Rangerfans.com

On November 10th, 1978, the Rangers made one of the most embarrassing trades in the history of the game. They sent Dave Righetti (P), Juan Beniquez (OF), Mike Griffin (P), Paul Mirabella (P) and Greg Jamison (OF) to the Yankees for Sparky Lyle (P), Domingo Ramos (INF), Mike Heath (C), Dave Rajsich (P), and Larry McCall (P). Essentially, this was a Righetti and Beniquez for Lyle trade. The problem with this trade is that the Rangers gave up one of the game’s best closers in the 1980’s for a list of players that would all be gone two years later.
At the time of the trade, the Rangers were a team that was very close to being a contender and they thought that they lacked a true closer. Righetti was being groomed to be a starter and Sparky Lyle was one of the best relievers for over a decade with the Red Sox and the Yankees. In 1977, Lyle became the first reliever to win the AL Cy Young. In the Spring of 1978, however, Lyle was feuding with Yankee management, irked over owner George Steinbrenner’s decision to sign relief aces Rich Gossage and Rawley Eastwick as free agents. Lyle was a wise-cracking lefthander with a sizable paunch visible beneath his uniform, Lyle relied on a crackling slider almost exclusively in his heyday. By the time he came to the Rangers, his slider had lost its snap and he only saved 21 games for the Rangers in 1 ½ seasons before being traded to the Phillies in 1980.
Meanwhile, Righetti is busy winning AL Rookie of the Year in 1981, and pitching a no-hitter on July 4th, 1983 against Boston. He wasn’t moved to the bullpen until 1984. In his first year as a closer, he went on to save 31 games. Righetti would pitch in 522 games breaking Whitey Ford’s Yankee record. He would also finish as the Yanks career saves record-holder with 224.
Juan Beniquez was very versatile and dependable off of the bench for the Yankees and fared better as a hitter late in his career (after the Rangers traded him). Juan hit over .300 for four straight seasons (1983-86). Mike Griffin was a huge prospect and was the Yankees best rookie in the Spring of 1980, then went 2-4 and was sent down. Griffin pitched for seven different organizations without a full or winning season in the majors. Paul Mirabella was the Rangers first round (seventh overall) pick in the 1976 June Free Agent Draft. Mirabella spent a decade of shuttling between the minors and majors, he finally stuck in the Brewers bullpen in 1988. Greg Jamison never played in the majors.
The Rangers did not benefit from one player in this deal. We have already discussed Lyle. Domingo Ramos never played for the Rangers and spent 8 full seasons in the minors before latching on with the Mariners in 1982. Ramos ended up being a career .234 hitter. Mike Heath also never played for the Rangers. Heath started the 1979 season in the minors and the Rangers traded him to the A’s where he went on the be a valuable reserve for the rest of his career. Dave Rajsich was a 6’5″ forkballer who was used mostly in long relief, Rajsich stayed with the Rangers the longest of anyone that they received in this deal, going 3-3 in two years. Larry McCall never played for the Rangers, in fact, he only pitched in two big league games and was never heard from again.
This trade was definitely one of the low-points in this franchise’s history. I have studied this trade from every angle to try and find something good for the Rangers and there is nothing. This trade did absolutely nothing to benefit the Rangers. They basically gave away one of the best closers in the 1980’s and got close to nothing in return. It’s hard to imagine any trade being worse than this one, but I still have three more to report J.

Make sure to check back next week when I will be discussing the 3rd worst trade in team history and will also have another “Blast from the Rangers Past”. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please E-mail me.
Remember the Rangers!
Jeremy Northrip
rangerhistory@hotmail.com

It’s hard to mention any player from the Rangers past and not think of Charlie Hough. Hough pitched for the Rangers for 11 seasons (1980-1990). He never put up Cy Young numbers, but he was a consistent winner who reached double-figures in victories nine consecutive season. Not only was Hough one of the most likeable players in franchise history, he was also one of the most unique.
Hough started with the Dodgers in 1970 and was originally signed as a third baseman. He learned to throw the knuckle ball from Los Angeles scout Goldie Hold, with help from Hoyt Wilhelm, Jim Brewer and Tommy Lasorda. While Hough was with the Dodgers, he was used almost strictly as a middle-innings reliever. He only started one game from 1970 to 1978.
The Rangers purchased Charlie’s contract from the Dodgers during the 1980 season. In 1982, the club decided to move Hough into the starting rotation, and they were very surprised by the results. Hough won 16 games that year and began a streak of seven consecutive seasons leading the club in wins. In fact, the knuckleballer led Texas in complete games and innings pitched each year from 1982 to 1987. During this same time period, Hough won a higher percentage of his club’s victories than any other major league hurler.
Hough was also a notorious smoker, he was often spotted smoking in the dugout between innings, even when he was the starting pitcher! (Hough had to smoke in the clubhouse when MLB made it against the rules to smoke in the dugout in the mid-80’s.) Hough could go to the mound and throw 2 innings of perfect baseball. He would have the batters swinging out of their shoes and then, one pitch later, he would look like he had never thrown a knuckle ball before. His knuckleball turned into a 50 MPH hanging curve ball that was usually deposited into the outfield bleachers, about 450 feet away, he would then come back and look perfect for two more innings. Charlie’s philosophy was that if somebody hit one knuckler 500 feet, throw the next one the same way because it will do something different. “You’re not in charge of what it does,” says Charlie, “you’re only in charge of letting it go.” This reasoning is one of the major reasons that Hough was so successful throwing the knuckle ball.
When Hough finally left the franchise in 1990, he had rewritten the Rangers record book. He became the all time leader in wins, innings pitched, strikeouts, games pitched, losses, and walks. In 1995, The Sporting News named Hough the greatest pitcher in Ranger history. Hough finished his career with the Marlins, and it is only appropriate that he go down in Marlin history as well. Hough was one of the first two free agents signed by the Marlins and won the first game in Marlins history against the Dodgers on April 5, 1993.
Click here to see Charlie Hough’s lifetime stats. Here’s some more pictures of Charlie Hough – you can click on any of them to see a larger version.
Remember the Rangers!
Jeremy Northrip
rangerhistory@hotmail.com