George Culver (born July 8, 1943), is an American former professional baseball pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Astros, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Philadelphia Phillies, from 1966 to 1974. He also pitched for the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) Nippon-Ham Fighters, in 1975.
Culver was signed by the New York Yankees as an amateur free agent in 1963 for $2,500. He made his major league debut at age 23 on September 7, 1966 as the Indians' starting pitcher against Jim Lonborg and the Boston Red Sox at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Culver pitched five innings and gave up five earned runs in a 5–4 loss; the first-ever major league hitter he faced was José Tartabull.[3]
Culver pitched a no-hitter for the Reds on July 29, 1968 in a 6–1 win over the Phillies at Philadelphia's Connie Mack Stadium. Culver struck out four batters and walked five as he outdueled Chris Short in game two of a doubleheader.[4][5]
In 1973, Culver appeared in 28 games (all in relief) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, posting a 4–4 record and a 3.00 ERA before getting placed on waivers in August.[6] Though Culver was the last pitcher on the Dodger depth chart, teammate Tommy John thought his dismissal was a big reason Los Angeles missed the playoffs in 1973. "George didn't get into a lot of games, but he held a vital role as team comic. His antics kept guys loose and kept us in a good frame of mind. When they released him...it upset the chemistry of the team. We couldn't believe it. It was like cutting out our heart."