Northern Highlights: The Best (and Worst) Trades in Blue Jays History

Rarely, if ever, is there a talent as big as Roy "Doc" Halladay on the block come the end of July.  With Toronto Blue Jays' GM J.P. Ricciardi confirming that his club has a "50/50" chance of dealing the Jays' staff workhorse and ace, however, it could happen.

I just can't help thinking back to other times my heart skipped a beat at hearing that one of my "favourites" had been sent out of town.  A momentary flicker of fear, then curiosity kicks in.  "OK, who'd we get?"  We all know what comes next: endless rounds of analysis, whether it's from a "talking head" on TSN, SportsNet, The Fan, or, for most of us, over a pint on Friday night.

Given that a pint is my favourite analytical tool, I gathered a few friends at the local 'hole for some FlashBack Fridays of our own.  Once we were done forecasting where we thought Doc might wind up—they ranged from the typical (to LA for Loney & Kershaw) to the silly (to Colorado for a package including underachieving Canuck starter Jeff Francis & the injured Manny Corpas)—we started reminiscing about Jays deals past.

My personal favourite deal took place back in 1992, when the Jays sent young 2B Jeff Kent and OF Ryan Thompson to the New York Mets for David Cone.  Yes, yes, we all know what Kent went on to do (at one point, he became an NL MVP), but Cone was the glue that held the back-to-back champs together, all apologies to Messrs. Winfield, Henderson, Alomar, Carter, etc.

We all groan when our "favourite" dunderhead GM makes another in his long line (according to us) of blunders, and we all love to second-guess.  "Well, if I was the GM..."  Well, I know that I would have missed some over the years...and I'd like to think that some of the best deals I made were the ones I didn't make.  However, I wasn't in The Big Chair at the time, so all I get to do is Monday morning quarterback with the rest of you (hey, that's not so bad, you know).

So, a look back at the best (and worst) of the Blue Jays' deals are definitely in order here:

THE GOOD:

1990 : Acquired JOE CARTER & ROBERTO ALOMAR from the San Diego Padres for Tony Fernandez & Fred McGriff.

At the time, some Jays fans were muttering, "Roberto who?"  They were the minority, and were quickly won over.  Any Jays fan will remember Alomar raising his arms while a stunned Dennis Eckersley watched Alomar's homer sail into the bullpen.  "Robbie" proved his worth and then some.  Without Alomar, it's a legitimate claim that the Blue Jays don't win the World Series at all, let alone two in a row.

Of course, nobody needs to be reminded of the other piece of that deal, other than to paraphrase Jays broadcaster Tom Cheek; "Touch 'em all, Joe, you'll never hit a bigger (home run) in your life!"

1992 : Acquired DAVID CONE from the New York Mets for Jeff Kent & Ryan Thompson.

Cone was, in the end, a no-brainer.  The second-guessers, as always, were out in Toronto, but Cone proved them wrong, leading both on the mound and in the clubhouse as the Blue Jays wound up with their second title in as many years.

Kent went on to some pretty good things of his own, winning an NL MVP award, but it can be argued that this deal was also "addition by subtraction," as Kent fought with teammates and wore out his welcome, a la Shea Hillenbrand, for most of his career.

1982 : Acquired FRED MCGRIFF, DAVE COLLINS, MIKE MORGAN (and cash) from the New York Yankees for Tom Dodd & Dale Murray.

I can't fathom what the Yankees were thinking.  Do you not scout your own minor leagues?  McGriff wound up one of the most prolific home run hitters in Blue Jays history, and Collins and Morgan helped give the Blue Jays some stability (and thus a little credibility towards future free-agents signings).

McGriff was so good that the Padres gave up Alomar and Carter for the "Crime Dog" and an aging Tony Fernandez, a move we all know worked out well for the Jays.

All I can think is that the Yankees must have thought they were getting Dale MURPHY in this one.

1986 : Acquired DUANE WARD from the Atlanta Braves for Doyle Alexander.

The Blue Jays have historically been a club that spends the bulk of their money on scouting (we have to, given the financial constraints the club naturally faces every year) and it has paid off.  In my opinion, this deal was one of the great rip-offs.

Alexander's arm was just about to fall off.  He was a shadow of his former self.  However, the Jays took advantage of the "big name" factor.  The Braves must have thought they hit pay dirt at the time.

