Dick Hughes

Richard Henry Hughes (February 13, 1938 – May 6, 2026) was an American professional baseball player who pitched in three seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). In his rookie year, 1967, he led the National League in WHIP (walks+hits per IP), and finished second to Tom Seaver in the National League Rookie of the Year voting.

Biography Hughes was born in Stephens, Arkansas, on February 13, 1938. His family moved to Shreveport, Louisiana, in 1946. Very near-sighted, he began wearing glasses in 7th grade, and learned for the first time that there were people who could see across the street. He graduated from C. E. Byrd High School in Shreveport in 1956, and pitched for the Byrd baseball team that won the AAA state championship. He played collegiate baseball on a scholarship at the University of Arkansas for two years before beginning his professional career in 1958.

Hughes died on May 6, 2026, at the age of 88.