Mike Sodders (minors01)

Michael Wayne Sodders

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 190 lb.
• School Arizona State University

• Born December 26, 1958 in Compton, CA USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Third baseman Mike Sodders played two seasons of college baseball at Arizona State University. In 1981, he hit .424 to lead the Pacific-10 Conference in batting average and added 22 homers and 100 RBI; he was one of just 3 players to reach the 100 RBI mark in the storied history of ASU (through 2009). He was selected Baseball America Player of the Year as his team won the 1981 College World Series. He ended his college career with a .389 average and 36 home runs.

He was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the first round of the 1981 amateur draft with the eleventh overall pick. The 10 players chosen ahead of him all made the major leagues including stars such as Joe Carter, Kevin McReynolds and Ron Darling.

Sodders hit just .179/.247/.282 for the '81 Wisconsin Rapids Twins after signing, adjusting poorly to the wood bats. He also struggled afield with 3 errors in 8 chances at third base (his primary position), though he was 61-for-61 at first. Mike split 1982 between the Orlando Twins (.251/.332/.440 in 61 G, .952 FLD at 3B) and the Toledo Mud Hens (.213/.317/.311 in 37 G).

Mike started 1983 back with Orlando and had a batting line of .231/.323/.397 with 9 homers in 67 games. In June 1983, he was traded to the Chicago White Sox for Rusty Kuntz. Assigned to the Glens Falls White Sox, he hit .251/.356/.428 over the remainder of the season, 68 games. Socking 8 more homers, he finished the campaign with 17 altogether between his two stops.

In his last season as a pro, Sodders played for the 1984 Denver Zephyrs (.221/.306/.364 in 40 G) and Glens Falls (.257/.313/.399 in 87 G, 8 sacrifice flies, one shy of the Eastern League lead)

Sodders was elected to the Arizona State Sports Hall of Fame in 2009.

His son, Michael Sodders, played in the Los Angeles Angels system in 2010. Another son, Austin Sodders, was drafted in 2015.