Trades | RetroSimba

Archive for the ‘Trades’ Category

Cesar Cedeno and his amazing month with Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters, Trades on August 24, 2015| 10 Comments »

Three years after his pitching helped the Cardinals to a National League pennant and World Series title, Jim Kaat used his skills as a talent evaluator to help them to another championship season.

Kaat, a left-handed reliever for the 1982 champion Cardinals, was a coach for the 1985 Reds when he recommended Cesar Cedeno to St. Louis manager Whitey Herzog.

Acting on Kaat’s advice, the Cardinals acquired Cedeno from the Reds on Aug. 29, 1985, for minor-league outfielder Mark Jackson.

The deal rejuvenated the Cardinals and Cedeno.

Filling in for injured first baseman Jack Clark, Cedeno batted .434 (33-for-76) with six home runs in 28 games, sparking the Cardinals to the 1985 NL East Division title and onto a path to a pennant and a berth in the World Series.

After clinching the division crown in the next-to-last game of the 1985 season, Herzog told The Sporting News, “If we hadn’t got Cedeno, we would have been at least three games out of first, maybe more, going into this last week.”

Breakfast bunch

With the Astros from 1970-81, Cedeno hit .289 with 343 doubles and 487 stolen bases. He was named an all-star four times and twice led the NL in doubles.

The Astros dealt Cedeno to the Reds in December 1981 for third baseman Ray Knight. By 1985, Cedeno, 34, had a falling out with Reds manager Pete Rose.

Cedeno, eligible to become a free agent after the 1985 season, said he expected to be traded and heard the Blue Jays were interested.

The Cardinals were in Cincinnati for an Aug. 26-28 series with the Reds when Kaat, who pitched for St. Louis from 1980-83, and Herzog met for breakfast.

In his book “White Rat: A Life in Baseball,” Herzog said, “Kaat told me Cesar Cedeno might be available to us, to fill in for Clark. Cesar was on the outs with Pete Rose … Kaat said he thought (Cedeno) could still play.”

The Cardinals and Reds arranged a deal.

“I’m very happy an opportunity like this _ to play with a contender _ came around,” Cedeno said. “I will welcome whatever they want me to do. I’m thrilled an organization like the Cardinals has interest in me. It’s a great feeling to be wanted.”

When the trade was made, the Cardinals led the second-place Mets by 2.5 games.

A right-handed batter, Cedeno hit .241 in 83 games for the 1985 Reds, but the Cardinals saw him as a good fit to platoon with Mike Jorgensen at first base until Clark, who had suffered a rib injury on Aug. 23, could return to the lineup.

Hot hitter

The trade paid immediate dividends.

In his first at-bat with the Cardinals, Cedeno hit the first pitch he saw from the Astros’ Mike Scott for a home run on Aug. 30 at St. Louis. Boxscore

A week later, on Sept. 6, Cedeno, batting for Jorgensen, clouted a grand slam off Gene Garber in an 8-0 Cardinals victory over the Braves at St. Louis. Boxscore

Cedeno had eight hits in his first 16 at-bats for the Cardinals. “He’s been awesome, hasn’t he?” teammate John Tudor said. “He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do. It seems like every time he’s up he hits the ball on the nose.”

Beat the Mets

On Sept. 10, the Mets beat the Cardinals at New York and moved into first place in the NL East, a game ahead of St. Louis.

The next night, Sept. 11, produced a matchup of aces: Tudor vs. Dwight Gooden. Both were sharp and the game was scoreless through nine innings.

In the 10th, Jesse Orosco relieved Gooden and the first batter he faced was Cedeno. Orosco hung a slider and Cedeno belted a home run, giving the Cardinals a 1-0 lead. Tudor held the Mets scoreless in the 10th, clinching the victory and moving the Cardinals into a tie for first place with New York. Boxscore and Video

Thanks, Pete

Four days later, Sept. 15, with the Cardinals clinging to a half-game lead over the Mets, Cedeno went 5-for-5 with four RBI in a 5-1 St. Louis victory over the Cubs at Chicago. Cedeno had two singles, two doubles, a two-run home run and a stolen base. Boxscore

Cedeno said he spoke with Rose and told him, “Thank you, thank you, thank you for trading me to St. Louis.”

Said Herzog: “He’s been a blessing to us.”

In his month with the Cardinals, Cedeno hit .528 (19-for-36) at home and .541 (20-for-37) against left-handers. He had a .477 batting average (21-for-44) with runners on base. Cedeno further endeared himself to Cardinals fans by shredding Cubs pitchers at a .560 clip (14-for-25) with nine RBI.

