Oakland Athletics: Brothers That Have Played For The A’s
Oakland Athletics Siblings: Not Just The Bash Brothers
There have been over 350 brothers to play in Major League Baseball history, and nearly 100 sets of brothers have played together as teammates. Several players in the Hall of Fame had a brother that also played in MLB, but their performances did not reach the same level of prominence of their (usually older) sibling.
In their 48 seasons, there have been seven sets of brothers who have played for the Oakland Athletics, with only two of those sets being teammates at one time or another. In all cases, it is the older brother that fans will recognize with the younger sibling living in near obscurity in the shadow of his older brother’s accomplishments.
In consecutive order, let’s review the A’s sibling pairs, starting with…
Rene Lachemann (1968) and Marcel Lachemann (1969-1971)
Rene Lachemann came over to the A’s with the move from Kansas City, where he had played two prior seasons as a backup catcher. In 1968, he only appeared in 19 games and was sent back to Triple-A in June. Rene Lachemann played a total of three seasons in MLB and the A’s organization, and was just a .216 hitter with 11 homeruns.
The following season Marcel Lachemann made his appearance as a relief pitcher. He went 4-1, pitching in 28 games with two saves to his credit. In 1970, he appeared in more games (41) and pitched 58 innings with a 3-3 record and a 2.78 ERA, as well as two more saves. He appeared in only one game in 1971.
Both Lachemann brothers throughout their careers were up and down in the minor leagues, and both went on to be MLB managers. Marcell managed the California Angels from 1994 to 1996, while Rene managed several teams: the Mariners from 1981-1983, the Brewers in 1984, the Marlins from 1993-1996 and the Cubs in 1992. Rene Lachemann is most noted in Oakland Athletics lore for being the third base coach for Tony LaRussa during the A’s AL Pennant winning years in late 80s and early 90s.
Next: Athletics Brothers: The Bandos
Sal Bando (1968-1976) and Chris Bando (1989)
Third baseman Sal Bando was an integral part of the Oakland A’s since they came to Oakland in 1968, often appearing in all 162 games during the season. He was a standout part of the Mustache Gang, winning five straight AL West Championships and three World Series titles while with the Green and Gold. While with the A’s organization (including two partial seasons in Kansas City), Bando appeared in over 1,450 games and was a four-time All Star. He spent his final five seasons with the Brewers.
Chris Bando was a backup catcher who played eight seasons with the Cleveland Indians. Chris appeared in the final game of the season for the A’s in 1989 after being in Triple-A all year.
Next: Athletics Brothers: The Alous
Felipe Alou (1970), Matty Alou (1972) and Jesus Alou (1973-1974)
The Alou brothers are probably most known for their time across the Bay with the Giants in the 60s. In 1963, they became the first all-brother outfield in the Major Leagues when the Giants decided to sit Willie Mays for a game. All three played for the A’s in the early 70s, but never at the same time.
Felipe Alou, the oldest, was the A’s regular left fielder in the 1970 season, appearing in 154 games. Not much of a power hitter but a three-time All-Star, he had a .271 batting average with 69 RBIs and 70 runs scored. Prior to the start of the 1970 season, Felipe was dealt to the Yankees when the A’s decided to go with a kid from Modesto they were high on to play left field, Joe Rudi.
Two-time All-Star and 1966 NL Batting Champion Matty Alou was acquired by the A’s in late August of 1972, just in time for the postseason, and unbeknownst to them, would be a useful replacement in the outfield with Reggie Jackson out for the World Series that year. Alou was hitting .318 with the Cardinals before the trade and as a regular in the A’s lineup, continued the .300 pace to finish the season at .307. Matty hit .381 in a five-game ALCS vs the Tigers that year but dropped in the World Series getting only one hit in 24 at-bats.
Jesus Alou, the youngest, came to the A’s midway through the 1973 season. He served mostly as a backup outfielder or, in his first season, as the designated hitter, where he hit .306 for the rest of the season for the A’s. He continued the same role through the 1974 season. Jesus, a lanky slap-hitter, was a part of the A’s World Championship teams in 1973 and 1974.
Next: Athletics Brothers: The Armas Brothers
Tony Armas (1977-1982 ) and Marcos Armas (1993)
Older brother Tony Armas came to the A’s in 1977 as part of a multi-player deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates. With injuries in 1978 and 1979, Tony saw partial seasons but in 1980 became the A’s regular staring right fielder. Playing his first full season not on the disabled list, Tony batted .279 with 35 home runs and 109 RBIs in 158 games. In the strike-shortened season of 1981, Tony was an All-Star and led the AL in home runs with 22. He was also named the American League Player of the Year by The Sporting News. In the first-ever ALDS, Tony went 6-11 at the plate (.545) but only 3-12 in the ALCS. In 1982, Tony hit only .232, but belted 28 home runs with 89 RBI. The A’s finished the 1982 season with a disappointing record of 68-94, and finished a distant 5th place in the AL West. At the end of the season Tony was dealt to the Red Sox for Carney Lansford.
