Ronald Ames Guidry (; born August 28, 1950), nicknamed "Louisiana Lightning" and "Gator", is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees. Guidry was also the pitching coach of the Yankees from 2006 to 2007. Guidry's major league career began in 1975. He was a member of World Series-winning Yankees teams in 1977 and 1978, both over the Los Angeles Dodgers. He won the American League Cy Young Award in 1978, winning 25 games and losing only 3. He also won five Gold Glove Awards and appeared in four All-Star games. Guidry served as captain of the Yankees beginning in 1986; he retired from baseball in 1989. In 2003, the Yankees retired Guidry's uniform number (49) and dedicated a plaque to him in Monument Park. Early life Guidry was born in Lafayette, Louisiana. He attended and pitched for the University of Southwestern Louisiana. He was a combined 12–5 with a 2.03 earned run average (ERA) and 137 strikeouts as a two-year letterman with the Ragin' Cajuns baseball team in 1969 and 1970. Playing career Guidry was selected in the third round (67th overall) by the New York Yankees in the 1971 MLB draft. After four seasons in the minor leagues, he pitched briefly in the major leagues in the 1975 and 1976 seasons. He was nearly sent to the Baltimore Orioles as part of a trade deadline blockbuster on June 15, 1976, but the Yankees did not want to give up any more left-handed pitchers beyond the three (Scott McGregor, Tippy Martinez and Rudy May) that they had already included in the deal. The following year he was to have been dealt to Toronto for Bill Singer in a transaction that was approved by the Yankees but was vetoed by Blue Jays president Peter Bavasi. In 1977, Guidry began the season as a relief pitcher but was moved into the Yankees' starting rotation. On April 30, he was called on to make an emergency start in replace of Mike Torrez, recently acquired in a trade from the Athletics, who had not joined the team in time for what was supposed to be his first start. In the longest outing Guidry could remember since his Eastern League days of 1974, he helped the Yankees beat the Seattle Mariners 3–0. Guidry finished the season with a 16–7 record. His emergence