It was a different story in the postseason. Cedeno hit .167 (2-for-12) in the NL Championship Series versus the Dodgers and .133 (2-for-15) against the Royals in the World Series.

Cedeno became a free agent after the 1985 postseason, signed with the Blue Jays, got released before the 1986 season began and was picked up by the Dodgers, who released him in June. A month later, he signed with the Cardinals and was sent to Class AAA Louisville. Cedeno hit .169 in 20 games for Louisville and never returned to the big leagues.

Previously: Jim Kaat interview: ’82 Cards were close-knit club

Previously: How Cardinals’ Jim Kaat appeared forever young

Previously: Jim Kaat revived both his career and the Cardinals

Read Full Post »

Why Jack Spring, Paul Toth are part of Cardinals lore

Posted in Games, Pitchers, Trades on August 21, 2015| Leave a Comment »

For pitchers Jack Spring and Paul Toth, being part of one of the Cardinals’ best trades did little for their careers other than making them answers to a trivia question.

Who were the players the Cardinals acquired with outfielder Lou Brock from the Cubs on June 15, 1964, for pitchers Ernie Broglio and Bobby Shantz and outfielder Doug Clemens?

Spring and Toth.

Because of the impact of the deal on Brock and the Cardinals, few recall St. Louis got anyone else in the trade.

Brock sparked the Cardinals to the 1964 National League pennant and World Series championship and built a Hall of Fame career in St. Louis.

For Spring, the Cardinals became a brief stop during a year in which he played for three big-league teams before finishing the season in the minors.

For Toth, the trade was a reunion, returning him to the organization he started with but doing nothing to get him back to the major leagues.

Aloha, Jack

Spring, a left-hander, debuted in the major leagues with the 1955 Phillies. He also pitched for the 1957 Red Sox and 1958 Senators before joining the expansion Angels in 1961. In four years with the Angels, Spring was 11-2 with eight saves.

In 1964, Spring began the season with the Angels before being sent to the Cubs on May 15 in a cash transaction.

He made his Cardinals debut on the same day he was traded from the Cubs. In an inning of relief against the Colt .45s at Houston, Spring yielded four runs, one earned, on three hits and walk. In the eighth, Brock made his Cardinals debut, pinch-hitting for Spring. Boxscore

“When the trade was made, I was home in Chicago,” Spring told the Society for American Baseball Research. “My wife called out to me that they’re talking about it on the TV. Brock and I flew to Houston, where the game had already started. I went to the bullpen. They told me to warm up and go into the game. The catcher was Tim McCarver. I got to the mound, and he said, ‘Hi, Jack. I’m Tim. What do you throw?’ ”

Five days later, on June 20, Spring made his second and last Cardinals appearance. In two innings of relief against the Giants at St. Louis, Spring gave up five runs on five hits, including a three-run double by Hal Lanier and a two-run home run by Orlando Cepeda. All the runs were unearned. Boxscore.

Spring had yielded nine runs in three innings for St. Louis but had an ERA of 3.00 because only one of those runs was earned.

The Cardinals assigned Spring, 31, to their Class AAA club at Jacksonville, but he refused to report. If he was going to accept a demotion to the minors, Spring, a resident of Spokane, Wash., preferred to play in the Pacific Coast League.

On July 9, the Cardinals accommodated Spring, sending him to the Angels in a cash transaction. The Angels assigned him to their Pacific Coast League team in Hawaii. Bob Lemon, the Hall of Fame pitcher, was Hawaii’s manager. Spring thrived there, posting a 3-3 record and 2.11 ERA in 30 games.

Spring got his final big-league chance with the 1965 Indians, pitching in 14 games. He spent the remainder of his playing career in the Pacific Coast League, finishing with his hometown club, Spokane, in 1969.

Cardinals prospect

Unlike Spring, Toth was sent directly to the minor leagues after his trade to the Cardinals and never returned to the big leagues.

Toth, a right-hander, was signed by the Cardinals in 1955. He pitched in their system until 1958 before spending two years in military service.

When he resumed his playing career in 1961, the Cardinals sent Toth to Class AA Tulsa. He had his best season, posting an 18-7 record and 2.37 ERA.

That performance caught the attention of Cardinals manager Johnny Keane. At the 1962 spring training camp, Toth got to pitch in Cardinals exhibition games and did well. He held the Mets to a hit in three innings in the second spring exhibition and was cited by The Sporting News as the camp’s “sleeper” prospect.

