The Mets won the game that day, 3-1.

Hodges had played his first major league game four days earlier against the Giants.

Steven Gallanter
November 11, 2003
Ron Hodges stands as an argument to anyone who thinks that Joe Torre was a good Mets manager. Hodges was at least as good a defensive catcher as Alex Trevino, (who now would be called 'Alejandro'), and a considerably more potent offensive player.

Not to put too fine a point on it but Hodges career was as mishandled as Mazzilli's.

Max Power
March 1, 2004
Ron was a total joke. He was the poster boy for the underachieving Mets of the late 70s and ealy 80's. I remember a friend who used to throw food at the TV whenever they showed him. His name, Ronald Wray Hodges, was one that sounded like it belonged to a serial killer. Oddly enough, he played is exactly 666 games for the Mets, a true sign of evil.

Kiwiwriter
July 13, 2004
I think he was the model for the character of "Chuck," the not-too-bright backup catcher in Tug McGraw's ghost-drawn comic strip "Scroogie," about baseball. Funny strip.

Ron was this pudgy guy, not much speed, decent bat control, decent catcher, not much of a hitter, certainly lacking color, on an increasingly disastrous ballclub. I remember him being used as the early pinch- hitter in the fourth or fifth when Kevin Kobel or Pete Falcone or Mark Bomback would get knocked out. Just happy to be there.

When I covered the Mets, he told me what his off- season job was. Substitute teacher in West Virginia. I guess he probably coached a little, too. He looked perfect for the role. No wonder he was willing to hang on with a horrid Mets club. It beat substitute teaching.

Casey Hodges
October 15, 2004
All of you people badmouthing my pops, glad you made it to the big leagues.

Everyone else that provided some decent info, it's great to hear. I was born in 1986 so I never got to see him play. Just his one at bat against Rollie Fingers in the World Series against the A's, the one that granted him his 1.000 OBP in the World Series. It was shown on ESPN Classic.

Frank the Met
October 20, 2004
Hey Casey, Why don't you read my posting (of August 2003) for the fan memory of the game played on September 20th, 1973. I mention Ron Hodges prominently in the greatest regular season game in Mets history. He tagged the runner at the plate in extra innings, preserving the tie. Then he got the game-winning hit in the bottom of the inning. All that as a rookie in a pennant-winning year!

Frank Grimes
November 18, 2004
Casey, I appreciate the fact that your are sticking up for your dad and overall Ron was a memorable Met for his long tenure and was a likeable enough guy. Still his talents were limited and he was lucky to hang on so long. I will always like Ron, who can forget him? Kinda like the foot fungus that won't go away. You get attached to it after a while.

Dan-O
December 2, 2004
I always remember Bob Murphy introducing Ron Hodges to the listening or viewing audience by saying, "Coming to bat is catcher, Ron Hodges, no relation to Gil". You know the early days of Ron were always prefaced with a question whether he was related to the great Gil Hodges.

Bill
March 18, 2005
I went to about 10 Met games a year in the 70's. My father's company had a box on the 3rd base line. The players used to give autographs to the fans before the games. I must have gotten Ron Hodges autograph 20 times.

He was always there for the fans. A class act.

Jonathan Stern
April 2, 2005
I have no memories of Hodges other than as someone who seemed to have been there forever. But as far as I'm concerned, the direct link between the Miracle Mets and the mid-80's Mets is beyond criticism. Period.

Interestingly, in his autobiography, Joe Torre mentions a hotel bar fracas involving Hodges and Bob Gibson (among others) as the only serious clash he had with Frank Cashen. As a "player's manager," Torre has few clubhouse rules. But when Hodges broke one of them (hotel bar off-limits for players), Cashen did not want Torre to discipline him. Torre responded by saying that if he doesn't discipline Hodges, Cashen might as well shove the team rulebook up his ***.

