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Curtell Howard Motton ( ; September 24, 1940 – January 21, 2010) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from through , most notably as a member of the Baltimore Orioles dynasty that won three consecutive American League pennants from 1969 to 1971 and, won the World Series in 1970. He also played for the Milwaukee Brewers and the California Angels.
Motton was known by the nickname "Cuz".
Motton played baseball at Encinal High School in Alameda, California, the same school that produced Willie Stargell, Tommy Harper, Jimmy Rollins and Dontrelle Willis. Motton and Harper were named as outfielders on the 1958 Alameda County Southern Division All-Star Team, with Stargell named as the first baseman. Motton and Harper also played quarterback on the school's football team. Motton was also a sprinter on the track team. He completed his education at Santa Rosa Junior College and then transferred to the University of California in Berkeley, California (1959-1961).
He spent the next years away from the Orioles organization when he served in the United States Army at Fort Richardson. He managed to play organized baseball in 1964 with the Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks, which also featured Tom Seaver, Graig Nettles and Rick Monday. He returned to the Orioles' farm system in 1965, and made his major league debut during the 1967 season, when he was called up to the Orioles from the Rochester Red Wings on July 5, 1967.
In 1967, Motton played for the Orioles Triple-A affiliate Rochester Red Wings of the International League, and was named the International League Rookie of the Year. He hit .323, with 72 walks, 18 Home run, 83 runs scored, and 70 runs batted in (RBIs) for the Red Wings.
Between 1962 and 1974, Motton played for 7 different minor league teams, including all or part of 1966, 1967, 1973 and 1974 for the Red Wings.
In 1969, infielder Don Buford was converted into an outfielder, relegating Motton to pinch hitting duties. Motton shined in his new role, batting .303 with six home runs and 21 RBIs for the season. Perhaps his most memorable pinch hit at-bat came on October 5 against the Minnesota Twins in the 1969 American League Championship Series. With the score tied at zero in the eleventh inning, Motton singled in Boog Powell for the only run of the game.
Motton's personality was an important contribution to the team and the community. Hall of Fame Oriole pitcher Jim Palmer said of Motton, "'He would light up a room.'" In 1970, he and his wife moved into a mostly white apartment building in Woodlawn, Baltimore County, Maryland, and were known for their "infectiously kind, sensitive, and warm" natures in the community. On one occasion, a recently widowed neighbor called him late at night because a burglar was attempting to break into her apartment. In only his underwear, Motton grabbed a baseball bat and chased the would-be burglar from the building.
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