Charles Marion Hockenbery (born December 15, 1950) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player who played one season, , for the

California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

. He coached the Onalaska Legion baseball team and at the

Onalaska High School Onalaska may refer to: * Onalaska, Texas * Onalaska, Washington *Onalaska, Wisconsin * Onalaska (town), Wisconsin ** Lake Onalaska, a lake in Wisconsin See also *Unalaska, Alaska *Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the ...

after retiring from the Major League.

Early life

Hockenbery was born in

La Crosse, Wisconsin La Crosse ( ) is a city in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's population was 52,680 as of the 202 ...

, on December 15, 1950, to Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Hockenbery. He lived in

Onalaska, Wisconsin Onalaska ( ) is a city in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 18,803 at the 2020 census. It borders the larger La Crosse, Wisconsin, and is a part of the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN Metropolitan Area. Onalaska is buil ...

, for most of his life. Hockenbery began playing baseball as a child in 1961 in Onalaska's Pee Wee League. He continued playing baseball as a pitcher while he was enrolled in high school. In 1969, he was part of a relay team and was a record holding league jumper.

Professional career

In 1969, Hockenbery graduated from high school and signed on as a free agent with the

in July of that year. He was assigned to the

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

Davenport, Iowa Davenport ( ) is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. It is situated along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state. Davenport had a population of 101,724 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 cen ...

, by the Angels. After recovering from an injury while playing in Davenport, he pitched for the Pioneer League in

Idaho Falls Idaho Falls is the List of cities in Idaho, fourth most populous city in Idaho and the county seat of Bonneville County, Idaho, Bonneville County. It is the state's most populous city outside the Boise metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United St ...

. Hockenbery then pitched for the Bend Rainbows in

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

. He was then changed to the position of short reliever. Hockenbery played in the

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leagu ...

in 1972 and was promoted to AA ball at

Shreveport, Louisiana Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the List of municipalities in Louisiana, third-most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge. The bulk of Shreveport is in Caddo Parish, Lo ...

as part of the

Shreveport Captains The Shreveport Captains (1971–2000) and Shreveport Swamp Dragons (2001–02) were a professional minor-league baseball team based in Shreveport, Louisiana. They were affiliated with the California Angels (1971–72), Milwaukee Brewers (1973–7 ...

. He was later part of the Angels 40-man roster as a pitcher in the

Arizona Instructional League The Arizona Instructional League (AIL), sometimes known informally as "instructs", is an American professional baseball league. Young major league prospects hone their skills in the AIL, while experienced players may go there to rehabilitate from ...

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

. In 1973, Hockenbery continued to play AA ball by playing with

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...

, in the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

. He then played AAA ball and played in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

as part of the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

. He played at

Mayagüez, Puerto Rico Mayagüez (, ) is the ninth-largest Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in Puerto Rico. It was founded as Pueblo de Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria de Mayagüez (Township of Virgin of Candelaria, Our Lady of Candelaria), and is also ...

during the winter season until he was declared as being disabled when his right elbow had a pinched nerve. In May 1975, Hockenbery joined the Major Leagues as part of the California Angels. He pitched at the

Oakland Coliseum Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, often shortened to the Oakland Coliseum, is a multi-purpose stadium in Oakland, California, United States. It serves as part of the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Complex, located next to Oakland Arena. In 2 ...

on July 4, 1975, against

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

. During the same season, he pitched in relief against the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

. The California Angels placed Hockenbery on a waivers list in 1976. Hockenbery said that his career ended because when his manager during the 1975 season wanted him to hit an opponent in the head with a baseball during an upcoming pitch, Hockenbery refused to do so. He sat out during the 1977 season in Onalaska. In 1977, the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

wanted Hockenbery to join the team, but he had to refuse because of an ankle injury. He signed to play with the Oakland Athletics, but he was

traded Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of credi ...

shortly after. Hockenbery played for

Jersey City Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

of the Eastern League, and then he retired after briefly playing AAA ball for

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

in the Pacific League.

Later life

Hockenbery coached the Onalaska Legion baseball team from 1990 to 2000, minus two years. From 1999 to 2000, he was the head baseball coach at the local high school. He had a stroke in 2005 that caused him to lose feeling on his right side, resulting in him having to be hospitalized for two and a half weeks.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hockenbery, Chuck 1950 births Living people California Angels players Baseball players from La Crosse, Wisconsin Bend Rainbows players El Paso Sun Kings players Idaho Falls Angels players Jersey City A's players Quad Cities Angels players Salt Lake City Angels players Salt Lake City Gulls players Shreveport Captains players Stockton Ports players Vancouver Canadians players 20th-century American sportsmen