[BostonCard]

Who did the Montreal Expos get in exchange for Randy Johnson?

While not Hall of Fame level, Mark Langston was an ace pitcher with several all-star games.  Also led the league in Ks several times. (then again, Montreal only got one season from him before he took off for the California Angels.)

The trade was in 1989.  Yes, Langston had been an ace pitcher, but in his one year in Montreal, Langston went 12-9 for a team that finished .500.  Montreal got 176 innings out of him.

On the other hand, Randy Johnson's career in Seattle included nine plus years, five all star games, one Cy Young award (two runners up and one third place vote).  He went 130-74 (a .637 winning percentage), had a 3.42 ERA, and pitched 1831 innings for the mariners.  Moreover, when the Mariners traded him a decade later on the back end to the Houston Astros, they got Freddie Garcia, Carlos Guillen and John Halama, while the Astros got Johnson for less than a year.  Although Johnson helped the Astros win 104 games and make the playoffs, they lost in the first round to San Diego (not really Johnson's fault; he had a sub-2 ERA but went 0-2).

Halama was the least impactful, posting a 4.46 ERA with the team. Carlos Guillen took until 2000 to start playing but was a key cog to the Mariners through 2003. Garcia finished second in Rookie of the Year voting and ninth in Cy Young voting. He followed that up with All-Star appearances in 2001 and 2002, as well as finishing third in Cy Young voting in 2001.

But the big winner was Arizona, who signed Johnson as a free agent, where he won the Cy Young four straight years and was a five-time all star.  Still, since Johnson wasn't going to resign with Seattle, given that they weren't going anywhere in 1998, the Mariners got a nice haul.

BC

[BostonCard]

Who did the Montreal Expos get in exchange for Randy Johnson?

While not Hall of Fame level, Mark Langston was an ace pitcher with several all-star games.  Also led the league in Ks several times. (then again, Montreal only got one season from him before he took off for the California Angels.)

The trade was in 1989.  Yes, Langston had been an ace pitcher, but in his one year in Montreal, Langston went 12-9 for a team that finished .500.  Montreal got 176 innings out of him.

On the other hand, Randy Johnson's career in Seattle included nine plus years, five all star games, one Cy Young award (two runners up and one third place vote).  He went 130-74 (a .637 winning percentage), had a 3.42 ERA, and pitched 1831 innings for the mariners.  Moreover, when the Mariners traded him a decade later on the back end to the Houston Astros, they got Freddie Garcia, Carlos Guillen and John Halama, while the Astros got Johnson for less than a year.  Although Johnson helped the Astros win 104 games and make the playoffs, they lost in the first round to San Diego (not really Johnson's fault; he had a sub-2 ERA but went 0-2).

Halama was the least impactful, posting a 4.46 ERA with the team. Carlos Guillen took until 2000 to start playing but was a key cog to the Mariners through 2003. Garcia finished second in Rookie of the Year voting and ninth in Cy Young voting. He followed that up with All-Star appearances in 2001 and 2002, as well as finishing third in Cy Young voting in 2001.

But the big winner was Arizona, who signed Johnson as a free agent, where he won the Cy Young four straight years and was a five-time all star.  Still, since Johnson wasn't going to resign with Seattle, given that they weren't going anywhere in 1998, the Mariners got a nice haul.

BC