Cuban baseball legend Mike Cuellar dead at 72

[OnBaseMachine]

Sad news. From Jorge Ebro, a writer for a Cuban newspaper:

Cuban baseball legend Mike Cuellar has died. Is a great loss for all latinos.

http://twitter.com/jorgeebro

Orioles great Mike Cuellar dead at 72

Mike Cuellar, one of the greatest players in Baltimore Orioles history, passed away Friday afternoon at Orlando Regional Medical Center. He was 72.

Cuellar suffered a steady decline of health since mid-January: A brain aneurism, followed by the removal of his gall bladder, which preceded the death blow _ cancer in the stomach.

A left-handed master of the screwball, Cuellar emerged as one of the best pitchers in baseball in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, He won 20 or more games four times between 1969 and 1974. Cuellar aka “Crazy Horse” captured the Cy Young award in 1969, and was selected to the All-Star Game four times in his career.

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/en_...ead-at-72.html

[OnBaseMachine]

He had a great career. 185 wins, 3.14 ERA, 110 ERA+ , won a Cy Young award in 1969. Anyone know why the Reds traded him and who they got in return? If the Reds had kept him you think the Reds may have won another World Series in the 70's? Like in 1972 when they were oh so close. Maybe another quality starter like Cuellar locks up that WS.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/pl...01.shtml#trans

[westofyou]

He had a great career. 185 wins, 3.14 ERA, 110 ERA+ , won a Cy Young award in 1969. Anyone know why the Reds traded him and who they got in return? Just looking at his stats, if the Reds had kept you think the Reds may have won another World Series in the 70's?

http://www.baseball-reference.com/pl...01.shtml#trans

Reds traded him to Detroit (Dewitt had GM'd there so they had a relationship, it was probably a cash deal) Cueller took off when he started throwing his screwball, which as many know is a pitch that most pitchers don't get to throw at their 1st organization and usually becomes a I'm going to do it so I can stay in the bigs move.

Mike also had a little trouble with English and that held him back for awhile.

Here's a story I saw yesterday, very sad.

http://baltimore.sportsthenandnow.co.../mike-cuellar/

[Always Red]

[RedsBaron]

He had a great career. 185 wins, 3.14 ERA, 110 ERA+ , won a Cy Young award in 1969. Anyone know why the Reds traded him and who they got in return? If the Reds had kept him you think the Reds may have won another World Series in the 70's? Like in 1972 when they were oh so close. Maybe another quality starter like Cuellar locks up that WS.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/pl...01.shtml#trans

Assuming that Cuellar would have pitched just as great with the Big Red Machine as he did with the Orioles, his presence on the 1974 Reds, when he won 22 games, should have been enough to have brought home the 1974 NL West title, and his presence on the 1972 and 1973 Reds could have been enough in the post season to give the Reds a World Series victory. On the other hand, if he had been on the 1969 Reds, a year he won 23 games, the Reds may have won the NL West, but, if so, Dave Bristol would probably remained as Reds manager instead of Sparky Anderson getting the job.

[Scrap Irony]

Had Cuellar stayed with Cincinnati and been just as good as he was later in his career, the Reds might have won it all in 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, and 1974. Cuellar would probably have been the best Red pitcher of each year that decade, save one or two years where Maoney or Nolan were healthy.

[Tony Cloninger]

Would his style have fit in the NL....with the turf....and the fact Riverfront was a good hitter's park, more so than Memorial?

[Tony Cloninger]

Would his style have fit in the NL....with the turf....and the fact Riverfront was a good hitter's park, more so than Memorial?

[reds1869]

Very sad. I recently won a card of Cuellar in the Topps' Million Card Giveaway. It prompted me to learn more about him and I'm glad I did. He was a fascinating person.

[WebScorpion]

Had Cuellar stayed with Cincinnati and been just as good as he was later in his career, the Reds might have won it all in 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, and 1974. Cuellar would probably have been the best Red pitcher of each year that decade, save one or two years where Maoney or Nolan were healthy.

It would have definitely made a difference in 1970...he was 24-8 that year and he beat us in Game 5 of the World Series with a complete game. I was pretty angry at whoever traded Frank Robinson and him after that series...I was 8 and I KNEW the Reds were going to win it all. I'm not even sure how I knew he was ever a Red since he only played for them before I was born. At eight, things were very clear cut though, and it had to be someone's fault the Reds didn't win it all. It couldn't have been that Baltimore was a better team...

[cumberlandreds]

Hated to hear about Cuellar's death. A fine pitcher who helped make the Orioles one of the best teams of the late 60's and early 70's. Chances are he may never have flourished like he did if he had stayed a Red. But it still makes one think about what could have been if he had stayed a Red his entire career.

[George Anderson]

Chances are he may never have flourished like he did if he had stayed a Red. .

I'm curious why you think that?? I don't know much about Cuellars time in the organization so I'm asking outta curiousity.

[cumberlandreds]

I'm curious why you think that?? I don't know much about Cuellars time in the organization so I'm asking outta curiousity.

I just think the Orioles of that time had a better way of developing their pitchers. I think WOY touched on this too. A screwball is something a pitchers tries when he's desparate to hang on. He may have had a better teacher of that pitch with the Orioles than the Reds? We'll never know for sure but considering the Reds history with pitchers I wonder if he would have developed like he did with the Orioles.

[George Anderson]

I just think the Orioles of that time had a better way of developing their pitchers. I think WOY touched on this too. A screwball is something a pitchers tries when he's desparate to hang on. He may have had a better teacher of that pitch with the Orioles than the Reds? We'll never know for sure but considering the Reds history with pitchers I wonder if he would have developed like he did with the Orioles.

The Orioles of that era did an excellent job of developing pitchers so I'd say your probally right.

[RedsBaron]

If you want to assume that they would have pitched just as well with the Reds as they ultimately did elsewhere, the 1969-74 Reds could have had a very good pair of southpaw starters in Cuellar and Claude Osteen. Osteen twice won 20 games for the Dodgers, but Osteen was a Red until late in the 1961 season when the Reds traded him for a player to be named later (who turned out to be Dave Sisler) and cash. Several years later, after a stint in Washington, Osteen wound up with the Dodgers.