Ron Musselman

“I like to be aggressive, and I like for batters to know I’m in charge out there – but off the field I’m quiet. I’d like to think I don’t have even one enemy.”1 — Ron Musselman, 1983

On August 18, 1982 – a cloudy but comfortable night in Detroit – the Seattle Mariners faced the Tigers. The game featured two middling teams chasing the eventual division champions, Milwaukee and California. In the bottom of the eighth, Seattle’s Ed Vande Berg gave up a sacrifice fly to Rick Leach, stretching the Tigers’ lead to 6-2. Up next for Detroit was Tom Brookens, whose solo homer to lead off the seventh had knocked starter Gaylord Perry out of the game. Mariners skipper René Lachemann went to his bullpen again, signaling for the righty.

Out strode former Clemson ace Ron Musselman, called up a week prior, to make his major league debut. With a runner on third and Lou Whitaker on deck, Musselman – adrenaline pumping – gave up a run-scoring single to Brookens, whose three RBIs made him the co-star of the game. The 27-year-old rookie then yielded a shallow single to Whitaker before striking out Glenn Wilson to end the inning. Strike three –more than likely a sinker, Musselman’s go-to pitch – gave him his first K in the majors.

The outing gave Musselman the distinction of being the first native of Wilmington, North Carolina, to take the mound in an AL/NL major-league game. He appeared in 47 others, four of which were starts, in parts of three seasons (1982; 1984-85). Musselman’s 11-year professional baseball career ended after the 1987 season.

***

Ralph Ronald Musselman was born on November 11, 1954, in Wilmington, along the east coast of North Carolina. His parents were Raymond Musselman, a pipefitter, and Louise (née Gore), a homemaker. He had three siblings: Rhoda, Tina, and Bo. Ron and Jeff Musselman, the lefty who pitched in the majors from 1986 through 1990, are not related.

Ron spent his youth like most American boys and future big leaguers, playing catch with his father in the backyard. He learned a variety of grips, from fastball and curve to a drop ball. By the time Ron had reached middle school he was focused on developing those grips into an arsenal of pitches. Major help came from his baseball coach, Lou Howard, who had pitched in the New York-Penn League in 1964 and 1965. A lefty, Howard taught the young righty how to set up his pitches, thinking about a hitter’s weaknesses and the various ways to exploit them.2 This training proved invaluable helping Musselman’s team in Wilmington’s Winter Park Optimists Junior League win multiple tournaments in the late ’60s.

Muss, as he was known from an early age, found further success in the rotation for Wilmington’s Hoggard High School. He became an all-conference pitcher in 1972 and ’73, and led the team to a state championship.3 He made all-state in 1973, posting an impressive 8-1 record and a 1.90 ERA; when not on the mound, he was stationed at first base, hitting .445 overall.4 However, it was his arm that would get him to the highest levels of baseball.

Upon graduating, Musselman went to Louisburg College, a two-year college nestled in the north central Piedmont region of North Carolina. He again pitched and played first base for the Hurricanes in the summer league. Musselman established himself as the ace of the Louisburg staff, earning all-conference honors in 1974 and 1975. He was coach Russ Frazier’s go-to guy in tough games.5 On the path to the Junior College World Series, Musselman was on the mound in a do-or-die Eastern Regional final. He pitched 15 innings of a 17-inning marathon, striking out 20 batters and sending the Hurricanes on to the next round.6

Such dominance naturally attracted the attention of major league scouts. Musselman was selected by the California Angels in the 22nd round of the 1975 draft. Instead of signing, he decided to build up his value as a prospect and go with coach Bill Wilhelm and the Clemson Tigers. Musselman again became a staff ace – along with Chuck Porter – as the Tigers went to the College World Series in 1976. On the way to setting Clemson’s single-season shutout record in 1976, Musselman pitched a no-hitter against the University of Virginia on April 17, setting down the last 22 Cavaliers he faced in a near-perfect game.7

The win vaulted the Tigers into the College World Series, where they lost a heartbreaker in the upper bracket’s second round to Eastern Michigan (Musselman started but got no decision). A day later in the loser’s bracket, they lost to the tourney’s eventual champions, Arizona.

