Frederick Wayne Honeycutt (born June 29, 1954) 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 baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

and

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

. Honeycutt pitched in

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) for six different teams over 21 years, from 1977 to 1997. He pitched in 30 post-season games, including 20

League Championship Series The League Championship Series (LCS) is the semifinal round of postseason play in Major League Baseball which has been conducted since 1969. In 1981, and since 1995, the two annual series have matched up the winners of the Division Series, an ...

games and seven

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 ...

games, and never lost a game, going 3-0. Honeycutt gave up no runs in the 1988 and 1990 post-seasons, and was a member of the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

' 1989 World Series championship team. He was also the pitching coach for the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

from 2006 through 2019.

Playing career

Honeycutt was born in

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

, and graduated from

Lakeview – Fort Oglethorpe High School Lakeview Fort Oglethorpe High School (LFO) is a public high school located in Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia. It is one of three high schools in Catoosa County, and is operated by the Catoosa County Schools district. The school's teams are known as t ...

Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia Fort Oglethorpe is a city predominantly in Catoosa County with some portions in Walker County in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 10,423. It is part of the Chattanooga, TN–GA Metropolitan St ...

. Honeycutt played for the

Tennessee Volunteers baseball The Tennessee Volunteers baseball team represents the University of Tennessee in NCAA Division I college baseball. Along with most other Tennessee athletic teams, the baseball team participates in the Eastern division of the Southeastern Conferen ...

team from 1973–1976, where he was an All-American first baseman-pitcher and won the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

batting title with a .404 mark. He played summer ball in Liberal, Kansas, in the Jayhawk League, for Bob Cerv. Honeycutt was drafted in the 17th round of the 1976 draft by the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

. After seasons in their minor league system, the Pirates traded him to the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They 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 League ...

in August 1977 to complete an earlier trade for

Dave Pagan David Percy Pagan (born September 15, 1949) is a former professional baseball pitcher. He played all or part of five seasons in Major League Baseball from 1973 until 1977, and was a member of the Seattle Mariners' 1977 inaugural season roster. ...

. He made his major league debut on August 24, 1977, against 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 ...

. He pitched two innings of relief, struck out 3, allowed 2 hits and no runs. His first start was 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) Amer ...

on August 31. He pitched 7.1 innings in that start, allowing 3 runs. He finished the season 0-1, but got his first victory in his first start the following year, beating the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

on April 7, 1978. He matured into a

control pitcher In baseball, a control pitcher, also known as a finesse pitcher, is a pitcher who succeeds mostly by using accurate pitches, as opposed to a power pitcher who relies on velocity. By issuing a below average number of bases on balls he exhibits go ...

, being selected to the 1980 All-Star Game. While he was pitching on September 30, 1980, he was caught using a thumbtack to illegally cut the ball. He was ejected and suspended for 10 games. He was traded along with

Willie Horton William R. Horton (born August 12, 1951), commonly referred to as "Willie Horton", is an American convicted felon who became notorious for committing violent crimes while on furlough from prison, where he was serving a life sentence without the ...

Leon Roberts Leon Kauffman Roberts (born January 22, 1951) is a former corner outfielder in Major League Baseball who played from 1974 through 1984 for the Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays and Kansas Ci ...

Mario Mendoza Mario Mendoza Aizpuru (born December 26, 1950) is a Mexican former professional baseball infielder. Mendoza, a lifetime .215 hitter, is best known for being the source of the name for the threshold for batting ineptitude, the " Mendoza Line", ...

and Larry Cox from the Mariners to the Texas Rangers for

Richie Zisk Richie or Richy is a masculine given name or short form (hypocorism) of Richard. It is also a surname. First name *Richie Ashburn (1927–1997), American Major League Baseball player, member of the Hall of Fame * Richie Benaud (1930–2015), Austr ...

Jerry Don Gleaton Jerry Don Gleaton (born September 14, 1957) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played from 1979 to 1992 for the Texas Rangers, Seattle Mariners, Chicago White Sox, Kansas City Royals, Detroit Tigers, and Pittsburgh Pirate ...

Rick Auerbach Frederick Steven Auerbach (born February 15, 1950) is a former Major League Baseball shortstop. Early years Auerbach was born in Woodland Hills, California, to Esther and Jack Auerbach. He was drafted by the California Angels in the 13th round ...

