Ronald Allan Wotus (born March 3, 1961) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player and coach. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) as a

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

and

second baseman In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the Infielder, infield, between Baseball field#Second base, second and Baseball field#First base, first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and f ...

for the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

, and served as third base coach for the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

. He was drafted in the 16th round of the 1979 Major League Baseball Draft by the Pirates, and made his MLB debut in 1983. He also served as bench coach for the Giants from 1999–2017.

Early life

Wotus grew up in

Colchester, Connecticut Colchester is a New England town, town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut, Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region. The population was 15,555 at the 20 ...

, and attended Bacon Academy, where he played soccer, basketball, and baseball.

Professional career

Draft and minor leagues

He was drafted in the 16th round of the 1979 Major League Baseball Draft by the

Pittsburgh Pirates (1983–1984)

He debuted with the Pirates in 1983 and also played for them in 1984. In the majors, he batted 12-for-58 (.207) in 32 games. He played in 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) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

organization in 1987 and the

organization in 1988 and 1989, without returning to the majors.

Coaching career

After retiring as a player, Wotus remained in the Giants organization as a minor league manager from 1991 to 1997. He managed the Single-A San Jose Giants (1991–92), the Double-A Shreveport Captains (1993–95), and Triple-A Phoenix Firebirds (1996–97). Wotus was named

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leagu ...

Manager of Year in 1991 after leading San Jose to a 92–44 record. In 1997, Wotus was named

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

Manager of the Year after the Firebirds finished 88–55, winning 41 of their final 51 games. Wotus became the Giants' third base coach in 1998 under manager

Dusty Baker Johnnie B "Dusty" Baker Jr. (born June 15, 1949) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and Manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for 19 seasons, most notably with the Los Angeles Dodgers. D ...

, and served as bench coach from 1999–2017 under managers Baker,

Felipe Alou Felipe Rojas Alou (born May 12, 1935) is a Dominican former professional outfielder, first baseman, coach and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He managed the Montreal Expos (1992–2001) and the San Francisco Giants (2003–2006). The fir ...

, and

Bruce Bochy Bruce Douglas Bochy (; born April 16, 1955) is an American professional baseball Manager (baseball), manager and former catcher who is the manager of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB). During his playing ...

. Wotus said he hoped to manage some day, and interviewed for several major league manager jobs, including the Pirates (2000), Dodgers (2005), Mariners (2013), Rays (2014), and Nationals (2015). Wotus has also coached the Giants' infielders and was in charge of defensive shifts. After the Giants had a disappointing 2017 season, Wotus was reassigned to third base coach, his original coaching position with the Giants, to help stabilize the team. On August 10, 2021, Wotus became the second coach in franchise history along with

John McGraw John Joseph McGraw (April 7, 1873 – February 25, 1934) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) player and manager (baseball), manager who was for almost thirty years manager of the New York Giants (NL), New York Giants. He was also the ...

to reach 2,000 wins. On August 31, Wotus announced that he would be retiring from full-time coaching following the 2021 season. On January 26, 2022, Wotus came out of retirement and was hired by the Giants to serve as a special assistant for the 2022 season.

Personal life

Wotus married his wife Laurie (a realtor) in 1987. They reside in

Pleasant Hill, California Pleasant Hill is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States, in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 34,613 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It was municipal corporation, incorporated in 19 ...

References

External links

, o
SF Giants biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wotus, Ron 1961 births Living people Alexandria Dukes players Baseball players from Hartford, Connecticut Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Gulf Coast Pirates players Hagerstown Suns players Hawaii Islanders players Major League Baseball bench coaches Major League Baseball shortstops Major League Baseball third base coaches Minor league baseball managers Nashua Pirates players Navegantes del Magallanes players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Omaha Royals players Phoenix Firebirds players Pittsburgh Pirates players Portland Beavers players Salem Pirates players San Francisco Giants coaches Shelby Pirates players Sportspeople from Hartford, Connecticut People from Pleasant Hill, California Baseball players from Contra Costa County, California Bacon Academy alumni 20th-century American sportsmen