Jesse Hudson: 1969 Amazing Mets Pitcher That Made Just One Appearance (1969)
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The tall left hander was drafted by the New York Mets in the 11th round of the 1967 draft.
In 1967 at the Rookie league level, he was an impressive 7-1 with a 2.07 ERA. In 1968 he was promoted to A ball going 11-13 between Mankato & the Visalia Mets that season.
In 1969 he was 3-0 with a 0.69 ERA at A ball Pompano Beach, moving up to AA Memphis where he was 3-2 with a 1.38 ERA. Back then it was tough to crack the Mets 1969 pitching staff, but the tall lefty managed to get into one game which was the only MLB appearance of his career.
In 1967 at the Rookie league level, he was an impressive 7-1 with a 2.07 ERA. In 1968 he was promoted to A ball going 11-13 between Mankato & the Visalia Mets that season.
In 1969 he was 3-0 with a 0.69 ERA at A ball Pompano Beach, moving up to AA Memphis where he was 3-2 with a 1.38 ERA. Back then it was tough to crack the Mets 1969 pitching staff, but the tall lefty managed to get into one game which was the only MLB appearance of his career.
Mets Debut:
On September 19th, 1969, Hudson made his MLB debut in the second game of a double header with the Pirates, wearing uniform #38. He came on in the 8th inning with the Mets down 7-0. He faced ten batters giving up two runs on two hits, with two walks while striking out three. Jesse ended the 8th inning by striking out Hall of Famer Willie Stargell.
While on the Mets he became friends with Tommie Agee & Cleon Jones. They as well as Donn Clendenon looked out for the youngster.
In 1970 Jesse was pitching at AAA Tidewater putting up a 2.86 ERA going 6-7 with the Tides, on a staff led by Jon Matlack (12-11). He was called up to the staff in September briefly but did not pitch.
2019: In 2019 for the 50th Anniversary of the 1969 Amazing Mets celebration at Citi Field, the Wilpon ownership added another screw up to their legacy. During the festivities, they put up a video tribute mentioning players from that team that were deceased. It wrongly included Jesse Hudson & Jim Gosger. Both players were alive & well. Jesse was living in Louisiana & received an apology from the team.
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| Hudson with Pitching Coach Rube Walker |
Quotes- Jesse Hudson: “I was scared to death, Really, it was just a spur of the moment thing. When I was warming up & I knew was going in, I said, ‘Well, this is it; it’s either do or die. The thing that really excited me, in the minor leagues, we never played in a large arena like Shea Stadium. Seeing 40,000 people, wow, that was exciting. As far as the game itself, you know I’m a pitcher; that’s what I do, I pitch. It was just like me against the batter.”
While on the Mets he became friends with Tommie Agee & Cleon Jones. They as well as Donn Clendenon looked out for the youngster.
He finished his career after the season at age 22.
Quotes- Jesse Hudson: "No. I didn't see that; I haven't heard that I was deceased. I was glad I was just able to be part of that back in 1969. It was really exciting to be there with the pro ball players & also with manager Gil Hodges & the rest of the staff".