No. 1965.12.09 · Expansion Era
Frank Robinson for Milt Pappas
Cincinnati's Bill DeWitt called Frank Robinson an old thirty and traded him to Baltimore. The next year Robinson won the Triple Crown.
On December 9, 1965, the Reds traded Frank Robinson to the Orioles for Milt Pappas, Jack Baldschun, and Dick Simpson. Robinson was thirty. Owner Bill DeWitt, explaining the deal, called him an old thirty. The phrase is the part that lasted, because the next season made it look absurd.
In 1966 Robinson hit .316 with 49 home runs and 122 runs batted in, won the Triple Crown and the American League Most Valuable Player award, and was the World Series MVP when Baltimore swept the Dodgers. He played six seasons in Baltimore, made four World Series, and won two of them. Pappas was a capable pitcher who was not Frank Robinson. Baldschun and Simpson did not change that.
DeWitt wanted pitching, and thirty is not young for a corner outfielder of that era. The record does not require pretending the Reds received nothing. It does require noticing that they gave away a player who was not finished.
Related entries
No. 1964.06.15
1964
Brock for Broglio
The Cubs traded Lou Brock to the Cardinals for Ernie Broglio in a six-player deal. Brock finished with 3,023 hits. Broglio won seven games in Chicago.
Chicago Cubs · St. Louis Cardinals
No. 1993.11.19
1993
Pedro Martinez for Delino DeShields
The Dodgers needed a second baseman and traded Pedro Martinez to Montreal to get one. Pedro became one of the great pitchers of the era.
Los Angeles Dodgers · Montreal Expos
The Sale of Babe Ruth
The Red Sox sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees for $100,000, paid in installments. The Broadway story that explains the sale is a myth.
Boston Red Sox · New York Yankees