Aurelio López

Aurelio Alejandro López Rios (September 21, 1948 – September 22, 1992) was a Mexican professional baseball player.

López was born on September 21, 1948, in Tecamachalco, Puebla, Mexico, to Aurelio López Hernández of Veracruz and Félix Rios Torres of Tecamachalco.

He grew up with five siblings.

In his youth, López enjoyed both soccer and baseball but chose to pursue the latter, which was in its peak in Mexico; he found it more difficult to locate practice facilities for soccer.

He studied public administration at the Autonomous University of Puebla.

López caught the attention of scout Ramon "La Chita" García of the Mexico City Reds in the Mexican League.

He debuted with the team's minor-league affiliate in Las Choapas in 1967.

He was promoted to the parent club the next season at the age of 19.

After starting the 1969 season with Mexico City, López joined the Minatitlán Red Devils.

In 1970, López rejoined Mexico City.

During his time in the Mexican League, he was converted from starter to reliever by coach Wilfredo Calviño.

For several years in the mid- to late-1970s, López pitched winter baseball in the Mexican Pacific League.

After pitching for several years in the Mexican League, he spent eleven seasons (1974, 1978–87) with four teams in Major League Baseball — a majority of it spent with the Detroit Tigers.

He acquired the nickname "Señor Smoke" in Detroit, while he was known as "El Buitre de Tecamachalco" (The Vulture of Tecamachalco) in Mexico.

López was discovered in his hometown by Mexican League scouts and converted from a starting pitcher to a relief pitcher.

López led the Mexico City Reds to the 1974 Mexican League World Series, then made a brief MLB debut with the Kansas City Royals before returning to the Mexican League.

The Kansas City Royals purchased López's contract in August 1974, shortly after he led the Mexico City Reds to the Mexican League World Series title in four straight games.

The Royals also purchased the contracts of Mexican League players Orlando Cepeda and 16-year-old Germán Barranca in the same month.

The Royals planned to use López in the September pennant race and throughout the next season.

Lopez pitched in eight games in 1974, and he was bought back by the Mexico City Reds in early 1975.

López was named the 1977 Mexican League Most Valuable Player (MVP).

During the 1977 Mexican League season, López earned a 19–3 win–loss record, a 2.01 ERA and 165 strikeouts over 157 innings in 73 games.

Despite being a closer, he was fifth in the league in wins, and he set a new single-season save record (30).

He was named the league's MVP.

He broke league records by leading the league in games pitched three times, by earning eight consecutive relief wins in 1977–78, and by leading the league in relief appearances in four consecutive seasons.

Among Mexican baseball fans, López became known as "El Buitre de Tecamachalco" (The Vulture of Tecamachalco).

López's contract was purchased by the St. Louis Cardinals from Mexico City on October 26, 1977.

He returned to the major leagues with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1978 and pitched for the Detroit Tigers between 1979 and 1985.

He joined the Springfield Redbirds of the Class AAA American Association for 1978, but returned to the major leagues during the 1978 season, earning a 4–2 record with the St. Louis Cardinals.

After one season in St. Louis, López was traded to the Detroit Tigers with Jerry Morales for Jack Murphy and Bob Sykes.

López finished seventh in the Cy Young Award voting in 1979.

López posted some of his best individual statistics in the 1979 season, when he had a 10–5 win–loss record, 106 strikeouts, and a 2.41 ERA (an Adjusted ERA+ of 181).

He was third in the AL in saves (21) and seventh in the Cy Young Award voting.

López earned another 21 saves in 1980.

He earned a 10–1 record and 14 saves for Detroit's 1984 World Series championship team.

López returned to the postseason with Houston in 1986, but he was the losing pitcher in Game Five of that year's National League Championship Series.

By the end of his MLB career, López earned a 62–36 win–loss record, 93 saves and a 3.56 earned run average (ERA).

After his retirement from baseball, López served as municipal president of his hometown of Tecamachalco, Puebla, Mexico from 1989 until his death.

He was killed in an automobile accident in 1992.

López was inducted into the Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame the following year.