In the secondary phase of the June 1976 draft, the Houston Astros made Musselman their second-round choice. Again, however, he stayed in school.

Musselman’s 1977 season for Clemson was even more impressive. He was the clear number-one starter because Porter had gone to pro ball. He was voted first team All-Atlantic Coast Conference while leading the league in almost every pitching category. Once again, he led the team to the College World Series, and once again the Tigers lost a heartbreaker, this time in the opening round. This defeat, too, came at the hands of the eventual champions, Arizona State. Musselman started but lasted just three innings and took the loss. He also started in the game that eliminated Clemson, against Cal State-Los Angeles, striking out 13 but again taking a defeat.

Even so, his draft stock rose as intended –the Mariners took him in the fifth round of the June 1977 draft. Like Porter, Musselman was headed to professional baseball.

As noted, Musselman’s primary pitch was a sinker. He learned the grip in Little League and never changed it throughout his entire career. His curve ball had enough bite that he had confidence to throw it “in any count, in any situation.” He had a major league fastball, off which he could change speeds. The young hurler was well equipped for success.8 However, it took the tutelage of a former New York Yankees ace, as well as an additional pitch in his arsenal, before Muss would make it to The Show.

Musselman spent three seasons in Class A ball, first with the 1977 Bellingham (Washington) Mariners, and then in northern Virginia with the Alexandria Dukes of the Carolina League in 1978 and ’79. Here he continued to hone his craft as starter (his main role in his first two seasons) and reliever (he came out of the pen more starting in 1979).

By 1980, Musselman had been promoted to Class AA in Lynn, Massachusetts. He enjoyed the ongoing support of Bobby Floyd, a former journeyman infielder for the Orioles and Royals who had become a manager in the Mariners system. In Bellingham, Alexandria, and Lynn, as well as later in Salt Lake City, Floyd used Muss in high-leverage “fireman” situations.9

Then in 1981, Mel Stottlemyre became a roving pitching coach for the Mariners. Musselman had made it to AAA and was pitching in Spokane of the Pacific Coast League – though with some struggles. According to Musselman, it was Stottlemyre who taught him to “have confidence in [his] stuff, minimize mistakes, [and] to throw each pitch with purpose.”10 Though he finished the season 1-8, the Mariners and Stottlemyre still believed in him. He was reunited with Bobby Floyd in Salt Lake City and remained in AAA for the 1982 season.

It all began to click with the Gulls. By July, Musselman had pitched more innings with fewer walks and nearly double the strikeouts. By August, the parent club was in need of pitching, and Bobby Floyd was able to tell his top reliever on August 11 that he was heading to the majors.11 Musselman arrived just in time to join Seattle for a short road trip, first to Minnesota where he got to know his teammates without getting any on-field action, and then to Detroit. There, in the last game of the series, he made his major league debut, as described in the opening of this biography.

Musselman remained with the parent club for the rest of the season, making his Seattle home debut in his next outing on August 20 versus Milwaukee. He got his first win a week later against Detroit. After getting the two batters he faced in the ninth, Larry Herndon and Lance Parrish, he watched his teammates claw back from a two-run deficit to tie the game. The winning run then scored on a wild pitch by Dave Tobik.12

Musselman didn’t give up a run until the next outing, also against Detroit, when Howard Johnson homered in the eighth. It was one of only two home runs he surrendered that season; the other was to Tony Pérez during an outing against the Red Sox on September 3. Overall, his numbers for the 1982 season were good, striking out more than he walked and keeping his ERA below 4.00. However, he was usually inserted into losing games, some of which were blowouts. Thus, he finished the season with a 1-0 record.

As he did several times during his career, Musselman traveled to Venezuela, once again with Bobby Floyd, to work on his mechanics in winter ball.13 He pitched for Leones de Caracas.

