Tom Hutton

Thomas George Hutton
(Tommy)

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 11", Weight 180 lb.
• School Pasadena City College
• High School South Pasadena High School
• Debut September 16, 1966
• Final Game September 3, 1981
• Born April 20, 1946 in Los Angeles, CA USA

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Biographical Information

Signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers out of high school in the pre-draft yesteryear of 1964, Tom Hutton was a seven-year veteran of the Dodgers' minor-league system when L.A. traded him to the Philadelphia Phillies in October 1971 for Larry Hisle. Hutton was the MVP of his league twice in the Dodgers' system, first with the Albuquerque Dodgers of the Texas League in 1966, and again with the Spokane Indians of the Pacific Coast League in 1971. He had first come up with the Dodgers late in 1966 and got another cup of coffee in 1969. After the trade, Hisle ended up in Triple A Albuquerque, but Hutton moved straight to the Phillies' major-league roster and stayed for six years, playing a role on division champions in 1976 and 1977.

Hutton was a reserve first baseman, emergency outfielder, and left-handed pinch hitter. His best-known characteristic was a mysterious ability to hit Hall of Famer Tom Seaver. Hutton batted .320 against Seaver in 62 plate appearances, with 11 walks, three home runs and 11 RBI. He was an excellent fielder at first base and had a powerful throwing arm. In 1,920 career plate appearances, Hutton was never hit by a pitch in a game.

Hutton ended his playing career with four seasons with the Montreal Expos, although he was released at the tail end of the 1981 season, missing their lone postseason appearance.

With Montreal in 1980, Hutton took the mound in the bottom of the 8th of an August 11th game against the St. Louis Cardinals, with the score St. Louis 13, Montreal 0. It was the only pitching appearance in his big league career. Tony Scott was the first batter he faced, and flied out to left field. Next, Keith Hernandez hit a home run. Ted Simmons reached on a walk after that. Hutton then struck out Leon Durham for Hutton's first (and only) career strikeout. The next batter was Ken Oberkfell, who singled and reached second base on a throw to third when Simmons advanced. In the following at-bat, Dane Iorg hit a double, batting in Simmons and Oberkfell. Mike Phillips grounded out to first in the final at-bat of the inning. Montreal did not come back in the top of the 9th, and there was no bottom of the 9th. Tom Hutton never pitched again in his career, and has a career ERA of 27.00, and 1 strikeout.

He has since been a consistent presence in major-league broadcasting booths, including these stints:

• 1982-1986 Montreal Expos
• 1987-1989 New York Yankees
• 1990-1996 Toronto Blue Jays
• 1997-2015 Florida Marlins/Miami Marlins

He teamed up with Dave Van Horne both in Montreal and with the Marlins.

Hutton married Dick Ruthven's twin sister Debbie. He is also the cousin of Bill Seinsoth and the nephew of Bill Seinsoth Sr.

Notable Achievements

• 1966 Player of the Year Texas League Albuquerque Dodgers
• 1971 MVP Pacific Coast League Spokane Indians
• 1972 Topps All-Star Rookie Team