The native of Mount Morgan, Kentucky, stood 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall, weighed 170 pounds (77 kg), and threw and batted right-handed.

He threw 1+2⁄3 innings of hitless, shutout relief, but Washington lost both games en route to a seven-game defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

In his final major-league season, 1929, he appeared in 25 games for the Brooklyn Robins, but he was ineffective and his MLB career ended at age 31.

In 329+2⁄3 innings pitched, he allowed 398 hits, 168 bases on balls and 187 earned runs, for a career ERA of 5.11.

Ballou continued to pitch professionally in the top-level Pacific Coast League for 14 more seasons.