Mark Heaney
May 21, 2005
Does anyone remember a game from somewehere around 79 - 81 when Hodges hit a game winning bottom of the 9th single past the 2nd baseman (Pirates?). I was at Shea, and it was one of those brief moments where we were actually playing well and were competitive. I was about 17 years old and had brought a friend of mine who was a huge Yankees fan. I felt so proud that my team wasn't a joke. It was an awesome moment. I remember my friend saying after the game winning hit, "There's not enough room in NY for two good teams". Thanks Ron Hodges, wherever you are.

jackstraw
May 21, 2005
I can't believe how many others remember Hodges, the luckiest player ever! 12 years as a backup. I vividly recall his breaking poor Swannie's ribs in 1981. I also happened to be so lucky to see Hodges belt 2 home runs! The first was in the first game of a doubleheader loss against Montreal in April 1981(his only homer that year), and the other was in a 6-5 win against SF on Cap day the following year. (Staub won it on a pinch-homer off Greg Minton in the 9th.)

Lifelong Fan
July 11, 2005
I've read most of these comments and I practically agree with all of them. It was a shame that when the Mets finally started to get good, they drop him. He deserved better. I remember Gerry Girard of Channel 11 News - big surprise, he was a Yankee fan and that was the Yankee station - showing a play (I forget exactly how Hodgie was behind the backstop, wild pitch, overthrow from the outfield, whatever) where Hodges just stood there and pumped his arm towards what seemed like every base but never made a throw as several runners advanced. But Ron, if you're reading this: You done good.

marc a. maturo
July 11, 2005
To all true baseball fans, the only ones who count in my estimation. I had the pleasure of covering the Mets from 1979-1985 and had the pleasure, too, of dealing with Ron Hodges, a gentleman from Virginia and a very fine player whose batting ability first drew the attention of Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner. Certainly, Ron could have had a more productive career, but he seemed content to be a second-line player and a great team player. I'd love to speak to him again.

Mikey Boy
December 9, 2005
I was at Shea in 1979 for a Mets/Astros game.

My dad took me to the park early to watch batting practice. I was a huge Hodges fan, partly because I played catcher on my little league team, so when he took his turn my dad let me walk down and sit behind the Mets' dugout. When Hodges was finished I called out to him and he came over and signed my yearbook and batting glove.

I still have both. They sit on my desk at work. The yearbook is now framed.

I will always remember that day and will always be grateful to Ron Hodges for taking the time to talk to an 11 year old kid from Jersey City.

Thanks Ron, I wish you well.

Russ L.
November 4, 2006
To me, it seemed that everytime Ronnie Hodges got a chance to play, usually to spell Grote, then Stearns, like in the second game of a doubleheader, he invariably got a hit or two. I thought he deserved a shot to play more than he did, if only because he was a left-handed hitting catcher - a rarity. What the hell - the Mets pretty much stunk thru most of Hodges years anyway, and Stearns was always hurt. They really had nuthin' to lose!

Pete
December 22, 2006
I'm a little surprised at some of the negative comments about Hodges. He was a better than average defensive catcher and had a .240 lifetime BA which is not great, nor even good, but not terrible. Compare Ronnie to some of the horrible back-up catchers in the game today. Also, he was a left handed hitting catcher which made him a versatile guy off the bench which I'm sure his managers liked.

Diamond Dave
January 11, 2007
This guy stuck around forEVER. I remember he was catching the night the "ball on wall" play happened against the Pirates. Cleon Jones played the carom off the top of the fence and threw the relay to Wayne Garret and then the throw was on to Hodges who tagged out a Pirate at the plate, I think it was Richie Zisk. I was only 10, so can't really remember.

Anyway Ron Hodges was not a disaster though not as good as Todd Pratt who was my favorite Met back up cathcer for that long ball he hit in the '99 playoffs but Ron was better than Charlie "Harpo" O'Brien (NO HIT) or Mackey Sasser who couldn't even throw it back to the pitcher. Hodges milked a pretty long career out of not much talent.

