Three decades isn't long enough to get over the worst trade in Mariners history

When it comes to the worst trades in Mariners history there's been some real beauties, including future Hall of Famer Omar Vizquel going to Cleveland in exchange for Felix Fermin and Reggie Jefferson. How about Adam Jones being moved to the Orioles as part of a package to acquire Erik Bedard, then going on to earn five All-Star selections and four Gold Gloves? You could go on, but as far as we're concerned, the deal which sent Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe to the Red Sox for Heathcliff Slocumb at the end of July in 1997 tops them all.

Even now, a shade under 30 years later, this trade is still as painful as it was bad. Heathcliff Slocumb was uninspiring -- and that's being kind -- during his time in Seattle, with a 0.4 bWAR, 4.97 ERA and 1.635 WHIP in 96.0 innings over 84 appearances. Varitek and Lowe on the other hand, went on to help the Red Sox end an 86-year World Series championship drought and both end up in the organization's Hall of Fame.

Another 30 years from now, people will still wonder how the heck this trade happened, but it's important to provide some context. For a start, while Varitek had arrived in the M's organization as a highly-rated catcher prospect, he wasn't quite living up to the hype. He also had a young Dan Wilson in the way, who a year earlier earned his first All-Star selection. Meanwhile, Lowe had looked awful in his first 12 games in the big leagues (including nine starts), being shelled for 11 home runs on his way to a 6.96 ERA.

At the time, Mariners fans were actually more bothered about another deal the team completed on the same day, sending Jose Cruz Jr. to the Blue Jays in exchange for Paul Spoljaric and Mike Timlin. Cruz was drafted third overall in 1995, became the M's top prospect and was off to a promising start in Seattle with a .856 OPS in 49 games. However, the fact the organization made even one of the trades, was due to the only real weakness on the roster.

A loaded Mariners roster which included three legitimate superstars, but one fatal flaw

The Mariners were a genuine World Series contender in 1997, just two years after baseball had been saved in Seattle. They had three legitimate superstars in Ken Griffey Jr., Randy Johnson and Alex Rodriguez, who were at at point when their respective egos weren't yet threatening to ruin the harmony. Edgar Martínez was in the middle of what would become a Hall of Fame career, while the secondary 'characters' such as Wilson, Jamie Moyer and Jay Buhner made this a truly dangerous roster.

How dangerous? Well, the Mariners would finish the season first in the majors in scoring and set an at-the-time all-time record with 264 homers. Johnson and Moyer led the rotation and were ably supported, particularly by the durable Jeff Fassero, who pitched a career-high 234.1 innings. At 60-47 they were in first place in the division, but the reason their record wasn't even better was because of an atrocious bullpen.

The Mariners front office decided they needed to take advantage of this golden opportunity with a World Series-caliber roster, hence the wheels were set in motion to strengthen the bullpen ahead of the trade deadline. This is why the M's gambled on sending Cruz to Toronto for Spoljaric and Timlin. And in an ultimately cruel twist of fate, why they sent Vanritek and Lowe to Boston in exchange for Slocumb.

We appreciate that part of the reason people can be so critical of the trade with the Red Sox, is because of that wonderful 'power' known as hindsight. It was only over time that the true horrific extent of the deal unravelled before our very eyes, as Varitek and Lowe went on to enjoy excellent careers, particularly the former. However, even when the deal went down, there were many in Seattle wondering why the heck the Mariners were acquiring Slocumb?

Mariners' attempts to strengthen the bullpen in the short-term caused long-term hurt for the franchise

The righty might have been an All-Star just two years earlier, but in 1997 he was having a horrendous season. How horrendous? How about a 5.79 ERA and 1.971 WHIP-level of horrendous, in 46.2 innings over 49 appearances. And yet the Mariners were banking on him somehow rediscovering his form of the previous two seasons, which was highlighted by surpassing the 30-save mark on both occasions.

In this respect, even Slocumb's poor form for the Red Sox wasn't as bad as the Mariners' closer prior to the trade. The simple reality was that Norm Charlton was awful in 1997, on his way to a career-worst year which would produce a 7.27 ERA and result in a -2.5 bWAR. And so the trade for Slocumb took place and the Mariners hoped that, along with Spoljaric and Timlin, he would get the bullpen to a level where it could better complement the rest of the roster.

The Mariners did go on to set a then-franchise record of 90 wins, as they won their second AL West title. However, they subsequently lost the first two games of their ALDS versus the Orioles at home in the Kingdome, and ultimately lost the series 3-1, to bring an anti-climatic conclusion to a season which promised so much. The bullpen moves didn't help the team, although in fairness there was plenty of blame to go around, especially with an explosive lineup which only managed 11 total runs in the four games against the Orioles.

Now, nearly 30 years later, fans in Seattle are still haunted by the loss of Varitek and Lowe to Boston, with some envisioning a sliding doors scenario where both stayed in the Pacific North West and helped the team win a World Series. Instead, the Mariners remain the only current franchise to never even play in the Fall Classic, while the Red Sox ended 86 years of hurt and laid the foundation for three more championships. Surely there can be no better example of our ongoing assertion, that the M's are the most cursed pro sports franchise in North America.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow