He played all or part of six seasons in Major League Baseball for the Boston Red Sox (1956, 1958–61), Houston Colt .45s (1962) and Detroit Tigers (1962).

[1] Buddin played high school baseball in Olanta, South Carolina, where he led his team to the state championship in 1953.

Buddin led The American Legion Baseball Olanta, Sc Post 85 to the State Championship game in 1951[2] He was a highly touted prospect, and the Boston Red Sox won a bidding war for his services.

On June 11, he hit the first grand slam in Houston franchise history against Joe Moeller of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

On July 20, Buddin's contract was waived to the Tigers, where he played out his final year in the Majors as a backup to Chico Fernández.