Ron Guidry
With a devastating slider and pinpoint control, this left-handed Yankee ace delivered one of the most dominant pitching seasons in baseball history.
Born 1950 (age 76)·American baseball player and coach·Birthday: August 28·Baby Boomers
Biography
Ron Guidry, a slender lefty from Lafayette, Louisiana, didn't look like a power pitcher, but he threw lightning. After a slow start to his Yankees career, he exploded in 1978, crafting a season for the ages that propelled a fractured New York team to a World Series championship. His combination of a riding fastball and a sharp, late-breaking slider made him nearly unhittable when he was on, and he pitched with a quiet, fierce competitiveness. Nicknamed 'Louisiana Lightning,' Guidry became the stopper and leader of a pitching staff for a Yankees dynasty that won two World Series and battled for several more. His number 49 was retired by the team, a testament to his stature as a homegrown ace who defined an era in the Bronx. Even after his playing days, he remained a fixture in the organization, serving as a coach and a revered elder statesman.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Ron was born in 1950, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Ron Was Born
The biggest hits of 1950
#1 Movie
Cinderella
Best Picture
All About Eve
#1 TV Show
Texaco Star Theatre
Ron's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1950Born
Korean War begins
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,354Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Goodnight Irene" — Gordon Jenkins & The WeaversBest Picture: All About Eve
1955Started school
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $9,550Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Rock Around the Clock" — Bill Haley & His CometsBest Picture: Marty
1963Became a teenager
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1966Could drive
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1968Could vote
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1971Turned 21
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1980Turned 30
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1990Turned 40
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
2000Turned 50
Y2K passes without incident; contested Bush-Gore election
Gas: $1.51/galHome: $119,600Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Breathe" — Faith HillBest Picture: Gladiator
2010Turned 60
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
2020Turned 70
COVID-19 pandemic shuts down the world
Gas: $2.17/galHome: $248,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Blinding Lights" — The WeekndBest Picture: Nomadland
2026Age 76 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Won the American League Cy Young Award in 1978 after posting a 25-3 record with a 1.74 ERA and 248 strikeouts.
- Set a New York Yankees single-game strikeout record by fanning 18 California Angels batters in 1978.
- Captured five Gold Glove Awards for his defensive excellence as a pitcher.
- Was a key starter on two World Series champion Yankees teams in 1977 and 1978.
Did You Know?
His 0.86 winning percentage in 1978 (25-3) remains one of the highest for a qualifying pitcher in modern MLB history.
Guidry was also an excellent hitter for a pitcher, batting .200 with four home runs in his career.
He famously kept his baseball card in his back pocket as a minor leaguer for motivation.
“You're not going to strike out everybody. You're not going to make everybody hit a ground ball. But you can make them hit your pitch.”
