David Mark Hudgens (born December 5, 1956) is an American former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

, who is currently the MLB hitting strategist for the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB).

Playing career

Hudgens was selected by the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

in the first round of the

1975 MLB Draft First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1975 Major League Baseball draft. Many baseball draft experts consider the 1975 draft to be the weakest in MLB history. Other notable selections ''*'' Did not sign N ...

, and later by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 18th round of the 1977 MLB Draft. He did not sign either time, and instead chose to attend Arizona State University. He appeared in two

College World Series The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is an annual baseball tournament held in June in Omaha, Nebraska. The MCWS is the culmination of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divisi ...

during his four years with the Sun Devils. In his college career, he posted a .313

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

with 16

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s and 135

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the ba ...

. After graduating, Hudgens played for the Oakland Athletics and

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

in their minor league systems in a span of six seasons from 1979–1984, while appearing in six games with the Athletics in 1983.

Coaching career

After retiring from playing baseball, Hudgens managed four years in Oakland's minor league system from 1985-1988 for the Medford A's and

Pocatello A's Pocatello () is the county seat of and largest city in Bannock County, with a small portion on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in neighboring Power County, in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Idaho. It is the principal city of the P ...

. He was hired by Oakland A's General Manager Billy Beane. He also managed winter ball for the

Leones del Caracas The Caracas Base Ball Club C.A. or better known by its commercial name as the ''Leones del Caracas'', is a professional baseball team of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. In its creation, its headquarters are the University Stadium of C ...

club of the

Venezuelan Professional Baseball League The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League or Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional (LVBP) is the professional baseball league in Venezuela. The league's champion takes part in the Caribbean Series each year. History Early years Baseball exp ...

, posting a record of 35-28 during the winter of 2009. He then returned to manage the Leones in 2014, but was dismissed in the middle of the season. In between, Hudgens served as hitting coach for the

from 2011 to 2014. He was released in May 2014 following a Mets' loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Before the 2015 season, Hudgens was hired by the Houston Astros to be their hitting coach under new manager

A. J. Hinch Andrew Jay Hinch (born May 15, 1974) is an American professional baseball coach and former player who is the manager of the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Hinch played catcher for the Oakland Athletics (–), Kansas City Royals ...

. In 2017, the Astros won the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

. Three years later, it was revealed in the

Houston Astros sign stealing scandal The Houston Astros sign stealing scandal resulted from a series of rule violations by members of the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB), who used technology to steal signs of opposing teams during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. For yea ...

that the team had cheated during its championship season. Hudgens subsequently apologized for his role in the scandal. On November 7, 2018, Hudgens was hired by the

to become their bench coach under new manager

Charlie Montoyo José Carlos Montoyo Díaz (born October 17, 1965) is a Puerto Ricans, Puerto Rican former professional baseball second baseman and coach. He is currently the bench coach of the Chicago White Sox, and was previously the Manager (baseball), manage ...

. On March 13, 2022, the Blue Jays announced that Hudgens would serve in a new role as the club's hitting strategist.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hudgens, Dave 1956 births Living people Albany-Colonie A's players American expatriate baseball people in Canada Arizona State Sun Devils baseball players Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from California Caribbean Series managers Chattanooga Lookouts players Houston Astros coaches Major League Baseball bench coaches Major League Baseball first basemen Major League Baseball hitting coaches Minor league baseball managers Modesto A's players New York Mets coaches Oakland Athletics coaches Oakland Athletics players Sportspeople from Oroville, California San Jose Missions players Tacoma Tigers players Tigres de Aragua players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Toronto Blue Jays coaches Waterloo Indians players West Haven A's players Anchorage Glacier Pilots players