The recent passing of Jim Fregosi led me to revisit the decades-long vilified Nolan Ryan trade from December 10, 1972:
New York Mets
SS-Jim Fregosi .233-5-32 .317/.326/.643 California AL 1971
(.278-22-82 .353/.459/.812 California AL 1970)
California Angels
SP-Nolan Ryan -10-14 3.97 137-K 116-BB 152-IP New York NL 1971
OF-Leroy Stanton-.324-23-101 .374/.540/.914 Tidewater AAA 1971
.190-0-2 21-AB New York NL 1971
SP-Don Rose -11-10 3.33 156-K 173-IP Tidewater AAA 1971
0-0 0.00 1-IP New York NL 1971
C-Frank Estrada-.252-7-28 .341/434/.775 Memphis AA 1971
.260-6-21 .321/.391/.711 Tidewater AAA 1971
.500-0-0 2-AB New York NL 1971
Even though only two of the four panned out, the Mets still gave up a lot for one player. That’s how dire the team’s fortunes were at the hot corner in 1971. That season, Bob Aspromonte wrapped up his MLB career manning the hot corner with a frigid .225/.285/.301 slash line. You think that’s bad. His back-up Wayne Garrett was even worse, ringing up (or should that be down) a .548 OPS. Even in the modern day dead ball era ‘70s that was anemic.
Aside from 1B, starting Met infielders combined for 10 longballs and 105 RBI’s that season. This was team that scored 588 runs in 1971. Even back then you’re not going to win too many games averaging a shade over 3.5 runs per game. Two years removed from the Miracle of ’69, they finishing 14 games back of the slugging World Champion “Lumber Company” Pirates.
The team was faced with an obvious decision at the time-acquire a power bat for the infield or continue lagging behind the Bucs. From that perspective Fregosi made perfect sense. Here's a six- time All-Star SS. Sure he's coming off a disappointing year beset with nagging injuries but also just one season removed from a .278-22-82 line in 1970. Fregosi was entering his age 30 seaon, entering his 10thyear as a MLB regular so there were some red flags.
Take into consideration you’re covered at SS with slick gloveman Buddy Harrelson so Fregosi has to learn a new position, one he’d never played before professionally. Still the mood at the time seemed to be that there’d be no reason to think Fregosi couldn’t handle third. Here's the late Gil Hodges following the trade:
"You always hate to give up on an arm like Ryan's," Hodges said today. "He could put things together overnight, but he hasn't done it for us and the Angels wanted him. I would not hesitate making a trade for somebody who might help us right now, and Fregosi is such a guy."
At the time it sure must’ve seemed like the Mets made the right move in acquiring Jim Fregosi. I wasn’t around for that trade, and it’s been vilified for decades, but the Mets were dealing from a strength to fill a long-time weakness, 3B. I’m not going to go into the details of all the Met hot corner failures up to that point-sadly it’s a number that would grow in the ensuing years.
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| Stanton |
The Mets were deep in pitching at the time, sporting a rotation already featuring Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman, Gary Gentry. In the pipeline they had Jon Matlack, Buzz Capra, Jim Bibby and 1969 favorite Jim McAndrew was returning from injury. Even though four "potential" starting players were dealt, Rose and Estrada didn’t amount to anything post-trade. So really you're looking at essentially a two –for-one deal. Stanton never lived up to his earl y promise, but at the very least he would’ve been an upgrade over Don Hahn in CF or provided some sorely lacking OF depth which seemed to plague later Met squads.
Now let’s take a look at the centerpiece of the deal, Nolan Ryan, circa 1971. Today he’s a legendary Hall of Famer, and one of the dominant pitchers of his time, but in the winter of 1971 Nolan Ryan’s future in New York was tenuous at best. The Mets were loaded with pitching-Seaver, Koosman, Gentry and a hotshot southpaw prospect named Jon Matlack on the way. Also the team seemed to have soured on him as well.
The strong-armed Texan alternated between dominance and disaster during his Met tenure. 1971 was a perfect example. He struck out 16 Padres on May 29th en route to an 8-4 start into July, soon after, Ryan imploded, losing 10 of 12 while issuing 116 free passes in 30 games. Sure he was a talented 24-year old hurler, but a seriously flawed one at that time. After his Jeckyll & Hyde ’71 campaign Ryan was far from a lock to make the Mets 1972 rotation. Heading into the upcoming season your starting four would’ve been Seaver, Koosman, Gentry and the future 1972 Rookie of the Year Matlack.
