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Kiki Cuyler Stats & Facts

Hall of Fame, Player

Kiki Cuyler

Position: Outfielder
Bats: Right  •  Throws: Right
5-10, 180lb (178cm, 81kg)
Born: August 30, 1898 in Harrisville, MI
Died: February 11, 1950 in Ann Arbor, MI
Buried: St. Ann’s Cemetery, Harrisville, MI
Debut: September 29, 1921 (5,331st in major league history)
vs. STL 3 AB, 0 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
Last Game: September 14, 1938
vs. CIN 1 AB, 0 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 1968. (Voted by Veteran’s Committee)
View Kiki Cuyler’s Page at the Baseball Hall of Fame (plaque, photos, videos).
Full Name: Hazen Shirley Cuyler
Pronunciation: \KAI-kai KAI-lur\
View Player Info from the B-R Bullpen
View Player Bio from the SABR BioProject

 

Nine Players Who Debuted in 1921

Goose Goslin
Kiki Cuyler
Bing Miller
Luke Sewell
Riggs Stephenson
Lu Blue
Earl Sheely
Ray Kolp
Lew Fonseca

 

The Kiki Cuyler Teammate Team

C:   Ernie Lombardi
1B: Jim Bottomley
2B: Rogers Hornsby
3B: Pie Traynor
SS: Rabbit Maranville
LF: Chuck Klein
CF: Hack Wilson
RF: Paul Waner
SP: Wilbur Cooper
SP: Charlie Root
SP: Lon Warneke
SP: Paul Derringer
RP: Burleigh Grimes
M:   Charlie Grimm

 

Notable Events and Chronology

7/31/1924: Kiki Cuyler lost a home run when a game was rained out and the score reverted back to the previous inning. The Pirates were playing in New York when the storm appeared in the third inning. The Giants, behind 5-0 at this point, started stalling to try to prevent the game from becoming official. In the top of the seventh, Cuyler homered into the lower right field seats off Jack Bentley. However, the game was called after a 30-minute rain delay in the bottom of the frame and the seventh inning was wiped off the books.

7/31/1924: Kiki Cuyler lost a home run when a game was rained out and the score reverted back to the previous inning. The Pirates were playing in New York when the storm appeared in the third inning. The Giants, behind 5-0 at this point, started stalling to try to prevent the game from becoming official. In the top of the seventh, Cuyler homered into the lower right field seats off Jack Bentley. However, the game was called after a 30-minute rain delay in the bottom of the frame and the seventh inning was wiped off the books.

1925 - Although the Baker Bowl is considered a bandbox by some, the aggressive Kiki Cuyler of the Pirates hits two inside-the-park home runs there in a victory over the Phils.

1925 – Although the Baker Bowl is considered a bandbox by some, the aggressive Kiki Cuyler of the Pirates hits two inside-the-park home runs there in a victory over the Phils.

At Pittsburgh, the Pirates stop the Braves, 9 - 7. Kiki Cuyler is 4 for 4 with a double and triple and two runs to start a hit streak.

At Pittsburgh, the Pirates stop the Braves, 9 – 7. Kiki Cuyler is 4 for 4 with a double and triple and two runs to start a hit streak.

The Pirates pip the Braves, 2 - 1, as Kiki Cuyler has his second straight 4-for-4 game. The two teams total 23 hits - Pittsburgh 13 - but score just three runs.

The Pirates pip the Braves, 2 – 1, as Kiki Cuyler has his second straight 4-for-4 game. The two teams total 23 hits – Pittsburgh 13 – but score just three runs.

Pittsburgh OF Kiki Cuyler ties the National League record by getting his 10th consecutive hit, singling in his first two at bats, off Art Decatur and Dutch Ulrich, before he fouls out in his 3rd at bat, against the Phils' Decatur. The Pirates win the opener, 9 - 7. In the nitecap, a 14 - 4 Pirates win, Cuyler has his 3rd 4-for-4 game in his last four outings. He clouts two homers to back Ray Kremer's pitching. Phils utility player Bernie Friberg catches the 8th inning in the game, thus playing every position during the year; he will be featured in a Ripley's Believe it or Not cartoon.

