Alex Cole

[William Malone]

Alexander Cole Jr was born on August 17, 1965 in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

The St. Louis Cardinals drafted him in round two of the 1985 MLB Draft. He was traded twice while still a minor league prospect, and made his Major League debut for the Cleveland Indians in 1990. Cole was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates at the deadline in 1992, and he was selected by the Colorado Rockies during the 1993 Expansion Draft. He hit .256 with 30 stolen bases for the Rockies in their inaugural season, serving as their primary center fielder.

Minnesota Twins legend Kirby Puckett had shifted to right field during the second half of 1993. With right field set to be his full time spot in 1994, they signed Cole to a two year deal in free agency. He hit .296 with 29 stolen bases that first season, but he led all American League center fielders with seven errors. Cole was hitting .360 with 14 RBI through 25 games in 1995, but a broken leg suffered while sliding for a ball on defense essentially ended his season. He did return for a brief three game cameo in late September, going hit less in this small dose of action off the disabled list.

He played for the Boston Red Sox in 1996, and continued playing in independent leagues until getting arrested for heroin possession with the intent to distribute in 2001. Cole was playing for the Bridgeport Bluefish of the Atlantic League at the time. He was arrested at the ballpark, just minutes before first pitch of a game against the Atlantic City Surf.

Cole was sentenced to 18 months in prison. He passed away in 2023 at the age of 58.

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