Ken Clay Kenneth Earl Clay (born April 6, 1954) is a former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. Following his brief major league career, Clay had several run ins with the law. Most recently, he was sentenced to five years in jail for grand theft fo ...

Brian Allard Brian Marshall Allard (born January 3, 1958) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Texas Rangers (-) and Seattle Mariners (). His fastball was 90-95 mph. He also threw a curveball, slider, and changeup. He lives in Wa ...

and minor-league right-handed pitcher Steve Finch in an 11-player blockbuster deal on December 18, 1980. In 1983, Honeycutt represented the Rangers in the All-Star Game. On August 19, 1983, Honeycutt was traded from the Rangers to the

for Dave Stewart and Ricky Wright. Honeycutt led the American League in ERA in 1983 with 2.42, although he was traded to the Dodgers late in the season. In 1987, the Dodgers traded Honeycutt to the

for a

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

, who would be

Tim Belcher Timothy Wayne Belcher (born October 19, 1961) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1987 to 2000 for seven different teams. He was named ''The Sporting News'' Rookie Pitcher of the Year ...

. Converted from a starting pitcher to relief in 1988 by Oakland, he became a set-up man to

Dennis Eckersley Dennis Lee Eckersley (born October 3, 1954), nicknamed "Eck", is an American professional baseball pitcher and former color commentator. Between 1975 and 1998, he pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, ...

, posting a series of sub-3.7 ERAs from 1988 through 1993. He was the oldest major league player in both 1996 and 1997. He made 268 starts and 529 relief appearances in his career, logging 2,160 innings pitched and compiling 109 wins and 38 saves.

Coaching career

Following his playing career, Honeycutt spent a year coaching his kids' teams before joining the Dodgers as their minor league pitching coordinator. Honeycutt joined the Dodgers coaching staff as pitching coach for the 2006 season. He also launched a sporting goods and apparel business in

. Honeycutt and

Mariano Duncan Mariano Duncan Nalasco (born March 13, 1963) is a retired second baseman and shortstop who played for several Major League Baseball teams during his 12-year career. He was the infield coach and first base coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers under ...

were the only holdovers from

Grady Little William Grady Little (born March 3, 1950) is a former manager in Major League Baseball, currently working in the front office of the Pittsburgh Pirates. He managed the Boston Red Sox from 2002 to 2003 and the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2006 to 2007 ...

's 2007 coaching staff to return on new Dodgers' manager

Joe Torre Joseph Paul Torre (; born July 18, 1940) is an American professional baseball executive, serving as a special assistant to the Commissioner of Baseball since 2020. He previously served in the capacity of Major League Baseball's (MLB) chief baseb ...

's 2008 coaching staff. Honeycutt also remained as pitching coach when

Don Mattingly Donald Arthur Mattingly (born April 20, 1961) is an American former professional baseball first baseman, coach, and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He is the bench coach for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed ...

replaced Torre after the 2010 season. When Mattingly left the team after the 2015 season, Honeycutt was the only coach to remain on the staff for new manager Dave Roberts. Due to a back injury, Honeycutt stepped down as pitching coach for the Dodgers after the 2019 season to take a new role as a special assistant to the team. Honeycutt's 14 years as the Dodgers pitching coach (under four different managers) tied

Ron Perranoski Ronald Peter Perranoski (April 1, 1936 – October 2, 2020) was an American professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed relief pitcher from to , most prominently as a member of the Los Angeles Dodg ...

for the longest tenure in that role in the organization's history.

References

External links

: {{DEFAULTSORT:Honeycutt, Rick 1954 births Living people Seattle Mariners players Texas Rangers players Los Angeles Dodgers players Oakland Athletics players New York Yankees players St. Louis Cardinals players American League All-Stars National League All-Stars Major League Baseball pitchers American League ERA champions Sportspeople from Chattanooga, Tennessee Tennessee Volunteers baseball players Los Angeles Dodgers coaches Major League Baseball pitching coaches Niagara Falls Pirates players Shreveport Captains players Modesto A's players Baseball players from Tennessee People from Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia All-American college baseball players

Playing career

Coaching career

See also

References

External links