Chicago Cubs: Remembering Moises Alou’s time on the North Side

Wednesday marks the 13th anniversary of the San Francisco Giants signing veteran outfielder Moises Alou – after the Chicago Cubs released him, despite a 39-homer, 106-RBI 2003 campaign.

When we look back on Moises Alou and his time with the Chicago Cubs, one instance looms large: the Steve Bartman encounter from Game Six of the National League Championship Series. But in his three years with the team, he provided real value in the middle of the lineup – right up till the end.

It was on this day in 2004, the San Francisco Giants signed Alou to a one-year deal – less than two months after the Cubs declined their $11.5 million mutual option on the veteran outfielder.  Everyone remembers the 2003 campaign for its fatal end. But the ’04 season was hardly an easier pill to swallow.

Down the stretch, Chicago imploded.

Crash and burn

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On September 25, Chicago led the National League Wild Card race by 1 1/2 games over the Astros and Giants. Both of these teams lost and the Cubs held a late lead – with the potential to increase that edge to 2 1/2 games.

Right-hander LaTroy Hawkins blew a lead and allowed a three-run shot; the Cubs lost in extras. Worse even, the team fell in all but two of their final eight games and missed the postseason. Of course, it was 2004 that Sammy Sosa left the final game of the year early – ending his time in Chicago and forever tarnishing his reputation amongst Cubs fans.

Then, the overhaul began. Sosa gets traded to Baltimore. Chicago declined to bring back either Alou or Mark Grudzielanek – both veterans. In the offseason, the team brought in former Rookie of the Year Todd Hollandsworth and signed Cody Ransom in free agency.

Alou, meanwhile, headed to the Bay, where he earned a second-straight All-Star selection. The 38-year-old slashed .321/.400/.518 for the Giants, earning another year in San Francisco. He finished out his career in New York with the Mets – never hitting under .300 again, despite playing through his age-41 season.

But let’s get back to his time on the North Side.

Getting your money’s worth

MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat ranked the Cubs’ signing of Alou as the team’s best multiyear deal given to a free agent as the best ever for the club. That’s saying something. But it’s not hard to see why.

Over the course of his three years with Chicago, he slashed .283/.353/.484 across 438 games. During that same stretch, he averaged 25 home runs and 86 RBI per 162 games. That’s pretty solid when you factor in a 116 OPS+.

And when the moments mattered most, he delivered.

In 2003, during the Cubs’ infamous postseason run, Alou dominated. In five NLDS games against Atlanta, he hit .500 with a 1.074 OPS. Even in the League Championship Series, despite the outcome, the veteran slashed .310/.355/.552 against the Marlins.

How the 2003 season ended only seemed to fuel Alou’s fire come Opening Day the next spring. In the last year of his contract, he smacked 39 home runs, drove in 106 runs and put up a .906 OPS across 155 games.

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Looking back, there are plenty of big names to ever put on a Cubs uniform. But Chicago owes a great deal to Moises Alou – because he’s far more than just the guy who wound up as a footnote in Chicago bar trivia thanks to an unlucky fan reaching for a foul ball.