Former big league outfielder Jesús Alou passed away today at age 80, reports Enrique Rojas of ESPN. The Dominican Republic native played parts of 15 seasons in the majors during the 1960’s and 70’s.
Alou was a member of one of baseball history’s most famous families. The younger brother of All-Stars Felipe Alou and Matty Alou, Jesús signed with the Giants headed into 1959. After three-plus seasons in the minors, Alou reached the majors during his age-21 campaign in 1963. That was a 16-game cameo but made history when he joined his brothers in the San Francisco outfield during Jesús Alou’s rookie year. While Felipe would find himself traded to Milwaukee the following offseason, Jesús and Matty Alou spent the next few seasons as teammates in San Francisco.
Jesús Alou saw fairly significant action by his second season. He’d top 100 games every year from 1964-71. Alou played in San Francisco through 1968, hitting .279/.301/.348 in 633 games in a Giant uniform. During the 1968-69 offseason, he went to the Expos as part of the expansion draft. Alou would never play a game in Montreal, however. A couple months after selecting him, the Expos dealt Alou with right-hander Jack Billingham and lefty reliever Skip Guinn to Houston for All-Star outfielder Rusty Staub.
Alou played with the Astros until midway through the 1973 season, when Houston sold his contract to the Athletics. He was a role player for Oakland’s World Series winning clubs in 1973 and ’74. While he only got into 132 combined games in green and gold, he picked up a pair of championship rings. Alou signed with the Mets for the ’75 season and returned to Houston late in the decade in a minor role. He played professionally in Mexico before retiring after the 1980 campaign.
In 1380 career big league contests, Alou hit .280/.305/.353. Never much of a power threat, he only connected on 32 home runs but he tallied 1216 hits and topped the double-digit mark in doubles in eight consecutive seasons. While he never achieved the lofty heights his brothers reached as players, he spent a decade and a half as a major leaguer and won a pair of World Series.
Alou’s baseball career also went well beyond his playing days. He spent some time on the Houston coaching staff and eventually transitioned into scouting roles with the Expos and Red Sox. He’d worked for the Boston organization since 2002 and eventually spent more than six decades in the game. MLBTR sends our condolences to Alou’s family, loved ones, friends and colleagues throughout the sport.