MLB's trade deadline is tomorrow at 4PM, and it's always an exciting time for fans of contending teams who are waiting for one big bat or big pitcher to put their team over the top. But do they really help? Most of the time, I would say no. Sometimes it does pay huge dividends and they give away nothing for that one missing piece. And sometimes it completely blows up in that team's face, as they give up their future for 2 months of glory. And they might not know how bad it was until a decade later. Here are some of the most one-sided July trades in recent years:
1987- Tigers get SP Doyle Alexander
Braves get minor league SP John Smoltz
Often considered the worst July trade. Alexander went 9-0 and led the Tigers to the division title, but imploded in the playoffs and stunk up the joint the next two years. Smoltz? Now in his 21st year with the Braves, led Atlanta to 15 consecutive division titles and a World Championship, and is a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
1988- Yankees get DH Ken Phelps
Mariners get RF Jay Buhner
The Yankees were trying to break a 7-year playoff drought and had no place to play Buhner. Phelps hit .224 and left at the end of the year as the Yanks finished 5th. Buhner had a 14 year solid career with the M's, hitting over 300 homers and leading the Mariners to their first playoff appearance in 1995.
1990- Red Sox get RP Larry Andersen
Astros get minor-league 1B Jeff Bagwell
The Red Sox did make the playoffs in '90, but got killed by the A's, and Andersen had 1 save in 2 months. Bagwell? He only went on to a 17 year, probable Hall of Fame career with the Astros, amassing 450+ home runs and becoming the face of their franchise.
1993- Braves get 1B Fred McGriff
Padres get minor leaguers Melvin Nieves, Donnie Elliot & Vince Moore
The Braves get the bat they desperately needed in McGriff, who is a main component of their winning their third division in a row. McGriff was also there to help the Braves win it all in 1995. The three tomato cans the Padres got did nothing in their careers.
1997- Mariners get RP Heath Slocumb
Red Sox get C Jason Varitek, SP/RP Derek Lowe
This is the most lopsided one, in my opinion. Slocumb (above) pitched 2 years for the M's, getting a total of 13 saves with a 5.00 ERA. Varitek and Lowe were the cornerstones of the first Red Sox World Championship in 86 years in '04, and Varitek was there to help them win another in '07.
1998- Astros get SP Randy Johnson
Mariners get SP Freddy Garcia, SS Carlos Guillen, RP John Halama
This isn't really as one-sided as most of the others, but still worth mentioning. Randy went 10-1 as a 'Stro and pitched two great games in the first-round of the playoffs, but Houston couldn't score. Randy left for Arizona that fall. Garcia, Guillen and Halama were a main part of the core of the Mariners team that won 116 games in '01, but they also got bounced quickly out of the playoffs.
I will look at this year's trade deadline deals on Friday, but we may not know till 2018 who got the better end of the deal.
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