Tony had a 14-year MLB career, was an All-Star twice, and led the league in home runs in 1981 and 1984.
After spending seven seasons in the Athletics’ minor league system, the younger Marcos made his debut for the A’s in the 1993 season as a first baseman. He batted .194 (6-for-31), with one home run, two doubles, and only one RBI in 15 games. He was back in Triple- in 1994, his last professional season.
Next: Athletics Brothers: The Cansecos
Jose Canseco (1986-1992/1997) and Ozzie Canseco (1990)
In 1990, when Ozzie Canseco joined his twin brother Jose on the Athletics’ roster, it was so difficult to tell them apart that if they traded jerseys, the crowd wouldn’t have been able to tell it. The faces were the same, and so were their hard, sculpted bodies. They walked alike, talked alike, had the same ticks of the head and even in the batter’s box, Ozzie swung like Jose: feet apart, an open stance with the bat held high with a bit of a waggle. But the similarities ended there – when it came to statistics; there was no mistaking the two.
Slugger Jose Canseco was the Rookie of the Year with the Athletics in 1986 with 33 home runs and 117 RBIs. In 1987, he hit 31 more home runs. In 1988, Jose became the first player in Major League Baseball history to have at least 40 home runs (42) and 40 stolen bases in the same season. With his league leading 124 RBI and .569 slugging percentage, he was named AL MVP. In that year’s ALCS, Jose hit 3 homers. In his first (official) World Series at-bat, Jose hit a Grand Slam.
In 1990, Jose belted 37 home runs and received the most votes of any player for the All-Star Game. For 1991, Jose continued to be productive, hitting 44 home runs, capturing his second home run title. By August 1992, Canseco had hit 22 homers in 97 games for the Oakland Athletics and fans were shocked when Canseco was pulled from the on deck circle of a Aug. 31 game and traded to the Texas Rangers. Jose returned to the Athletics during the 1997 season, but only produced a .235 batting average and 23 home runs in 109 games.
Jose had a 17-year career in MLB where he hit a total of 462 HRs and was a five-time All-Star. Brother Ozzie isn’t so impressive.
Ozzie Canseco came up to the A’s in July 1990 at the age of 26. He played in nine games for the A’s and only got two hits (in his first hit he was thrown out at second base trying to stretch a double). Ozzie played in 15 more games for the 1992 and 1993 St. Louis Cardinals, acquiring 11 more base hits, but never hit a home run in MLB.
Next: Athletics Brothers: The Giambis
Jason Giambi (1995-2001/2009) and Jeremy Giambi (2000-2002)
Older brother Jason Giambi made his Major League debut in 1995, hitting just .256 with 6 home runs in 54 games. He became the Athletics’ regular first baseman after Mark McGwire was dealt to the Cardinals in 1997 and took off as a team leader and producer. Jason hit .295 with 27 home runs in 1998 and .315 with 33 homers in 1999. His .300+ hitting continued in 2000 with a .333 average and 29 home runs. He was the 2001 MVP with a .342 batting average, and league-leading 47 home runs. After leaving for the Yankees as a free agent in 2002, Jason was back with the Athletics for the 2009 season but after hitting only .209, he was released in August.
For his career, Jason was a five time All-Star (twice with the Athletics) and finished a 20-year career with 440 homers.
Younger brother Jeremy was acquired by the Athletics via trade with the Royals, where he had served a backup role for parts of two seasons. On May 8, 2000, Jeremy and Jason became the eighth set of brothers to hit a home run in the same game.
In his three seasons with the A’s, Jeremy batted a respectable .272 in 270 games, serving mostly as a DH or left fielder. In 2002, the A’s parted with Giambi in a trade to the Phillies. Overall, Jeremy had a six-year MLB career with four different teams. Jeremy’s greatest legacy with the Athletics is probably the 2001 ALDS against the Yankees and not sliding at home in Game 3.
Next: Oakland Athletics: Top 5 Right Fielders
One Final Note: The brother of longtime third baseman Eric Chavez (1998-2010), Casey Chavez (2008-2014), served as the A’s bullpen catcher on its coaching staff.