Darlington High School Athletics Department 525 Spring Street Darlington, South Carolina 29532 843.398.2730 843.398.2739 (fax) Dr. Greg Harrison, principal Rick Drawdy, athletics director

ORLANDO HUDSON Inaugural Inductee, Darlington High School Hall of Fame Saturday, January 22, 2011 - The Falcons Nest

Orlando “O-Dog” Hudson was born on December 12, 1977 in Darlington, South Carolina. As a child he attended Spring Elementary, Brunson-Dargan Elementary, and participated in Dixie Youth sports programs with one of his teams appearing in the Little League World Series. He is a graduate of Darlington High School’s Inaugural Class of 1996.

Orlando was an All-State athlete in , basketball and football at DHS. During his junior year he was a member of the Falcons 1995 AAA state championship team, selected as the Pee Dee area Player of the Year, and AAA Player of the Year. In 1996, Orlando started at quarterback in the North-South football game, was ranked 35th nationally in baseball, and named Mr. Baseball in South Carolina.

After high school, Orlando was drafted in the 33rd round by the , but attended Spartanburg Methodist College graduating with an Associate Degree. He was a junior college nominee for player of the year and drafted again after college in the 43rd round by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Orlando led the 2001 USA Baseball World Cup team to a silver medal, played in the 2002 All-Star Futures game and on July 24, 2002 made his debut with the Toronto Blue Jays. The two time All-Star has earned four Rawlings Gold Glove Awards and was named the 2006 MVP. He is the sixth infielder to win Gold Gloves in both the National and American Leagues. Orlando has also played for the and and recently signed with the .

Orlando’s .280 lifetime batting average pales in comparison with his lifelong dedication to special needs children. This passion birthed the C.A.T.C.H. Foundation, which stands for Curing Autism Through Change and Hope, in January 2008.

The Darlington High School Hall of Fame proudly inducts inaugural inductee, Orlando Hudson, for his contributions on and off the field in Darlington County and beyond on this twenty-second day of January, two-thousand and eleven during halftime of the Darlington Falcons versus Hartsville Red Foxes basketball game at the Falcons Nest.