Pittsburgh OF Kiki Cuyler ties the National League record by getting his 10th consecutive hit, singling in his first two at bats, off Art Decatur and Dutch Ulrich, before he fouls out in his 3rd at bat, against the Phils’ Decatur. The Pirates win the opener, 9 – 7. In the nitecap, a 14 – 4 Pirates win, Cuyler has his 3rd 4-for-4 game in his last four outings. He clouts two homers to back Ray Kremer’s pitching. Phils utility player Bernie Friberg catches the 8th inning in the game, thus playing every position during the year; he will be featured in a Ripley’s Believe it or Not cartoon.

The Pirates clinch the National League pennant, making six double plays in beating the Phils 2 - 1. Kiki Cuyler is 1 for 2.

The Pirates clinch the National League pennant, making six double plays in beating the Phils 2 – 1. Kiki Cuyler is 1 for 2.

With the pennant clinched, the Pirates get shut out for the second time in three days, losing twice to the visiting Giants. Fred Fitzsimmons stops the Bucs, 3 - 0, in the nitecap, beating Johnny Morrison. Zeke Barnes outpitches Vic Aldridge, 4 - 3, in the opener. To the dismay of the 25,000 on hand, the Bucs' leading batter Kiki Cuyler is hitless.

With the pennant clinched, the Pirates get shut out for the second time in three days, losing twice to the visiting Giants. Fred Fitzsimmons stops the Bucs, 3 – 0, in the nitecap, beating Johnny Morrison. Zeke Barnes outpitches Vic Aldridge, 4 – 3, in the opener. To the dismay of the 25,000 on hand, the Bucs’ leading batter Kiki Cuyler is hitless.

kiki cuyler

The Pirates become the first team to win a World Series after being down three games to one deficit

Robins rookie Babe Herman collects his 8th and 9th hits in a row‚ but flies out to Kiki Cuyler in the 6th to fall short of the record of 10 straight‚ held by Cuyler and Ed Konetchy. Brooklyn tops the Pirates‚ 4 - 2.

Robins rookie Babe Herman collects his 8th and 9th hits in a row‚ but flies out to Kiki Cuyler in the 6th to fall short of the record of 10 straight‚ held by Cuyler and Ed Konetchy. Brooklyn tops the Pirates‚ 4 – 2.

Max Carey returns to Pittsburgh in a Robins uniform and makes a clean steal of home in the 6th inning

Max Carey returns to Pittsburgh in a Robins uniform and makes a clean steal of home in the 6th inning

Pittsburgh Pirates trade future Hall of Fame outfielder Kiki Cuyler to the Chicago Cubs

Pittsburgh Pirates trade future Hall of Fame outfielder Kiki Cuyler to the Chicago Cubs

kiki cuyler

The Cubs become the first National League team to win a Fall Classic contest since 1926

A Ladies Day crowd swells the Wrigley Field attendance to a park record 51,556 to watch the Cubs' 7 - 5 win over Brooklyn. Kiki Cuyler's 10th-inning home run is the clincher.

A Ladies Day crowd swells the Wrigley Field attendance to a park record 51,556 to watch the Cubs’ 7 – 5 win over Brooklyn. Kiki Cuyler’s 10th-inning home run is the clincher.

