Top 25 MLB trades of all time

1. Babe Ruth to the Yankees, 1919

• Yankees get: Babe Ruth
• Red Sox get: Cash considerations

The sale of Babe Ruth from the Boston Red Sox to the New York Yankees may be the most famous trade in MLB history. At the time, the Sox were owned by Harry Frazee, who fancied himself a high-society man. Frazee was pressed for cash while trying to produce a play, so he sold Ruth for $25,000. The way baseball transactions work has changed a great deal in the 100 years that followed.

Obviously, Ruth went to the Yankees and revolutionized the game of baseball by basically inventing the home run. He had some help by changes to the baseball, but the league and the United States had never seen a player like the Babe once he left pitching for good.

Ruth’s final year with the Red Sox was one of the best ever in MLB history at the time. He hit 29 home runs and drove in 113 while slugging .657. His first year with the Yankees blew that out of the water. Ruth hit 54 home runs and finished with an OPS of 1.379. The Babe’s peak lasted until his age-36 season in 1931. From 1918 to 1931, he led MLB in home runs 11 times and became the first player ever to hit 60 home runs.

With Ruth as their star, the Yankees were the best team of the 1920s and 1930s, winning four World Series titles and three more AL pennants. He retired as the all-time leader in every important power category and is still holds the record for slugging percentage and OPS.

Next: Each MLB team's best trade ever

After winning four World Series from 1912 to 1918, the sale of Ruth sent the Red Sox into a tailspin. It was called a curse, but the real problem was management. Luckily, MLB has more checks and balances in place to keep owners’ private business affairs from impacting major transactions.