He didn’t get a chance to return to Seattle. Not long before Christmas 1982, Musselman learned that the Mariners had traded him to the Texas Rangers for Pat Putnam, a power-hitting first baseman coming off a disappointing season.14

Spring training for the Rangers was held in Pompano Beach, Florida, and there were hopes that Musselman would be a welcome addition to the bullpen. Even though he had lost one of his stars, Bobby Floyd, who was still with the Mariners, continued to sing Musselman’s praises: “His walk ratio is small. He’s come up with a fairly decent breaking pitch and a good sinking fastball. He’s also got a tremendous amount of determination.”15 Floyd also said that Musselman occasionally tried to throw too hard; indeed, during camp Rangers skipper Doug Rader had him working on a changeup.

By the time the season started, Musselman had been sent to Triple-A Oklahoma City. The 89ers were managed by longtime minor leaguer Tom Burgess and stocked with former and future major leaguers. Over the course of an up and down season, Musselman worked on an additional pitch that he had first learned from Gaylord Perry16 and honed with the help of Pablo Torrealba in Venezuela – an off-speed forkball that he hoped would get him back into the majors.17 However, the Rangers never called Musselman up. Once again pitching mostly as a starter, he compiled mediocre marks of 9-12, 5.49.

After another season of winter ball in Venezuela, this time with Cardenales de Lara, Musselman was back in Oklahoma City in 1984, pitching out of the pen once again. But after 13 appearances, in June his contract was bought by the Syracuse Chiefs of the International League. This was the top affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays, and Musselman was surrounded by a crop of emerging stars in the Jays system, including Tony Fernandez, Kelly Gruber, and future Hall of Famer Fred McGriff.

Under manager Jim Beauchamp and pitching coach Larry Hardy, everything jelled. With a repertoire that now included a forkball, sinker, and all-purpose curve, Musselman kept his ERA under 3.00 over the course of 26 games and impressed the parent club. In August, the Blue Jays brought him back to the majors.18

During August and September 1984, Musselman came into 11 games, finishing four. Though he lost both of his decisions, he earned his only big-league save on September 24 at Boston’s Fenway Park. His 2.11 ERA showed how effective his new array of pitches was.

Previously on August 29 against the White Sox, Musselman stood out in an otherwise disappointing Toronto loss. Coming into the game after Luis Leal got knocked out of the box in the fourth inning, Muss retired all nine men he faced. “He threw a lot harder tonight than I thought he was capable of throwing,” said catcher Buck Martinez. “He didn’t have that kind of stuff then [Martinez had handled Musselman on the sidelines] but tonight he had good movement and velocity and kept the ball over the plate and down. I think he’s painting himself into the picture.”19

After that game, Musselman talked about his fresh start. “In Syracuse, I read the papers,” he said, “and felt like I was in a good situation to come here in late September, get a few looks, and get invited back to spring training. … I’m glad to see myself get another chance to get back to the big leagues. I started last year in Oklahoma City and the wheels fell off but now I’m back in a role that I’m accustomed to.”20

That winter he played in the Dominican Republic, honing his pitches, leading the league in saves, and preparing for an eventful spring.21 In February 1985, the Blue Jays – happy with Musselman’s output at the end of the ’84 season – signed him to a one-year contract. He was off to Dunedin, Florida, for yet another spring training.

“Well, it’s my fourth camp and I know I haven’t been quite this relaxed before,” Musselman told the Toronto Star, which described him as a “balding, 30 year old rookie.” He continued, “The last two springs with Texas, I was trying to make the team with every single pitch. Screwed up royally. … I know there’s not that many 30-year-old rookies around, but then I see a guy like Bart Johnson [a White Sox scout, then 35, who hadn’t pitched since 1977] trying to come back and…well, that what they mean when they say it’s in your blood.”22

After Musselman posted an ERA of 0.64 in the exhibition season, manager Bobby Cox and GM Pat Gillick had an easy decision. Musselman packed his bags for Toronto.23 His first appearance for the 1985 Jays was in the third game of their season-opening series against the Royals. He got the first two men he faced but gave up a triple to Willie Wilson; Gary Lavelle retired the next batter, keeping the score at 3-2. The game went to extra innings, and George Bell decided the contest with a 10th-inning homer off Dan Quisenberry.