Toth was one of 10 pitchers on the Cardinals’ 1962 Opening Day roster. He appeared in six games and was 1-0 with a 5.40 ERA. His highlight was a complete-game win in a start against the Colt .45s on Aug. 5 at St. Louis. Boxscore

“Paul showed a good assortment and plenty of poise,” said Cardinals pitching coach Howie Pollet.

Wrote The Sporting News: “Toth’s chief assets are a good slider and a reputation as a tough battler.”

Less than a month later, though, on Sept. 1, the Cardinals traded Toth to the Cubs for pitcher Harvey Branch.

Toth was 3-1 with a 4.24 ERA for the 1962 Cubs. He earned his first win for them on Sept. 18 against the Cardinals in a 4-3 victory at Wrigley Field. Toth pitched 8.2 innings, yielding a solo home run in the second to his former road roommate, catcher Carl Sawatski, and a two-run homer in the ninth to Stan Musial. Boxscore

“He figures in my plans for next year,” Cubs manager Charlie Metro said. “He’s the kind of guy you like to have on your club. A real bear-down guy. He knows how to pitch. He moves all of his pitches around and showed a real good change-up.”

Toth was 8-12 in three seasons with the Cubs. He was with their Salt Lake City farm club when he was traded back to the Cardinals in the Brock deal.

The Cardinals assigned Toth, 29, to Jacksonville. He was 4-6 with a 3.25 ERA. After the 1964 season, Toth was sent to the Yankees, managed by Keane, in a cash transaction.

Toth never pitched for the Yankees, finishing his playing career in the minor leagues in 1967.

Previously: Lou Brock hit the ground running in 1st start with Cardinals

Read Full Post »

Willie Davis and his short, strange stay with Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters, Trades on August 9, 2015| 16 Comments »

(Updated June 4, 2020)

Unable or unwilling to manage his personal finances, outfielder Willie Davis left the Cardinals during a pennant drive in an effort to protect his wages from being claimed by his ex-wife.

On Aug. 15, 1975, Davis, the Cardinals’ right fielder, was placed on the club’s disqualified list after informing management he was quitting because of financial problems.

The incident added another twist to a bizarre year in which Davis served a stint in jail, got into a shouting match with a manager, staged a protest during a game and got traded twice.

Trouble in Texas

Davis was the center fielder for the Dodgers throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. He appeared in three World Series for them, twice was named an all-star and twice led the National League in triples. He produced a 31-game hitting streak in 1969.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Dodgers shortstop Maury Wills said of Davis, “He was so talented. God really blessed him with some great tools _ for any sport, really _ speed, strength, agility _ everything an athlete needs in order to make the big time.”

Asked about Davis, Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax told ESPN’s Roy Firestone, “There might have been guys who were quicker, but I don’t think anybody was faster going from first to third.”

The Dodgers traded Davis to the Expos in December 1973 and 12 months later the Expos dealt him to the Rangers. Soon after, on Feb. 13, 1975, Davis was released from the Los Angeles County jail after serving two days of a five-day sentence for failure to make child support payments, The Sporting News reported. Davis’ attorney arranged for the release by promising that the Rangers would withhold some of Davis’ salary for alimony and child support payments. Davis agreed to pay about $12,000 in back payments, the Associated Press reported.

Calm before storm

At spring training with the Rangers in 1975, Davis told columnist Melvin Durslag he was at peace because he had become a member of Nichiren Shoshu, a Buddhist religious order based on the teachings of a 13th-century Japanese monk. Davis said he spent one to four hours a day chanting. Believers say chanting enables a person to change bad karma and achieve enlightenment.

“I consider myself better adjusted than anyone else in this game,” Davis said. “That’s because nothing can make me unhappy.”

Two months later, on May 7, 1975, Davis and Rangers manager Billy Martin got into a shouting match after Davis interrupted Martin while the manager was berating the team during a locked-door clubhouse meeting.

“I just can’t play for anybody who wants to keep his foot on my neck,” Davis said, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Three weeks later, Davis staged a protest by petulantly squatting in center field, his glove under his arm, throughout an inning because teammate Steve Hargan didn’t hit a batter with a pitch after a Red Sox pitcher threw at Davis.

Soon after, when the Rangers wouldn’t give Davis a salary advance for the third time, he refused to go with the team on a road trip to Baltimore.

Feeling bad karma, the Rangers looked to trade Davis.

“We’ve been exceedingly lenient with the guy since last winter on all matters pertaining to his financial affairs,” Rangers general manager Dan O’Brien told the Star-Telegram, “but at some point you’ve got to draw the line.”