Hack Wilson retrives a lost RBI

Hack Wilson retrives a lost RBI

1931 - Three days before his 35th birthday, Chicago's player-manager Rogers Hornsby is again undaunted by Forbes Field's forbidding expanse. Hornsby hits three consecutive home runs to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 10 - 6. This is the final season in which Hornsby will allot himself significant playing time – 357 at-bats in 100 games. The hyphenate portion of his career will extend through 1937, but his on-field appearances will come primarily off the bench and never again will he amass as many as 100 at-bats in a season. Regarding today's display, Fred Wertenbach of the Pittsburgh Press reports: "For the enlightenment of those fans not among the 15,000 at yesterday's slaughter, the great Rogers crashed three successive long, legitimate and unsullied homers over the distant Forbes Field ramparts, two off Larry French and the third off Claude Willoughby. Mr. French tried to southpaw Hornsby in the 3rd à la screw ball. Two men were on at the time. He pitched a bit low. Hornsby drove it over the left field wall, about the seventh panel up from the scoreboard. The score then became Cubs 3, Pirates 5. In the 5th, Larry faced Hornsby again with two on. 'Huh! He hits 'em low; I'll try one high outside,' Larry reasoned. Bang! The ball cleared the screen in right, and the score in a trice became 6 - 5, Cubs. The 6th frame saw Willoughby, a right-hander, ready to benefit from French's experience, the latter having left the scene. 'This guy hits 'em low, he hits 'em high – my play is to curve him to death,' was the ex-Phillie's logic. Kiki Cuyler was on second. Wham! A curve, waist high, was interrupted as it came up to the plate, and diverted over the scoreboard in left. Two more runs added to the Cub total, making eight driven in by Rogers."

1931 – Three days before his 35th birthday, Chicago’s player-manager Rogers Hornsby is again undaunted by Forbes Field’s forbidding expanse. Hornsby hits three consecutive home runs to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 10 – 6. This is the final season in which Hornsby will allot himself significant playing time – 357 at-bats in 100 games. The hyphenate portion of his career will extend through 1937, but his on-field appearances will come primarily off the bench and never again will he amass as many as 100 at-bats in a season. Regarding today’s display, Fred Wertenbach of the Pittsburgh Press reports: “For the enlightenment of those fans not among the 15,000 at yesterday’s slaughter, the great Rogers crashed three successive long, legitimate and unsullied homers over the distant Forbes Field ramparts, two off Larry French and the third off Claude Willoughby. Mr. French tried to southpaw Hornsby in the 3rd à la screw ball. Two men were on at the time. He pitched a bit low. Hornsby drove it over the left field wall, about the seventh panel up from the scoreboard. The score then became Cubs 3, Pirates 5. In the 5th, Larry faced Hornsby again with two on. ‘Huh! He hits ’em low; I’ll try one high outside,’ Larry reasoned. Bang! The ball cleared the screen in right, and the score in a trice became 6 – 5, Cubs. The 6th frame saw Willoughby, a right-hander, ready to benefit from French’s experience, the latter having left the scene. ‘This guy hits ’em low, he hits ’em high – my play is to curve him to death,’ was the ex-Phillie’s logic. Kiki Cuyler was on second. Wham! A curve, waist high, was interrupted as it came up to the plate, and diverted over the scoreboard in left. Two more runs added to the Cub total, making eight driven in by Rogers.”

The Cubs edge the Reds, 3 - 2 at Wrigley Field, when Leo Durocher boots a ground ball hit by Kiki Cuyler. It ends a string of 251 errorless chances in 53 games for Durocher.

The Cubs edge the Reds, 3 – 2 at Wrigley Field, when Leo Durocher boots a ground ball hit by Kiki Cuyler. It ends a string of 251 errorless chances in 53 games for Durocher.

The Cubs beat the Giants at Wrigley Field in a ten-inning game that witnessed an eclipse

The Cubs beat the Giants at Wrigley Field in a ten-inning game that witnessed an eclipse

In St. Louis, the Cubs' win streak reaches 13 as Kiki Cuyler's 5th homer in six games leads the way to an 8 - 5 victory. Mark Koenig adds a round-tripper for Chicago.

In St. Louis, the Cubs’ win streak reaches 13 as Kiki Cuyler’s 5th homer in six games leads the way to an 8 – 5 victory. Mark Koenig adds a round-tripper for Chicago.

At the Polo Grounds, Kiki Cuyler continues to haunt the Giants by clouting an 11th-inning homer to give the Cubs the 8 - 7 win.

At the Polo Grounds, Kiki Cuyler continues to haunt the Giants by clouting an 11th-inning homer to give the Cubs the 8 – 7 win.

