Gino Cimoli
Gino Cimoli | |
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San Francisco, California, U.S. | |
Died: February 12, 2011 Roseville, California, U.S. | (aged 81)|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
April 19, 1956, for the Brooklyn Dodgers | |
Last MLB appearance | |
May 7, 1965, for the Los Angeles Angels | |
MLB statistics | |
Batting average | .265 |
Home runs | 44 |
Runs batted in | 321 |
Teams | |
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Career highlights and awards | |
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Gino Nicholas Cimoli (December 18, 1929 – February 12, 2011) was an American
Career
A high school all-star at Galileo High School in San Francisco, Cimoli signed as an amateur free agent with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1949. He would make his Major League Baseball debut with the Dodgers on April 19, 1956.
On April 15, 1958, Cimoli became the first Major League batter to step into the batter's box on the West Coast when the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants played their first game of the season at Seals Stadium in San Francisco.[citation needed] After the season, the Dodgers traded Cimoli to the St. Louis Cardinals for Wally Moon and Phil Paine. After the 1959 season, the Cardinals traded Cimoli to the Pittsburgh Pirates with Tom Cheney in exchange for Ron Kline.[citation needed]
Cimoli played on the Pirates' 1960 championship team, which defeated the
On June 15, 1961, the Pirates traded Cimoli to the
Cimoli's baseball card in 1958 (No. 286, Topps) in which the background was painted out, shows him swinging a bat, without the bat — which was also painted out. (Source: Baseball Hall of Shame 4, Nash & Zullo)
Later life
After retiring from baseball, Cimoli worked as a delivery driver for United Parcel Service where, in 1990, the company honored Cimoli for completing 21 years of service without a traffic accident. Cimoli, then 60 years old and still working for the company, was now referred to as "The Lou Gehrig of UPS." [1]
See also
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
- Baseball Hall of Fame: Colorful Cimoli Always a Good Quote