I can speak about the Dodgers because I lived it… What are the worst trades your favorite team made? If you want…comment below…I would love to see them.
1…1993 Pedro Martinez The number one bad trade – 3 words… Delino for Pedro. No Dodger fan will forget/forgive this trade that involved Delino DeShields from the Expos going to the Dodgers for Pedro Martinez. If free-agent second baseman Jody Reed agrees to a multiyear contract and returns to Los Angeles, this doesn’t happen. It’s not like they didn’t know Pedro was good… in 1993 he appeared in 65 games (two starts) and went 10–5 with a 2.61 ERA, including 119 strikeouts and 57 walks in 107 innings…then Fred Clair traded him…because of his size Lasorda didn’t think he would hold up and he would be a bullpen guy. Then GM Fred Claire takes responsibility for this though.
2… 1998 Mike Piazza and Todd Zeile to the Florida Marlins for Manuel Barrios, Bobby Bonilla, Jim Eisenreich, Charles Johnson, and Gary Sheffield. Yes, they did some quality back with Sheffield more than anyone else…but Piazza was the face of the franchise and a future Hall of Famer.
3…1998 Paul Konerko traded for Jeff Shaw – This was stupid. Yes, the Dodgers needed a closer that part is true and they had Eric Karros at first but he didn’t have anywhere near the career Konerko had with the White Sox. Paul was given 54 games to show what he had with the Dodgers. When he had all of that time to hit…he was traded. Tommy Lasorda was made GM for a very short time…I’m thankful it was short…and he did this. To be fair Shaw was a successful closer but he was not worth the price.
4…1983 Ron Cey to the Chicago Cubs for prospects Vance Lovelace and Dan Cataline. This trade made NO sense. Living by Branch Rickey’s logic…better to get rid of someone one year too early than a year too late…great advice but Cey wasn’t near being done. Cey would end up knocking 84 home runs for the Cubs in the next 4 years. Al Campanis really messed up with this one. Third base would be a wasteland for the Dodgers for years and years after Cey left. Adrian Beltre did great briefly but then…they didn’t resign him. Justin Turner is the first good regular third baseman the Dodgers have had since Cey was traded in1982.
5…1982 Rick Sutcliffe traded to the Cleveland Indians for Jack Fimple, Jorge Orta and Larry White. All because Sutcliffe rearranged Lasorda’s office. This was in 1981 and he just won the Rookie of the Year in 1979.
Honorable Mention…I will lump 3 trades together… Juan Guzman traded by the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Toronto Blue Jays for Mike Sharperson a utility player… Sid Fernandez with Ross Jones to the New York Mets for Bob Bailor and Carlos Diaz…and John Franco to the Cincinnati Reds for Rafael Landestoy. Three very good pitchers for not much at all.
Talking About Baseball 
I never knew Konerko was ever a Dodger! And had forgotten where Juan Guzman came from (there was a time we thought he was going to be the next Seaver or Ryan, up Toronto way). Good topic… I’ll have to think about that in context of Toronto… lots to choose from.
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Konerko hurt bad… Pedro Martinez was just plain stupid.
Piazza was a Fox Sports deal… to help the Marlin’s broadcast…just plain dumb.
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With Blue Jays, a lot of people pick 1992 late season trade that sent JEff Kent to Mets for David cone. Kent after all, finished career as a borderline Hall of Famers, with a .290 average and more HR than any other second baseman ever. Cone left for KC after the ’93 season. But I don’t mind that trade. At the time, Kent was a 24 year-old rookie, definitely looking promising but not like a superstar; Cone was coming off 4-straight 30+ start, 14 or more win years in New York and he helped propel toronto into the post-season and helped them win their first World Series, starting two games in both the ALCS and World Series, winning 1 and having a 3.23 ERA in October. I think you would make that trade any day if it helped the team win a championship.
The real dog of a trade was the late-09 one that sent Roy Halladay to Philly. Alex Anthopolous was “green” and apparently forced to unload Halladay’s salary by the front office but this was a terrible trade. Halladay was at the time Toronto’s most popular player and a perennial Cy Young candidate, and of course, when he went to the Phils, pitched a perfect game in his first season, and a no hitter to kick off the post-season… and also won 20, threw 255 innings and won the Cy Young . In return, Toronto’s biggest fish was Kyle Drabek whose claim to fame was mostly having a famous dad. In the three years he pitched with the Jays, he had a negative WAR in each and finished with an ERA of 5.26. the one season he was a somewhat regular,2011, he managed to walk more batters than he struck out. Ironically, could turn out the best pitcher Toronto got back was Anthony Gose (who came about indirectly, being received for Brett Wallace who they flipped after the trade) . Gose is said to have a 100mph fastball now… but then, he was a below-average outfielder with a .209 average and below-average defense in his three Toronto years.
