Kiki Cuyler
Hazen Shirley Cuyler

Bats Right
Throws Right
Height 5'10.5
Weight 190

Born August 30, 1899
Harrisville, MI
Died February 11, 1950
Ann Arbor, MI

Batting  

 Year Ag Tm     G   AB    H  2B  3B  HR    R  RBI   BB    K HBP  IW  SB  CS    BA  lgBA   SLG lgSLG   TB 
+-----------+----+----+----+---+---+---+----+----+----+----+---+---+---+---+-----+-----+-----+-----+----+
 1928 29 NDA       567  140  18   3  16   71   55                    29      .247  .278  .374  .376  212
 1929 30 NDA       608  187  23   4  22   90   83                    19      .308  .265  .467  .391  284 
 1930 31 NDA       612  175  33   3  24   99   84                    23      .286  .280  .467  .430  286 
 1931 32 HAT  153  600  187  37   4  12  105   61                    40   3  .312  .263  .447  .388  268 
 1932 34 HAT  154  629  152  20   5   8   74   29                    17   2  .242  .244  .328  .366  206 

 1933 35 HAT   50   70   24   4   1   0   14    4    7    8   2   0   2   0  .343  .286  .429  .411   30 
 1934 35 FRE  154  690  241  58   4   8  133   93   32   88   4   1   8  14  .349  .292  .480  .429  331 
 1936 37 FRE  144  580  196  36   8   9   85   96   36   73   1   0  13   4  .338  .286  .474  .410  275 
 1937 38 FRE   37   32    8   0   0   0    5    5    1    4   0   0   0   0  .250  .266  .250  .414    8 
 1938 39 FRE   48   50   17   3   1   0    7    2    4    8   0   0   1   1  .340  .272  .440  .411   22 
+-----------+----+----+----+---+---+---+----+----+----+----+---+---+---+---+-----+-----+-----+-----+----+
 10 Seasons   740 4438 1327 232  33  99  683  512   80  181   7   1 152  24  .299  .273  .433  .400 1922
+-----------+----+----+----+---+---+---+----+----+----+----+---+---+---+---+-----+-----+-----+-----+----+
 154 Gm  Avg  154  552  172  33   5   8   88   60   28   64   2   0  17   5  .299  ----  .433  ----  237
 Career High  154  690  241  58   8  24  133   93   36   88   4   1  40  14  .349  ----  .480  ----  331
+-----------+----+----+----+---+---+---+----+----+----+----+---+---+---+---+-----+-----+-----+-----+----+
 3 Yrs.  NDA      1787  502  74  10  62  260  222                    71      .281  .274  .438  .399  782 
 3 Yrs.  HAT  357 1299  363  61  10  20  193   94    7    8   2   0  59   5  .279  .258  .388  .382  504 
 4 Yrs.  FRE  383 1352  462  97  13  17  230  196   73  173   5   1  22  19  .342  .285  .470  4186  636 
+-----------+----+----+----+---+---+---+----+----+----+----+---+---+---+---+-----+-----+-----+-----+----+
 Year Ag Tm     G   AB    H  2B  3B  HR    R  RBI   BB    K HBP  IW  SB  CS    BA  lgBA   SLG lgSLG   TB 

Postseason Batting

 Year Tm  Opp WLser  G   AB    H  2B  3B  HR    R  RBI   BB    K HBP  IW  SB  CS    BA   SLG   TB 
+------------------+--+----+----+---+---+---+----+----+----+----+---+---+---+---+-----+-----+----+
 1934 FRE NDA   L    2    8    2   0   0   0    1    1    0    1   0   0   0   0  .250  .250    7
+------------------+--+----+----+---+---+---+----+----+----+----+---+---+---+---+-----+-----+----+
               0-21  2    8    2   0   0   0    1    1    0    1   0   0   0   0  .250  .250    7
+------------------+--+----+----+---+---+---+----+----+----+----+---+---+---+---+-----+-----+----+

WLser shows whether the player's team Won or Lost the series.

