Player: Ron Oester played 13 years in the major leagues, all with the Reds. Taken in the 9th round in the '74 draft by his hometown team, the 18 year-old high schooler had to be quite thrilled. Oester was a shortstop in the minors and played that position in his first two years with the Reds which consisted of a pair of six game auditions in both '78 and '79.
He became
the Reds everyday starter at the keystone position in ’81 and posted what would turn
out to be a career best 109 OPS+. He was
steady but unspectacular as he held the Reds secondbase job through the 1987
season. He didn’t have much power as his
career high was 11 HR in ’83 nor was he a blazer on the base paths as he never
stole as many as ten bags. He best
average as a regular was in ’85 when he flirted with .300 and finished at .295.
In July
of ’87 Oester tore his ACL and missed the rest of the year, and did not return
until the following July. He batted .280
in 150 at bats during his abbreviated ’88 campaign as he shared time with Jeff
Treadway. Oester won his job back in ’89
but was hitting just .190 when a midseason injury took him out of commission
for 5 weeks. When he came back, he
platooned with fellow switch-hitter Luis Quinones. Oester had always been more potent from the
left side and he batted .294 in the second half.
Oester was a bench player in 1990, batting .299 and helping the Reds in their championship season. Although he was hitless in 12 pinch at bats during the regular season, he was 2 for 4 in the pinch in the playoffs. Early in the year, Oester decided it would be his last season when he lost his starting job to Mariano Duncan. Winning a World Series ring was a great way to go out and Oester kept his word and retired.
Flipside: The remark about Oester’s
birthday is reminiscent of comments that Topps used a lot in the 50’s and 60’s. It seems a bit hokey but I suppose it’s cool to
have a big game on your birthday.
Besides it’s not easy finding tremendous highlights for a guy like Oester. It wasn’t like he was going to hit 3 homers
in a game or go 6 for 6.
Oddball: Oester, born and bred in Cincy,
has had a tumultuous relationship with his team since retiring as a player.
Like a lot of ex-players he got right into coaching and as former manager Jack
McKeon’s third base coach, he was considered to be the favorite to take over the reigns of
the Reds in 2000. When he initally turned down what he considered an insulting
offer from Reds GM Jim Bowden, the Reds quickly signed Bob Boone. Oester thought he was
still negotiating when Boone’s hiring was announced. He called Bowden a liar and said he was “one of the worst
people in the world.” Oester somehow retained his job on the new coaching
staff, but after a poor year by the Reds and a midseason scuffle with fellow coach Tim Foli, he was canned
after the season.
Oester rejoined the Reds organization in ’04
when new GM Dan O’Brien hired him as the minor league operations director. But
he did not last long and got the pink slip before the season was over.
Frustrated after he was axed by the team for the second time in three years, he
said “I guess I didn't kiss enough (butt).”
History: Oester was a
decent player and finished his career with a .265/.323/.356 line and 8.8
WAR. He was the type of player that gets
overlooked because he wasn’t spectacular at anything, but he was a hardnosed
consistent player. After burning bridges
in Cincinnati, Oester now works in the minors for the White Sox organization.
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