The rest of the month was a mixed bag for Musselman. His ERA ballooned but he earned a win on April 20 against Baltimore after getting Cal Ripken to ground out to end the eighth. Through May and June, Muss continued in the role of middle reliever, occasionally closing out games. Another win came in May when, after losing the lead in the fifth from an Andre Thornton RBI single, he stuck it out through the sixth, seventh, and eighth, holding off the Indians and giving Jesse Barfield, Tony Fernandez, and the rest of the Jays lineup time to come back and win.

Another highlight came on June 8, when Musselman struck out five Tigers in a three-inning outing. Then on June 22, Cox handed Muss the ball for his first major league start, against Boston at Exhibition Stadium. With rain in the forecast suggesting a possible postponement, Cox chose to go with his journeyman instead of wasting ace Dave Stieb, who was originally slated to start.24

Musselman gave up a run in each of his first two innings, but only one was earned. He lasted five innings, allowing no further scores by an intimidating lineup featuring Wade Boggs, Jim Rice, Bill Buckner, Mike Easler, and Dwight Evans. He left as the pitcher of record on the long side, and it looked like heavy rain would end the game. However, play resumed after a three-hour-plus delay, and the Toronto bullpen couldn’t hold the lead.

Musselman started three more games in 1985, pitching a total of 10 2/3 innings. He earned no decisions yet kept the Jays in each of them. The last start, on August 23, was his final game appearance in a major league uniform. He took the mound before 22,000 Chicago fans at Comiskey Park and fared not quite as well, allowing three runs in the first two innings to a White Sox order featuring Harold Baines, Ozzie Guillén, and Greg Walker. After settling down in the third, he pitched a perfect fourth. However, leading off the bottom of the fifth, Marc Hill got his second single off Musselman. Bobby Cox then began that long walk to the mound, signaling for righty Jim Acker. Hill was the last batter Muss faced in the majors, though in his walk to the dugout that future was not clear. It had been three years and five days since his debut.

A week later Musselman was dropped from the Jays’ 40-man roster. He pitched in two games for Syracuse before their season ended after the first week of September. Instead of heading home, he took up the Jays’ offer to return to the big club – not as a rostered player, but as a batting practice pitcher.

“I almost feel like a Benedict Arnold,” said Musselman in late September, as Toronto was closing in on the AL East division title. “A man without a country, without a spot, without a job.”25 Though in uniform for warmups, BP, and clubhouse pregame meetings, he was obliged to remove the jersey and leave the field come game time. It was the Jays’ way to try and hold on to a player they hoped to have available for a playoff run, without losing him outright to free agency. In the end, neither Gillick nor Cox got Musselman back on the field in Toronto.

And with that, Musselman decided to try his luck on the free agent market. Cleveland offered him a contract and a trip to spring training, which he took in early 1986.26 After an up and down spring, Cleveland designated him for their AAA team, but Musselman decided to opt out and head back to familiar territory – he signed a contract with Syracuse. Rooming with his old friend Joe Beckwith, Muss continued to improve on his forkball and had his best season yet. He went 9-7 over 33 games, including 20 starts, with 90 strikeouts.27 However, there was no call from the big club, and for the first time he began to entertain thoughts of retirement from professional baseball.

Ron and his second wife Sandy had purchased a house in Wilmington during the 1986 season. The following February they welcomed a baby girl, Lauren. A second daughter, Hannah, followed in 1994. Previously, Musselman was married to Hershey Hendley. His son from that first union took the name of his stepfather and became golfer Lucas Glover, winning the US Open in 2009.

After stops in Portland (a Minnesota Twins farm club) and Rochester (Baltimore’s top affiliate), Muss decided to hang up his spikes at the end of the ’87 season.

