Former Red Sox Outfielder and First-Ever Draft Pick in History, Billy Conigliaro Dies at 73

Billy Conigliaro, a former baseball player who was an outfielder for the Red Sox, has passed away at the age of 73. The cause of his death has not been made available as yet.

He started playing for the Boston team during the summer of 1965 when he was picked for the MLB first-year player draught.

His older brother Tony had played on the team as well. The Conigliaro brothers were teammates from 1969 to 1970, both outfielders for the team.

His former team, Red Sox, released a message of condolences for the late baseball player on their Twitter page, alongside a black-and-white photo of him. The team's statement read:

"We are so fortunate that Billy was a part of our family as much as the Red Sox were a part of his. We send our love to his wife, Keisha, his brother, Richie, and the entire Conigliaro family."

Billy went to play for the Milwaukee Brewers in 1972 after several years of playing for the Red Sox. He actually announced his retirement after the season. He finished his Red Sox career with 26 doubles and 11 homers in 1971.

However, he returned to the sport and came back in 1973 as he joined the Oakland A's. He was a part of the team when they won the World Series that year. He had experienced a knee injury, which encouraged him to retire.

The former baseball player had suffered a heart attack and then a stroke in 1982.

After winning the world series with the Oakland team, he retired. Conigliaro spent much of his time looking after his older brother, who had many health problems.

Conigliaro had an impressive baseball career and played five major league seasons 3 with the Red Sox, including two with his older brother. One fan wrote:

"Two of my favorite all time Red Sox ---Tony & Billy Conigliaro. Seems like just a couple weeks ago I was watching them when I was just a kid."

Unfortunately, his brother passed away in 1990. The former baseball player had suffered a heart attack and then a stroke in 1982. The two had often shared the outfield during their two seasons playing together.

His death comes simultaneously as the longtime ESPN baseball reporter Pedro Gomez who passed away suddenly at the age of 58.

Gomez had covered over 25 World Series games and 20 All-Stars games. He was well-known and loved for covering baseball games.

Gomez had studied journalism at the University of Miami before going into a career of reporting on sports and baseball, starting with having a column in the Arizona Republic.