Sidney Charles Hudson (January 3, 1915 – October 10, 2008) was a starting pitcher 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), ...

who played for the Washington Senators (1940–42, 1946–52) and

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) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

(1952–54) who had a lengthy post-playing career as a pitching coach and scout. Born in Coalfield, Tennessee, he batted and threw right-handed, stood tall and weighed .

Biography

Hudson entered baseball in 1938 with the Class D

Sanford Lookouts Sanford may refer to: People *Sanford (given name), including a list of people with the name *Sanford (surname), including a list of people with the name Places United States * Sanford, Alabama, a town in Covington County * Sanford, Colorado, ...

, who had a working agreement with the Senators. In his second year with Sanford, Hudson led the Florida State League in games won (24),

winning percentage In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

(24–4, .857),

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(1.79) and strikeouts (192). The following year, he won 17 games for a second-division Washington team as a

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

, and he was selected to the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

All–Star team in both and . He appeared in the 1941 midsummer classic on July 8 at

Briggs Stadium Tiger Stadium, previously known as Navin Field and Briggs Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium located in the Corktown neighborhood of Detroit. The stadium was nicknamed "The Corner" for its location at the intersection of Michigan and Trumbul ...

and worked the seventh inning, allowing a two-run

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 ...

to Arky Vaughan that put the rival

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

ahead, 3–2. (The American League would triumph in the ninth inning, however, on a three-run, walk-off homer by

Ted Williams Theodore Samuel Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, primarily as a left fielder, for the Boston Red Sox from 1 ...

). Hudson's career was interrupted by three years (1943–45) of military service during World War II. A veteran of the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

, he served in the Pacific Theater of Operations and attained the rank of sergeant. Pitching for Washington's struggling late-1940s teams, he led the American League in games lost (17) in . On April 27, 1947, Hudson was the starting pitcher against the

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

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...

Day at

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx, New York City. It is the home field of the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. Opened in April 2009, the stadium replaced the orig ...

. In front of 58,000 fans in one of Ruth's last public appearances, Hudson threw a complete game, 1–0

shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

, scattering eight hits and three bases on balls. He was traded to the rebuilding Red Sox in the middle of the campaign, and went 16–22 as a spot starter and

reliever In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weather ...

over 2 years. He retired from the field after the campaign. In his 12-season MLB career, Hudson posted a 104–152 record with 734 strikeouts, 123 complete games, 11 shutouts, 13 saves, and a 4.28 earned run average in 2,181 innings pitched. He allowed 2,384 hits and 835 bases on balls. A good-hitting pitcher, he batted .220 with 164 hits and 75

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 ...

during his big-league tenure. Following his pitching career, he scouted for the Red Sox from 1955 through 1960, then joined the expansion edition of the Senators in

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba (Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 (K ...

as the team's first pitching coach. He spent all or parts of 13 years over three different terms (1961–April 1965; 1968–1972; and mid-1975–1978) in that role for the franchise in both Washington and Dallas–Fort Worth, where it moved in to become the Texas Rangers. In between those assignments, Hudson served the team as a minor league pitching instructor. After leaving professional baseball in 1985, he was a pitching coach for

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the ...

's varsity baseball team. At the time of his death, at 93 years of age, Hudson was one of the oldest living major league players. He died in

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the st ...

Highlights

*Twice American League All-Stars (1941–42) *As a

in 1940, won 17 games and pitched two one-hitters, and was runner-up rookie of the year *Was fourth in wins (17) and in shutouts (5), fifth in home runs allowed (20), and third in hits allowed (272), in the

in 1940

References

External links

Sid Hudson
- Baseballbiography.com
Baseball Reference
* Buried at Oakwood Cemetery (Waco, Texas) {{DEFAULTSORT:Hudson, Sid 1915 births 2008 deaths American League All-Stars Baseball coaches from Tennessee Baseball players from Tennessee Boston Red Sox players Boston Red Sox scouts Burials at Oakwood Cemetery (Waco, Texas) Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball pitching coaches People from Morgan County, Tennessee Sportspeople from the Knoxville metropolitan area Sanford Lookouts players Texas Rangers coaches Texas Rangers scouts United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II United States Army Air Forces soldiers Washington Senators (1901–1960) players Washington Senators (1961–1971) coaches