Cardinals roll dice

The 1975 Cardinals were in the market for a hitter because their rookie first baseman, Keith Hernandez, was overmatched by big-league pitching.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, O’Brien called Cardinals general manager Bing Devine and said, “We’ve got to get rid of Willie Davis. You wouldn’t want him, would you?”

Devine said no, but changed his mind three days later after talks with manager Red Schoendienst and others.

On June 4, 1975, the Cardinals traded shortstop Ed Brinkman and pitcher Tommy Moore to the Rangers for Davis. Hernandez, batting .203, was sent to the minors. The Cardinals switched Reggie Smith from right field to first base and Davis, 35, joined an outfield with Lou Brock in left and Bake McBride in center.

“The Cards took a good gamble with Willie Davis, only if they can get him to stop spending money faster than he runs,” wrote columnist Dick Young.

Devine and Davis said they believed Schoendienst would be key to making the deal successful.

“We take chances on players other teams might not want because of Red Schoendienst’s philosophy,” Devine said. “All Red looks for is a guy’s ability and how he can fit into our picture. Then, when we get a guy, Red leaves him alone.”

Davis said Schoendienst is “a lot like Walter Alston when I was with the Dodgers. Both of them leave you alone and let you enjoy playing this game.”

Schoendienst gave Davis the honor of taking the lineup card to the umpires before his first game with his new team. “With the Cardinals, I know I can play baseball without being suppressed,” Davis said. “I can be loose again.”

Unexpected departure

A left-handed batter, Davis hit .382 for the Cardinals in July.

In early August, Schoendienst was asked why he didn’t fine Davis after the outfielder made a blunder against the Padres. “How can I?” Schoendienst replied. “He doesn’t have any money.”

Davis again had fallen behind in alimony and child support payments. His ex-wife indicated she would seek a court order to have the Cardinals withhold his pay and send the money to her.

Davis said he was quitting rather than having his salary withheld. “I’m going back home and look into starting a new career,” he told the Post-Dispatch. “If I stayed, I’d be playing two months for nothing. That will never take place.”

The Cardinals placed him on the disqualified list and provided attorneys to help Davis resolve the issue, the Associated Press reported.

Regarding Davis’ absence, Brock said, “With him, we had a chance for the pennant. Without, it’s going to be tough.”

Davis’ yearly salary was $110,000. He was due about $30,000 for the remainder of the season, according to United Press International.

After missing five games, Davis and his ex-wife reached an agreement to split his remaining salary in 1975. Davis said she would receive $17,000.

“She’s satisfied and I’m satisfied,” Davis said.

Welcome back

The Cardinals were within 4.5 games of the first-place Pirates when Davis left the club and he was hitting .308.

When he returned, Davis told reporters Buddhism helped him deal with his financial problem. He delivered a few sample chants before dropping a bombshell. “I want a contract for five years and a million dollars,” Davis said. “St. Louis will have the first shot at me, but I won’t care where I go.”

In his first game back from the disqualified list, Davis started in right field, received an ovation from the fans at Busch Stadium and went 4-for-4 with a triple, double and two singles against the Reds’ Gary Nolan. Boxscore

“I felt like I was reborn,” Davis said.

Davis hit .368 in August and his Cardinals batting average entering September was .335. The Cardinals were 20-11 in August and were 72-63 overall, four games out of first place.

Reggie Smith said Davis is “the difference between winning and losing.”

Tough times

In September 1975, Davis swooned and so did the Cardinals. He hit .141 in September. The Cardinals were 10-17 for the month and finished at 82-80 _ 10.5 games behind first-place Pittsburgh.

Davis hit .291 with the 1975 Cardinals, with 50 RBI and 10 stolen bases. His batting average versus right-handed pitching was .329.

The Cardinals sought to trade him and found little interest until Padres president Buzzie Bavasi, who’d been Dodgers general manager when Davis played for them, made an offer.

On Oct. 20, 1975, the Cardinals dealt Davis to the Padres for outfielder Dick Sharon.

After his playing career, Davis “had a very difficult time … living life away from the game,” said Tommy Hawkins, a Dodgers executive.

In 1996, Davis was arrested and charged with threatening to kill his parents and burn down their house unless they gave him $5,000, the Los Angeles Times reported. He was armed with a set of throwing knives and a samurai sword.

Said Bavasi: “There was nothing more exciting than to watch Willie run out a triple. He could have been a Hall of Famer, but he had million-dollar legs and a 10-cent head.”

