So good in his prime and unlikely success story....a true late developer aided greatly by the addition of a screwball to his pitching arsenal.....The Cuban born lefthander started in AAA Havana Sugar Kings then the Reds top affiliate....advanced employment was based on early press notices while he pitched for the President Batista Army club....one of the last players out of the country with the onset of the Castro regime, part of in 1960 AAA team forced to relocate mid season to Jersey City due to government travel restrictions ....then majority of his 20’s were spent riding various buses of minor league teams (he was also loaned out to several other organizations)....strong stints in AAA Jacksonville gave Mike truncated service with the St. Louis Cardinals....exceeded rookie status in 1964 but excluded from WS play....Settled in with Houston 1965....put together decent years on the mound but mostly performed in obscurity.... high lights were finishing second in ERA 1966 and 16 wins good for 5th circa 1967....Joining the Bird Hill Aces for 1969 was revelation to his career.....top notch coaching and excellent run support....Ascends as a Junior Circuit elite being the champion in 23 decisions and shares the Cy Young with Denny McClain.....Goes one win better in 1970 with 24......became the O’s workhorse....40 games started and 2 1/3 inning from 300....roll call of success goes as follows; In 1971 collects 20 triumphs, 1972 and 73 twin 18 victories, 1974 a return to 20+ win status.....The Cuellar's career erosion starts in 1975 with 14 game tallies....completely empty in 1976 with 4-13 record complete with relegation to bullpen and a layoff for month of Sept....released; at age 40 tried a quick resurfacing as California Angel....shelled and immediately shelved after 3 innings.....Probably one of the most superstitious pitchers of all time....avoided stepping on the base line going into the Orioles dugout to name one....a more extensive list idiosyncrasies is in his SABR bio....second highest number of wins for left hander from 1969-74 falling one short to Fergy Jenkins.....settled in both Puerto Rico and Florida, continued with coaching and off the grid pitching appearances....passed away from stomach cancer in 2010.
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