Thomas Lee Hottovy (born July 9, 1981) 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 ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

who is currently the

pitching coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decision ...

for the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

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 ...

(MLB). He was drafted by the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

in the fourth round of the 2004 MLB draft, and pitched in MLB for the Red Sox and the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

. He played

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Wichita State Wichita State University (WSU) is a public university, public research university in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs in more than 200 ...

Playing career

Boston Red Sox

Hottovy began his professional career as a

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

with the

Lowell Spinners The Lowell Spinners were a baseball team based in Lowell, Massachusetts. From 1996 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's New York–Penn League (NYPL) as the Class A Short Season affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. With Major Leagu ...

in 2004. In innings with Lowell, the left hander gave up three earned runs. The following season he was promoted to High-A Wilmington, where he had a 5.45 ERA and a 3–12 record in 23 starts. He split the 2006 season between Wilmington and the

Portland Sea Dogs The Portland Sea Dogs are a Minor League Baseball team based in Portland, Maine, playing in the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League. Established in 1994, the Sea Dogs are the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red ...

, with a 10–10 record and a 3.15 ERA between the two teams. He spent 2007 and 2008 with Portland, recording 5.61 and 5.00 ERAs in those seasons, respectively. In 2009, he became a full-time relief pitcher. He was sent back to Low-A Lowell for five games before returning to Portland. As a reliever from 2009 to 2011 with Lowell, Portland, and the Triple-A

Pawtucket Red Sox The Pawtucket Red Sox, known colloquially as the PawSox, were a professional minor league baseball club based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. From 1973 to 2020, the team was a member of the International League and served as the Triple-A affiliate ...

, he appeared in 76 games, giving up 63 runs in innings. Hottovy was called up to the major leagues for the first time on June 3, 2011. He got the Red Sox out of jams in his first two MLB outings, inducing a ground-out and a double play, both to end innings. In total, he made eight appearances for Boston, allowing three earned runs in four innings of work before being

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

on July 16. He was then sent outright to Pawtucket on July 20. In September, Hottovy was named the inaugural recipient of the Red Sox'

Lou Gorman Award This is a list of award winners and single-season leaderboards for the Boston Red Sox professional baseball team. Abbreviations * p: pitcher * rp: relief pitcher * sp: starting pitcher * c: catcher * 1b: first baseman * 2b: second ...

Kansas City Royals

Hottovy became a free agent on November 2, 2011, and signed with the

on November 15. Hottovy split his time between the Royals and Triple-A

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

. In 9 games with the Royals, Hottovy had a 2.89 ERA with 6 strikeouts in innings. With Omaha, he had 7 saves in 41 games and a 2.52 ERA while striking out 61 in 50 innings. On November 2, 2012, the Royals designated Hottovy for assignment.

Toronto Blue Jays

On November 8, 2012, Hottovy was acquired by the Texas Rangers for a player to be named later or cash considerations. On January 7, 2013, Hottovy was designated for assignment to make room for

Lance Berkman William Lance Berkman (born February 10, 1976), nicknamed "Fat Elvis" and "Big Puma", is an American baseball coach and former professional baseball outfielder and first baseman, who is the former head baseball coach of the Houston Christian Hu ...

on the roster. Hottovy was claimed off waivers by 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) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

on January 10, 2013. The Blue Jays designated Hottovy for assignment on January 11, 2013, to make room for

Henry Blanco Henry Ramón Blanco (born August 29, 1971) is a Venezuelan professional baseball coach and former player. He is currently the catching and strategy coach for the Washington Nationals. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from 1997 to ...

on their roster. Hottovy was outrighted to the

Buffalo Bisons The Buffalo Bisons (known colloquially as the Herd) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Located in Buffalo, New York, the team plays their home games at Sahlen Fiel ...

on January 16. Hottovy started the 2013 season with the Double-A

New Hampshire Fisher Cats The New Hampshire Fisher Cats are a Minor League Baseball team based in Manchester, New Hampshire. The team, which plays in the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League, is the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Ja ...

, and was promoted to the

on June 4. He became a free agent on October 1. The

signed Hottovy to a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training on December 12, 2013. He was released on April 27, 2014, without appearing for the organization.

Post-playing career

Hottovy was hired by the

to serve as the team's Run Prevention Coordinator in December 2014. He served in that position until he was named the Cubs' pitching coach on December 6, 2018. He remained pitching coach after the Cubs chose not to have

Joe Maddon Joseph John Maddon (born February 8, 1954) is an American former professional baseball manager (baseball), manager and coach. He has managed the Tampa Bay Rays, Chicago Cubs, and Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). After playing ...

return and after the hiring of David Ross as Cubs' manager in 2019. Hottovy contracted

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

in 2020 and was isolated for 30 days; he recovered and returned for the abridged 2020 season.

References

External links

: {{DEFAULTSORT:Hottovy, Tommy 1981 births Living people Baseball players from Kansas City, Missouri Boston Red Sox players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Chicago Cubs coaches Kansas City Royals players Lowell Spinners players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball pitching coaches New Hampshire Fisher Cats players Omaha Storm Chasers players Pawtucket Red Sox players Portland Sea Dogs players Wichita State Shockers baseball players Wilmington Blue Rocks players