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I was wondering about the Roy Halladay trade. I didn’t understand that at all. He was “the Blue Jay” to me during that time. He still had great years left and that was obvious. That was similar to the Piazza trade.
The Jeff Kent trade…yea you helped get a World Series out of it so I can see where that one wouldn’t bother you as much. Kent wasn’t the nicest guy in the world but he was a great player. He spent his last 4 years with the Dodgers and was very productive.
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the Halladay trade sure didn’t make sense to us fans… the first time he returned to Toronto as a Philly fans were cheering him and every out he got, which didn’t sit well with the home team. It was pretty much a salary dump…Halladay wasn’t happy with the direction the team was going but was more than willing to sign a long extension at a good rate if the team would commit to trying to win in the next season or two – which they weren’t. Still, it seemed like they could’ve got more for him than they did … bad scouting evidently.
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Giving up a known ace is bad…A salary dump…at least get the top prospect back.
It hasn’t been too long since then but now they can judge prospects much better.
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Piazza mentioned in his book that he wanted out of LA so getting Sheffield in the deal (a future HOF) wasn’t terrible. Besides, didn’t Piazza go into the Hall as a Met?
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As far as talent wise no it wasn’t bad… but he was the face of them at the time…I thought Sheffield was less of a injury risk also because he played outfield.
I have to be honest. At the time I thought it would work out…but Fox didn’t know how to run a team….many Dodger fans hate that trade…but not as much as Pedro….that is for sure.
You are an A’s fan right? I love reading about them in the 70s. I’m about to read a Charlie Finley book…the guy fascinates me.
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There are many books concerning the 1970’s Oakland A’s, the most punk rock baseball team of all time in my book. 🙂 I lived in LA until about a few years ago and I believe FOX still owns the Dodger Stadium parking lot which is why a lot of fans would park outside of the stadium in Echo Park and walk in.
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I read “Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic: Reggie, Rollie, Catfish, and Charlie Finley’s Swingin’ A’s ” and loved it.
What a team they had. They partially bonded over their dislike of Finley. The book made me like Reggie Jackson more than I did before I read it. Some interesting personalities.
One day I will make it to Dodger Stadium. I travel to Atlanta and Cincinnati to see them play.
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It makes me nauseous to state this because it exposes how dumb the Colorado Rockies GM, Jeff Bridich, really is: Tulo to the Blue Jays for Jose Reyes, Miguel Castro, Jeff Hoffman, and Jesus Tinoco. Here’s why: Only Hoffman and Tinoco remain and neither of them are MLB worthy, Tulo had one more good year in him with the team and location where he was beloved, and it has been proven time and time again that imported out-of-Colorado experience proves nil. Either the Rockies farm system continues to be our hope and glory (even though hope is not a strategy), or the Rockies fire Bridich, hire someone with balls, and purchase pitching talent that uses the splitter. We have the money, we know what’s out there. We just need someone with guts to make some moves.
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Yes I remember that one. I couldn’t believe they were trading him.
Wait til they trade your 3rd baseman…dude it’s coming because they pissed him off with trying to trade him.
Pitchers are scared of the place but since the humidor it has gotten better. I’ve heard rumors they were going to trade Gray…which would be stupid to me. He will come back to be a good pitcher.
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Yes, you are so right – Nolan was going to be a goner, but with this postponed (cancelled?) season, things have cooled off. If he goes, I would hope we’d get some relievers who can hold or close. And, yes, Gray already has so many Colorado years under his belt, and this was supposed to be his big year. He’d be a dumb trade for sure…I forgot: Have you been to Coors Field before?
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No I’ve never been to Colorado but I’ve always wanted to go. I had a job offer out there once and almost took it but I wanted Bailey to finish school here.
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Makes sense. I’ve never been to Nashville. (I believe that’s around where you’re at?)
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Yes I live in a small city around 30 minutes away…sorta like Mayberry.
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