Card fact: For 11 years, if Jesus Alou appeared on a Topps card, his older brothers, Felipe and Matty, did, too. That changed in 1975. Jesus Alou was the only one of the Alou brothers to appear in the '75 Topps set.
Also, this is the first card in the set to feature someone without a cap.
What I thought about this card then: Didn't see it.
What I think about this card now: What on earth is Alou doing? Look at that vein bulging in his forehead!
Other stuff: Alou was the youngest of the Alou brothers, and the one with the most promise. But following his brothers appeared to be too difficult, and Alou didn't quite live up to his potential. He was selected by the Expos in the expansion draft after several years with the Giants. He also played for the Astros, A's and Mets. He played for Oakland in the 1973 and 1974 World Series.
Alou is the uncle of Moises Alou and former relief pitcher Mel Rojas.
Alou was the only one of the Alou brothers that I knew for a long time. Felipe and Matty ended their careers just before I became interested in baseball, but Jesus was around until 1979.
(EDIT: Alou died on March 10, 2023)
Back facts: I need to start counting how many times Babe Ruth is mentioned in cartoons. I think this is at least the third or fourth time.
Other blog stuff: On this date in 1902, Bid McPhee resigned as the Reds' manager. McPhee was a 19th century star for the Reds, especially noted for his fielding. When he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, I found out he was born in a town in our area and promptly wrote a newspaper article about him. I had to inform the town that someone born in there was a Hall of Famer. Almost everyone in the town had no idea who he was.
If you didn't know he was a major leaguer, that could be any ticked off uncle at a family get together. Terrible choice for a photo. The comment about Bid McPhee makes me wonder if any HOFers were born in our area.
ReplyDelete1975 Topps had some odd looking action shots
ReplyDeleteAs a young collector, I owned Alou's '79 Topps card. I remember that card because it was how I learned that Spanish-speaking people pronounce the name "Hey Zeus," and my own pronunciation was borderline sacrilegious. In turn, I was the kid who looked smart a few years later with Ivan DeJesus.
ReplyDeleteThat is an odd photo...it looks even weirder as a mini card.