MLB Power Rankings: The worst trade deadline deal every team has made
By Tim Boyle
15) MLB Power Rankings: Chicago White Sox, James Shields for Fernando Tatis Jr.
Who saw this becoming one of those most horrific trades in MLB history? In defense of the Chicago White Sox, Fernando Tatis Jr. has had his share of issues with a PED suspension at the top of the list. This was a trade taking place on June 4, 2016, when James Shields was sent to the White Sox for Erik Johnson and Tatis Jr. Shields’ performance drove him out of baseball. He was 16-35 with a 5.31 ERA in Chicago. The full tale of what Tatis Jr. can accomplish has yet to be written, but failures of Shields make this an inexcusable deal for the White Sox and their worst move at the trade deadline.
14) MLB Power Rankings: Milwaukee Brewers, Nelson Cruz and Carlos Lee to the Rangers
The second appearance by Nelson Cruz on this list is a shame on the Milwaukee Brewers who on July 28, 2006, sent him and Carlos Lee to the Texas Rangers. All they got back was a lifetime minor leaguer, Francisco Cordero, Kevin Mench, and Laynce Nix. Cruz was a young player at the time but later became one of the game’s best sluggers by the 2009 campaign. His inclusion in this deal is what pushes it over the edge from a bad one to an absolutely ugly trade. Lee’s time with the Rangers was much shorter yet memorable. He batted .322/.369/.525 with 9 home runs in 260 plate appearances down the stretch for the Rangers in 2006. The Brewers guessed wrong on the players they thought would make this a reasonable trade.
13) MLB Power Rankings: New York Yankees, Jay Buhner for Ken Phelps
A trade so bad it was immortalized on Seinfeld, the New York Yankees sent two lifelong minor leaguers and Jay Buhner to the Seattle Mariners for Ken Phelps. Buhner would spend the rest of his career with the Mariners and from 1995-1997 he hit 40+ home runs and drove in over 100. As for Phelps, he hit .224/.339/.551 for the Yankees in his first 127 plate appearances in 1988. He wasn’t much better in 1989. The Yankees ended up trading him in August to the Oakland Athletics for a guy who never reached the big leagues. In the middle of a rare Yankees drought where championships were impossible to find, this trade helps define the ineptitude.
12) MLB Power Rankings: Houston Astros, Ben Zobrist for Aubrey Huff
This was a low-key bad trade deadline deal that probably doesn’t get enough attention. The 2006 trade deadline included the Houston Astros acquiring Aubrey Huff from the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for Mitch Talbot and Ben Zobrist. Huff hit .250/.341/.478 with 13 home runs for the Astros. It wasn’t bad at all, but he did leave in free agency the next season. Zobrist’s contributions to Tampa Bay were much bigger, though. One of the most important players in the franchise’s young history, he helped revitalize the importance of the everyday utility player. The Astros chose wrong by including him in their deal for Huff.
11) MLB Power Rankings: San Francisco Giants, George Foster to the Reds
A young George Foster was traded by the San Francisco Giants to the Cincinnati Reds on May 29, 1971. Frank Duffy and Vern Geishert were the two players the Giants got back. It took Foster a while to get going but when he did, Foster became one of the best sluggers in baseball. He led the league in home runs twice and RBI three times. Duffy played 21 games for the Giants and Geishert had only 11 MLB games in his entire career. All of them came before this trade even happened.