Cyril Owen Buker (February 5, 1918 – October 11, 2011) was a

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

who played for the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...

in 1945. The 26-year-old

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

right-hander stood and weighed . Buker is one of many ballplayers who only appeared in the major leagues during World War II. He made his

major league debut Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

in relief on May 17, 1945, against the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

Ebbets Field Ebbets Field was a Major League Baseball stadium in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn, New York. It is mainly known for having been the home of the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball team of the National League (1913–1957). It was also home to five p ...

. His first major league win came in his first start, on June 21, 1945, as the Dodgers defeated the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

9–2 at

Shibe Park Shibe Park, known later as Connie Mack Stadium, was a ballpark located in Philadelphia. It was the home of the Philadelphia Athletics of the American League (AL) and the Philadelphia Phillies of the National League (NL). When it opened April 12, 1 ...

Andy Karl Andy Karl (born August 28, 1974 as Andrew Karl Cesewski) is an American actor and singer, best known for performing in musical theatre. He appeared on Broadway in the original productions of the musical version of ''Groundhog Day'' (for which he ...

was the losing pitcher. His season and career totals for 42 games include a 7–2 record, four

games started In baseball statistics, games started (denoted by GS) indicates the number of games that a pitcher has started for his team. A pitcher is credited with starting the game if he throws the first pitch to the first opposing batter. If a player is lis ...

, 22

games finished In baseball statistics, a relief pitcher is credited with a game finished (denoted by GF) if he is the last pitcher to pitch for his team in a game. A starting pitcher is not credited with a GF for pitching a complete game. Mariano Rivera is th ...

, five saves, and an

ERA An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth. Comp ...

of 3.30 in 87

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one innin ...

. Besides pitching well, Buker could swing the bat. He was 3-for-16 (.188) with a

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ov ...

and two

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

. Following his Brooklyn days, Buker eventually returned to his hometown of

Greenwood, Wisconsin Greenwood is a city in Clark County, Wisconsin, Clark County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 1,026 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Geography Greenwood is located at (44.767826, -90.598959). According to the Uni ...

where he began a successful coaching career, eventually being named to the Wisconsin Football and Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. His son, Tom, would later coach at the school, leading it to class C titles in boys' basketball and baseball in 1988. Buker died on October 11, 2011, in Greenwood, Wisconsin.Cy Buker Obituary
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Buker, Cy Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from Wisconsin Brooklyn Dodgers players 1918 births 2011 deaths People from Greenwood, Wisconsin Wisconsin Badgers baseball players Clinton Giants players Wausau Timberjacks players Wisconsin Rapids White Sox players St. Paul Saints (AA) players Montreal Royals players Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Little Rock Travelers players Minneapolis Millers (baseball) players Lincoln A's players Sioux City Soos players