Billy's Transactions - A Visual History

by mrfox on Apr 9, 2008 1:35 PM PDT

I've been toying with the idea of documenting some of Billy's trades for a while and having found nothing like this elsewhere on-line I thought I'd start posting a few of the "trading routes" that I've pulled together.

I'm just experimenting with a visual way of representing the "blood lines" involved in some of Billy's bigger moves - any feedback welcome...

First up is Mark Mulder's legacy, which is fairly topical as Greg Smith makes his first start in the Majors tonight...

Tweet Comment 35 comments | 6 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

I like it...

Well-organized and easy to read/interpret. The "service year" flags look a little afterthought-ish, but I don't know what else you could have done with them.

Who first drafted Mulder? Is there a way to squeeze that onto the blue circle?

"There is an HR in Hanrahan." ~ mikeA

by Poppy on Apr 9, 2008 1:54 PM PDT reply actions

Drafted but not signed by Detroit...

...I've used a colour-coded approach but will investigate adding team abbreviation if possible.

Agree about the year flags but thought it was better to include them than leave them out.

by mrfox on Apr 9, 2008 2:05 PM PDT up reply actions

Yeah, I figured you were color-coding, but there are so many blue teams... :\

"Huston, you're hot!'' said first baseman Dan Johnson, dressed as a bottle of mustard.

by Poppy on Apr 9, 2008 9:50 PM PDT up reply actions

That's cool

Cunningham looks a bit like Hatty.

The A's colors are green and gold.

by mikeA on Apr 9, 2008 1:58 PM PDT reply actions

Mark Mulder:

Oakland's all-time greatest draft pick.

"Looks like you brought two too many."

by BWH on Apr 9, 2008 2:26 PM PDT reply actions

Carter and Anderson

look familiar for some reason

by jeffro on Apr 9, 2008 3:47 PM PDT reply actions

They could be twins!

But not the Minnesota kind, I hope.

http://bocropleasestopswingingatbadpitches.blogspot.com/

by thejd44 on Apr 9, 2008 11:07 PM PDT up reply actions

And here's where Swisher fitted in...

by mrfox on Apr 9, 2008 3:57 PM PDT reply actions

I guess we made out well by not re-signing Damon. haha

Juan Pierre: 44 Million Dollars, Juan Pierre's 3.2 WARP3: Priceless

by Travis Buck Nuckin on Apr 9, 2008 8:52 PM PDT up reply actions

So AJ Hinch was turned into Gio/DLS/Bad Sweeney?

That's kind of awesome.

http://bocropleasestopswingingatbadpitches.blogspot.com/

by thejd44 on Apr 9, 2008 11:08 PM PDT up reply actions

Chris Mowday

Seems like he hung 'em up after a one game, two inning stint in the independent league in 2005.

http://www.thebaseballcube.com/players/M/Chris-Mowday.shtml

by noava22 on Apr 10, 2008 3:23 AM PDT up reply actions

He did but...

...he'd already been traded to the Cubs (for cash considerations?) by then.

by mrfox on Apr 10, 2008 3:45 AM PDT up reply actions

Apparently...

he's not done.

Here's a very recent pic of him

but yeah. still no idea what we got for him from the Cubs. Most likely a minor league trade.

by noava22 on Apr 10, 2008 5:18 AM PDT up reply actions

btw

nice work. I've always intended to do similar, but laziness usually wins out.

by noava22 on Apr 10, 2008 5:51 AM PDT up reply actions

This is fantastic

I have a friend who is a Card's fan, and I remind him at least once a week that we are always willing to consider more trades with them based on how the last one worked out.

This makes it 100% easier to give him a hard time.

"Camelot sure fell apart, didn't it?"-Steve McCatty

by 5Aces on Apr 10, 2008 9:55 AM PDT reply actions

Nice!

We might need to seek out this one while any passing Braves fans are distracted though!

by mrfox on Apr 10, 2008 12:10 PM PDT up reply actions

Wow

I liked the first two a whole lot more.