Eric
May 14, 2007
Met Yearbooks in the late 70's would repeat the same factoid about Ron Hodges year after year---No relation to Gil Hodges but was a roomie of Gil Hodges Jr. in the minors---. This bit got a little stale, but I guess the copy editors found very little noteworthy to say about Ron to fill the space. I will however, give the man his due credit for his hardened play and decent bat as a rookie in a pressure pennant season of 73.

agee_of_aquarius
October 20, 2007
I always thought that if you put a mustache on him, made him black, gave him a small Afro, placed him in a 1970's wide-lapel suit, handed him a gun and played soul music while he walked, he'd look just like Richard Roundtree in "Shaft".

MetsMom
April 8, 2008
Ron Hodges was a lovely man. When I was 14, I wrote him a bunch of letters and he wrote me back. I'll never forget it. I cried with joy.

Nat Hodges
April 13, 2008
Wow, some of you "Mets Fans" are on something. Is it because you are superstars at your jobs flippin' burgers that give you the right to demean a professional athlete because they didn't make it to the Hall of Fame? Anyone who knows baseball and the Mets can agree that, as a player on mostly crappy squads with crappy management, a .240 average isn't all that bad for a catcher stuck platooning.

You are probably more happy with the Mets acquisition of Bobby Bonilla, or the ones who still cry and moan because our management gave away N. Ryan and S. Kazmir among others.

Get a clue, if not a life. Ron Hodges didn't take steroids. He didn't bet on baseball. He didn't come to McDonald's and tell you that his dead grandmother could flip a burger better.

He just gave his baseball career to the Mets who treated him always as an option. Thanks to all the true fans that still send him letters and memories that transcend the game.

Call it like you will, I'm glad to call him my dad.

Feat Fan
April 16, 2008
Good for you Nat! There are many more Ron Hodges type ballplayers than there are Johnny Benches and there is not one of us that posts on this site that can ever play pro-ball at that level. If we could, we wouldn't be writing in the first place!

Dad was a solid role player and part of a WS team. Period.

ange
May 15, 2008
My fondest memory of Ron was in 1983, when the Mets played a Banner Day doubleheader against the Cubs. My friend Richie was a backup catcher on our high school team in Uniondale, NY, and took a liking to Hodgo. He even wore number 42 in his honor. But our ultimate tribute came between games when we paraded the banner, "FROM THE MEZZANINES TO THE LODGES, THEY ALL LOVE HODGES." When Ron saw this he elegantly tipped his hat to us as we walked in front of the Met dugout. A real good sport and a fine gentleman, THE VIRGINIA GENTLEMAN. BE PROUD OF YOUR DAD, BOYS!

Witz
October 9, 2008
I just read through all the posting for Ron and it's funny how people like to talk tough and then oops, someone may be listening (Ron's kids!) and then the messages get nice and friendly!

I always liked Ron; I remember him twice, within a month, winning games for the Mets when he stole third late and the ball was thrown into left field allowing him to score; checking his stats it must have been '82 because he had four steals(!) that year. I am really stretching my memory here, but I think one of those steals gave Brent Gaff a win against the Giants.

As a kid, I always thought I'd be thrilled to just have a career like Swannie for a pitcher or Hodges for a hitter--who among us wouldn't have loved to play for a decade with the Mets?? [Ironic how they later became even more closely linked by the throw to second; wasn't that the first game of a comeback for Swan putting him back on the DL?]

Anyway, I love it when I see friends and relatives post messages on here; and, to Ron's kids, not all of us made fun of your dad back in the day, most of us think of him as a true Met--he should have been at the "celebration" closing Shea last weekend. If any of you guys read this, was he invited, at least? Cleon and Wayne were there, they could have recreated the "ball off the wall play"!

Tony B
March 13, 2009
I find it hard to believe people writing negative things about Ron Hodges. As a Met fan and fellow Virginian I always thought Ron was a pretty darn good ballplayer and should have gotten more playing time during his career. I sure wish I could say I played 12 years on the Mets. I hope he is doing well and I am sure he has some great memories of those years. It is also good to see his kids stick up for him, I am sure they are proud of him as they should be.

