Dennis Lee "Denny" Hocking (born April 2, 1970 in Torrance, California) is a former Major League Baseball utility player. After playing at El Camino College in California, he was drafted in the 52nd round of the 1989 Major League Baseball Draft by the Minnesota Twins and made his major league debut in 1993. He played with the Minnesota Twins until 2004 when he went to the Colorado Rockies as a free agent. Hocking was a utility player for his entire career, playing every position except pitcher and catcher. Hocking's best year was 2000 when he hit .298 with 4 home runs and 47 RBI, a year where he also played in 10 or more games at 7 different positions. Hocking was never a regular starter in one position, but played over 100 games at shortstop, second base, third base, and right field. He is currently the manager for the Inland Empire 66ers.

In February 1987, Hocking hit a full court shot right before halftime in a basketball game for West Torrance High, his hometown team.

In 2000, Hocking's wife gave birth to fraternal twins, making him the first player in Twins franchise history to become the father of a set of twins.

When the Twins clinched the 2002 American League Division Series against the heavily favored Oakland Athletics, Hocking broke his hand in the ensuing celebration. Hocking caught the final out of Game 5 and players piled on top of him. A player he believed to be teammate Jacque Jones stepped on the middle finger of his right hand and split the nail in two places. This injury forced Hocking to miss the entire 2002 American League Championship Series.

Hocking served as an analyst and reporter for MLB.com and teamed with Rob Dibble on Fox Sports Radio. in 2008. He co-hosted with Derrick Deese on Saturdays from 5pm to 8pm Pacific Time.

In January 2010, Hocking was named hitting coach of the single-A Frederick Keys, a Baltimore Orioles affiliate. He was promoted to the AA Bowie Baysox in 2012 as hitting coach.

in December 2013, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim announced that Denny Hocking will be the manager of the Inland Empire 66ers for the 2014 season. The Inland Empire 66ers is the Class A - Advanced affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]