December 1, 1954: The Biggest Trade In Baseball History

Don Larsen

December 1, 1954: The biggest trade in baseball history is completed: 17 players.

The Baltimore Orioles get: Outfielders Gene Woodling and Theodore Del Guercio; infielders Willy Miranda, Kal Segrist and Don Leppert; catchers Hal Smith and Gus Triandos; 1st baseman Dick Kryhoski; outfielder Jim Fridley; and pitchers Harry Byrd, Jim McDonald and Bill Miller.

The New York Yankees get: Pitchers Bob Turley, Don Larsen, Mike Blyzka; catcher Darrell Johnson; and infielder Billy Hunter.

Most of the players involved never amounted to much. Woodling helped the Yankees win 5 straight World Series from 1949 to 1953, but was in decline. Triandos became an All-Star. Smith would come back to haunt the Yankees, hitting a home run for the Pittsburgh Pirates in Game 7 of the 1960 World Series, setting up the bigger homer by Bill Mazeroski.

But Larsen would pitch the only perfect game in World Series history in 1956, and Turley would become the 1st Yankee to win the Cy Young Award, in 1958, winning 3 games in that year’s World Series. So this trade was a net win for the Yankees.

Johnson would manage the Boston Red Sox to the 1975 American League Pennant, and was named the 1st manager of the Seattle Mariners. Hunter, who went on to become the 3rd base coach in the Orioles’ 1966-74 dynasty, and later the manager of the Texas Rangers, is the only one of these players still alive as of December 1, 2022.

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December 1, 1954 was a Wednesday. Baseball was out of season. Football was in midweek. There were 4 games played in the NBA, including a doubleheader at the Philadelphia Civic Center. The New York Knicks beat the Syracuse Nationals, 88-86. And the Minneapolis Lakers beat the Philadelphia Warriors, 91-88.

The Boston Celtics beat the Milwaukee Hawks, 101-90, in a game played on neutral ground at the St. Louis Arena. The following season, the Hawks moved to St. Louis, but played instead at the Kiel Auditorium.

And the Fort Wayne Pistons beat the Rochester Royals, 101-96 in overtime at the Edgerton Park Arena in Rochester, New York. Larry Foust of the Pistons led all scorers on the day with 37 points.

And there were 2 games in the NHL. The Detroit Red Wings beat the New York Rangers, 6-1 at the old Madison Square Garden. And the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Boston Bruins, 6-0 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. The Montreal Canadiens and the chicaog blakc Hawks did not play.