Though to be fair, Clemens’ “prime” with the Blue Jays was technically “in the twilight of his career”.
Frist of all, Dan Duquette didn’t say Clemens was actually in the twilight of his career, just that he had hoped he’d stay in Boston through the twilight of his career. Second, without the roids, he most certainly would have been past his prime.
Shaquille O’Neal. Near the end of his prime, but still his prime.
Brock from the cubs for Broglio from the cardinals
Brock wasn’t in his prime.
Luis Aparicio was a five-time all star when he was traded from the White Sox to the Orioles. He was an All-star five more times after the trade, though only twice with Baltimore.
Vern Stephens was a three-time all-star shortstop for the St. Louis Browns, who traded him to the Red Sox, where he was an all-star four years in a row.
The Oilers are great at trading away their best players.
Everyone knows about Gretzky, but Mark Messier would be another good example. The year he was traded to the Rangers he won the Hart trophy for league MVP. He went on to play 12 more years in the NHL, and he was one of the best players in the league for at least the first five or six years after the trade. He came in second in voting for league MVP in 1996, and had 47 goals and 56 assists that year - five years after the trade.
Grant Fuhr is one of the best goaltenders in NHL history, and the Oilers traded him away in his prime - he went on to play ten more years in the NHL, including winning the Jennings trophy five years later and setting the record for most games played in a single year in 1996.
The Oilers just have a terrible back office. They are bad at trades, and hopeless at drafting.
Does Dennis Rodman qualify? How 'bout Charles Barkley and Danny Ainge?
Just watched the 30 for 30 short on this earlier today… Texas trading A-Rod and 67 million dollars of his ridiculous contract to the Yankees for Alfonso Soriano and a throw in of the Rangers’ choosing from a list of prospects (Joakim Arias, I think, was the name they chose while passing on a young Robby Cano who was also on the list).
Philadelphia deserves its own special category:
76ers----Charles Barkley for Jeff Hornacek, Tim Perry and Andrew Lang (ironically, the Phoenix Suns GM who robbed the Sixers is now the Sixers President of Basketball Ops)
Lesean Mccoy, the best running back ever for the Philadelphia Eagles to the Buffalo Bills for failed Linebacker Kiko Alonzo.
Phillies traded Cliff Lee to Seattle for J. C. Ramírez (steroid bust) Phillippe Aumont (AAA reliever at best) and Tyson Gillies (cokehead). The subsequent off season, the Phils signed
Lee back with a mega million deal, only to see him flame out by early 2014.
Phil again: Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg and beloved Larry Bowa for Ivan DeJesus.
HOWEVER there is one trade that worked in our favor:
The New York Nets taking $3 million from the 76rs for the greatest basketball player OF ALL TIME:
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DOCTOR J!!! :D:D:D
Of all time? Is the Doctor even the greatest basketball player in the history of the Philadelphia 76ers?
Ralph Kiner had led the N.L. in home runs every year he played until he was traded at the age of 30 to the Chicago Cubs in 1953.
I know I know and I don’t want to hijack the thread because Im the older guy that grew up with Doc, and get LeBron James would stone him, and deep down know he’s not the best of all time. But I still need to proselytize the Greatness of Dr. J to the youth here.
The stats and the championships don’t bear it out, but from the late 70s to early 80s there was no bigger star in the NBA, maybe in sports, than The Doctor. He starred in a movie before Jordan did. He made the dunk a actual play in the sport, not just a contest staple. He did things with a basketball that STILL seem physically impossible.
Also, the late 70s NBA was a league plagued with drug scandals, failing franchises, low attendances, hell even their championship games were on tape delay-----I like to think Doc helped bridge the glory days of the late 60s and early 70s to the mid-80s of Magic and Larry Bird by almost carrying the league on his back at the time.
Todays modern NBA would not exist in its present form without Julius Erving, and it bothers me he is not even on top 10 lists. I feel he is treated like flash in the pan physical oddity like Bo Jackson and he was so much more to the NBA than that.
Though it worked out badly for Philadelphia, at the time of the trade, it was pretty much a swap of shortstops (Bowa for DeJesus). At the time, Bowa was 36, on the downside of his career (he was two years removed from his last All-Star Game and three from his last Golden Glove), and was on the trade block because he and the Phillies couldn’t agree on a new contract. DeJesus was 6 years younger, though he didn’t have Bowa’s pedigree.
Sandberg, meanwhile, had had all of 6 at-bats for the Phillies as a rookie in '81, and was a throw-in on the trade, with the Cubs looking for someone to potentially replace the aging Bowa down the line. He wasn’t highly regarded as a prospect, and certainly no one expected him to become a Hall of Famer.
George Scott and Bernie Carbo traded from Milwaukee to Boston for Cecil Cooper.
Scott was a premier power hitter at the time, Carbo on the downslope of his career. Cooper at the age of 27 had already performed well for the Red Sox, but after the trade had seven seasons hitting over .300, four 100+ RBI seasons (and 99 another year).
Scott had one more good year then declined.
Charles Haley from the 49ers to the Cowboys.
Hershel Walker from the Cowboys to the Vikings.
And this one doesn’t meet the OP’s intent, but I still don’t understand the Stabler/Pastorini trade.
Herschel Walker represents a theme we’ve discussed before: a bad, rebuilding team trades its one star for a package of draft picks and/or young players.
Charles Haley represents a type we haven’t discussed yet: the extremely talented head case!
Haley was an incredibly good pass rusher. He was also nuts (or, perhaps, just enjoyed ACTING as if he was nuts). He was violent to his teammates, and he intimidated his coaches. Most bizarrely, some sources say he liked to walk around the locker room, naked and masturbating. The 49ers traded him because, as great as he was, there came a point where he just wasn’t worth the headaches.
Haley was well suited to the Cowboys, because Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer were used to dealing with head cases at Miami and Oklahoma. Haley actually feared Johnson… and LOVED Switzer.
In addition to selling off his team in the 1930s, Connie Mack did the same thing with his “$100,000 Infield.” Home Run Baker went to the Yankees and Eddie Collins went to the White Sox, and Jack Barry to the Red Sox. The last member, Stuffy McInness, was gone in 1918. All except Barry had long and productive careers, with Baker and Collins making the Hall of Fame.
Also from that era is Shoeless Joe Jackson
Hal Chase was a premiere first baseman for the Yankees from 1905-1912 but was traded to the White Sox when he was only 30. He was suspected of betting on games and throwing them, though it was never proved, and he ended up in the National League (something extremely rare at the time – it meant that no American League team wanted him when he returned from playing in the Federal League). One of his tricks was to be late getting to the bag for a throw. The other infielders had to throw to the base (still standard practice if you have the ball and the first basement is off the bag), but Hal would get there just a little too late, so he couldn’t reach the ball and the other player got charged with the error.
You could make the argument that Moses Malone (traded twice in his prime (Buffalo-to-Houston, Houston-to-Philly)) is a better example of a 76er being traded in their prime. And a number of people have Moses ranked as a better bball player than the Doc.
Football (soccer) is a little different because it’s less of a cartel then the US sports so smaller clubs are expected to sell/trade their players to maintain their existence.
Dalglish to Liverpool from Celtic was big as was Roy Keane to United from Forrest.
I guess Josh Donaldson is a candidate now. He was already the best third baseman in the league, was traded, and won the MVP Award.