Roy Cullenbine

Roy Joseph Cullenbine (October 18, 1913 – May 28, 1991) was a Major League Baseball outfielder and first baseman. He played ten years in the Major Leagues for six teams: Detroit Tigers (1938–1939 and 1945–1947), Brooklyn Dodgers (1940), St. Louis Browns (1940–1942), Washington Senators (1942), New York Yankees (1942) and Cleveland Indians (1943–1945) during his ten-year playing career.

Career

Born in Nashville, Tennessee, but raised in Detroit, Michigan, Cullenbine was a switch-hitter and one of the most prolific recipients of bases on balls in major league history. In his ten year career, he collected almost as many walks (853) as he did hits (1072). Cullenbine was among the American League leaders in walks for seven consecutive seasons from 1941-1947. He was once walked four times in the same game by Lefty Gomez in August 1941. In a game in July 1941 he scored 5 runs in only 2 official at bats.

Driven largely by his ability to draw walks, he had a career on-base percentage of .408, which was 132 points higher than his career batting average of .276. His .408 career on base percentage ranks 38th best in the history of Major League baseball, higher than many Hall of Fame legends, including Honus Wagner, Joe DiMaggio, Willie Mays, and Hank Aaron.

Early years

Cullenbine grew up in Detroit where he played football at Eastern High School. He served as a batboy for the Detroit Tigers in 1930. In 1932, legendary scout Wish Egan saw Cullenbine working out at...
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