The Colorado native was a third-round pick of the Astros in 1982 and debuted with them three years later. In 11 games, he recorded a 1-7 record and was dealt to Milwaukee as part of the trade for reliever Danny Darwin.

Knudson spent six seasons with the Brewers and a final one with the Rockies. For his career, he had a 24-29 record and a 4.72 ERA.