Number 20? Not Yet....

First, our 5 honorable mentions. For these we will keep it short and mention where it was that the deal failed to put it over the top for the big list. These are in no particular order:

2011 - LAA trades with Washington:

In this deal, the Nationals moved Stephen Strasburg to the Angels in exchange for seven players: C Travis d'Arnaud, 3B Tim Scarlett, SS Edgar Azebedo, P Trevor Reckling, P Brian Colley, P Mike Wilson, and P Michael Kohn. Before we talk about the return, let's talk about the career Stras had. As a power pitcher, he was disrespected by Mogul and didn't have the career his potential suggests he could in real life. Stras made 387 career starts compiling a record of 143-134 with a 3.92 ERA and 2,386 K. Not a bad career, but not HoF worthy either.

In return, Washington got an elite prospect at the time in Tim Scarlett as the centerpiece. Tim logged over 4000 ABs in the league with 108 homeruns, 496 RBI, and a career .716 OPS with decent defense. Not what Washington expected, but the real prizes came from others. Brian Colley developed into one of the best pitchers in FCM history and is still going strong. He was dealt later by Washington, but clearly they got good value there that radically changed their franchise's future. D'Arnaud had 164 HRs, 800 RBI, and an .800 OPS in 13 seasons - so another contributor in the deal there. Michael Kohn managed to make over 150 starts in his career as well, but was mostly a back of the rotation arm. The other players saw minimal, if any, playing time at the MLB level.

This deal didn't make the list because neither team was able to take the pieces involved and make a serious run at contention. This deal made it's mark, however, because Strasburg was a major trade piece in the early history of FCM. It helped set the bar for elite talent.

2015 - Chicago Cubs trade with Milwaukee Brewers: In the offseason after 2015 the Chicago Cubs made yet another key acquistion on their way to becoming FCM's most dominant franchise for much of the league's existence. They dealt 1B Jerry Gagnon, P Tony Morris, and P Chris Jenkins to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for one of FCM's all-time greats: R.J. Seidel.

At the time Siedel was coming off a 16-10 season with a 3.79 ERA with a Cy Young and a World Series Ring under his belt from 2011. With 73 wins under his belt at the time he went on to add 116 wins as part of the Chicago Cubs dynasty and added 2 world titles, another Cy Young, and 6 All-Star appearances. His 14-4 postseason record and 2.36 ERA made him a fierce mound opponent and a legend in the league.

In exchange, the Cubs gave up Jerry Gagnon, the seventh overall pick of the 2015 draft and a slugger with high potential. He lived up to some of that but ran into injury issues quickly in his career, cutting it short. He was later dealt to Detroit where he hit 72 HRs and had a brief flirt with his potential. He was not, however, the centerpiece Milwaukee was looking for. Likewise, Chris Jenkins never lived up to his potential and the deal never gave Milwaukee the substitute stud in their rotation that they thought they had. Morris was a middling reliever whose career did not last long.

While Seidel is a legend in the league, his arrival was likely not the key acquisition of the Chicago Dynasty, even arguably the third most important player. He may have been pivotal, but the most pivotal trade made by Chicago will be detailed in the main list.

2016 - Colorado trades with Cincinatti: Colorado had been managed poorly throughout the early existence of FCM. When mattynokes took over, his first order of business was to get the franchise restarted on the right foot. The result? Ubaldo on the move at the 2015 deadline.

Colorado dealt Ubaldo Jimenez to the Reds in exchange for C Gabriel Gamora, P Matt Bashore, P Joe West, and P Manuel Banuelos. From Cincinatti's perspective, this deal was an attempt to push into the playoffs. They ultimately finished 92-70, but they were trying to push themselves into the next level of competition. Ubaldo lasted only two seasons with Cincinatti without delivering on that hope before he was dealt to Detroit.

In return, Colorado got their current #5 hitter. Gamora in 9 seasons has hit 188 HRs, driven in 787, with an OPS of .830. He's a three time all-star and two-time gold glove winner as well. Clearly the centerpiece there has benefited the Rockies greatly. The three pitchers have underwhelmed at best with only Joe West still in the league. I'm sure Colorado would've preferred a better return from these players, but it's not often you can add a prize hitter like Gamora at a premium position like catcher.

Here again, neither team has turned this deal into meaningful success. Ubaldo only lasted two years in Cincy and Colorado has only had two playoff appearances with Gamora.

2014 - Toronto trades with Washington:

After the 2014 season which saw Toronto go 91-71 and finish third in the AL East, they decided to pursue a young player they had earlier dealt to help push them into contention. That player was Adeinny Hechavarria. To get him in the offseason, they dealt SS Jose Reyes and P Ben Gallagher.

Hechavarria went on to have an incredible career - over 6,000 ABs, 1500 hits, 269 HRs, 885 RBI, 119 SB, a .773 OPS, 3 gold gloves, 2 world championships, and two World Series MVPs. Many consider him the backbone of the Toronto growth to a powerhouse. He wasn't always their best player, but he was a great player with outstanding defense at one of the league's most important positions. The move didn't pay immediate dividends, but within a few seasons Hechavarria led the Blue Jays to dominance.

Washington had Jose Reyes for 5 more seasons after the trade until he retired at the age of 36. Jose was able to accumulate 2000 hits in his career and a .736 OPS. But he never was able to lead Washington to success as finished no higher than 4th during his time there. Ben Gallagher made 171 starts in his career going 52-66 with a 4.05 ERA. As an effective bottom of the rotation pitcher, Gallagher made some contributions. However, he was quickly moved to Minnesota and then KC after his trade to Washington.

This deal was tremendous for Toronto, but did nothing for Washington. Much of the success of the Toronto Blue Jays is due to a model of building from within. While this deal helped catapult them, Hechavarria was never a truly elite player.

2016 - Cleveland trades with Baltimore: After the 2016 season, Cleveland and Baltimore pulled off a trade as Cleveland believed it was near contention. They had taken a step back after a successful 2015 and targeted a younger 22 year old starter named Boris Turner.

In the deal, Cleveland got Boris Turner and LF Jose Ramiro for RF Forest Givens, 2B Merv Palmer, P James Vanvranken, and P Yohan Pino.

Cleveland held on to Turner for 6 full seasons. In that time, however, Cleveland was never able to make the playoffs or get past 92 wins, even sinking as deep as only 65 wins as he was hurt in 2022. This spurred another massive trade (more to come later...hint hint!) with a division rival. However, Cleveland's struggles were not the fault of Turner - he went 80-46 with an ERA hovering around 3 each year to go with 4 all-star games and a gold glove. Jose Ramiro logged over 1100 ABs with Cleveland with 29 HRs, 509 RBI, 652 runs scored, 391 SBs, and an OPS over .700 in his 8 seasons with the Indians. Clearly two big contributors.

Baltimore saw Givens develop into a power hitter and hit over 150 HRs for the team to go with 457 runs scored, 479 RBI, and a .784 OPS - but he was never a star. In 1500 ABs, Palmer had a .719 OPS, 57 home runs, 211 RBI, and 191 runs scored - but that was only 3+ seasons in which he was let go of later by Colorado. Vanvranken had over 100 ABs in the league, but was a forgettable player at best. Pino pitched only two years for Baltimore and also had a decidedly mediocre career. Clearly, given the talent they gave up (and the subsequent talent Cleveland got later in dealing him) - Baltimore did very poorly here.

Two bottom feeders who never made progress from this deal....doesn't belong in the top 20. Boris Turner is a great, but not great enough to push this deal into the top 20.

Next up...Trade #20. Hint? Arguably FCM's best hitter....on the move.....again. But it may not be who you think it is.