Johnny Van Cuyk
From BR Bullpen
John Henry Van Cuyk
- Bats Left, Throws Left
- Height 6' 1", Weight 190 lb.
- Debut September 18, 1947
- Final Game May 9, 1949
- Born July 7, 1921 in Little Chute, WI USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Johnny Van Cuyk, who had cups of coffee with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947-49, was on the cover of Baseball Digest in April 1947 as a possible rookie of the year Baseball Digest cover .
He was signed to play with Appleton in 1939 but didn't get into any games. He then pitched with them in 1940-41. He was in the infantry and military police in 1942-45.
He was with the Fort Worth Cats in 1946, going 18-8. In 1947-49, he was with Montreal.
Van Cuyk was 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA in two games for Cienfuegos in the 1949-1950 Cuban Winter League.
He was bought from St. Paul by Oakland in 1952, and went 9-3 for the Oaks as a reliever in 61 appearances. In 1953 he was sold to the Padres.
He is mentioned in a joke in the book The Funniest People in Sports and Neighborhoods: 500 Anecdotes. Umpire Tom Gorman once got mad at the Dodgers for riding him, and yelled that Van Cuyk was out (Van Cuyk had pitched the night before, so he would not be in the game that day anyway). Manager Chuck Dressen supposedly said "you'll have to yell a little louder because I sent him to the Texas League last night." Since Van Cuyk was apparently with Montreal in 1947-49, it seems like the story's accuracy is questionable. Johnny only had played in the Texas League in 1946, prior to his big league debut.
He is the brother of Chris Van Cuyk.
One main source: John Van Cuyk.
