Randy Johnson – New York Yankees
If it makes the Mets feel any better, their crosstown foes also know a thing or two about underwhelming trades for starting pitchers.
After Curt Schilling guided their bitter rivals the Boston Red Sox to their first World Series title in 86 years, it seemed only natural that the New York Yankees would try to one-up them by raiding the Arizona Diamondbacks for their other ace, future Hall of Famer Randy Johnson. After weeks of rumors, the Yanks secured their prize on the final day of 2004 for a package headlined by catching prospect Dioner Navarro.
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The famously ornery left-hander immediately got off on the wrong foot in his new home, clashing with a TV cameraman shortly after arriving. New York City certainly isn’t Phoenix. Regardless, the Yankees hoped Johnson’s dominance would shine through on the mound and lead to another championship. However, that may have been a bit too much to ask for: the five-time Cy Young winner was 41 years old by this time, an age at which even the most prolific hurlers usually don’t have much left in the tank.
Johnson’s first year in pinstripes wasn’t bad, but decidedly below his usual lofty standard. He posted a 3.79 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 4.49 K/BB in 2005 en route to 17 wins. He collected another 17 wins the following year, but that had more to do with abundant run support than any effectiveness on his part. Johnson put up a 5.00 ERA that season, his highest mark in that category in any full season of his career.
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Prior to the 2007 campaign, the Yankees dealt Johnson back to Arizona and the grand experiment was over. All things considered, it had more in common with the Yanks’ failed Kevin Brown trade (another transaction which could have easily been included on this list) than the Red Sox’s acquisition of Schilling. Ultimately, the Big Apple just didn’t agree with the Big Unit.
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