Well, Ward was the replacement for Tom Henke (if anyone can ever be considered to replace The Terminator), setting up Big Tom through 1992, then absolutely slamming the door shut all year in 1993.  A case of perfect trade timing, courtesy a fantastic scouting department, headed by Al LaMacchia, one of the greats.

Honorable Mentions

1993: Steve Karsay and Jose Herrera to the Oakland Athletics for Rickey Henderson (who didn't do much statistically, but forced clubs to keep an eye on him, resulting in more hittable pitches to White, Alomar...and Joe Carter!)  It's not always about a player's numbers.  King Rickey's reputation was worth trading for alone.

2001: Billy Koch to the A's (again) for Rookie Of The Year Eric Hinske and Justin Miller.  Koch rapidly fell apart on Billy Beane, while JP "The Apprentice" Ricciardi made one of his few significant trades.  I remember watching Koch, now in the crowd, wearing a Devil Rays' t-shirt, talking to his old buddies.  Sad.

THE BAD:

Oh, boy. Have there been some TURDS of deals.  I suppose every club has some, but it's worth noting that, while the Jays have hit some trade home runs, during the mid- to late-1990s, the front office, handcuffed by terrible ownership, made some HORRIFIC trades.

1995 : Sent DAVID CONE to the New York Yankees for JASON JARVIS, MIKE GORDON & MARTY JANZEN.

One wonders why I bothered to highlight the names of the three players acquired for Cone.  None of the acquired arms spent any significant time in Toronto (Janzen had a brief, very forgettable, stint here).   Cone still had a chapter or two, including a no-hitter, left in his autobiography (which is a must-read if you're a baseball fan at all).  Too bad the story just got worse for the Blue Jays.

1999 : Sent SHAWN GREEN & Jorge Nunes to the Los Angeles Dodgers for RAUL MONDESI & PEDRO BORBON.

I can just imagine the scene in the Dodgers' locker room, two Hispanic voices, as one, screaming "You traded us to where?"  There's already a great reluctance on the part of MLB free agents to come to Toronto.  Quite a few players simply mail in their appearances, counting down the days until they can finally get out of here.

Mondesi, though a fan favourite (bestowed with the nickname "The Buffalo"), was one of those players.  Oft-injured (no injuries more significant than to his pride, as Green continued tearing it up) and sometimes surly, Mondesi was never a factor and Borbon was forgettable at best.

Meantime, the Shawn Green jerseys continued flying off the shelves...in LA.

2001 : Sent DAVID WELLS & MATT DEWITT to the Chicago White Sox for Mike Sirotka, Mike Williams, Kevin Beirne & Brian Simmons.

Another example of the First Commandment Of Professional Baseball: THOU SHALT DO THY SCOUTING.

Though I can't STAND David Wells, who wrote in his autobiography that he'd like to "climb into the stands (in Toronto) and start slapping" fans (to which my wife replied, "Come on ahead, David. We slap back."), he was a darned fine left-handed pitcher, something in very short supply.  Meanwhile, the Jays got a grand total of ZERO innings pitched out of Sirotka in return. Simmons filled in very briefly, and that was all she wrote for this deal.

I got better value when I first started trading baseball cards and didn't know a Jose Canseco from a Jose Herrera.  At least I knew not to trade for a damaged card.

THE WORST:

I wanted to put the Wells deal, or maybe the Shawn Green trade, in here, but there's one trade that makes me darn near cry.  I still think of Green loping around the bases, I can't say Luke Prokopec's name without getting REALLY TICKED OFF, and there are other ghosts hanging around...but the one player whose name I cringe at? 

Michael Young.

Gord Ash, whom I rag on with every breath I can muster, sent Young to the Texas Rangers, who must have had photos of Ash in a compromising position...for Esteban Loiaza.

We all know that you do NOT trade for pitching prospects from either Colorado...or Texas...especially ones who do not want to come to Canada in the first place!

Loiaza moped his whole stay, actually (according to players) cheered when he left, and was generally an anchor around the neck of the team.

Meanwhile, Young was busy visiting the All-Star Game on a consistent basis, and would have been the bridge we needed between Alomar (with a couple of years of Homer Bush or whoever thrown in) and the development of Aaron Hill (would also have gotten rid of the need for Alex Gonzalez, but that's a rant for another column entirely).

Mark Dewdney is a freelance writer from Toronto, long-suffering fan (and former employee) of the Toronto Blue Jays, now content to raise his two children and mutter at the TV during Jays games.