Ron Gant
Encyclopedia
Ronald Edwin "Ron" Gant (born March 2, 1965, in Victoria, Texas
Victoria, Texas
Victoria is a city in and the seat of Victoria County, Texas, United States. The population was 60,603 at the 2000 census. The three counties of the Victoria Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 111,163 at the 2000 census,...

) is a former American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 Major League
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 outfielder
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...

 and second baseman earlier on who played for the Atlanta Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

 (1987–1993), Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....

 (1995), St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

 (1996–1998), Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...

 (1999–2000), Anaheim Angels
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California, United States. The Angels are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The "Angels" name originates from the city in which the team started, Los Angeles...

 (2000), Colorado Rockies
Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are a Major League Baseball team based in Denver, Colorado. Established in 1991, they started play in 1993 and are in the West Division of the National League. The team is named after the Rocky Mountains...

 (2001), Oakland Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....

 (2001), San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego, California. They play in the National League Western Division. Founded in 1969, the Padres have won the National League Pennant twice, in 1984 and 1998, losing in the World Series both times...

 (2002), and again the Athletics briefly in 2003.

He joined the 30-30 club
30-30 club
The 30–30 club is a grouping of Major League Baseball players who have reached the 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases plateaus in the same season....

 (at least 30 stolen base
Stolen base
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate...

s and at least 30 home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...

s in the same season) in 1990 and 1991 with the Braves. He is right-handed.

Career overview

Gant joined the Braves in as a September call-up. He collected 22 hits
Hit (baseball)
In baseball statistics, a hit , also called a base hit, is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches first base after hitting the ball into fair territory, without the benefit of an error or a fielder's choice....

 in 83 at bat
At bat
In baseball, an at bat or time at bat is used to calculate certain statistics, including batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage. It is a more restricted definition of a plate appearance...

s, including two home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...

s. During the season, the rookie Gant was an everyday player for the struggling Braves, who finished with a record of 54-106. After a disappointing sophomore season in , Gant returned to form and the starting line up in , when he batted
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...

 .303 with 32 home runs
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...

 and 84 RBI.

Additionally, Gant stole thirty-three (33) bases in , qualifying for the 30-30 Club
30-30 club
The 30–30 club is a grouping of Major League Baseball players who have reached the 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases plateaus in the same season....

. He duplicated that feat in , joining Willie Mays
Willie Mays
Willie Howard Mays, Jr. is a retired American professional baseball player who played the majority of his major league career with the New York and San Francisco Giants before finishing with the New York Mets. Nicknamed The Say Hey Kid, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, his...

 ( - ) and Bobby Bonds
Bobby Bonds
Bobby Lee Bonds was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball from to , primarily with the San Francisco Giants...

 ( - as the only players in Major League
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 history to that point to have two 30 home run/30 stolen base seasons in a row. Barry Bonds
Barry Bonds
Barry Lamar Bonds is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder. Bonds played from 1986 to 2007, for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. He is the son of former major league All-Star Bobby Bonds...

 later eclipsed the accomplishment, qualifying for the 30-30 Club in three straight seasons, from - .

Although his home run and stolen base totals were extremely similar the following year, most of his other stats were not as good: he hit just .251 with over 100 strike out
Strike Out
Strike Out, , North American Harness racing championStrike Out was born in 1969 at Castleton Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, and is by Bret Hanover out of the mare Golden Miss....

s and 23 fewer hits in just 14 fewer at bats. His RBI numbers also increased to 105.

The Braves lost to the Minnesota Twins
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...

 in the 1991 World Series
1991 World Series
The 1991 World Series pitted the Minnesota Twins of the American League against the Atlanta Braves of the National League. The series was played from Saturday, October 19 to Sunday, October 27....

. Gant batted .267 in the series, with 4 RBIs, as the Twins won it in a close and exciting 7th game. During Game 2 of the 1991 World Series, Gant had a memorable and controversial confrontation with Twins first baseman Kent Hrbek
Kent Hrbek
Frequently injured , Hrbek retired after the players strike in 1994, citing his nagging injury problems and desire to spend more time with his wife and daughter at their home in Bloomington, MN...

. As Gant was trying to make it back to first base to avoid Twins pitcher Kevin Tapani
Kevin Tapani
Kevin Ray Tapani is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, and Chicago Cubs from 1989 to 2001.-Early life:...

