Coaching great who ‘put Merced College baseball on the map’ dies after battle with cancer
Legendary Merced College baseball coach Butch Hughes died Tuesday morning at the age of 79, according to family members.
Hughes coached at Merced College for 10 seasons, compiling a 307-73 record, leading the Blue Devils to seven state championships, including five titles in a row from 1976-80.
Hughes went on to coach for several Major League Baseball organizations, including the Los Angeles Dodgers, Colorado Rockies, Oakland A’s and Milwaukee Brewers.
“When you think of Butch Hughes, he was kind of a legend around here,” said current Merced College baseball coach Nate Devine. “Obviously him and Chris (Pedretti) were the base of the program for so long.”
Hughes passed away after a battle with Multiple Myeloma.
Hughes was a baseball lifer. He moved to Merced in 1971 when he was named the Merced College baseball coach. He taught in the health and physical education department at Merced College for 34 years.
Prior to coming to Merced, Hughes was an All-American at Cerritos College and spent four years as Minor League pitcher.
“He put Merced College baseball on the map,” said former Merced College coach Chris Pedretti, who played for Hughes at MC in 1976 and 1977. “The seven state championships his teams won are unprecedented. The impact he had on baseball in Merced is enormous.”
Twenty Merced College baseball players signed professional contracts during Hughes’ tenure as the Blue Devils head coach. However, if you asked his players, he was just as proud of his players that become doctors, lawyers and contributing members in the community.
“He was very demanding,” Pedretti said. “Players respected him and respected his knowledge of the game. He got you to buy into what needed to be done. Butch would do anything for his guys after they were done playing for him. If they needed help, he would be the first one to take care of his players.”
Hughes coached just about every level of baseball in Merced. He returned from Major League dugouts to help out at Merced College as an assistant coach. He coached high school, including the freshman level at Merced High. He volunteered his time during the summer as an American Legion pitching coach.
Hughes was also instrumental in starting all-star games and tournaments for middle school teams.
“He just had a passion for the game,” said former longtime Merced High baseball coach Lou Souza. “He was in a Major League clubhouse, he coached at the college level and high school. He trickled down to all levels. He was always looking for a way to do something different.”
Hughes was also known to help out wherever he could in the community. He used his baseball contacts to bring former Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda to Merced to speak to students at Hoover Middle School and community members at the Italo Lodge in Merced.
Hughes also brought former Colorado Rockies star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki to Merced to speak to the Golden Valley High baseball team.
“Baseball was his vehicle to do good in this world,” Pedretti said. “If he took on a task or he saw a need, he was relentless to achieve what needed to be done. He would approach anybody for assistance. If he had a goal he would accomplish it.”
“He was a go-getter when it came to raising money,” Souza added. “He would find people to get things done. He was uncanny about doing that.”
Hughes was coaching until the very end. He was helping Merced College as a pitching coach before he was diagnosed with the cancer in January.
“With him coaching with us this past year it really opened up my eyes with how good of a coach he was,” Devine said. “Right up until the very end he was working as hard as any guy I’ve been around. You could see why he had so much success in college and at the pro level. His work ethic was amazing. He was like a machine.
“Even after his last day of chemotherapy he showed up at the office.”
Hughes is survived by his wife Mary Ann, five children Julie, Karen, Walter, Carrie and Brett, their spouses Scott, Michael, Naiomi, Dave and Amanda and give grandchildren Clark, Bryce, Miles, Amena, Garrett, Kendall and Cooper.
Three of Hughes’ grandsons played college baseball, including Clark, who was drafted by the Oakland A’s in the 10th round in 2018.
This story was originally published July 21, 2020 at 3:06 PM.