Good work though -- it really makes as much sense of the madness that anyone can.

Green Hulk Fists

by oaklandSMASH on Apr 10, 2008 12:16 PM PDT up reply actions

As Joey Devine looks likely to join the party tonight, here's how he got his invitation...

by mrfox on Apr 10, 2008 2:37 PM PDT reply actions

Jeez

21+ years on that one.

Makes me wonder if there are any longer strings.

Juan Pierre: 44 Million Dollars, Juan Pierre's 3.2 WARP3: Priceless

by Travis Buck Nuckin on Apr 10, 2008 5:39 PM PDT up reply actions

Well wonder no longer... :)

by mrfox on Apr 11, 2008 11:47 AM PDT up reply actions

hey bro

love the work, again. Just wanna let you know, Carlos Pena was a 1B, not a C

;)

by noava22 on Apr 11, 2008 2:12 PM PDT up reply actions

and

Gerald Laird wasn't a compensatory pick, he was our 2nd round pick that year; therefore, nothing begat Laird.

by noava22 on Apr 11, 2008 2:41 PM PDT up reply actions

Excellent...

...thanks for the updates. Appreciate it.

by mrfox on Apr 12, 2008 12:03 AM PDT up reply actions

by mrfox on Apr 12, 2008 12:08 AM PDT up reply actions

Wow..

The last remaining vestige of Mark McGwire is Jack Hannahan. I wouldn't have figured!

Great work.

"God doesn't pay attention to your cute little hypotheticals." -- Jeff from LL

by oblique on Apr 12, 2008 8:40 AM PDT up reply actions

a 1b that has turned into a 1.000 OPS player

...but I would have traded him also, it took him 5 years to get major league ready.

by mrrickyg on Apr 12, 2008 12:38 PM PDT up reply actions

nice post

front page material.

A's all the way in 08 . . . oh never mind!

by micdog2001 on Apr 11, 2008 11:57 AM PDT reply actions

Thanks...

...just trying to give something back to a site that I read avidly on a daily basis.

by mrfox on Apr 11, 2008 12:01 PM PDT up reply actions

How Giambi brought us Cupcakes...

by mrfox on Apr 12, 2008 5:27 AM PDT reply actions

...and how Billy turned grit into green 'n' gold!?!

by mrfox on Apr 12, 2008 5:45 AM PDT reply actions

i like it.

alaska A

by ak_A on Apr 12, 2008 1:55 PM PDT reply actions

Do any players

go back to Rickey Henderson in anyway? That would be really cool.

Juan Pierre: 44 Million Dollars, Juan Pierre's 3.2 WARP3: Priceless

by Travis Buck Nuckin on Apr 12, 2008 8:22 PM PDT reply actions

Afraid not...

Rickey was signed multiple times by the A's but only traded away once (otherwise becoming a free agent) - the trade brought Jose Herrera and Steve Karsay in return and their "blood lines" both ended soon afterwards (Herrera became a free agent and Karsay "became" Mike Fetters who went to the Angels as part of a conditional deal (which I believe is usually just a another way of saying $$$s but I could be wrong!)).

by mrfox on Apr 12, 2008 11:34 PM PDT up reply actions

You forgot '84

The first time we traded him brought Stan Javier, Jay Howell, Jose Rijo, Eric Plunk, and Tim Birtsas.

And we traded for him in '89, sending Greg Cadaret, Luis Polonia, and Plunk (!) to New York.

I'm here to talk about the past.

by 67MARQUEZ on Apr 13, 2008 7:34 AM PDT up reply actions

Ok, so...

Javier -> Willie Randolph -> Free Agency (1990)
Howell -> Bob Welch -> Free Agency (1994)
Howell -> Matt Young -> Released (1988)
Birtsas -> Dave Parker -> Free Agency (1989)
Rijo -> Dave Parker -> Free Agency (1989)

and Plunk went back to NYY for Henderson as you mentioned.

by mrfox on Apr 13, 2008 11:46 AM PDT up reply actions