Read Full Post »

The day Cardinals fired Joe Torre, traded Todd Zeile

Posted in Executives, Hitters, Managers, Trades on June 16, 2015| 10 Comments »

(Updated June 23, 2020)

In June 1995, the Cardinals were a franchise in disarray. The depth of their dysfunction was revealed on one dismal day, June 16, when they fired their manager, Joe Torre, and traded their cleanup hitter, Todd Zeile.

Rather than signal an inspiring beginning, the moves had the feel of surrender.

The termination of Torre largely was viewed as a lame effort to deflect attention from management’s shortcomings.

The trading of Zeile largely was viewed as spiteful.

A bad team

After being named Cardinals manager in August 1990, Torre led the Cardinals to winning seasons each year from 1991 through 1993. His best record was 87-75 in 1993. When the Cardinals fell to 53-61 in strike-shortened 1994, Torre’s friend, general manager Dal Maxvill, was fired and replaced by Walt Jocketty.

By then, the Anheuser-Busch ownership of the Cardinals seemed more interested in minimizing expense to enhance profitability than it did in investing in the team.

After splitting their first 18 games, the 1995 Cardinals lost 10 of their next 13 and fell to 12-19.

“This is a bad team and someone must pay the price,” columnist Bob Nightengale wrote in The Sporting News. “They don’t have a marquee power hitter. They’re awful defensively. They have no speed.”

Published reports indicated Cardinals president Mark Lamping was pressuring a reluctant Jocketty to appease a restless fan base by changing managers.

Cheap PR move

On the morning of June 16, with the Cardinals’ record at 20-27, Jocketty went to Torre’s home and informed him he was fired.

“It didn’t surprise me,” Torre told Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

His overall record as Cardinals manager: 351-354. “We worked hard and we did a lot of things,” Torre said. “We just didn’t win enough.”

Said Jocketty: “We will not stand pat and let things keep going as they were.”

Unimpressed, Post-Dispatch columnist Bernie Miklasz concluded the Cardinals “dumped a classy guy, Torre, to feed the wolfpack.”

“All I see is a cheap PR move.” Miklasz wrote. “All I see is a twitch reflex from a panic attack.”

Change the dynamics

After considering Cardinals coaches Chris Chambliss and Gaylen Pitts as candidates to replace Torre, Jocketty chose director of player development Mike Jorgensen. “He is an intense guy … He’ll bring a little fire to the clubhouse as well as to the field,” Cardinals pitcher Tom Urbani said of Jorgensen. Said Jocketty: “I wanted to bring in someone who could change the dynamics a little.”

Jocketty, though, wasn’t done for the day. Next, he dealt Zeile.

Deal or no deal

Zeile was batting .291 with five home runs and 22 RBI as the first baseman and cleanup hitter for the 1995 Cardinals. In June that year, he revealed the Cardinals had reneged on a three-year, $12 million handshake agreement he said they made in April.

Lamping was furious and said, “There never was a deal with Todd Zeile.”

The Cardinals were paying Zeile a 1995 salary at a rate of $3.2 million, the Chicago Tribune reported. Zeile opted to seek a 1995 salary of $4.2 million in an arbitration hearing scheduled for June 16, according to the Tribune.

On the night of June 15, the Cardinals offered Zeile a $4 million contract for 1995, the Tribune reported, but he rejected it. “It wasn’t the brightest business decision, but based on principle, I would not accept that offer,” Zeile said.

Rather than go to arbitration, the Cardinals traded Zeile, 29, to the Cubs for pitcher Mike Morgan, 35, and a pair of minor-league players, first baseman Paul Torres and catcher Francisco Morales.

“Todd Zeile was not happy,” Jocketty told the Tribune. “He had asked that we trade him and I have been spending the last couple of weeks trying to accommodate him.”

According to the Post-Dispatch, Jocketty had offered Zeile to the Padres for pitcher Andy Benes, but the proposal was rejected.

“We’re not happy with the chemistry and the focus of this team,” Jocketty said. “If you saw Todd Zeile play, you could see he’s not a real aggressive person in his approach to the game. He was kind of at one gait.”

In seven seasons with St. Louis, Zeile started at three positions _ catcher, third base and first base _ and batted .267 with 75 home runs.

Zeile told Hummel he would depart “with a lot more fond memories than negative,” but added, “Unfortunately, this situation turned kind of ugly at the end. I think it will be better in the long run to go somewhere where I’ll be embraced.”

In comments to the Tribune, Zeile said, “The organization hasn’t made a commitment to the players to win. They should be able to produce winners.”

