Holtzman was drafted by the Cubs in 1965 and pitching in the big leagues just a few months later. He won 17 games in both '69 and '70 but slumped badly in 1971. After the season he was sent west to Oakland, and in return came...
...center fielder Rick Monday. Monday would spend five years with the Cubs, the best five years of his 19-year career. The Cubs sold high on Monday after his 32 HR performance in 1976 and traded him to the Dodgers. They sent three players to the Cubs including...
...Ivan DeJesus. He moved right into the starting shortstop position and stayed there for the next five years. He hit only .194 his final season with the Cubs, yet the Phillies seemed to want him anyway. They traded their shortstop Larry Bowa to the Cubs and threw in an unknown named...
....Ryne Sandberg. It was quite a deal for the Cubs. There's no need to go into the highlights of Sandberg's career. All I need to add is that since he ended his career with the Cubs, he also brought the Ken Holtzman trade link to an end. It's a pretty decent link...three of the four were All Stars and one ended up in Cooperstown.
Trade link #2 is that of '69 shortstop Don Kessinger. It will also intersect the Holtzman link as you'll see. The Cubs signed Kessinger out of the University of Mississippi in 1964 and a year later he was playing in Wrigley Field. Of the '69 Cubs, he was the last to be jettisoned. That happened on October 28, 1975. The Cubs didn't get much back. They got a player to be named later (who turned out to be Bobby Hrapmann) and...
....pitcher Mike Garman. He spent only one season with the Cubs and was very bad. So the Garmen had to do some recalculating of his major league route when he was traded to the Dodgers in the same deal that sent Rick Monday west. In addition to getting the previously mentioned Ivan DeJesus, the Cubs also got one of my all-time favorites....
....Bill Buckner. Just like Monday had the best years of his career with the Cubs, so too did BIlly Buck. He hit an even .300 during his eight season run in Chicago. But by 1984, with Leon Durham ready to take over at first, Buckner was sent to the Red Sox and the Cubs got...
...Dennis Eckersley in return. He had a couple decent years as a starter with the Cubs, but was also battling some demons. The Cubs gave him a chance to re-start his career when they traded him to Oakland in April, 1987. The A's didn't give up much--three prospects that never made it to the majors. The unspectacular careers of Brian Guinn, Mark Leonette, and Dave Wilder bring the Ken Holtzman trade link to an end.
Again we ended up with three All Stars and a Hall of Famer.
Two links, two in the Hall, six All Stars...some pretty decent links.
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