Ryan would’ve been fighting it out with Ray Sadecki and Jim McAndrew for only the swingman/#5 spot. Hot on his heels in Tidewater would’ve been Capra and Bibby-needless to say the Mets were knee deep In options up on the bump. If they don’t make any trade the team opens up 1972 with the uninspiring Garrett manning 3B, backed up by utility man Teddy Martinez. That’s it. The Mets were paper thin in the infield. By trading Ryan for Fregosi the Mets dealt from an obvious position of strength to fill a glaring weakness.
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| Rose |
In fairness to Ryan, however, his Mets career had hit a dead end. This is from his SABR bio-page:
Three factors hindered Nolan Ryan’s development in New York:
--His Army Reserve commitment disrupted each season, sometimes causing him to go more than a week between starts. Manager Hodges exacerbated the situation by refusing to adjust his pitching rotation to accommodate Ryan’s schedule.
--Despite throwing the National League’s hardest fastball, Ryan got no special treatment from Hodges because the Mets had several pitchers who were more effective Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Gary Gentry were already complete pitchers with good control and a more versatile repertoire of pitches. Seaver and Gentry, coming from top college programs, had benefited from sound college coaching. Ryan, on the other hand, received no significant pitching help before reaching the major leagues at the age of 19.
--Ryan received no meaningful instruction from the Mets coaching staff. Pitching coach Rube Walker described his simple (unsuccessful) strategy for working with Ryan: “We tell him to throw as hard as he can for as long as he can.” This combination of circumstances appeared to be leading toward a dead end to a once promising baseball career. The young pitcher told his wife, Ruth, after the close of the 1971 season that if the Mets failed to trade him over the winter, he would quit the game.
--His Army Reserve commitment disrupted each season, sometimes causing him to go more than a week between starts. Manager Hodges exacerbated the situation by refusing to adjust his pitching rotation to accommodate Ryan’s schedule.
--Despite throwing the National League’s hardest fastball, Ryan got no special treatment from Hodges because the Mets had several pitchers who were more effective Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Gary Gentry were already complete pitchers with good control and a more versatile repertoire of pitches. Seaver and Gentry, coming from top college programs, had benefited from sound college coaching. Ryan, on the other hand, received no significant pitching help before reaching the major leagues at the age of 19.
--Ryan received no meaningful instruction from the Mets coaching staff. Pitching coach Rube Walker described his simple (unsuccessful) strategy for working with Ryan: “We tell him to throw as hard as he can for as long as he can.” This combination of circumstances appeared to be leading toward a dead end to a once promising baseball career. The young pitcher told his wife, Ruth, after the close of the 1971 season that if the Mets failed to trade him over the winter, he would quit the game.
It’s easy to Monday Morning Quarterback the deal but Fregosi was a proven All-Star still in his prime. Acquiring that kind of a talent for an erratic fireballer is a deal you make.The Mets front office wasn’t wrong in trading for a perennial All-Star to fill a serious hole in their line-up. Nobody could’ve predicted what Nolan Ryan would become with the Angels.
Rewinding back 42 winters I’d imagine Met fans at the time felt by acquiring Fregosi and Rusty Staub that they’d closed the gap on the Pirates a bit. Staub, Fregosi and slugging 22 year old John Milner would add sorely needed thump to 1971’s anemic offense. The loss of Ryan wouldn’t really be felt by the team with arguably the best rotation in baseball. He wanted to be traded and was their best trade chip at the time. The Mets failure was not recognizing the rare talent they had in him. Hodges and Walker held higher regard for other big league and minor league hurlers in organization.
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| Estrada |
Taking a look at the transactions from that offseason it sure appears that Fregosi was, aside from Joe Morgan, the top infielder on the market. Unfortunately, Fregosi hit the skids after the trade and was gone by mid-season of 1973. As a result this trade has been panned for decades but I think it’s time for a little revisionist history on this deal. The 1971 Mets, two years removed from the miracle of '69, were in a win-now mode and went for it. It was a smart trade but it backfired. These things happen.
The Mets took the A's to 7 games in the World Series in 1973. Ryan started racking up no-hitters, 300 K and 20-win seasons for the Halo's-becoming their Tom Seaver. That wasn't going to happen in New York, they had their Seaver. It's doubtful, had Ryan remained in New York, he'd have been more than a back of the rotation starter. Where Walker failed Ryan, Angel pitching coach Tom Morgan refined him, turning a thrower into a pitcher, and in the process, the all-time MLB strikeout leader and first ballot Hall of Famer.
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