December 5, 1990: The Trade That Made the Blue Jays

Joe Carter, October 23, 1993

December 5, 1990: The San Diego Padres trade outfielder Joe Carter, whom they've had for only one season, and 2nd baseman Roberto Alomar, to the Toronto Blue Jays for 1st baseman Fred McGriff and shortstop Tony Fernández.

Just one year earlier, the Padres had gotten Carter from the Cleveland Indians, for Roberto's brother, catcher Sandy Alomar Jr. He might be the best player ever to be traded for both halves of a pair of brothers in Major League Baseball.

Carter was then 30 years old, had hit 147 home runs in the last 5 seasons, had just had his 4th season of at least 105 RBIs, and was defensively versatile: He could play all 3 outfield positions and 1st base. Alomar was 22, and had just batted .310, played in his 3rd All-Star Game, and won his 2nd Gold Glove. Why get rid of them?

It wasn't money: Combined, McGriff and Fernández were going to be paid roughly the same in 1991 as Carter and Alomar. And while McGriff and Fernández were roughly equal to Carter and Alomar, respectively, in terms of talent at that point, they weren't noticeable upgrades.

To make it even more bizarre, in 1993, their 3rd season in San Diego, both McGriff and Fernández would be traded, in what was a clear "salary dump" by the Padres. And Carter and Alomar would both be key to the Jays' back-to-back World Series wins. In fact, Carter was involved with the final play both times: As the 1st baseman, he made the final putout in 1992; and in 1993, he hit the Series-winning home run.

If anyone can come up with a "Top 5 Reasons You Can't Blame" for the Padres making this deal, then that person knows the Padres' history better than I do.

*

December 5, 1990 was a Wednesday. Baseball was out of season. Football was in midweek. There were 8 games played in the NBA:

* The Boston Celtics beat the Denver Nuggets, 148-140 at the Boston Garden. Larry Bird scored 43 points.

* The Portland Trail Blazers beat the Orlando Magic, 119-110 at the Orlando Arena.

* The Indiana Pacers beat the Phoenix Suns, 126-121 at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis.

* The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 113-109 in overtime at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee.

* The Atlanta Hawks beat the San Antonio Spurs, 110-108 at the HemisFair Arena in San Antonio.

* The Utah Jazz beat the Detroit Pistons, 106-85 at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City.

* The Los Angeles Clippers beat the Dallas Mavericks, 93-89 at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena.

* The Washington Bullets beat the Golden State Warriors, 104-98 at the Oakland Coliseum Arena.

And there were 7 games in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers lost to the Calgary Flames, 4-1 at the Saddledome in Calgary.

* The New Jersey Devils beat the Vancouver Canucks, 9-4 at the Brendan Byrne Arena in the Meadowlands. Claude Lemieux scored 3 goals and an assist. Patrik Sundström had 2 goals and 2 assists.

* The Montreal Canadiens beat the Hartford Whalers, 4-3 at the Hartford Civic Center (now the PeoplesBank Arena).

* The Minnesota North Stars beat the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-2 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

* The Washington Capitals beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, 3-1 at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh.

* The Edmonton Oilers beat the Quebec Nordiques, 3-2 at the Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton.

* And the Winnipeg Jets and the Los Angeles Kings played to a tie, 3-3 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California.

October 15, 1997: Tony Fernández Hits a Pennant-Winning Home Run

October 15, 1997: Game 6 of the American League Championship Series is played at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore. The Baltimore Orioles waste another magnificent effort by Mike Mussina, as the Cleveland Indians score the game's only run on Tony Fernández's home run in the top of the 12th to win‚ 1-0.

Mussina hurls 8 shutout innings and allows just 1 hit‚ while walking 2 and striking out 10. Charles Nagy does not give up a run in 7 1/3rd innings for the Indians‚ while surrendering 9 hits‚ as the O's leave 14 batters on base.

The pitcher who gave up the Pennant-winning homer to Fernández? Armando Benitez. It is not the last time he will mess up a postseason game, but it is the last time he will do so for the Orioles. The O’s now had a 4-6 record in postseason games played at Camden Yards. Having finally gotten back to the postseason in 2012, but crashed out in the 2012 ALDS and the 2014 ALCS, that record now stands at 6-8, including 1-7 in ALCS games.