The Cubs clinch the National League pennant when they beat Pittsburgh, 5-2, thanks to Kiki Cuyler's seventh-inning bases-loaded triple. The Wrigley Field contest features rookie second baseman Billy Herman's 200th hit of the season.

The Cubs clinch the National League pennant when they beat Pittsburgh, 5-2, thanks to Kiki Cuyler’s seventh-inning bases-loaded triple. The Wrigley Field contest features rookie second baseman Billy Herman’s 200th hit of the season.

Chicago Cubs outfielder Kiki Cuyler breaks his leg and will miss nearly three months of the season

Chicago Cubs outfielder Kiki Cuyler breaks his leg and will miss nearly three months of the season

kiki cuyler

Chicago Cubs release future Hall of Fame outfielder Kiki Cuyler

Carl Hubbell subdues the Reds, 6 - 4, for his 20th win of the season

Carl Hubbell subdues the Reds, 6 – 4, for his 20th win of the season

At Cincinnati, Phillies starter Joe Bowman gives up his first hit of the game, a leadoff triple in the 9th inning to Kiki Cuyler, and then is relieved by Claude Passeau, who retires the next three batters. The Phils win, 4 - 0.

At Cincinnati, Phillies starter Joe Bowman gives up his first hit of the game, a leadoff triple in the 9th inning to Kiki Cuyler, and then is relieved by Claude Passeau, who retires the next three batters. The Phils win, 4 – 0.

Kiki Cuyler of the Reds has eight straight hits - all singles - during a doubleheader split with the Phils

Kiki Cuyler of the Reds has eight straight hits – all singles – during a doubleheader split with the Phils

In the Phils-Reds split, Reds leadoff hitter Lonny Frey bangs out eight hits, just the third Red player to collect eight hits in a twinbill (after Dusty Miller, on October 9, 1898 and Kiki Cuyler, on July 30, 1936). Frey is 5 for 5 in game two as the Reds win 8 - 5 behind Paul Derringer. Claude Passeau wins the opener, 10 - 3 for the Phils. Buck Jordan has four hits and Phil Weintraub and Chuck Klein hit homers.

In the Phils-Reds split, Reds leadoff hitter Lonny Frey bangs out eight hits, just the third Red player to collect eight hits in a twinbill (after Dusty Miller, on October 9, 1898 and Kiki Cuyler, on July 30, 1936). Frey is 5 for 5 in game two as the Reds win 8 – 5 behind Paul Derringer. Claude Passeau wins the opener, 10 – 3 for the Phils. Buck Jordan has four hits and Phil Weintraub and Chuck Klein hit homers.

Hall of Fame outfielder “Kiki” Cuyler dies at the age of 50

Hall of Fame outfielder “Kiki” Cuyler dies at the age of 50

Goose Goslin

Goose Goslin and Kiki Cuyler are elected into the Hall of Fame by a unanimous vote of the Veterans Committee

Willie Wilson hits his 5th inside-the-park homer this season in a 6 - 3 loss to Seattle at Kansas City. It is the most inside-the-park homers hit in a season since Kiki Cuyler hit eight for the Pirates in 1925.

Willie Wilson hits his 5th inside-the-park homer this season in a 6 – 3 loss to Seattle at Kansas City. It is the most inside-the-park homers hit in a season since Kiki Cuyler hit eight for the Pirates in 1925.

Although he has been dead for fifty-one years, Hack Wilson is awarded another RBI, increasing his major league RBI record to 191. The commissioner's office revises the total after baseball's historian Jerome Holtzman discovered the Cubs outfielder did not get credit for driving in Kiki Cuyler with a third-inning single in a game played in July of 1930.

Although he has been dead for fifty-one years, Hack Wilson is awarded another RBI, increasing his major league RBI record to 191. The commissioner’s office revises the total after baseball’s historian Jerome Holtzman discovered the Cubs outfielder did not get credit for driving in Kiki Cuyler with a third-inning single in a game played in July of 1930.

