RIP, RON JOHNSON
As a PR guy working in Minor League Baseball for 15 years now, I’ve learned that you never know what you to expect when it comes to interacting with a visiting manager. I’ve had many nice encounters over the years — and some not-so-nice ones. It’s the nice ones that I remember most, though.
Ron Johnson, who spent time in the International League as a manager with the Pawtucket Red Sox (2005–09) and Norfolk Tides (2012–18), sadly passed away on January 26, 2021 due to COVID-19. Ron was one of those guys that went out of his way to say hello — and I’m sad that he’s gone.
As the PR person of a minor league team, you find yourself making a lot of trips to the visiting clubhouse over the course of a series. On any given day, you may be running down lineups, stat packs, game notes, interview requests and more. And, let’s just say the visiting clubhouse is never an easy place to just pop in with that kind of stuff.
You get questions. Many questions at times.
Who are you? Why are you here? What do you need? Are we getting rained out tonight? Your official scorer sucks!
Yep, I’ve heard it all — and much more. But, not from Ron Johnson.
I always looked forward to dropping a lineup or something by his office when he was in town. I knew that he would say hello. I knew he would be kind. It was always appreciated — especially during a 16+hour day.
My thoughts go out to his family and friends — and all the players he made an impact on in this game. He was one of the all-time great people to come through the visiting clubhouse during my years working in MiLB and he will be missed.
RIP, RJ.
