Aurelio Faustino Monteagudo Cintra (; November 19, 1943 – November 10, 1990), nicknamed "Monty", was a right-handed screwball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball. He was the son of former big-leaguer René Monteagudo.

Career

Monteagudo was born in Caibarién, Villa Clara Province, Cuba. He moved to Venezuela after Fidel Castro's rise to power in his homeland.

Aurelio Monteagudo

As a 19-year-old rookie, Monteagudo made his majors debut with the Kansas City Athletics on September 1, 1963. After three-plus seasons with Kansas City, he was dealt to the Houston Astros on May 17, 1966. At the end of the season, he received Venezuelan citizenship. Then, he joined the Chicago White Sox on July 16, 1967, with a new nationality. After a season in Chicago, he played with the Kansas City Royals (1970) and California Angels (1973).

Aurelio Monteagudo

Monteagudo was traded along with Chris Coletta from the Angels to the Phillies for Denny Doyle at the Winter Meetings on December 6, 1973, completing a transaction from four months earlier on August 14 when Philadelphia purchased Billy Grabarkewitz's contract from California.

Aurelio Monteagudo

In seven seasons, Monteagudo compiled a 3–7 record with 58 strikeouts, a 5.05 ERA, four saves, and 132 innings pitched in 72 games (65 as a reliever). He played his final majors game on September 28, 1973.

Monteagudo also played 20 seasons in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League with five teams: Caracas (1963–68), Magallanes (1968), La Guaira (1968–74, 1976–82) and Portuguesa (1975), compiling a 79–81 record with 897 strikeouts and a 3.37 ERA. On December 20, 1973, Monteagudo kept the Cardenales de Lara hitless for innings until Faustino Zabala ruined the no-hitter with a single to center field.

At the same time, Monteagudo played in the Mexican League with the Puebla, Coahuila, Aguascalientes and Veracruz clubs. He pitched a no-hitter game against Nuevo Laredo (March 19, 1979) and led the league in strikeouts once (222, in 1978). After retiring in 1981, he started a successful managerial career in the league.

Aurelio Monteagudo was killed in a car accident in Saltillo, Mexico nine days before his 47th birthday. He, Aurelio Rodríguez and Aurelio López are the only three players in MLB history named Aurelio, and all three were killed in car accidents between the ages of 44 and 52.

See also

List of Major League Baseball players from Cuba

List of second-generation Major League Baseball players

References

External links

, or Retrosheet

Mexican League statistics

Venezuelan Professional Baseball League statistics

1943 births

1990 deaths

Acereros de Monclova players

Albuquerque Dukes players

Angeles de Puebla players

Asheville Tourists players

Binghamton Triplets players

California Angels players

Caribbean Series managers

Chicago White Sox players

Dallas Rangers players

Edmonton Trappers players

Hawaii Islanders players

Houston Astros players

Indianapolis Indians players

Kansas City Athletics players

Kansas City Royals players

Leones del Caracas players

Lewiston Broncs players

Llaneros de Portuguesa players

Major League Baseball pitchers

Major League Baseball players from Cuba

Cuban expatriate baseball players in the United States

Mexican baseball players

Mineros de Coahuila players

Navegantes del Magallanes players

Cuban expatriate baseball players in Venezuela

Oklahoma City 89ers players

Omaha Royals players

Osos Negros de Toluca players

People from Caibarién

Sportspeople from Villa Clara Province

Pericos de Puebla players

Portland Beavers players

Rieleros de Aguascalientes players

Road incident deaths in Mexico

Rojos del Águila de Veracruz players

Salt Lake City Angels players

Tecolotes de Nuevo Laredo players

Tiburones de La Guaira players

Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players

Vancouver Mounties players

Cuban expatriate baseball players in Mexico