WORST TRADES EVER

With the trading deadline quickly approaching, it is time to take a look at some of the worst trades that ever went down. There are many opinions about what was the worst, and maybe you can’t for various reasons pin-point one trade as being the worst, but here are some interesting trades that did happen.

Brock

Cubs Lou Brock to the Cards for Ernie Broglio (June 15, 1964)

The Cubs traded away Brock, a 24-year-old with a .260 average in two big league seasons. Brock struck out a lot and didn’t do well on the base-path. Broglio was a winning pitcher who won 70 games over five seasons for the Cubs before being traded, leading the NL in wins with a 21-9 record in 1960, but developed a sore arm and went only 7-19 in over two seasons with the Cubs.

Brock hit .348, stole 33 bases then lead the NL in steals eight times and batted over .300 eight times. He became a Hall-of-Famer in 1985. The Cubs were true to form, and made probably the worst trade ever and kept their reputation as perennial losers in tack.

Tigers send John Smoltz to Braves for Doyle Alexander (Aug. 12, 1987)
The 36-year-old Alexander a righty, went 9-0 with a 1.53 ERA in 11 starts for Detroit, and the Tigers won the AL East pennant (they lost the ALCS in five games to the Twins, and Alexander went 0-2 with a 10.00 ERA. Alexander went 20-29 over the next two seasons for Detroit, before retiring.

Smoltz, along with Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux went through their incredible 1990s. In 1989, his first full season as a starter, he went 12-11 with a 2.94 ERA. A four-time All-Star, Smoltz won the 1996 Cy Young Award, and has gone 12-4 with a 2.72 ERA in 20 postseason series. After arm trouble, the Braves moved Smoltz to the bullpen where he became very effective, almost lights-out.

Varitek

Mariners send Derek Lowe and Jason Varitek to Red Sox for Heathcliff Slocumb (July 31, 1997)
Lowe flourished with the Red Sox, first as a reliever, and then as one of the best, if not the best, starters in the AL Varitek, a switch-hitting catcher, has been a solid backstop for the Red Sox; .

Slocumb, a veteran reliever who had been an All-Star with the Phillies in 1995 and had saved 31 games for the Red Sox in 1996, tossed only 95 innings for Seattle in 1997 and 1998, going 2-9 with 13 saves and an ERA up around 5.

Nolan Ryan, Leroy Stanton, Francisco Estrada & Don Rose for Jim Fregosi

(December 10, 1971)

Fregosi a six-time All-Star was a big disappointment in New York batting .232 and hitting just five home runs. Right-fielder Stanton and catcher Estrada both failed miserably. Nolan Ryan spent the next 27 years in baseball. He finished his career with 324 wins, 5,714 strikeouts and a record seven no-hitters. He was an eight-time all-star and was inducted in to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999

As they say: The best trades ever made were the ones that didn’t happen!

That’s all I wrote, folks!