Best day ever for offseason trades?
From SABR member Chris Jaffe at The Hardball Times on November 29, 2011:
Forty years ago today must have been during the height of the game’s annual winter meetings. That is the only way to explain the three impressive trades that sent big name players in both directions. It’s rare for one day to feature such a collection of All-Stars and Hall of Famers swapping teams, but that’s what happened. All six teams involved in the trades received a past or future star in the deals.
It’s arguably the most impressive day for trades in baseball history. Probably not. At in-season trade deadlines there are many that can probably top it. That said, it’s mighty dang hard to think of any day of offseason trades that tops Nov. 29, 1971.
Let’s go through them one by one, starting with the least impressive of them.
A’s send Rick Monday to the Cubs for Ken Holtzman.
Both teams got a valuable player out of it. Monday was famous for being the first player selected in the first round of the first ever amateur draft when the A’s selected him in 1965. He was a good player and had already made an All-Star team, but he was expendable for the A’s. Monday was a center fielder and the club also had Joe Rudi. The A’s decided they needed pitching more, and Ken Holtzman filled that need.
Read the full article here: http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/blog_article/40th-anniversary-best-day-ever-for-off-season-trades/
Originally published: December 2, 2011. Last Updated: December 2, 2011.