's pickoff, he claimed Hrbek pulled his leg off the base during the swipe tag and Gant was called out. Drew Coble, the first base umpire, ruled that Gant's momentum would have carried him off the bag, and refused to change his call. This play caused the Braves bench to empty during the argument.

Although he would never hit .300 again, Gant's batting average continued to climb back up into the .270's and his power numbers stayed great, while he continually drove in over 80 runs a year, peaking at 117 in . In both 1991 and 1993, he was in the top 5 in the league in runs batted in. His speed and power combination made him a bidworthy item, and the Reds and Cardinals each paid a lot for him in the mid 90's.

In , Gant made his last World Series
1992 World Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 17, 1992 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium in Atlanta, GeorgiaBraves fans had plenty to worry about in regard to both starting pitchers. Tom Glavine's post-season career had been less than stellar, including giving up eight runs in the second inning of Game 6 of the NLCS...

 appearance, where he banged out 1 double
Double (baseball)
In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

 in 8 at bats, and the Braves lost again, this time in 6 games to the Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....

.

Shortly after signing one of the richest contracts in Braves history in , Gant broke his right leg in an ATV
All-terrain vehicle
An all-terrain vehicle , also known as a quad, quad bike, three wheeler, or four wheeler, is defined by the American National Standards Institute as a vehicle that travels on low pressure tires, with a seat that is straddled by the operator, along with handlebars for steering control...

 accident
Accident
An accident or mishap is an unforeseen and unplanned event or circumstance, often with lack of intention or necessity. It implies a generally negative outcome which may have been avoided or prevented had circumstances leading up to the accident been recognized, and acted upon, prior to its...

. The Braves ended up releasing him; He wouldn't play again until 1995.

was the low point of Gant's career, when he struck out 162 times, and batted .229 for the Cardinals. After the Cardinals didn't play him full-time in 1998
1998 in sports
1998 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Hermann Maier, Austria** Women's overall season champion: Katja Seizinger, Germany-American football:...

 (though he still hit 26 homers), he was traded by the Cardinals with Jeff Brantley and Cliff Politte
Cliff Politte
Cliff Anthony Politte is a right-handed Major League Baseball retired relief pitcher.Selected in the 54th round of the 1995 Major League Baseball Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals, Politte came up to the parent club in . He threw the first pitch at the new Roger Dean Stadium in spring training that...

 to the Philadelphia Phillies for Ricky Bottalico
Ricky Bottalico
Ricky Paul Bottalico is a former right-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. In high school, he played for South Catholic High School in Hartford, Connecticut under coach Tom DiFiore. He compiled a career earned run average of 3.99 over twelve major league seasons, during which he...

 and Garrett Stephenson
Garrett Stephenson
Garrett Charles Stephenson , is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He played eight seasons in the majors, from 1996-2003...

 on November 19.

The next year, Gant would have his last real quality season. With the Phillies in , he batted a solid .260 with 17 home runs and 77 RBIs. He had 13 stolen bases and 107 runs scored, with 27 doubles and 2 triples
Triple (baseball)
In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

, in 134 hits.

After a non-productive 2003 season with the A's, Gant retired at age 38.

In a 16-season career, Gant batted .256 with 321 home runs and 1008 RBIs. He had 243 stolen bases and 1080 runs scored in 1832 games. Gant had 302 doubles and an even 50 triples in his career. He ended with 1651 hits in 6449 at bats. Gant averaged 20 home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...

s, 63 RBIs, and 15 stolen bases a year. In postseason play, Gant was a .228 hitter with 8 home runs and 28 RBIs in 52 playoff games; he had 43 hits in 189 at bats.

During the 2005 Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 season, Gant worked as a color commentator for the Atlanta Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

 on TBS. He currently works as an analyst on SportSouth
SportSouth
SportSouth is a regional sports network in the United States, with its headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. SportSouth, formerly Turner South, relaunched on October 13, 2006...

 during Braves games and on MLB Network
MLB Network
MLB Network is an American television specialty channel dedicated to professional baseball. It is primarily owned by Major League Baseball. Comcast, DirecTV, Time Warner Cable and Cox Communications have minority ownership of the new network, with MLB retaining a controlling two-thirds share...

.

See also


External links

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