Trade Deadline Review: 1989

This is the eighth in a series of posts taking a look at the trade deadline action in each season during the CFCL’s first 29 years. Specifically, for each season we’ll look at each team’s trading turnover in the 3-4 weeks before the trading deadline. Individual deals were listed (though not analyzed) in the “This Week in CFCL History” posts.

Previous posts in this series:

1984-1987
1988
1998-1999
2000
2001
2002
2006

Here's what when on at the trade deadline in 1989.

1989
Trade Deadline: July 11 (final out of All Star Game), trading allowed between contiguous teams until August 31
Number of Teams / Number of Trades:  6 teams, 10 trades
Number of Players Changing Hands:  40 players, 6 draft picks
Busiest Teams:  McGuire's Picks (7 trades)
Contenders:  David's Copperfields, Dem Rebels
Rebuilders: McGuire’s Picks, David’s Ruffins, Eric’s Lambchops, Six Packs

1989 saw the continuation of the dual trade deadline instituted in 1988. There was free trading from Draft Day until mid-season, then between the All Star Game and August 31 only teams that were adjacent in the standings could trade with each other.

This year there was a little more of that contiguous dealing going on, as four trades were completed after the All Star Game deadline.

Here’s all the deadline action from 1989:

DAVID’S RUFFINS

Acquired	Traded	Results
Jose Uribe Dennis Cook	Kevin Elster Andy McGaffigan	The Ruffins acquired Uribe and Cook in mid July when the Ruffins were just 4 points out of last place, so it’s hard to believe this wasn’t an attempt at rebuilding.  They didn’t keep either player in 1990, so as rebuilding attempts go, it can’t be called a success.   Neither player contributed much to the Ruffin’s effort in 1989 either.  After the trade Cook won 4 games with a 4.50 ERA, while Uribe hit just .195 with 9 RBI.

 McGUIRE’S PICKS

Acquired	Traded	Results
Rolando Roomes David Martinez Geronimo Berroa Luis Salazar Terry Pendleton Jeff Treadway Tom Foley Dave Magadan Jody Davis Benito Santiago <Dennis Cook> <Scott Garrelts> Rick Aguilera Eric Show 1st round pick 1st round pick 1st round pick	Kevin McReynolds Oddibie McDowell Vance Law Ryne Sandberg Dave Magadan Randy Ready Glenn Davis Keith Hernandez Nelson Santovenia Mike Scioscia Mark Davis Dennis Cook Scott Garrelts Tom Browning 1st round pick 1st round pick	The Picts apparently took stock of their position on July 11, and finding themselves in 5th place (out of 8 teams), and nearly as close to last place as they were to 4th place, began a heavy rebuilding campaign, completing 7 trades and turning over half their active roster in the two and a half weeks between July 11 and August 1.   All that action yielded little in terms of results, though.  Ten of the players the Picks acquired were gone by Roster Freeze Day 1990, in fact the Picks waived half of those ten before the 1989 season had even ended.   The two who made it to the 1990 Picks Opening Day roster were Luis Salazar and Eric Show.   Salazar hit .254 that year, with 12 HR and 47 RBI, while Show imploded, winning just 6 games with a 5.76 ERA.   The Picks didn’t even use all of the minor league picks they received, selecting only pitcher Jay Aldrich in the 1990 minor league draft.  Aldrich never pitched for the Picks.

ERIC’S LAMBCHOPS

Acquired	Traded	Results
Von Hayes Oddibie McDowell Todd Benzinger Kevin Elster <Randy Ready> Sid Fernandez Rob Dibble <Dennis Cook> Scott Garrelts Andy McGaffigan	Geronimo Berroa Terry Pendleton Pedro Guerrero Randy Ready Jose Uribe Scott Terry Tim Burke Rick Aguilera Dennis Cook 1st round pick	By July of 1989, the Lambchops were seemingly securely ensconced in the second division, just 5 points out of last place, so they started picking up pieces for 1990.   Only one acquisition made it through to their roster the next year, Scott Garrelts.  Garrelts had a so-so season that year – he won 12 games, but supported it with a 4.15 ERA and 1.43 Ratio.   Garrelts actually helped the Lambchops more in 1989 than in 1990.  He won 8 games after they acquired him and posted at 1.69 ERA and an 0.82 Ratio.  Combined with the 0.99 Ratio they received from Fernandez and the 1.02 Ratio from Dibble, the Lambchops rose from last place in Ratio on July 10 to first place in the category by the end of the season.   That was enough to pull them up into 4th place overall, and secured the 1st overall minor league draft pick in 1990, which they used to select pitcher Steve Avery.

