Born in San Pedro de Macorís in the Dominican Republic, Linares spent most of his uniformed career at the minor league level; however, he served in the Majors for three seasons (1994–96) as an Astros' coach.
As a player, Linares was a 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m), 165 lb (75 kg) second baseman and shortstop who threw and batted right-handed.
[2] He then spent 1959 out of baseball until he signed with the San Francisco Giants' organization in 1960, where he played 13 seasons, including four at the Triple-A level, but was never summoned to the Majors.
After his retirement as a player following the 1972 season, Linares joined the Astros as a minor-league coach, manager and instructor.
In 1994, he was promoted to serve as a coach on the Major League staff of Houston manager Terry Collins, and stayed through 1996 before returning to the helm of the GCL Astros.