Trading away cornerstone pieces of a potential dynasty is crazy to think about, but that is exactly what the Baltimore Orioles did after the 1971 season.
Coming off a season where they made their fourth World Series appearance since 1966, the Orioles were the team to watch. They won the World Series against the Dodgers in 1966, lost to the New York Mets in 1969, defeated the Cincinnati Reds in 1970 and lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1971 during that five-year stretch.
The Birds also just entered the third year of Hall Of Fame manager Earl Weaver at the helm. Things would eventually change for the organization that would eventually lead to their third championship in franchise history.
On December 2, 1971, the Orioles made a blockbuster trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers, sending future Hall Of Fame outfielder Frank Robinson, who was 35 years old, along with 32-year-old left-hander Pete Richert to L.A. in exchange for 21-year-old right-hander Doyle Alexander, 22-year-old lefty Bob O’Brien, 25-year-old catcher Sergio Robles and 20-year-old outfielder Royle Stillman.
Little did fans know that a deal which looked lopsided would be a franchise-changing trade down the road. Before we get into how this deal helped the Orioles, let’s break down the pieces of the trade that did not have a huge impact for this chain reaction.
Frank Robinson would play just one season with the Dodgers, where he struggled, collecting 86 hits and a .795 OPS. He would eventually retire after the 1976 season as a Cleveland Indian.
As for Pete Richert, he would pitch two seasons with Los Angeles, which coincidentally was the team he debuted with in 1962. He would end up being traded two years later and ended up retiring after the 1974 season.
As for the pieces the Orioles got back, Bob O’Brien would never touch the majors with Baltimore and spent one year at the Triple-A level. He would be out of MLB in 1974 at the age of 25.
Sergio Robles would play just 10 games with the Orioles in two seasons, collecting just two hits in 18 at-bats. He would return to the Dodgers in 1976 but would be out of the league after the 1976 season. Robles would go on to play 10 years in the Mexican League, retiring in 1986 at age 41.
Royle Stillman would play in 33 games in 1975 and 1976, totaling just eight hits. He would stay in the majors until 1980 and played one season in the Mexican League before retiring in 1981.
Now, let’s talk about the key piece of this trade, Doyle Alexander.
Alexander played from 1972-1976 with the Orioles and would carry a 3.41 ERA in 137 games. However, it is what comes after these years that puts this chain reaction into effect.
On June 15, 1976, the Orioles would trade Alexander, left-handers Jimmy Freeman, Grant Jackson and Ken Holtzman, as well as catcher Elrod Hendricks to the New York Yankees.
The return included a total of five players. One of the players was Dave Pagan, who has no impact on the chain reaction, as he was drafted to the Seattle Mariners in the 1976 expansion draft. The other four had a major impact on the 1983 World Series team.
Let’s start with lefty Rudy May, who was 31 years old at the time of the trade and stayed with the Orioles throughout the 1976 and 1977 seasons. He would eventually be traded on December 7, 1977, to the Montreal Expos in a return that included outfielder Gary Roenicke, our first player to discuss from the 1983 team.
Roenicke, in 1983, was 28 years old and played in 155 games, slashing .260/.326/.477 with a .803 OPS. In the ALCS, he collected four RBIs, which led the team, and would earn five walks, being a key contributor in helping the Orioles make the World Series.
In the trade of Alexander to the Yankees, the Orioles received starting pitcher Scott McGregor.
In 1983, McGregor had his career season, posting a WAR of 5.3. He compiled a 3.18 ERA in 36 starts, tossed 12 complete games and two shutouts, pitched a career-high 260 innings pitched and had a record of 18-7.
Despite a loss in game one of the ALCS, when he gave up two runs (one earned) in 6.2 innings, McGregor would finish the postseason with a 1-2 record but collected 14 strikeouts and posted a 1.14 ERA.
Another player the Orioles received in the deal was left-hander Tippy Martinez, who, like McGregor, would have his best season in 1983, earning a WAR of 3.3
Martinez, in 1983, would receive his only All-Star nod and convert a career-high 21 saves. He would also post career-highs in innings (103.1) and strikeouts (81).
As for the postseason, in the ALCS, Martinez made two appearances and did not give up an earned run in six innings. He would receive the win in the clinching fifth game in extra Innings.
In the World Series, Martinez pitched in three games and earned saves in games three and four. In total, he pitched in five games, gave up one earned run in nine innings, good for an ERA of 1.00, and struck out five batters.
The final piece in the trade was the only player who received hardware in the 1983 World Series. After a season where he hit just .231 with a .634 OPS in 128 games, Rick Dempsey put on an absolute show in The Fall Classic.
Dempsey tallied five hits, including four doubles and a home run in the clinching fifth game. He posted a .385 batting average and a 1.390 OPS in the World Series, which earned him the title of 1983 World Series MVP.
So, there we have it. That is how trading Frank Robinson 12 years prior helped lead the Orioles to winning the 1983 World Series.
Now, obviously a bunch of other things happened to help build this team. Cal Ripken Jr. was the MVP of the league in 1983, Eddie Murray finished the season in the voting as well and players like Mike Boddicker, who was the ALCS MVP, and Ken Singleton had huge impacts during this time and were acquired in different ways.
However, that is why baseball is such a fun sport. There are many chain reactions that are so intriguing.
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