Gino Cimoli
From BR Bullpen
Gino Nicholas Cimoli
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 2", Weight 200 lb.
- Debut April 19, 1956
- Final Game May 7, 1965
- Born December 18, 1929 in San Francisco, CA USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Gino Cimoli was a journeyman outfielder who played ten years in the major leagues. He was named to the All Star team during his first full season in the majors.
Born in San Francisco, CA in 1929, he was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1949.
In 1951, he was with the Fort Worth Cats minor league team. He was with the Montreal Royals from 1949 to 1952 and in 1954 and 1955. He also played for St. Paul.
Gino's first shot with Brooklyn was in 1956, at the age of 26, when he was primarily used defensively. He appeared in 73 games and had 36 at-bats, hitting .111. He appeared just once in the 1956 World Series, as a defensive replacement for Sandy Amoros.
In 1957, he became a regular outfielder, alongside Duke Snider and Carl Furillo. He hit .293 with 10 home runs and scored 88 times, and was named to the All-Star team for the only time in his career. The Dodgers and Cimoli moved to L.A. in 1958, and Gino had 325 at-bats, hitting .246 with 9 home runs. He was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals in the Wally Moon trade before the 1959 season, which was a year in which the Dodgers won the World Series.
Cimoli was a regular outfielder on the 1959 Cardinals, a team that finished 7th in the league. They did have some good players, including a 38-year-old Stan Musial, who had an off year, 21-year-old Curt Flood, Ken Boyer, and Bill White. Cimoli hit .279 that season, with 40 doubles and 7 triples, both in the top ten in the league. The Cardinals were willing to trade him, though, and so he found himself in Pittsburgh in 1960.
The 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates won the World Series. Cimoli didn't have one of his best seasons, hitting .267 with no home runs in 307 at-bats. He was a fourth outfielder, since the Pirate outfield consisted of Roberto Clemente, Bob Skinner, and Bill Virdon. In the World Series, he typically batted 5th in the lineup, and hit .250.
He had only appeared in 21 games for the Pirates in 1961, batting .299, when he was traded to the Milwaukee Braves in June for Johnny Logan. The Braves had a trio of sluggers in the outfield - Hank Aaron, Lee Maye, and the first Frank Thomas - so Cimoli, after hitting .197 in 37 games, found himself expendable. The Kansas City Athletics drafted him in the Rule V draft.
He played as a regular in both 1962 and 1963 for the Athletics. The first year, he hit .275 with 10 home runs and a league-leading 15 triples. The second year, he hit .263 with 11 triples, which was fourth in the league. He was released by the A's early in the 1964 season, going hitless in 9 at-bats. He caught on with the Orioles, and hit .138 in 58 at-bats. In his last season, 1964, he appeared in 4 games with the Angels.
Similarity scores show the most similar player to Gino Cimoli as Barry Bonnell, a player from the 1970's and 1980's.
Cimoli, Gene Baker, and Don Hoak shared an interest in greyhound racing.
Cimoli lives in San Francisco and is active in the San Francisco Italian Athletic Club.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- NL All-Star (1957)
- AL Triples Leader (1962)
- Won a World Series with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1960
