The 30 worst trades in MLB history

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Oct 23, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher David Price throws a pitch against the Kansas City Royals in the first inning in game six of the ALCS at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports /

Honorable Mentions

Before I start with number 30, it should be worth noting that the MLB has been around for more than a century, which means that not every bad trade could make the cut. This list of honorable mentions includes recent trades that have steal written all over them now, but could even out later. It also includes trades that were too ridiculous to ever make up.

David Price to the Blue Jays

The trade: Toronto received David Price

Detroit received Daniel Norris, Matt Boyd, and Jairo Labourt

This was a great trade for the Jays at the time, and they wouldn’t have gotten to where they did last season if not for Price’s contribution. However, the fact that he left means that the Jays ultimately lost this trade. It’s usually not a good idea to trade away prospects for a rental, especially when he’s not guaranteed to come back. And the fact that the Tigers have already replaced Price with an ace-caliber pitcher in Jordan Zimmerman means they came away big winners of this deal. What’s worse for the Jays is that Price joined a division rival in the Red Sox, which makes them an immediate threat for the top of the division, and it makes the Jays’ window to compete come faster. Some people may say that the Red Sox overpaid for Price, but at age 30, he’s in the prime of his career and will bring a lot to offer.

Yoenis Cespedes to the Mets

The trade: New York Mets received Yoenis Cespedes

Detroit received Michael Fulmer and Luis Cessa

Heading into the trade deadline, the Mets were a team with a great pitching staff but were lacking on offense. Once they acquired Cespedes, that changed everything. The Mets went on a 36-19 run starting in August to close the gap between the Nationals for the division. Cespedes played a key role in New York’s pivotal sweep of the Nationals at the start of September when he went a combined 6-14 and re-invigorated the Mets’ offense. However, Cespedes is unlikely to return to the Mets so the jury is out on whether the Tigers were able to receive fair value.

Craig Kimbrel to the Padres

The trade: San Diego received Craig Kimbrel and Melvin Upton Jr.

Atlanta received Carlos Quentin, Cameron Maybin, Matt Wisler, Jordan Paroubeck, and the 41st pick in the 2015 draft.

On paper, this is a terrible deal for the Padres. They took on Melvin Upton’s gross contract and Kimbrel’s already been traded to the Red Sox. The Padres thought they were getting one of the best closers in the game and that this move and cement themselves as one of the NL’s best teams. Instead, they finished with a worse record than 2014 even though Kimbrel recorded the 6th most saves in the league with 39. However, the jury is still out on this deal because the Padres got a lot in return for Kimbrel and we still don’t know how well – if at all – the prospects Atlanta received will pan out.

Dave Winfield to the Indians

The trade: Cleveland received Dave Winfield

Minnesota received dinner

Seriously. This trade was made in 1994, during the MLB lockout. As a result, Winfield never got to play a game for the Indians, and the player to be named later that Minnesota was promised never arrived. In order to settle this formally, the Twins and Indians executives met over dinner with the Indians picking up the tab. In official transactions, Winfield is listed as being “sold” to the Indians where a torn rotator cuff kept him out for most of the year.

Kevin Towers to the Indians

The trade: Cleveland received Sean Mulligan

San Diego received $50,000 and a treadmill

Like I said, you can’t make this up. When former Padres GM Kevin Towers was asked about it later, this is what he said:

"We were kind of at our budget. We didn’t have any more dollars to spend and at that time we were sharing the (Qualcomm Stadium) weight room with the Chargers. We needed to buy some new weights. I ended up trading Sean Mulligan to Cleveland for $75,000 and a used Woodway treadmill."

In official transactions, he was “purchased” by the Cleveland Indians – which isn’t exactly false. However, he never ended up playing a game for the Indians.

Next: 30: Adam Wainwright to the Cardinals

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