Farewell, Mike Cuellar

When I was reading the sports section of the paper this morning I was saddened to read of the passing of Mike Cuellar. He died of stomach cancer at the age of 72. Seeing his name again reminded me of what a great pitcher Cuellar was, and that he was part of the worst trade in the history of the Astros.

Cuellar came to the Astros in 1965, as the team was moving into the Astrodome and became know as the Astros, after their first three seasons as the Colt .45’s. Mike was a left handed pitcher with a truly wicked screwball. I loved to sit in the bleachers in center field next to the tunnel when he pitched, just to watch the ball dance! Cuellar was a 16 game winner for one of the most woeful teams in the league, in those days after the MLB expansion that brought them into the National League.

I the winter of 1968 the Astros traded Mike Cuellar to the Baltimore Orioles for a first baseman named Curt Blefry. I was outraged at the time. And time only confirmed that the trade was worse than any in team history, worse that Joe Morgan going to the Reds, worse than Kenny Lofton for Eddie Taubensee, the absolute worst! By 1970 Blefry proved to be so worthless that he was traded for a washed up Joe Pepitone!

Cuellar went on to help take the Orioles to three World Series appearances and to be a part of a staff that had four 20 game winners in one season. If Mike had been with the Orioles his whole career he would be in the Hall of Fame.

Farewell, Mike Cuellar.