Fernández was a 5-time All-Star, known for his fielding, winning 4 Gold Gloves. But he finished his career with a fine .288 batting average and 2,276 hits -- only 94 of them home runs. That he got a hit that won a Pennant shouldn't have been a big surprise. That it was a home run was.

Just 11 days later, in Game 7 of the World Series, he made a key error that costs the Indians the game. Heroism can be fleeting in sports. But the Indians wouldn't have gotten there without him.

The 1997 season turned out to be his only Pennant. He also reached the postseason with the 1985 and 1989 Toronto Blue Jays and the 1995 New York Yankees, and was with the Cincinnati Reds when they were leading the National League Central Division when the Strike of '94 hit. The Blue Jays elected him to their version of a team hall of fame, the Level of Excellence. He developed kidney disease, and died in 2020, only 47 years old.

Also on this day, the 1st supersonic (faster than the speed of sound) land speed record is set by Andy Green: 763 miles per hour. I have a separate entry for this event.

*

October 15, 1997 was a Wednesday. The National League Championship Series ended the day before, with the Florida Marlins beating the Atlanta Braves for the Pennant. Football was in midweek. The NBA season didn't start for another 16 days.

There were 9 games played in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers lost to the Ottawa Seantors, 5-1 at the Corel Center in the Ottawa suburb of Kanata, Ontario. (It's now the Canadian Tire Centre. The town was absorbed into Ottawa proper in 2001.)

* The Montreal Canadiens and the Pittsburgh Penguins played to a tie, 1-1 at the Molson Centre (now the Bell Centre) in Montreal.

* The Buffalo Sabres and the Carolina Hurricanes played to a tie, 3-3 at the Greensboro Coliseum.

* The Florida Panthers beat their arch-rivals, the Tampa Bay Lightning, 2-1 at the Miami Arena.

* In an "Original Six" matchup, the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Detroit Red Wings, 4-3 at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.

* The Washington Capitals beat the Chicago Blackhawks, 2-0 at the United Center in Chicago.

* The Colorado Avalanche beat the Edmonton Oilers, 6-2 at the Edmonton Coliseum (as the Northlands Coliseum was named at the time).

* The Philadelphia Flyers and the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim played to a tie, 2-2 at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim (now named the Honda Center).

* And the Boston Bruins beat the Los Angeles Kings, 5-3 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California.

October 15, 1997: Breaking the Sound Barrier On Land

October 15, 1997: The 1st supersonic (faster than the speed of sound) land speed record is set. Wing Commander Andy Green of Britain's Royal Air Force, then 33 years old, had already set a record of 714 miles per hour on September 25, in the jet-powered Thrust SSC (SuperSonic Car), at Black Rock Desert in Utah. He tries again, in the same vehicle, at the same location, and does it: 763 miles per hour. This happens 1 day after the 50th Anniversary of Chuck Yeager becoming the 1st pilot to fly faster than sound.

Thrust SSC

Thrust SSC was designed by Green and Richard Noble, who held the previous record, set in 1983, at age 37. The record of 763 still stands, but it might not for much longer: Green, now 57, and Noble, 73, have designed a new car, Bloodhound SSC, and they think they could break the 1,000 MPH barrier. 

*

October 15, 1997 was a Wednesday. Game 6 of the American League Championship Series is played at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore. The Cleveland Indians win it, 1-0, beating the Baltimore Orioles on Tony Fernández's home run in the top of the 12th. I have a separate entry for this event.

The National League Championship Series ended the day before, with the Florida Marlins beating the Atlanta Braves for the Pennant.

Football was in midweek. The NBA season didn't start for another 16 days. There were 9 games played in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers lost to the Ottawa Seantors, 5-1 at the Corel Center in the Ottawa suburb of Kanata, Ontario. (It's now the Canadian Tire Centre. The town was absorbed into Ottawa proper in 2001.)

* The Montreal Canadiens and the Pittsburgh Penguins played to a tie, 1-1 at the Molson Centre (now the Bell Centre) in Montreal.

* The Buffalo Sabres and the Carolina Hurricanes played to a tie, 3-3 at the Greensboro Coliseum.

