Former Auburn great and 17-year MLB veteran Tim Hudson enters his third season as the volunteer assistant and pitching coach for the Auburn baseball program in 2021.

Although Hudson’s first two seasons on staff in 2020 and 2021 was affected by COVID-19, he has still made an immediate impact with the program.

During his first season in 2020, he guided the pitching staff to a historic start as the team struck out 10 or more batters in a record 14 straight games to start the season and in 16 of 18 games played. The Tigers also led the SEC and ranked third in the country with five shutouts and turned in a 2.81 ERA. The Tigers’ hurlers struck out 209 batters, good for the 12th highest rate per 9.0 innings in the nation, and issued 63 walks in 160.0 innings pitched. The 3.32 K-BB ratio was also a top-25 mark in the country. 

With Hudson on board, Auburn’s coaching staff has not only made nine trips to the College World Series, but also has a combined 62 years of experience in professional baseball, including 32 years at the major league level.

In two years as a player in an Auburn uniform, Hudson turned in the best two-way season in program history and helped lead the team to the College World Series. During the 1997 season, the Columbus, Georgia, native posted a 15-2 record with a 2.97 ERA and 165 strikeouts while also hitting .396 with 18 home runs and 95 RBI. Hudson led the NCAA in wins while his strikeout total was the highest in the SEC. He went on to be named the 1997 Rotary Smith Award winner, First Team All-America and the SEC Player of the Year.  

Following his Auburn career, Hudson was selected by the Oakland Athletics in the sixth round of the 1997 MLB Draft and went on to spend 17 years in the big leagues with Oakland (1999-2004), Atlanta (2005-13) and San Francisco (2014-15). He posted a 222-133 career record with a 3.49 ERA, was a four-time MLB All-Star and won a World Series. Hudson also finished fifth in the Rookie of the Year race in 1999, placed in the top six of Cy Young voting on four occasions and was named the 2010 Comeback Player of the Year with Atlanta.

Hudson, who was inducted into the Braves Hall of Fame in 2018, ranked ninth in wins, 17th in innings pitched and 30th in wins above replacement among qualified major league pitchers during his time with the club. His .611 win percentage is the third-best mark in Braves history, and he ranks fifth in the organization in wins (113), ERA (3.56), strikeouts (997) and innings pitched (1,573.0). At the time of his Braves Hall of Fame induction, the right-hander was one of only 21 pitchers in MLB history to win at least 200 games, post 2,000 strikeouts and have a .600-or-higher career winning percentage.

Along with his Braves Hall of Fame nod, Hudson also went on to be inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame as a member of the 50th anniversary class in 2018. 

Hudson went onto the National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot for 2021 and received enough votes to remain on the ballot for 2022. 

A native of Columbus, Ga., Hudson is married to the former Kim Bruner. The couple have two daughters, Kennedie and Tess, and one son, Kade. Residing in Auburn, Tim and Kim are very active with their philanthropy for children, the Hudson Family Foundation.