Milton Cuyler, Jr. (born October 7, 1968) is a former major league outfielder drafted by the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

in the second round of the amateur draft. He finished third behind Juan Guzman and winner Chuck Knoblauch for the American League Rookie of the Year award.

Early life

Cuyler graduated from Southwest High School in

Macon, Georgia Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia. Situated near the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is located southeast of Atlanta and lies near the geographic center of the state of Geo ...

. He was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the second round, 46th overall, of the 1986 Major League Baseball draft. Also a standout football player, Cuyler had signed a letter of intent to play college football at Florida State, where he would've joined

Deion Sanders Deion Luwynn Sanders Sr. (born August 9, 1967) is an American football coach and former player who is the head coach at the University of Colorado Boulder. Nicknamed "Prime Time", he played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons ...

as the top incoming defensive backs. He opted to play baseball full time when the Tigers offered a $75,000 signing bonus, although FSU defensive coordinator

Mickey Andrews Mickey Andrews (born May 20, 1942) is a former American football coach. He is most known for his tenure as the defensive coordinator at Florida State for 26 seasons, from 1984 to 2009, under head coach Bobby Bowden. Andrews also served as the ...

left open the opportunity to return to football. Cuyler was considered among the Tigers best prospects for four consecutive years by ''

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' is a sports enterprise that covers baseball at every level, including MLB, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in the MiLB, college, high school, and international leagues. It is currently published in the form o ...

'', ranking 5th in 1988, 4th in 1989, 5th in 1990, and 3rd in 1991. 1988 Florida State League

Professional baseball career

Cuyler made his major league debut with the Detroit Tigers on September 6, 1990 at the age of 21 as a defensive replacement in right field for

John Shelby John T. Shelby (born February 23, 1958) is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played from 1981 to 1991. He began his career as a member of the Baltimore Orioles before later playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Detroi ...

. He saw consistent playing time in centerfield and batting ninth to close out the 1990 season, with Lloyd Moseby moving from center to leftfield. Cuyler was named the Detroit Tigers Rookie of the Year in 1991, and finished 3rd overall in American League Rookie of the Year voting behind winner Chuck Knoblauch and runner-up Juan Guzman. After failing to live up to his early promise, he was released by the Tigers following the season. He signed as a free agent with the Boston Red Sox for , but saw very little activity with the Sox (110 at bats in only 50 games for a .200 batting average). He signed with the Montreal Expos following the season, but failed to make the team that spring. He appeared in seven games for the Texas Rangers in September , and spent the season in their

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

system before calling it a career. In 490 games from 1990–1998, Cuyler tallied 329

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...

, 10 home runs and 119 runs batted in with a .237 career average. Following his playing career, Cuyler served as the

hitting coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...

for the Gulf Coast League Twins until 2013. In 2011, Cuyler was named to the Macon, Georgia Sports Hall of Fame.

References

External links

Milt Cuyler
at Baseball Almanac 1968 births Living people African-American baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from Georgia (U.S. state) Boston Red Sox players Bristol Tigers players Detroit Tigers players Fayetteville Generals players Lakeland Tigers players London Tigers players Major League Baseball center fielders Nashua Pride players Oklahoma RedHawks players Texas Rangers players Toledo Mud Hens players Tulsa Drillers players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople {{US-baseball-outfielder-1960s-stub