Biography

 

Superstars having trouble with management is not a product of the latter part of the twentieth century in baseball, just as any fan who knows the tale of Hazen (KiKi) Cuyler’s battle with Pirate Manager Donie Bush.

Cuyler may have been the Pirates’ most complete outfielder before Roberto Clemente. He was a line-drive hitter with terrific speed and a great arm. Cuyler was the runner-up for the National League’s Most Valuable Player Award in 1925 behind Rogers Hornsby and his eighth-inning double off Walter Johnson in the seventh game of the 1925 World Series brought baseball’s championship to the Steel City. He hit .354, .357, and .321, finished second in the league in stolen bases before leading the league in 1926. An excellent right fielder, Cuyler played well in center after Max Carey was waived to Brooklyn in 1926, but his career with the Pirates came to a prolonged end, partly due to the player’s insubordination and partly due to his manager’s rigidity.

Born in 1898, Cuyler attended the U.S. Military Academy during World War I. His speed and strength gained him notoriety on the football field but when the war ended, Cuyler got a job in the Buick factory in Flint Michigan. The post-war recession led to his hours being cut and Cuyler decided to try professional athletics. Baseball offered the best financial opportunity and Cuyler signed with the Bay City team in the Michigan-Ontario League.

While his natural athleticism was seen early, Cuyler had trouble hitting the curveball. This dissuaded some teams, but not the Pirates. However, while Cuyler’s name was mentioned as a potential outfielder in accounts of the time, he drew no more raves than players like Eddie (late Mule) Haas, Walt Mueller, Herman Layne, and Frank Luce. Cuyler got late-season call-ups to Pittsburgh from 1921-1923, but his cumulative line in the three years was ten hits in 43 at-bats.

Cuyler evidently learned to hit curveballs by 1923. Playing in Nashville, the outfielder hit .329 with 32 doubles and 15 triples. He also stole 62 bases during a time when steals were beginning to decline and was named the league’s MVP. Still, Luce who had hit .382 in the lower classed Michigan-Ontario League with 15 home runs was considered the better bet to make an impact in 1924.

KiKi made the team, but it took injuries to Max Carey and Carson Bigbee for him to get extended playing time. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Cuyler hit .360 in his first 100+ at-bats. Bill McKechnie made him his regular right fielder once his veteran outfielders returned. Cuyler’s play was seen as the chief reason the Pirates were able to emerge from a poor first half to move into third place in July. By mid-August, his average had risen to .385 and he moved into second place behind Carey in steals. Although his batting fell off somewhat down the stretch, Hazen, as he was still referred to in the press, finished at .354, two points behind third-place finisher Ross Youngs. His 16 triples were fourth in the league. Cuyler became a fan favorite and cries of “KiKi” (rhyming with “flyfly”) were chanted at Forbes Field.

The origination of Cuyler’s nickname is still disputed. Some sources say it was a shortened version of Cuyler, which he answered to and which his teammates would call out when they wanted him to take a difficult chance. Another version said that it was a childhood nickname pinned on Hazen, perhaps in a mocking way, because he stuttered.

Cuyler suffered no sophomore slump in 1925 and got off to a strong start. There were rumors in the middle of the season that the young super starter was being thrown at by rival pitchers in an attempt to scare him off the plate. Cuyler didn’t scare. On June 20, he hit two home runs, a triple and a single, and in July, he became the first National Leaguer that season to reach 100 hits besides leading the league in triples. In late August, with the pennant pretty much assured, McKechnie and the team promoted Cuyler as the league’s MVP. As noted above, he finished second to Hornsby and his .403 average, but he still compiled incredible numbers, leading the league in runs scored and triples. In fact, Cuyler’s 26 triples have not been equaled since. Additionally, Cuyler was second in total bases (366), slugging (.593), doubles (43—one behind league leader Jim Bottomley) and stolen bases (41 to Carey’s 46). His .357 average was again two points behind the number three-hitter in the league, Zack Wheat, and he drove in 102 runs. Showing speed and power, nine of Cuyler’s 18 home runs were inside-the-park, the highest figure of the lively ball era and a total which broke the team record of eight established by Chief Wilson.

