Born in Bancroft, Iowa, he threw left-handed, batted right-handed and was listed as 6 feet (1.8 m) tall and 176 pounds (80 kg).

Hatten often had trouble controlling his pitches, as he allowed the second-most bases on balls in each of his first two seasons with the Dodgers, walking 110 batters in 1946 and 105 in 1947.

[3] The Dodgers won the 1947 and 1949 NL pennants during Hatten's stay, and he would appear in six World Series games, all against the New York Yankees.

Staked to a 6–0 lead after two innings and a 9–4 advantage after four, Hatten was driven from the contest with one out in the fifth after allowing a two-run home run to Joe DiMaggio.

Hatten won 59 games (losing 39) for the Dodgers between 1946 and June 1951, when he was sent to the Chicago Cubs as part of a blockbuster mid-season trade that delivered slugging outfielder Andy Pafko to Brooklyn.