* The Florida Panthers beat their arch-rivals, the Tampa Bay Lightning, 2-1 at the Miami Arena.

* In an "Original Six" matchup, the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Detroit Red Wings, 4-3 at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.

* The Washington Capitals beat the Chicago Blackhawks, 2-0 at the United Center in Chicago.

* The Colorado Avalanche beat the Edmonton Oilers, 6-2 at the Edmonton Coliseum (as the Northlands Coliseum was named at the time).

* The Philadelphia Flyers and the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim played to a tie, 2-2 at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim (now named the Honda Center).

* And the Boston Bruins beat the Los Angeles Kings, 5-3 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California. 

July 18, 1993: The San Diego Fire Sale

July 18, 1993: Having already traded All-Stars Tony Fernandez and Gary Sheffield as part of their cost-saving "fire sale," the San Diego Padres trade Fred McGriff to the Atlanta Braves, for pitcher Donnie Elliott and right fielders Melvin Nieves and Vince Moore.

The trade certainly works out for the Braves: They have McGriff for 5 years, win 4 Division titles, 2 Pennants and the 1995 World Series. The Padres, not so much: Finishing 84-78, 10 games out of 1st place in the National League Western Division in 1991, and 82-80, 16 games back, in 1992, they crashed to 61-101, 43 games back, in 1993.

Elliott appeared in 31 games for the Padres, making little impact. Nieves played in 127, having a good season for them in 1995, and was traded, playing well for the Detroit Tigers, before an injury ended his career. Moore never reached the major leagues, and while he was still hanging on after Elliott and Nieves were done, it was in "independent" minor leagues: He last played in affiliated pro ball just after turning 25.

But the Padres were able to rebuild, and won a Division title in 1996 and the Pennant in 1998. That Pennant led to voters approving a ballot measure that built a replacement for Jack Murphy Stadium, which became Petco Park, opening in 2004.

Still, the Padres, who have played since 1969 and have won just 2 Pennants, in 1984 and 1998, have a history of not hanging onto their talent. They have had 13 players who have been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Tony Gwynn played 20 seasons for them; Trevor Hoffman, 16; Dave Winfield, 8. Of the other 10? Rollie Fingers, Ozzie Smith and Goose Gossage each played 4; Willie McCovey, Roberto Alomar, Fred McGriff and Rickey Henderson each played 3; Gaylord Perry and Greg Maddux each played 2; and Mike Piazza played 1.

The Padres let Winfield, Smith, Alomar and McGriff get away too soon; they got McCovey, Perry, Gossage, Henderson, Maddux and Piazza too late; and Fingers, both.

*

July 18, 1993 was a Sunday. These games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees beat the Oakland Athletics, 13-6 at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees scored 10 runs in the bottom of the 7th inning. Don Mattingly, Danny Tartabull and Mike Stanley hit home runs. Rickey Henderson went 2-for-4 with a walk.

* The New York Mets beat the San Francisco Giants, 12-6 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. The Mets got 2 home runs from Jeff Kent, and 1 each from Eddie Murray and Dave Gallagher. Barry Bonds hit a home run for the Giants.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Seattle Mariners, 7-6 at Fenway Park in Boston. Ken Griffey Jr. went 0-for-4 with a walk.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Minnesota Twins, 7-2 at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Cal Ripken went 1-for-2 with 2 walks and an RBI.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 2-0 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. Steve Avery allowed 12 hits over 7 2/3rds innings, but Greg McMichael finished the 8th inning, and Mike Stanton allowed 1 hit in the 9th, to complete a 13-hit shutout.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Kansas City Royals, 4-3 at the SkyDome (now the Rogers Centre) in Toronto. George Brett, in his last season, did not play.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the California Angels, 2-1 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Florida Marlins, 5-3 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Colorado Rockies, 12-2 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. The game was called due to rain after 7 innings.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 3-1 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Robin Yount, in his last season, went 1-for-4.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Houston Astros, 7-6 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Mark Whiten hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 11th inning, driving Ozzie Smith home with the winning run.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Texas Rangers, 2-0 at Arlington Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. John Doherty pitched a 3-hit shutout.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the San Diego Padres, 6-3 at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego.

* And the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Montreal Expos, 2-1 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.