Miklasz blasted Lamping and Jocketty, saying the Cardinals executives “smeared Zeile, suggesting he was responsible for poor team chemistry. Zeile wasn’t any more at fault than any of the other veterans on the team. Why single him out as the villain?”

Noting the decisions by Jocketty to acquire underperforming third baseman Scott Cooper and pitcher Danny Jackson, Miklasz wrote: “Jocketty traded for Cooper and he’s a nervous wreck. Jocketty signed Jackson and he’s a physical wreck.”

The aftermath

Getting fired by the Cardinals turned out to be a blessing for Torre. He was hired to manage the Yankees and led them to four World Series titles and six American League pennants. Torre was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2014.

Jorgensen managed the Cardinals to a 42-54 record and returned to the front office after the season. He was replaced as manager by Tony La Russa, who would lead St. Louis to two World Series championships and three National League pennants and would be inducted into the Hall of Fame with Torre.

Rookie John Mabry replaced Zeile as the Cardinals’ first baseman.

The Cubs signed Zeile for $3.7 million for one year, but he was a bust with them in 1995, hitting .227. He became a free agent after the season and signed with the Phillies.

Zeile played for 11 teams: Cardinals, Cubs, Phillies, Orioles, Dodgers, Marlins, Rangers, Mets, Rockies, Yankees and Expos. He had 2,004 hits and 1,110 RBI in 16 seasons in the majors, and also played in 29 postseason games with the Orioles, Rangers and Mets.

Morgan made 17 starts for the 1995 Cardinals and was 5-6 with a 3.88 ERA. The next year, he was 4-8 with a 5.24 ERA for St. Louis before he was released.

The two minor-league players acquired with Morgan from the Cubs never reached the big leagues.

Read Full Post »

The story of why Cardinals gave up on Mike Cuellar

Posted in Pitchers, Trades on June 14, 2015| 4 Comments »

Determined to reconstruct their bullpen, the 1965 Cardinals acquired the closer they needed, but gave up an ace to get him.

On June 15, 1965, the defending World Series champions traded pitchers Mike Cuellar and Ron Taylor to the Astros for pitchers Hal Woodeshick and Chuck Taylor.

Woodeshick became the closer for the 1965 Cardinals and pitched effectively.

Cuellar developed into an all-star for the Astros, mastering the screwball and curve and paving his way to becoming a Cy Young Award winner with the Orioles.

Seeking a stopper

Barney Schultz and Ron Taylor were the top relievers for the 1964 Cardinals. Schultz had a team-high 14 saves and a win, all after his call-up from the minors in August 1964. Taylor had eight saves and eight relief wins.

Cuellar also was a useful reliever for the 1964 Cardinals. Overall, his record that season was 5-5 with a 4.50 ERA. As a reliever, though, Cuellar was 3-0 with four saves and a 2.53 ERA in 25 appearances.

Red Schoendienst, who replaced Johnny Keane as Cardinals manager, went into the 1965 season with Schultz and Taylor as his top two relievers. Cuellar was sent to Class AAA Jacksonville and placed in the starting rotation.

Schultz and Taylor struggled early with the 1965 Cardinals. Schultz gave up runs in five of his first six outings. Taylor yielded runs in three of his first four appearances. The Cardinals lost five of their first six games.

On June 14, 1965, the Cardinals were in seventh place at 28-30. The bullpen had accounted for five saves: two apiece by Schultz and Bob Purkey; one by Taylor.

Saves leader

The experienced left-handed relievers sought by Cardinals general manager Bob Howsam were Ron Perranoski of the Dodgers and Woodeshick. Perranoski led the NL in appearances in 1962 and 1963 and posted 14 saves or more each season from 1962-64. Woodeshick led the NL in saves in 1964, with 23.

Promoting Cuellar from the minors was an option the Cardinals rejected, even though the left-hander had compiled a 9-1 record and 2.41 ERA in 15 games.

Instead, Howsam offered Cuellar in trade talks. The Astros wanted him, but insisted on Taylor, too.

“Ron Taylor was in demand,” Schoendienst told The Sporting News. “Houston wouldn’t make the trade without him.”

After acquiring Woodeshick, the Cardinals called up right-hander Don Dennis from Jacksonville. Woodeshick and Dennis replaced Schultz and Taylor as the top Cardinals relievers. Schultz remained on the team, but in a low-profile role.

“This deal makes our staff well-balanced,” Howsam said.

Good start

Initially, the trade appeared to favor the Cardinals.

