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HurricaneDij39
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He was only a Cub for three seasons, and Moises Alou is largely remembered for the play he didn't make (and couldn't), but not to this young Cubs fan at 25.
A product of the Pittsburgh Pirates organization, Alou spent much of his early career with the Montreal Expos, where his father Felipe was manager. His cousin, Mel Rojas, was also a pitcher for the Expos at the time. In 1994, Alou and the Expos' bid for a dream season would be dashed by baseball's major labor strike of the 90's, though he would bounce back in 1996 with a then-career high 96 RBI's.
Moises' career had really started to take off once he jumped out of his dad's shadow. He signed with the Florida Marlins for the 1997 season, and he hit .292/.373/.493 in his lone season there as the Marlins took down the powerful Cleveland Indians in the World Series in seven games, where Alou would hit .321. The Marlins underwent their first of many firesales immediately after their first series, and Alou was traded to the Astros. His numbers in Houston were nothing short of spectacular, even though he missed the 1999 season with an ACL injury. Alou hit a minimum of .312 and drove in at least 108 runs in each of his three seasons there, and in 1998, finished third in the N.L. MVP voting behind none other than Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire. Then after the 2001 season, Alou signed with the Cubs.
Like many pre-2003 Cubs seasons, Alou's 2002 season was a disappointment, as he battled injures and was mired in a deep slump early on. Though his 2002 slugging percentage (.419) was respectable overall, it was an embarrassment for his standards, and Moises hired a new trainer after the season and pledged to return to his old form. His hard work would pay off in a big way in 2003, as Alou hit a solid .280 with 22 HR and 91 RBI's, providing the needed protection for Sammy that the Cubs had never seen before in the Sosa era. He helped the Cubs win their first Playoff series in 95 years, over the Atlanta Braves in five games in the NLDS.
The 2003 NLCS hardly needs an explanation. With the Cubs leading 3-0 in Game 6 at Wrigley and five outs from their first world series since 1945, manager Dusty Baker left starter Mark Prior in the game too long (he threw 119 pitches to be exact) and had started to walk guys in the eighth. Shortstop Alex Gonzalez made a critical error, and the Marlins (Alou's former team) eventually scored eight runs and evened the series at three games apiece. Kerry Wood struggled in Game 7 as the Marlins escaped the Cubs for a 9-5 lead. At that point, the Cubs were a dead team. A late-inning home run by Troy O'Leary would not be enough as the Marlins overcame a 3-1 series deficit to defeat the Cubs as well as the Yankees in the 2003 World Series.
Alou had his best season with the Cubs came in 2004. He hit a career-high 39 home runs and was arguably the team's best hitter than year with the exception of maybe Aramis Ramirez. Yet in spite of Alou's stellar production, his age at the time (38) proved to be the determining factor in the Cubs' decision to let him walk as a free agent after the season, a move I personally did not agree with at the time, as our 2005 outfield proved to be a trainwreck. The Cubs won just 79 games in 2005 without Alou, ten fewer than the year before in spite of Derrek Lee's stellar 46-HR campaign.
Moises had reunited with Felipe with the San Francisco Giants for the 2005 and 2006 seasons, but the Barry Bonds steroid allegations provided a black cloud over the time, and the Giants failed to make the Playoffs while the Alous were there together. Moises would close out his career with the New York Mets. In his final season in 2008, Alou hit .347 in 49 at-bats before suffering a torn hamstring that required surgery and effectively ended his season.
For his career, Alou hit .303/.369/.516, and in 2014, will become eligible for the Hall-of-Fame for the first time.
A product of the Pittsburgh Pirates organization, Alou spent much of his early career with the Montreal Expos, where his father Felipe was manager. His cousin, Mel Rojas, was also a pitcher for the Expos at the time. In 1994, Alou and the Expos' bid for a dream season would be dashed by baseball's major labor strike of the 90's, though he would bounce back in 1996 with a then-career high 96 RBI's.
Moises' career had really started to take off once he jumped out of his dad's shadow. He signed with the Florida Marlins for the 1997 season, and he hit .292/.373/.493 in his lone season there as the Marlins took down the powerful Cleveland Indians in the World Series in seven games, where Alou would hit .321. The Marlins underwent their first of many firesales immediately after their first series, and Alou was traded to the Astros. His numbers in Houston were nothing short of spectacular, even though he missed the 1999 season with an ACL injury. Alou hit a minimum of .312 and drove in at least 108 runs in each of his three seasons there, and in 1998, finished third in the N.L. MVP voting behind none other than Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire. Then after the 2001 season, Alou signed with the Cubs.
Like many pre-2003 Cubs seasons, Alou's 2002 season was a disappointment, as he battled injures and was mired in a deep slump early on. Though his 2002 slugging percentage (.419) was respectable overall, it was an embarrassment for his standards, and Moises hired a new trainer after the season and pledged to return to his old form. His hard work would pay off in a big way in 2003, as Alou hit a solid .280 with 22 HR and 91 RBI's, providing the needed protection for Sammy that the Cubs had never seen before in the Sosa era. He helped the Cubs win their first Playoff series in 95 years, over the Atlanta Braves in five games in the NLDS.
The 2003 NLCS hardly needs an explanation. With the Cubs leading 3-0 in Game 6 at Wrigley and five outs from their first world series since 1945, manager Dusty Baker left starter Mark Prior in the game too long (he threw 119 pitches to be exact) and had started to walk guys in the eighth. Shortstop Alex Gonzalez made a critical error, and the Marlins (Alou's former team) eventually scored eight runs and evened the series at three games apiece. Kerry Wood struggled in Game 7 as the Marlins escaped the Cubs for a 9-5 lead. At that point, the Cubs were a dead team. A late-inning home run by Troy O'Leary would not be enough as the Marlins overcame a 3-1 series deficit to defeat the Cubs as well as the Yankees in the 2003 World Series.
Alou had his best season with the Cubs came in 2004. He hit a career-high 39 home runs and was arguably the team's best hitter than year with the exception of maybe Aramis Ramirez. Yet in spite of Alou's stellar production, his age at the time (38) proved to be the determining factor in the Cubs' decision to let him walk as a free agent after the season, a move I personally did not agree with at the time, as our 2005 outfield proved to be a trainwreck. The Cubs won just 79 games in 2005 without Alou, ten fewer than the year before in spite of Derrek Lee's stellar 46-HR campaign.
Moises had reunited with Felipe with the San Francisco Giants for the 2005 and 2006 seasons, but the Barry Bonds steroid allegations provided a black cloud over the time, and the Giants failed to make the Playoffs while the Alous were there together. Moises would close out his career with the New York Mets. In his final season in 2008, Alou hit .347 in 49 at-bats before suffering a torn hamstring that required surgery and effectively ended his season.
For his career, Alou hit .303/.369/.516, and in 2014, will become eligible for the Hall-of-Fame for the first time.
