Mark Budzinski

Mark Joseph Budzinski

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 2", Weight 180 lb.
• School University of Richmond
• High School Severna Park High School
• Debut August 3, 2003
• Final Game August 8, 2003
• Born August 26, 1973 in Baltimore, MD USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Mark Budzinski played in four games with the 2003 Cincinnati Reds. In 7 big league at bats, he struck out four times. Mark had previously starred in the 2001 Baseball World Cup, hitting .371/.405/.514 as Team USA center fielder. He made the All-Star team for the tournament alongside Chin-Feng Chen and Yoshinobu Takahashi in the outfield.

After a number of years away from baseball, the Cleveland Indians hired Budzinski to manage in their player development system. He managed the Lake County Captains in 2014, the Lynchburg Hillcats in 2015-2016, and the Akron RubberDucks in 2017. In 2018, he was added to the Cleveland's coaching staff, but only stayed in this position for one year.

In 2019 he was appointed first base coach of the Toronto Blue Jays. On July 2, 2022, he abruptly left his position in the middle of the second game of a doubleheader against the Tampa Bay Rays. While the news was initially that there had been a family emergency, it was soon learned that his 17-year-old daughter Julia had died tragically in a boating accident near the family's home in Virginia. The news shook the team hard, and he had to take leave to be with his grieving family. He remained as first base coach through the 2024 season.

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs
2014	Lake County Captains	Midwest League	65-74	11th	Cleveland Indians	Lost League Finals
2015	Lynchburg Hillcats	Carolina League	72-68	3rd	Cleveland Indians	Lost in 1st round
2016	Lynchburg Hillcats	Carolina League	84-56	2nd	Cleveland Indians	Lost League Finals
2017	Akron RubberDucks	Eastern League	69-71	6th	Cleveland Indians

Related Sites

• BR Minors page