| Bill Sudakis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Third baseman | |
| Born:(1946-03-27)March 27, 1946 Joliet, Illinois, U.S. | |
| Died: September 15, 2021(2021-09-15) (aged 75) Palm Springs, California, U.S. | |
Batted: Switch Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 3, 1968, for the Los Angeles Dodgers | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| August 7, 1975, for the Cleveland Indians | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .234 |
| Home runs | 59 |
| Runs batted in | 214 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
William Paul Sudakis (March 27, 1946 – September 15, 2021) was an AmericanMajor League Baseballinfielder. He was primarily athird baseman, but also appeared as acatcher andfirst baseman.
During his senior year atJoliet Township High School in1964, Sudakis signed with theLos Angeles Dodgers. He fared poorly in his first professional season with thePioneer League'sPocatello Chiefs, batting just .214 with onehome run and twelveruns batted in with an .843fielding percentage at third base. The Dodgers experimented with Sudakis all over theinfield during his next three seasons in the minors. Sudakis developed into a power-hittingswitch hitter, clubbing 23 home runs for theSanta Barbara Dodgers in1966, and in1968 he batted .294 with sixteen home runs and 75 RBIs for theAlbuquerque Dodgers to earnTexas League co-MVP honors.
Later that year, Sudakis made his major league debut as a September call-up and immediately took over the starting third base job over incumbentBob Bailey. He hit a home run in his first game, a come-from-behind victory over thePhiladelphia Phillies,[1] and led the Dodgers to a 3–0 victory over theSt. Louis Cardinals with a first-inning two-run home run on September 21.[2]
In his rookie season of1969, Sudakis clubbed fourteen home runs (second on the team toright fielderAndy Kosco), four of which came in consecutive games from August 15 through 19. He was the last and youngest Dodgers rookie to hit home runs in four consecutive games untilJoc Pederson did so in2015.[3][4]
In1970, with rookie prospectsSteve Garvey andBilly Grabarkewitz joining a crowded Dodgers infield,ManagerWalter Alston experimented with Sudakis at catcher.[5] The idea was seemingly abandoned in mid May, until the second game of an August 15doubleheader against theChicago Cubs.[6] Sudakis appeared in 38 games behind the plate that season, throwing out just 6% of would-be base stealers (2 of 32). He had one of his better seasons with the bat, however, matching his previous season's home run total in nearly 200 fewerplate appearances. His .264batting average was also a career high.
Dogged by bad knees, Sudakis was limited to just 41 games and a .193 average in1971. He was placed on waivers duringspring training of1972, and was selected by theNew York Mets on his 26th birthday. His knees kept him off the field until July 11,[7] and prompted the Mets to use him mostly atfirst base. He appeared in only 18 games for the Mets, batting just .143 with one home run.[8]
During spring training1973, theTexas Rangers acquired Sudakis from the Mets for minor league journeymanBill McNulty. Though he appeared in just 82 games for the Rangers (mostly at first and third), he hit a career-high fifteen home runs. Thedesignated hitter was introduced in theAmerican League in 1973,[9] a position Sudakis seemed ideally suited for. However, he made nine appearances at DH, and batted just .111 with two RBIs. Following the season, his contract was purchased by theNew York Yankees.
The Yankees platooned Sudakis at DH with left-handed hitterRon Blomberg and used him as backup forChris Chambliss atfirst base; he also appeared at third on occasion and made one appearance behind the plate.[10] Following a 10–0 victory over theCleveland Indians on September 29,[11] the Yankees' flight toMilwaukee for a two-game set against the Brewers to end the season was delayed three hours. Upon arrival at the Pfister Towers Hotel in Milwaukee, Sudakis and back up catcherRick Dempsey got into a fight in the hotel lobby.[12] The fight was broken up by fellow catcherThurman Munson, among others.Dave Pagan,Walt Williams andAll-StarBobby Murcer were all injured in the altercation,[13] and Sudakis did not appear in either of the final two games of the season.
The Yankees traded Sudakis to theCalifornia Angels forSkip Lockwood at theWinter Meetings on December 3, 1974.[14]
Sudakis appeared in thirty games for the Angels, batting just .121 with one home run before he was released in late June. He immediately signed with the Indians,[15] but fared only slightly better. In1976, he played for theOmaha Royals of theAmerican Association in theKansas City Royals system, but could not make it back to the major leagues.
| Games | PA | AB | Runs | Hits | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | HBP | Avg. | Slg. | Fld% | CS% |
| 530 | 1751 | 1548 | 177 | 362 | 56 | 7 | 59 | 214 | 9 | 172 | 313 | 7 | .234 | .393 | .970 | 18% |
He was part of a core of young Dodgers prospects that became known as "The Mod Squad" after the popularTV series of the same name, and appeared on the cover of the May 19,1969 edition ofSports Illustrated, along with his fellow Mod Squad members.[16] From 1971 on, Sudakis caught 32% of potential base stealers (9 of 28) over the remainder of his career.
Sudakis was ofLithuanian descent.[17]
On September 27, 1985, Sudakis and Theodore Earl Turina were arrested oncocaine possession charges by undercover narcotics officers. $200,000 worth of cocaine was recovered at theirHuntington Beach residence.Orange County Sheriff's Lieutenant Tom Conner said that Sudakis was armed with a handgun at the time of the arrest and that a second weapon was also seized. Conner said authorities plan to pursue charges for possession of handguns.[18]
Sudakis died on September 15, 2021.[19]