In retirement, Musselman was active in fundraising for non-profits, coached American Legion and high school ball, and ran a landscaping business. Today, he operates Salty’s Tavern, a popular bar in the Seagate neighborhood of Wilmington.

In 2025, it was announced that Musselman would be inducted into the Greater Wilmington Sports Hall of Fame in the summer of 2026.28

Ron Musselman summed up his feelings about baseball nicely in September 1985. “No matter where it is,” he said, “I just love coming to the ballpark.”29

Last revised: June 15, 2026

Acknowledgments

This biography was reviewed by Rory Costello and Bill Lamb and fact-checked by Dan Schoenholz.

Photo credit: Ron Musselman, Trading Card Database.

Sources

In addition to the sources presented below, the author utilized Baseball-Reference.com, Retrosheet.org, and Thebaseballcube.com.

Notes

1 Steve Pate, “Musselman Has Big Chance to Bolster Bullpen,” Fort Worth Star-Telegram, February 21, 1983: 3C.

2 Ron Musselman, email interview, June 12, 2025.

3 Jack Lee, “Defending State Champ Hoggard Tops GHS,” Goldsboro (North Carolina) News-Argus, March 18, 1973: 14.

4 Tom Northington, “All State Pitchers Stingy with Hits, Runs,” Greensboro (North Carolina) News and Record, June 10, 1973: 39.

5 “Hurricanes Have ‘Better Club’ Than in ’71 Trip,” Grand Junction (Colorado) Daily Sentinel, May 23, 1975.

6 “’Canes Still Eyeing Crown,” Raleigh (North Carolina) News and Observer, May 20, 1975, 16.

7 “Tigs’ Musselman No-Hits Cavs, 9-0,” Greenville (North Carolina) News, April 18, 1976, 4.

8 Ron Musselman, email interview, June 12, 2025.

9 “Gulls ‘Mussel’ Up to Defeat Indians,” Spokane (Washington) Chronicle, May 24, 1982: 15.

10 Ron Musselman, email interview, June 12, 2025.

11 “M’s Shuffle Staff, Add Stoddard, Musselman,” Tacoma (Washington) News Tribune, August 12, 1982: 20.

12 [Sports Brief] Goldsboro News-Argus, September 8, 1982: 16.

13 Pate, “Musselman Has Big Chance To Bolster Bullpen.”

14 Steve Pate, “Musselman Likes His Opportunity With Rangers,” Fort Worth Star-Telegram, February 21, 1983: 31.

15 Pate, “Musselman Has Big Chance To Bolster Bullpen.”

16 “Blue Jay Tips: Ron Musselman,” Toronto Star, August 25, 1985, E20.

17 Bob Snyder, “Musselman Still Making His Pitch,” Syracuse Herald Journal, August 22, 1986: 33.

18 Rick Winston, “Bullpen Shines But Jays Fall Short,” Hamilton (Ontario) Spectator, August 30, 1984: 17.

19 Winston, “Bullpen Shines But Jays Fall Short.”

20 Winston, “Bullpen Shines But Jays Fall Short.”

21 “Tigres del Licey se Imponen a los Azucareros,” La Prensa (Panama City, Panama), November 11, 1984: 76.

22 Allen Ryan, “Jays’ 30-Year-Old Rookie Looks Good,” Toronto Star, March 27, 1985: F1.

23 Doug Smith, “Numbers Game a Great Game to Play,” Orangeville (Ontario) Banner, March 8, 1985: 35.

24 Baseball Central, UPI Archives, June 23, 1985.

25 “Musselman Is a Pitcher Without a Job,” Toronto Star, September 26, 1985: 71.

26 Sheldon Ocker, “Old Flames Won’t Burn Tribe Management,” Akron (Ohio) Beacon Journal, March 30, 1986: 52.

27 Bob Snyder, “Musselman Still Making His Pitch,” Syracuse Herald Journal, August 22, 1986: 33.

28 https://gwshof.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Announcement-of-the-2026-iductees.pdf

29  “Musselman Is a Pitcher Without a Job.”