Fansided

Each MLB team’s best trade ever

By Joshua Sadlock

SEATTLE, WA - JUNE 19: Miguel Cabrera #24 of the Detroit Tigers takes a swing during an at-bat in a game against the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field on June 19, 2017 in Seattle, Washington. The Mariners won the game 6-2. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA - JUNE 19: Miguel Cabrera #24 of the Detroit Tigers takes a swing during an at-bat in a game against the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field on June 19, 2017 in Seattle, Washington. The Mariners won the game 6-2. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images) /
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ST. LOUIS, MO – APRIL 30: Gary Sheffield of the Florida Marlins looks on against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium on April 30, 1997 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Sporting News via Getty Images)
ST. LOUIS, MO – APRIL 30: Gary Sheffield of the Florida Marlins looks on against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium on April 30, 1997 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Sporting News via Getty Images) /

Miami Marlins: Gary Sheffield from the Padres, 1993

  • Marlins get: Gary Sheffield, Rich Rodriguez
  • San Diego Padres get: Trevor Hoffman, Andres Berumen, Jose Martinez

The Marlins franchise has been known mostly for rebuilding and selling off since they came into the league in 1993. Their biggest trade to bring in a player to date got them borderline Hall of Famer Gary Sheffield. At the time, Shefflied was a disgruntled infielder who would eventually convert to a disgruntled outfielder. It goes without saying that Sheff was as mercurial as they come during his MLB career.

Sheffield would play six seasons with the Marlins and was an integral part of the 1997 team that won the World Series in seven games over the Indians. Sheffield batted .320 in the postseason en route to the World Series with three home runs and seven RBI. In his Marlins tenure, Sheffield hit .288/.426/.543 with 122 of his 509 MLB home runs. The Marlins shipped him out in 1998 as they moved into the first major rebuild in a series of them that have defined the franchise’s history.

Both teams eventually got fair value out of this trade. Trevor Hoffman, a converted minor-league shortstop, became one of the greatest closers in MLB history with the Padres. He saved 601 games in his career, including 53 in 1998 when the Padres went to the Fall Classic. Hoffman will make it to Cooperstown with the 2018 class, but Sheffield’s case is a bit more difficult to determine. There were PED whispers swirling around him, and he was never the best player during the Steroid Era.

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