Mook
January 10, 2010
Hodges was an OK catcher, the length of his career is not surprising; in the 70's and 80's an left-handed-hitting catcher who hit .240 and handled pitchers well generally would last 12-15 years; what is surprising is that it was all for one team. Who knows, maybe Hodges is an example of what would have happened to Amos Otis and Nolan Ryan if they were not traded. Maybe if the Mets had traded him, our posts would bemoan the loss of the great Ron Hodges... NAH...

EEED
March 28, 2010
My brother was such a big fan of Ron's that he sent Frank Howard a telegram, asking him to play Ron in one of the games of a doubleheader. My brother flew by himself (he was around 17 at the time) from Buffalo to NYC, hoping to see his hero. Hodges didn't play very much at all that year. But, sure enough, Howard put him in the starting lineup for the second game. Wouldn't you know it, the rains came and washed it out. The game never even got started. True story.

The Motts
July 13, 2010
Ron gave me my first ever autograph . . . at his house! My friend and I knocked on his door and he was happy to sign our baseball cards, while holding his infant child. We didn't even have a pen - he supplied it. A really nice guy in my book.

Also, no one seems to remember that he was a pretty good pinch hitter in '83 and '84.

Mitch45
September 21, 2010
Good old #42 on your scorecard, Ron Hodges. He was a good soldier.

Bullpen Pitcher
September 27, 2010
Rusty gave him a great writeup in his book. I always thought he was good, but when he retired, nobody wanted him. Mets Yearbook 1975 makes it seem as if he was to be the starter over Grote.

Richard Anton
April 15, 2011
Ron was a pretty good left-handed bat and a decent catcher. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Mets were blessed to have good catchers in John Stearns, Alex Trevino and others, so Ron didn't really get to play that much. When he started a lot of games in 1982 and 1983, I thought he did a pretty good job. Also, think about this: In 1985, the Mets really didn't have a good backup catcher to Gary Carter. If the Mets had kept Hodges, I'm sure he would have done a better job than Ronn Reynolds. Who knows? He might have even stayed around for the 1986 World Championship team. Hodges was a class act.

Mike
April 28, 2011
I would get to about a dozen games a year during the Mets dark era of the late 70's - early 80's, and I always seemed to pick games in which Ron was the starting catcher. I did get to see him clout one of his two lifetime triples! I can't recall if it was in '78 or '82, but I kinda remember him hitting a double in the same game so I'm sure I could find the boxscore if I had to.

Roy Edelman
June 9, 2011
Certainly not the greatest player, but he epitomizes the difference between baseball teams back then and now, when you actually had an attachment to the players on your team because they stuck around for a number of years, whether they were a star or not. It's very difficult to have that same attachment nowadays given the nature of today's game. The fact that he wasn't an everyday player and stuck around for as long as he did makes him stand out that much more. Now you get a different backup catcher practically every year...who can remember any of them? I also remember hanging out by the players parking lot after a game around 78 or 79 and Ron driving by in one of those station wagons with the fake wood on the sides...waving to the fans as he drove off. Can't imagine any players driving minivans to games now.

G. Breen
August 18, 2011
This guy was a bum. I didn't think so until I read Darling's book. Ronnie was a rookie and this consistent .220 hitter that was practially giving away the signs at the plate (ask K. Hernandez), spits tobacco juice on Darling's leg. I used to like him until I did some research. I'm glad he was a career back-up now. Jerry Grote lives!

Lemonhead
January 10, 2014
No Breen, you're wrong. He will always be remembered for the ball on the wall game.

Shickhaus Franks
April 1, 2014
Wasn't related to Gil Hodges but did room with Gil's son in the minor leagues. The Village Voice did a Mets mid-season report card in 1983 where they wrote that he complained about getting more playing time. LOL

Tom
August 11, 2015
He wore 42

His number is retired..

Nuff said..

Anyway, one thing I remember is he was the first player I ever noticed that had no bill on his catching helmet..

He was a player under the radar that stuck around on the roster..

I always thought he retired in 84... I am not sure he was cut... the one thing the Mets sorely were missing on that 85 team was a backup catcher... being a vet he couldn't have done worse than the green rookies we put out there..