Best and worst Mets trades
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- July
- 31
While waiting for the Mets to do something, I’ve put together a list of what I think are the five best and worst trades in Mets’ history.
If you can think of something else, let us know.
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Five Best Mets Trades
Keith Hernandez: On June 15, 1983, the Mets acquired Hernandez from St. Louis for Neil Allen and Rick Ownbey. Hernandez arguably was the most significant position player during the Mets’ run in the mid-to-late 1980s.
Mike Piazza: On May 22, 1998, the Mets acquired Piazza from Florida for Preston Wilson, Ed Yarnall and Geoff Goetz. Piazza became the all-time home run hitter for a catcher and is a future Hall of Famer.
Lee Mazzilli: On April 1, 1982, the Mets traded Mazzilli to Texas for Ron Darling and Walt Terrell. The Mets later traded Terrell to Detroit for Howard Johnson. Darling and Johnson developed into key players on the teams in the late 1980s.
David Cone: On March 27, 1987, Cone was acquired from Kansas City for Ed Hearn and Rick Anderson and Mauro Gozzo. Cone would win 80 games, including 15 shutouts, for the Mets in the next five-and-a-half seasons.
Gary Carter: On December 10, 1984, Carter was traded by Montreal to the Mets for Hubie Brooks, Mike Fitzgerald, Herm Winningham and Floyd Youmans. Carter played on the 1986 championship team and was inducted into the Hall of Fame.
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Five Worst Mets Trades
Tom Seaver: On June 15, 1977, the Mets traded “The Franchise,’’ a future Hall of Famer and 300-game winner to Cincinnati for a handful of trivia question answers: Pat Zachry, Doug Flynn, Steve Henderson and Dan Norman. Enough said.
Nolan Ryan: On December 10, 1971, Ryan was traded by the Mets, along with Frank Estrada, Don Rose and Leroy Stanton for Jim Fregosi. In theory, the deal made sense because the Mets needed a third baseman and Ryan was erratic and uncomfortable in New York. But, who is to say Ryan couldn’t have found himself? He did find his control and a way to win over 300 games.
Mike Scott: On December 10, 1982, Scott was traded to Houston for outfielder Danny Heep. Scott became a three-time All-Star and won at least 16 games four times for the Astros.
David Cone: On August 27, 1992, the Mets sent Cone to Toronto for Ryan Thompson and Jeff Kent. The Mets then compounded that mistake by trading Kent, who has hit over 360 homers, to Cleveland for Carlos Baerga.
Scott Kazmir: On July 30, 2004, the Mets sent this first-round pick along with Jose Diaz to Tampa Bay for Bartolome Fortunato and Victor Zambrano. Kazmir’s career is a work in progress, but he’s already been an All-Star and Zambrano’s Met career is over.
This entry was posted
on Tuesday, July 31st, 2007 at 3:05 pm by John Delcos.
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I’d contend that the Cone trade was a good one, its the Kent trade that was the mistake.
Cone was on a team going nowhere and the Mets got two good prospects who were both major league ready.
It would be like the Mets sending Gomez and Gotay for Garland in todays game.
Olerud and cash for Robert Person was pretty good too. What a tough guy to replace he turned out to be!
Great list. While I agree wholeheartedly with the placement of the Kazmir trade, the silver lining is it was the catalyst for hiring Omar. That certainly softens the reign of Zambrano the lesser.
Ryan was not only erratic, but he had just lost his #4 spot in the rotation to Jon Matlack. Among Seaver, Koosman, Gentry, Matlack, McAndrew and Sadecki, they certainly could afford to deal a struggling Ryan, especially for a power hitting, Gold Glove shortstop who was 29 and one year removed from an All-Star-calibre season.
Two great trades in the 60s.
1. Donn Clendeonon to the Expos for 4 prospects who never amounted to much. This one definitely was ket to 68 championship.
2. Before 68 season, Tommie Agee for a washed up Tommie Davis. Agee was probably best lead off hitter we had until HJose came along.