SIX PACKS

Acquired	Traded	Results
Vance Law Pedro Guerrero Scott Terry Tim Burke	Luis Salazar Todd Benzinger Sid Fernandez Rob Dibble 1st round pick	In 2nd place on July 10, the Six Packs put together a couple deals to try and catch the leading Dem Rebels.   They got mixed results from their acquisitions.  Law bombed, hitting just .235 with 4 HR; but Guerrero was a stud the final 2 and a half months, hitting .330 with 11 HR, 62 RBI, and even adding a couple SB.   On the pitching side, Terry was decent with a 3.40 ERA but only 2 Wins and 2 Saves.  Burke was solid though, with a 2.14 ERA, 0.91 Ratio, 4 Wins and 11 Saves.   Overall, though , the Six Packs were able to only pick up an additional half a point the rest of the season and ended up falling to 3rd place by the end of the year.

DAVID’S COPPERFIELDS

Acquired	Traded	Results
Ryne Sandberg Randy Ready <Dave Magadan> Keith Hernandez Glenn Davis Nelson Santovenia Tom Browning 1st round pick 1st round pick	Von Hayes Rolando Roomes Jeff Treadway Tom Foley Dave Magadan Benito Santiago Eric Show 1st round pick	The Copperfields came into 1989 having won three consecutive CFCL Championships, and were intent on adding a fourth.   For most of the season, though, they struggled to stay above 5th place.  By the end of July, they were locked in 4th place, just half a point ahead of the 5th place Lambchops, and trailing the 3rd place Picks by 2.5.   This place in the standings provided the Copperfields an opportunity, however.  The free-trading deadline had already passed, but the Copperfields could still trade with the teams directly above and below them in the standings, and the Lambchops and Picks had already started rebuilding for next year.   The Coppers took advantage of the opportunity, and completed four deals in the last two weeks of the season – three with the Picks and one with the Lambchops.   They didn’t get much of anything from Keith Hernandez or Nelson Santovenia (Hernandez was particularly disappointing, hitting just .165).  But the others helped the Copperfields put together a drive that took them from 4th to a tie for 1st by the end of August.  The Rebels pulled away after that, though, topping the Copperfields by 3 points at the end of the season.   The Copperfields used one of the first round picks they acquired to select Reggie Jefferson, who ended up having a few good years, but only after he had moved to the American League.   With the other pick the Coppers chose outfield prospect Moises Alou, who obviously went on to have a stellar career, but the Copperfields had cut him after an injury cost him the entire 1991 minor league season.

 DEM REBELS

Acquired	Traded	Results
Kevin McReynolds Mike Scioscia Mark Davis 1st round pick	David Martinez Jody Davis Dennis Cook Scott Garrelts 1st round pick	Dem Rebels made only one trade at the 1989 deadline – a 7-player, 2 draft pick deal with the Picks.    In 1st place by 6.5 points in mid-July, they set out to address the one category they were lagging in – Saves – and acquired reliever Mark Davis.   Davis delivered big time, nailing down 22 saves to go with his 1.10 ERA and 0.88 Ratio.  He helped the Rebels move from 6th in the category to 1st.  In addition, McReynolds contributed 15 HR and 45 RBI, while Scioscia hit 7 long balls and drove in 24.   The trade helped the Rebels solidify their hold on First Place and they beat the Copperfields by 3 points to take their first CFCL Championship.   In 1990, they selected catcher Todd Hundley with the 1st round pick they received from the … um … Picks.

1989 Standings at Trade Deadline and End of Season (click to embiggen)