(Updated Feb. 25, 2023)
Nine months after they got him from the Cardinals, the Phillies considered trading Steve Carlton, even though he was the dominant pitcher in the National League.
Multiple teams made offers for Carlton after the Phillies said they might deal him in exchange for five or six premium players.
The Dodgers came closest to making a trade, but the tempting offer fell through when the Phillies countered with a demand for Don Sutton.
Fitting with Phillies
Carlton was acquired by the Phillies from the Cardinals in February 1972 for pitcher Rick Wise. Cardinals owner Gussie Busch, angry because Carlton didn’t give in to contract terms, ordered general manager Bing Devine to trade him.
A left-hander who was 77-62 in seven seasons with St. Louis, Carlton pitched phenomenally for the Phillies in 1972. He led the league in wins (27), ERA (1.97), complete games (30), innings pitched (346.1) and strikeouts (310). He was a unanimous choice for the Cy Young Award.
After losing six of his first 11 decisions in 1972, Carlton won 15 in a row and finished with a 27-10 record for the last-place Phillies (59-97). Carlton accounted for 46 percent of the club’s wins. In four starts versus the Cardinals, Carlton was 4-0 with an 0.50 ERA. He allowed them two runs in 36 innings, making Busch pay a price greater than salary for his foolishness.
With the 1972 Phillies, Carlton started every fourth day, a schedule he said he liked.
With the Cardinals, Carlton started every fifth day. “That was because everything revolved around Bob Gibson,” Carlton told The Sporting News. “He was the ace of the staff and Gibby required four days rest between starts. So, to set up a rotation, the rest of the staff had to give way. I’m not saying it’s wrong, but that’s the way it was.
“Just working every fourth day was a big help. I was able to develop a high rate of consistency. I was able to keep my rhythm.”
Headline grabber
Soon after the 1972 season ended, Carlton went on a hunting trip with fellow players Hank Aaron, Joe Hoerner, Pat Jarvis and Tim McCarver.
During a stopover at the Denver airport, Hoerner and McCarver “went into the VIP room and practically emptied the liquor cabinet,” Aaron said in his autobiography, “I Had a Hammer.”
The five ballplayers then boarded a commercial flight to Montana. Frontier Airline officials said Carlton, Hoerner, Jarvis and McCarver refused a flight attendant’s request to turn off a tape recorder they were playing and stop drinking liquor they brought onboard, United Press International reported.
The pilot landed the plane in Casper, Wyoming, and told Carlton, Hoerner, Jarvis and McCarver to get off for refusing to observe federal regulations. “He told me I could stay on because I didn’t have anything to do with it,” Aaron said in his book, “but where was I going?”
Aaron got off the plane with the four other ballplayers. According to United Press International, the group chartered a plane and continued on to Montana.
Carlton made more headlines when columnist Dick Young reported in The Sporting News that the Pirates were pursuing a trade with the Phillies. According to Young, the Pirates were ready to offer second baseman Dave Cash, outfielder Gene Clines, catcher Milt May and pitcher Luke Walker for Carlton. Another version had the Pirates offering May, pitcher Dock Ellis and second baseman Rennie Stennett, the Philadelphia Daily News reported.
Pirates outfielder Roberto Clemente confirmed to the Associated Press that the Pirates were negotiating with the Phillies for Carlton.
Explaining what it would take for a team to get Carlton, Phillies general manager Paul Owens told the Philadelphia Daily News, “Just to start with, I’d have to have two pitchers capable of winning 25 games between them. From there, I think we’d have to wind up with five or six players we feel can help us.”
The Pirates eventually backed off, but several other clubs showed serious interest.
Ready to deal
During the baseball winter meetings at Honolulu in late November, a headline in the Philadelphia Inquirer declared: “Carlton figures to be ex-Phil before end of week.”
“Carlton represents the Phillies’ only real bargaining power if they decide to make the sweeping changes that would be necessary for them to become a contender,” the Inquirer explained.
Though Owens conceded trading Carlton would be unpopular with Phillies fans, he said, “If I thought I could make a trade for Steve that would help us become a pennant contender, and if I didn’t do it, then I might as well admit I’m in the wrong job. It’s going to take a certain amount of guts to trade Steve Carlton. I’m not necessarily saying I’m going to trade him, but I am saying I have the guts to do it.”
The Athletics, Dodgers, Giants, Padres and Red Sox made offers for Carlton at the winter meetings. According to the Inquirer, the Giants’ offer included outfielder Bobby Bonds and first baseman Willie McCovey, and the Athletics’ bid featured pitcher Ken Holtzman and first baseman Mike Epstein.
The only one that interested Owens came from the Dodgers.
Tempting offer
“You wouldn’t believe the deal the Phillies turned down for Steve Carlton,” Dick Young wrote in The Sporting News.
The Dodgers offered pitchers Claude Osteen and Bill Singer, outfielders Willie Crawford and Bobby Valentine, and second baseman Lee Lacy. “A hell of a package,” the Philadelphia Daily News declared.
Owens countered by asking for pitcher Don Sutton. “The deal would have been made if Sutton’s name had replaced Singer or Osteen,” the Philadelphia Daily News reported.
“We made a valid, honest offer, but trading Sutton was out of the question,” Dodgers general manager Al Campanis said. “He’s our ace, with youth and a great future ahead of him. We wanted Carlton to form a one-two punch like Drysdale and Koufax.
“I can’t criticize Owens for failing to make the deal. It’s going to take a lot of courage for him to make any deal for Carlton, but I think what we offered snapped some eyebrows to attention. We made them sit down and do a lot of soul-searching.”
Reds manager Sparky Anderson told Dick Young, “Carlton was 5-6 at the end of May. If somebody had come up with a couple of good players, they could have had him. His value went from two players to five by the end of the season.”
A few hours after the Phillies rejected the Campanis offer, the Dodgers acquired pitcher Andy Messersmith and third baseman Ken McMullen for Singer, Valentine, outfielder Frank Robinson, infielder Billy Grabarkewitz and pitcher Mike Strahler.
Carlton stayed with the Phillies and helped them win two pennants and a World Series championship. He and Sutton both got elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
RetroSimba 
“The pilot landed the plane in Casper, Wyoming, and the four ballplayers were removed for refusing to observe federal regulations.”
Five players…Hank Aaron was a part of the shenanigans, per Ron Fimrite of SI. Joe Hoerner doing something crazy? Yeah, he probably would have ended up flying the damned plane.
Yes, thanks, perhaps I should have mentioned that Hank Aaron accompanied the other 4 players on the Frontier Airlines flight, but the reason I didn’t was because, according to United Press International, airline officials said Aaron cooperated fully. UPI reported that Aaron did leave the flight at Casper.
Good line about Joe Hoerner. His bus -driving experience may have inspired him to want to fly the plane.
When I first heard that the Cardinals had traded Carlton it felt like a gut punch. It was another example of Gussie Busch making a rash decision because he was pissed off instead doing what was best for the organization. He lost a hall of fame pitcher in the process. He then ordered Devine to trade Jerry Reuss because Reuss had facial hair. These moves set the organization back for the entire decade and beyond.
Well-stated, David, thanks.
Even just looking back and discussing trades that were never made is one of the things that makes baseball such a great pastime. In my humble opinion both the Dodgers and Phillies were smart in just leaving things as they were. Don Sutton was getting into the prime of his career. Philadelphia would not have been the team they were to become without Steve Carlton.
Thanks, Phillip. I think your analysis is spot-on.