1976 Topps #468 - Jesus Alou

• Jesus Alou was the youngest of the three Alou brothers who played major league baseball. Alou played from 1963-1979. He was signed by the San Francisco Giants in 1958 and played in the minors from 1959-1963. Jesus had a lifetime minor league average of .338. Alou got a short look at the end of the 1963 season and batted .250 in 24 at bats.
• Alou was a fourth outfielder for the Giants in 1964 but got a lot of playing time, batting .274 in 376 at bats. Alou was the starting right fielder in 1965 and batted .298 with a career-high nine home runs in 143 games. Jesus was a singles hitter who didn't walk much or steal many bases.
• In 1966 Alou had a ten-game stint with AAA Phoenix. He batted .259 in 110 games for the Giants. Jesus was the starting left fielder for the Giants in 1967 and batted .292 in 129 games. Alou split time between left field and right field in 1968 and batted .263 in 120 games.
• After the 1968 season Jesus was taken by the Montreal Expos in the expansion draft. He and Donn Clendenon were traded to the Houston Astros for Rusty Staub before the 1969 season (Clendenon refused to report to the Astros and the trade was reworked).
• Alou was the starting left fielder for the Astros in 1969. He didn't hit very well, batting .248 in 115 games. Jesus was batting .205 on June 5 when he was injured and missed the next five weeks. He had nine straight multi-hit games in early September that helped him get his average up to .248.
• Jesus played in 117 games in 1970 and batted .306. In 1971 Alou batted .279 in 122 games.
• In 1972 Alou was the odd man out when Cesar Cedeno emerged as a star. The Astros had Bob Watson, Cedeno, and Jim Wynn in the outfield so there wasn't much room for Alou. Jesus batted .312 in 93 at bats in '72.
• Jesus started the 1973 season with the Astros but he still wasn't getting much playing time. After batting .236 in 55 at bats Alou was sold to the Oakland A's on July 31. He played well for the A's in the stretch drive, batting .306 in 108 at bats. Alou was 2 for 6 in four games in the ALCS but batted only .158 in 19 at bats in the World Series.
• Alou was a DH and extra outfielder in 1974. He batted .268 in 220 at bats during the regular season, singled in his only at bat in the ALCS, and struck out in his only at bat in the World Series.
• Jesus was released by the A's during spring training in 1975. He signed with the New York Mets in mid April and batted .265 in 102 at bats during the 1975 season. Alou was released by the Mets during spring training in 1976. He was out of major league baseball for two years.
• Before the 1978 season Alou signed with the Astros. He batted .324 in 139 at bats in 1978 and .256 in 43 at bats in 1979 as a player-coach. Alou retired after the 1979 season.
• After his playing career Alou was a scout for the Expos and served as director of Dominican operations for the Florida Marlins. He has had the same position for the Boston Red Sox since 2002.
• Liked to face: Lindy McDaniel (.800 in 10 AB); Bob Buhl (.450 in 20 AB); Steve Carlton (.436 in 55 AB)
• Hated to face: Bob Purkey (.000 in 12 AB); Pat Jarvis (.091 in 33 AB); Jim Maloney (.114 in 35 AB)