I disagree about the Scott deal. He was a total bum on the Mets and would never have learned the splitter with us, so we were trading equals, one of whom went nuts for a couple years (but not a lot). Heep was a good 4th outfielder and PH. The Maine/Julio trade for Benson might turn out to be one of the best. If Maine prospers for several years its a great trade for Anna.
Hi John –
First basemen Keith Hernandez and John Olerud were the best Mets for a long time – polar opposites, but excellent team players. No first baseman since comes close to either of them.
You’re right about Lee Mazzilli – the best thing about him coming to the Mets was his leaving – and oh what great guys replaced him. Mazzilli was a showboat, but Ron Darling and Howard Johnson weren’t – they worked hard for the team and are doing so even now.
Tom Seaver of course went on to win his 300th game at Yankee Stadium, but went into the Hall of Fame as a Met. Not sure he ever forgave the Mets front office for that trade.
Interesting how David Cone makes both lists.
Gary Carter had been a hero in Montreal and seemed reluctant about coming to the Mets. However, his exuberant style of playing was just what the team needed then.
Not sure that the Mets management through the years has ever really appreciated some of the ‘good guys’ until Omar and Willie came along and showed them how.
Jerry Grote for Tom Parsons in 1965 was a great trade for the Mets. And I would put the Dykstra trade on the list as well for bad trades.
Trading Rusty Staub for a washed up Mickey Lolich, is a top 5 bad trade. Staub was still in the prime of his career and Lolich was one season and done in NY.
Great call Steve. Grote was the perfect catcher for all the young pitchers. He was great behind the plate also. Parsons was not missed.
Getting rid of Jason Bay for Steve Reed was a bad trade not much mentioned.
Tommy Davis was hardly washed up but getting Agee for him was a good trade.
It’s not a trade but the Mets left Paul Blair exposed after 1962 and the Orioles selected him in the winter draft.
Felix Millan and George Stone for Gary Gentry was a good trade. Gentry should have stuck to the greasy kid stuff. (Explanation: Vitalis had a commercial in 1969 where Gil Hodges sent Gentry to the showers for not using Vitalis hair ointment and being suspected of throwing illegal pitches).
Al Leiter for Jesus Sanchez was pretty good.
John,
Nice list.
And I agree. When we got rid of both CF shortly after the WS I knew something was up.
Great lists! But you forgot one awful trade:
Kevin Mitchell and others for Kevin McReynolds and others.
The Mets ended up with the wrong Kevin M.
Mitchell went on to be an MVP while McReynolds was bland and uninspiring.
Tom, you forget that plenty of other teams decided after two years they could function without Kevin Mitchell. Other than the MVP season, he wasn’t that good. Also if Dwight Gooden is right, Mitchell is a sick demented human being who cut off the head of his girlfriend’s cat. I can do without such slime on my team. Go join the National felons League and play for the Atlanta Dog-Killers.
You are mostly right about McReynolds but he had a number of teammates like Hernandez and Carter push him for MVP in 1988. That caused Strawberry to get in a fight at team photo day in spring 1989 because Strawberry blamed them for his not winning the MVP.
Another good trade. Bobby Ojeda. Also sent a scared Calvin Schlardi to Boston which doubly helped them win the series.
Dan, I totally agree on the Ojeda deal. And I agree with you that Mitchell was no choirboy. But the idea that part of the reason he was moved because he was a bad influence on Straw and Doc doesn’t really hold up. They seemed to implode fairly well on their own.
If Doc’s right, that is a pretty awful thing to have done and I’d love to see him in the same cell as Vick. Then again, I don’t know how credible Doc is.
But all I can say is, Ojeda was fantastic for the Mets. And so was Shiraldi, he just did it in a Red Sox uniform.
Great list!!
One of the all time greats was Davis Cone from KC in exchange for Ed Hearn.
Amos Otis for Joe Foy
Jeff Reardon for Ellis Valentine
Dykstra for Juan Samuel
Ryan for Fregosi
Although Staub was a good player who single handedly beat the Reds in the 73 playoffs, the Mets gave up way too much to obtain him.
Had the Mets made no trades in the early 1970s, they would have been a much better team. Amos Otis and Singleton in the outfield, Foley at shortstop, and Ryan as the fourth starter.
I get mad just thinking about it.