Appearances on Leaderboards and Awards  

Stats are Year-Value-Rank

All-Star
1934

Batting Average
1929-.308-5
1931-.312-5
1934-.349-6
1936-.338-8

Home Runs
1928-16-2
1929-22-9

RBI
1929-83-10

Hits
1929-187-3
1931-187-2
1934-241-2

Runs
1929-90-9
1930-99-9
1931-105-1
1934-133-6

Doubles
1931-37-3
1934-58-1

Stolen Bases
1928-29-4
1930-23-6
1931-40-1
1932-17-8
1936-13-4

At Bats
1929-608-10
1930-612-9
1931-600-5
1932-629-4
1934-690-1


Player of the Month, September 1929
Player of the Week, Week 5, 1931


Transactions

January 1, 1928: Drafted 8th round (57th overall) by North Dallas.
January 17, 1931: Traded by North Dallas to Hattiesburg for Tony Cuccinello.
December 18, 1933: Traded by Hattiesburg to Fremont for their 2nd Round Pick in 1934.
November 13, 1934: Traded by Fremont to North Dallas for Travis Jackson.
November 19, 1935: Traded by North Dallas with Bill Werber to Fremont for Wally Berger and their 2nd round pick in 1936.


Biography
Born in Harrisville, Michigan on August 30, 1899, Hazen “Kiki” Cuyler made his debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1921 but was shuffled back and forth to the minors for his first three seasons, spending little time with the parent club. It was in the bushes where Cuyler would be christened with his famous nickname. The name “Kiki” was derived from “Cuy” in his last name.
In 1924, he burst into stardom his first full season with a .354 average in 117 games, going 6 for 6 on August 9th. He followed that season with a .357 mark leading the league in triples (24) and runs scored (144).
He tied a National League record by collecting 10 straight hits in 1925 as the Pirates advanced to the World Series against the Washington Senators. In the seventh game, Cuyler drove in the tying and winning runs with an eighth-inning double as the Pirates became World Champions.
However, in 1927, Donie Bush replaced Bill McKechnie as Pirate manager. Bush insisted that Kiki bat second in the lineup instead of his customary third. Highly superstitious, Cuyler refused to bat number two, but said he would accept any other spot. Bush stuck to his demand and sat Cuyler, benching him as the pennant-winning Pirates faced the New York Yankees in the World Series. The famous “Murderer's Row” swept the Bucs in four straight games.
Inevitably, Cuyler was traded to the Chicago Cubs on November 28, 1927 for Sparky Adams and Floyd Scott. The addition of Cuyler gave the Cubs a expert bat, powerful arm, and was a throwback to an earlier era with his daring baserunning.
During his first three seasons as a Cub, he led the league in stolen bases and scored over 90 runs all three seasons. In 1929, Cuyler reached a career high batting average of .360 and drove in 102 runs as the Cubs reached the World Series. He hit .300 in the Series but the Philadelphia Athletics defeated the Cubs in five games.
Cuyler's best overall season was 1930. He batted .355 and enjoyed career peaks of 228 hits, 155 runs scored, 50 doubles and 134 RBI. For good measure, he legged out 17 triples and clubbed 13 home runs.
Off the field, Cuyler was an avid hunter and champion dancer, winning several trophies for his waltzing. He neither drank nor smoked, but had a weakness for ice cream sodas. A pious Roman Catholic, he prayed before every game, wore a scapular, and often made the sign of the cross when stepping into the batter's box, one of the first players on record to practice this custom.
Kiki was the idol of the female fans, and he seldom let them down, especially on June 27, 1930, before the largest crowd in Wrigley Field history.
Of the 51,556 total, there were 30,476 Ladies Day guests, hollering and screaming for their hero. Cuyler homered in the bottom of the tenth to give the Cubs a 7-5 come-from-behind win over the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Many old-timers insist that Cuyler's greatest performance came in the stretch drive of the 1932 campaign as the Cubs battled the New York Giants for the National League pennant. Cuyler broke his foot earlier in the season and missed 40 games and was only batting .262.
Chicago, led by Cuyler, rattled off 14 straight wins in early September and a bases-loaded triple against the Pirates on September 20th clinched the pennant for the Cubbies. From August 27 to the end of the season, Cuyler batted .365 to bring his season average to .291.
Cuyler batted .278 in the World Series, but the Yankees swept the Cubs. Cuyler enjoyed two more productive seasons before hitting a prolonged slump in 1935. The Cubs released him on July 3 and he signed with the Cincinnati Reds, where he made a comeback in 1936. That season, the 37-year old Kiki hit .326 in 144 games and scoring 96 runs. His skills waned thereafter, and he wound up his playing days with the Dodgers in 1938.
Kiki later served as a Cub coach, managed in the minor leagues and was on the coaching staff of the Boston Red Sox at the time of his death. Cuyler died in Ann Arbor, Michigan on February 11, 1950. He was only 50 years old. Cuyler was laid to rest at St. Ann's cemetery in his hometown of Harrisville.
Kiki Cuyler was posthumously elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1968.

Some information courtesy of by Eddie Gold and Art Ahrens.



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