Ron Maestri enters his second season with the New Orleans Privateers baseball team, coming out of retirement in 2013 to lead the charge once again.

Maestri returns to New Orleans following eight-plus years of service as the Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of the Triple-A New Orleans Zephyrs.  Cited in the UNO Privateers 1977 media guide as the “sole architect” of the Privateers’ baseball success, Maestri originally coached the squad from 1972 through 1985.

During his first tenure, UNO posted a 518-247-1 record, with the resulting 518 wins and 67.7 winning percentage ranking No. 1 in school history.  The Privateers never had a losing season under Maestri and qualified on nine occasions to play in the NCAA tournament.

The run of success for Maestri’s teams included a runner-up showing at the 1974 NCAA Division II College World Series and in 1984, UNO became the first team from the state of Louisiana to qualify for the NCAA Division I College World Series.

Numerous players under Maestri have gone on to become head coaches among the high school, college and professional ranks, including: LSU’s Paul Mainieri, Tim Jamieson of Missouri and former Chicago Cubs skipper Mike Quade.  1982 Golden Spikes Award winner and current Carthage College head coach Augie Schmidt also played for the Privateers under Maestri.

During Maestri’s tenure, 42 different players were drafted and/or signed by professional clubs. Six of those players reached the Major League level, including two-time World Series champion Randy Bush.

In addition to his tenure as head baseball coach, Maestri served as Director of Athletics at the University from 1979-2000.

In this position, Maestri’s ability to hire coaches  like Benny Dees, Tim Floyd, Joey Favaloro and Tic Price allowed the Highland Park, Ill. native to put the Privateer program on the map nationally in both men’s and women’s basketball.

This time around, it was Morel who hired Maestri in an effort to duplicate the baseball coach’s effort from the past and put the UNO program at the forefront of college baseball.

A 1963 graduate of Bradley, Maestri initially arrived at UNO following four seasons as an assistant baseball coach and football coach for his alma mater. During his time in Peoria, he received  bachelor’s degrees in history and health and physical education in 1962 and a master’s degree in education in 1966.

As an undergraduate at Bradley, Maestri was the second baseman on the 1962 Braves’ team that won the Missouri Valley Conference title. He was also a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity.

Following graduation, Maestri spent five years in the high school coaching ranks, including stints at Princeville High, Spaulding High and Pekin High – all in the Central Illinois Area. During that time, his high school teams compiled a record of 54-36.

Maestri and his wife Sue are the proud parents of Krissy Dobson (Kevin) and Jon Maestri (Rhonda). They are also the grandparents to Jake and Noah Dodson, as well as Alexandria and Zack Maestri.

RON MAESTRI BY THE NUMBERS
9              NCAA Tournament Appearances –7 NCAA Division I, 2 NCAA Division II
2              College World Series Appearances – 1984 NCAA Division I, 1974 NCAA Division II
42           Players Drafted or Signed MLB Contracts
2              Players Who Serve as Southeastern Conference Head Coaches – Tim Jamieson (Missouri), Paul Mainieri (LSU)
8              Hall of Fames Enshrined – American Baseball Coaches Association, Bradley Athletics, Highwood (Ill.) Sports, Italian-American, Louisiana Sports, New Orleans Sports, Peoria Sports, University of New Orleans Sports
6              Major League Baseball Players Coached – Jimmy Bullinger, Randy Bush, Roger Erickson, Mark Higgins, Eric Rasmussen and Wally Whitehurst
1              Coach of the Year Award named after him (Sun Belt Conference, beginning in 2002)
21           Jersey retired – one of just two in UNO baseball history
2              Conference Championships – 1978 and 1979 Sun Belt Tournament titles
 
RON MAESTRI YEAR-BY-YEAR RECORD
YEAR      RECORD               POSTSEASON/CHAMPIONSHIPS
1972       24-17    
1973       26-13                     NCAA Div II Regionals
1974       34-14                     NCAA Div II CWS - 2nd Place
1975       23-20    
1976       26-14-1
1977       35-9                       NCAA Regionals
1978       35-16                     Sun Belt Tournament Champions            
1979       49-14                     Sun Belt Tournament Champions/NCAA Regionals          
1980       46-15                     NCAA Regionals
1981       48-16                     NCAA Regionals
1982       49-16                     NCAA Regionals
1983       34-29    
1984       46-26                     NCAA Div I CWS - T-5th Place
1985       43-28    
2014       11-38
2015       14-40
TOTAL   543-315-1            15 SEASONS AT UNO