KiKi continued to star in the World Series. Although his batting average was only .269, Cuyler homered in the eighth inning of Game 2 with Eddie Moore on base for a 3-2 win over Hall of Famer Stan Covaleski. In the final game, Cuyler doubled in a run in the fifth to pull the Bucs within two and sacrificed in the seventh. In the eighth, he came up with the bases full against Walter Johnson, considered by most the greatest pitcher of all time. He smashed the ball into the gap and all three runners scored. However, the umpires decided the ball had momentarily rolled under a tarp and Cuyler was credited with what became a series-deciding two-run double.

The speedster again led the league in runs scored in 1926 and he won his first stolen base title with 35. Cuyler took over the league lead in hitting in May, but with most of the team’s regulars battling slumps and the A-B-C Affair leading to the dismissal of two outfielders, Cuyler was forced to play without rest and finished at .321.

Cuyler had gotten along well with Bill McKechnie, who was something of a player’s manager and not considered a disciplinarian. McKechnie’s approach led to his contract being not renewed after the Pirates faltered in 1926. Donie Bush was brought in to tighten the reigns on Dreyfuss’s wild horses, but Cuyler had no reputation as a drinker. He was said, instead, to enjoy ice cream sodas and spent some of his off time competing in waltz contests. Still, problems developed between the two.

Cuyler injured his ankle sliding early in 1927 and missed two weeks. During his time out of action, Bush had moved rookie Lloyd Waner to center and when Cuyler was healthy enough to play, Bush moved him to left and penciled him into the number two spot in the order. Cuyler grudgingly accepted his new positions in the field and in the lineup and followed orders for a few games. He apparently sulked and complained to Bush and Bush, box scored indicate relented and moved his star to the fifth spot in the lineup. Cuyler, speaking publicly, said he did not like hitting second because his free-swinging style made him ill-suited for it and did not like playing left at Forbes Field because the sun bothered his eyes.

In a game against their rivals, the New York Giants, Cuyler went into second base standing up on a double play. He stated he had done so to force NY shortstop Travis Jackson to throw around him causing him to break up the double play. However, Jackson dropped the ball, and since Cuyler had not slid, he overran the base and was tagged out. Bush, a veteran of the Deadball era and a longtime teammate of Ty Cobb, was livid. He benched Cuyler for the remainder of the season and refused to play him during the World Series no matter what the circumstances. Clyde Barnhart hit well as Cuyler’s replacement, but when Barnhart was hurt late in the year, Bush played untested rookie Adam Comorosky over his MVP-talented doghouse dweller. Luckily for the Pirates, and undoubtedly for Bush, Comorosky did not cost the Pirates any games and the Bucs won the pennant. Bush refused to back off his hardline stance even in the World Series. He chose to use 20-year-old Fred Brickell, who had batted only 21 times during the season, and third-string catcher Roy Spencer to pinch-hit instead and once used pitcher Emil Yde as a pinch-runner rather than call on one of baseball’s fastest players.

Cuyler apologized for his insubordination in the newspapers following the Pirate’s loss to the Yankees, but he realized he would never play for the team again. Although trade rumors mentioned players such as Jackson, Highpockets Kelly, and either Dolph Luque or Pete Donohue coming in exchange for Cuyler when the trade was finally made it was to the Cubs and the Pirates received only second baseman Sparky Adams, a quick player with little power and who was 33-years-old and Floyd Scott, a decent hitting prospect without much speed. Adams did not play as well for the Pirates as he had for the Cubs and lost his starting job while Scott hit well, but saw his career end after an injury, playing in only 60 games with the Corsairs.