Woodeshick was as good as expected. He had seven saves and a win in July when the Cardinals had a NL-best 17-10 record. Overall, Woodeshick was 3-2 with 15 saves and a 1.81 ERA for the 1965 Cardinals. Left-handed batters hit .154 against him, with no home runs.

Dennis helped, too: six saves and a 2.29 ERA.

For the 1965 Astros, Cuellar was 1-4 and Taylor was 1-5.

By 1967, the trade looked a lot different.

Orioles, Mets benefit

Woodeshick was 2-1 with two saves and a 5.18 ERA for the 1967 NL champion Cardinals. He pitched a scoreless inning in the 1967 World Series and was released after the Cardinals won the championship. In three seasons with St. Louis, Woodeshick was 7-4 with 21 saves and a 2.67 ERA.

Cuellar was 16-11 for the 1967 Astros. He pitched two scoreless innings for the NL in the All-Star Game. After the 1968 season, Cuellar was traded to the Orioles. He earned the 1969 American League Cy Young Award, with 23 wins, a 2.38 ERA and five shutouts. He helped the Orioles win three consecutive pennants (1969-71) and a World Series title (1970) and four times won 20 or more in a season.

Ron Taylor was traded to the Mets before the 1967 season and revived his career, with eight saves and a 2.34 ERA that year. Like in 1964 for the Cardinals, Taylor was a stellar reliever for the 1969 Mets, helping them win their first World Series championship versus Cuellar and the Orioles.

Chuck Taylor made his big-league debut with the 1969 Cardinals. In three seasons with St. Louis (1969-71), he was 16-13 with 11 saves and a 2.99 ERA.

Read Full Post »

How Joe Medwick got traded by Cardinals to Dodgers

Posted in Executives, Games, Hitters, Opponents, Trades on June 11, 2015| 2 Comments »

(Updated July 23, 2022)

Joe Medwick was a special hitter for the Cardinals. He also was expensive and high maintenance. When his popularity waned, the Cardinals decided the value Medwick could bring them in a trade was greater than what he could produce for them in the lineup.

On June 12, 1940, the Cardinals traded Medwick and pitcher Curt Davis to the Dodgers for $125,000 and four undistinguished players, or, as one writer described them, “a few ham sandwiches.”

Cardinals owner Sam Breadon and his top baseball executive, Branch Rickey, got exactly what they wanted. With attendance sagging and the Cardinals out of contention, Breadon and Rickey were seeking cash.

Rickey had a personal incentive to trade players for cash because his contract called for him to get a percentage of the sale as remuneration in addition to his salary.

As The Sporting News noted, the Cardinals traded Medwick “while he had high market value.”

Medwick, a hitter of Hall of Fame skills, had sulked about being lifted in the late innings for a defensive replacement. When he fell into a hitting funk, Cardinals fans taunted him from the Sportsman’s Park bleachers. Witnessing this, Breadon realized there wouldn’t be a public relations backlash if he traded the club’s standout hitter, and instructed Rickey to pursue a deal.

Breadon told the St. Louis Star-Times, “Medwick was through with the Cardinals. The fans had sent me that message.”

“The tide had turned,” wrote columnist Dan Daniel. “The fans would not shout against the departure of (Medwick).”

Remarkable hitter

A right-handed batter who swung at pitches outside the strike zone with savage aggressiveness, Medwick debuted with the Cardinals in September 1932 and became their starting left fielder in 1933.

Among his many remarkable hitting feats with the Cardinals, Medwick:

_ Achieved the Triple Crown in 1937, leading the National League in batting average (.374), home runs (31) and RBI (154). Medwick is the last NL player to accomplish the feat.

_ Won the NL Most Valuable Player Award in 1937. He also led the NL that season in runs (111), hits (237), doubles (56), slugging percentage (.641) and total bases (406).

_ Led the NL in hits in 1936 (223).

_ Led the NL in doubles in 1936 (64) and 1938 (47).

_ Led the NL in RBI in 1936 (138) and 1938 (122).

_ Hit .379 (11-for-29) with five RBI in the 1934 World Series vs. the Tigers.

Medwick remains the Cardinals’ all-time single-season leader in doubles (64) and RBI (154).

Interest from Dodgers

Dodgers president Larry MacPhail offered the Cardinals $200,000 for Medwick in 1939, The Sporting News reported, but the Cardinals were in contention and rejected the offer.

In 1940, the Cardinals started poorly, losing 20 of their first 32 games. On June 3, Medwick was hitting .297 _ good for most but subpar for him.