Cuyler, after his own injury limited his effectiveness in 1928, regained his reputation as a star with the Cubs, hitting between .317 and .360 five times over the next six seasons. After retiring as a player, Cuyler coached with the Red Sox. He died young, at the age of 51, after suffering his second heart attack in less than a week, in 1950. While generally regarded as a Cub when discussions of Hall of Famers are held (Cuyler was elected in 1968), KiKi’s time as a regular with the Pirates was so significant that the team has spotlighted him with a banner outside PNC Park. His 3 ½ seasons as a starting player are the least by someone so honored,

 

Factoids, Quotes, Milestones and Odd Facts

Played For
Pittsburgh Pirates (1921-1927)
Chicago Cubs (1928-1935)
Cincinnati Reds (1935-1937)
Brooklyn Dodgers (1938)

Similar: Enos Slaughter

Linked: Chick Hafey, Bill Terry, Jim Bottomley, Donie Bush

He was born Hazen Shirley Cuyler. The first name was pronounced “Cuy Cuy” not “Kee Kee,” and it was given to him by teammates who would yell “Cuy Cuy” when the ball was hit in his direction, to make sure everyone knew the play was his.

Best Season, 1925
This is without question the best season of Cuyler’s career. He batted .357 with a .598 slugging mark, a .423 OBP, 220 hits, 144 runs scored, 43 doubles, 26 triples, 18 homers, 102 RBI, 41 steals, and 369 total bases. He led the National League in games played and triples, and finished in the top ten in 16 offensive categories. Only Rogers Hornsby’s triple crown stopped Cuyler from winning a deserved MVP award.

Post-Season Appearances
1925 World Series
1929 World Series
1932 World Series

Where He Played: Right field (796 games), center (700), left (331). The statistical evidence suggests that Cuyler was an average, at best, defensive player.

Feats: In 1925, Cuyler collected hits in ten consecutive at-bats in September, to set a National League record.

Injuries and Explanation for Missed Playing Time
Piratre skipper Donie Bush, who played with Ty Cobb and learned a tging about being ornery, benched Cuyler in August of 1927, after Kiki reportedly failed to slide to break up a double play at second. Another story has it that Bush asked Cuyler to hit second in the lineup, and Kiki refused because he had a superstition about hitting third.

Hitting Streaks
22 games (1926)
22 games (1926)

Transactions
November 28, 1927: Traded by the Pittsburgh Pirates to the Chicago Cubs for Sparky Adams and Pete Scott.

Cuyler vs. The Pirates
Cuyler won a bitter contract dispute with Pirate owner Barney Dreyfuss in the spring of 1927, which placed the popular outfielder on shaky ground. In August, he failed to slide into second base on an apparent force play and was benched by manager Donie Bush (who didn’t really like Cuyler anyway), for the remainder of the season, even though Pittsburgh was in first place. The feisty skipper refused to place Cuyler in the lineup for the World Series loss against New York and at season’s end, Cuyler was shipped to the Cubs. Cuyler lasted eleven more years in the big leagues, batting .315 with more than 1,600 hits and 198 steals (the most in the loop) over that stretch.

All-Star Selections
1934 NL

Replaced
After waiting in the Pirate system for more than three seasons, Cuyler was finally given a job as the right-handed part of a platon in left field in 1924. The other half of the arrangement was Skeet Bigbee, who had been the Bucs starting left fielder for four seasons. After a year as a pltoon player, Cuyler was the starting right fielder in 1925, replacing Clyde “Pooch” Barnhart, who switched to left.

Replaced By
Cuyler’s last regular job was as Brooklyn’s right fielder in 1938, at least on a semi-regular basis. After he retired, in 1939, Brooklyn replaced him with “Rowdy” Moore, the beer-drinking Texan.

Best Strength as a Player
Many contemorary accounts cite Cuyler as the fastest man in the National League during his prime.

Largest Weakness as a Player
Kiki was rarely healthy and he always seemed to wear out his welcome, no matter where he played. As a player he was always one hard slide or swing away from injuring a leg or pulling a muscle. In some ways he was like Steve Kemp: he swung so hard that he’d corkscrew himself into the ground when he missed. In the field, ala Ken Griffey Jr., Cuyler frequently ran into teammates or walls, and he had a knack for throwing over the heads of his cutoff men.

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