“I believe Joe is slowing up and will not be the star he was,” Breadon said to the St. Louis Star-Times. “He also proved conclusively to me he did not care to hustle for the Cards this year.”

Medwick felt disrespected by Breadon and Rickey. After his Triple Crown and MVP season in 1937, the Cardinals rewarded Medwick with a salary of $20,000 in 1938. When he followed his .374 batting average of 1937 with a .322 mark in 1938, the Cardinals cut his pay to $18,000 in 1939. After hitting .332 in 1939, Medwick demanded a $20,000 salary in 1940, but the Cardinals gave him $18,000.

“They ruined my incentive,” Medwick told the Brooklyn Daily Eagle.

Recalling MacPhail’s interest in Medwick, Rickey contacted the Dodgers in June 1940. “Rickey telephoned and said that the Cardinals were in the mood to do some trading,” MacPhail told The Sporting News.

The ensuing conversation:

MacPhail: “Who will you trade?”

Rickey: “Anybody.”

MacPhail: “Does that go for Medwick, too?”

Rickey: “Yes.”

MacPhail took a flight to St. Louis and closed the deal.

Said MacPhail: “Frankly, the Medwick deal surprised me more than anyone else. If you’d have told me a week before that we’d come up with Medwick, I’d have said you were crazy. A month ago, I put out a feeler for him and was told there wasn’t a chance.”

Finances a factor

In exchange for Medwick and Davis (who had 22 wins for the 1939 Cardinals), the Dodgers sent the cash, plus pitchers Carl Doyle and Sam Nahem, outfielder Ernie Koy and third baseman Bert Haas. The Cardinals assigned Nahem and Haas to the minor leagues.

“St. Louis believes the passing of Medwick and the development of a better feeling on the club, minus Joe and his $18,000 salary, will lift the (Cardinals),” Daniel wrote.

Said Breadon: “The Cardinals were going no place with Medwick and Davis on the job _ and they certainly couldn’t be any worse without them.”

The reduction in salaries paired with the infusion of cash helped the Cardinals overcome a drop in attendance. After drawing 400,245 paid customers in 1939, the Cardinals had a total home attendance of 324,078 in 1940. According to columnist Dick Farrington, Breadon was facing “the specter of a financial loss on the season.”

Hit by pitch

In joining the Dodgers, Medwick was reunited with his pal, manager Leo Durocher. They had been Cardinals teammates from 1933-37, and played golf together in the off-season. Medwick called Durocher “the greatest guy in the world,” the New York Daily News reported.

A New Jersey native, Medwick said, “Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to play in Brooklyn.” Regarding hitting in Ebbets Field, Medwick told the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, “That right field wall is going to be duck soup for me.”

On the day of the trade, the Dodgers and Reds were tied atop the National League standings. “No ballplayer is sorry to join a first-place club,” Medwick said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

On June 18, in his sixth game for the Dodgers, Medwick faced the Cardinals at Brooklyn. In the first inning, a fastball from Bob Bowman struck Medwick behind the left ear, knocking him unconscious. As Medwick was carried on a stretcher to the clubhouse, MacPhail “stormed over to the Cardinals dugout and challenged the players, individually and collectively,” The Sporting News reported.

All of the Cardinals stood but none made a move. “Take it easy,” Cardinals outfielder Pepper Martin said to MacPhail.

Medwick was taken to a hospital and diagnosed with a concussion.

Bowman said he didn’t intend to hit him. “Medwick was looking for a curveball, expecting the ball to break,” Bowman said.

According to author Robert Creamer, Dodgers coach Chuck Dressen was stealing signs and would whistle when he thought a curve was coming. Bowman said he and catcher Don Padgett decided to try to fool Medwick. When Padgett called for a curve, Dressen whistled but Bowman threw a high inside fastball. Leaning in for the curve, Medwick couldn’t get out of the way.

After the game, Bowman was being escorted from the ballpark by two detectives when MacPhail approached and “sent a wild swing at him,” according to The Sporting News.

The Cardinals visited Medwick in the hospital. Manager Billy Southworth, the only member of the contingent admitted to the room, expressed regret for the injury. Medwick absolved the Cardinals, calling the incident “just one of those things.” Boxscore

Medwick was released from the hospital on June 21. He hit .300 in 106 games for the 1940 Dodgers. In 1941, he helped them win the pennant, hitting .318 with 18 home runs and 88 RBI.

Medwick returned to the Cardinals in 1947 and finished his playing career with them in 1948. He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1968.

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »