9 Players Who Helped Mold Crime Dog

And the baseball cards that time (mostly) forgot

Later today, Fred McGriff and Scott Rolen will officially become baseball Hall of Famers.

Both had sort of an unusual route to Cooperstown, with Rolen becoming something of a Sabermetrics darling while leaving some traditionalists a bit chilly on his candidacy.

McGriff, meanwhile, fell seven home runs short of the 500 that would have all but guaranteed his election through the “normal” writers’ voting system. That shortfall would surely have been null and void without the heart-wrenching 1994-95 strike.

Eventually, Rolen’s case swayed enough voters to gain election on his sixth ballot.

Crime Dog, meanwhile, got the call through the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee last December.

A bit more on Rolen and his baseball cards down below.

But first, I thought it might be fun to run through a visual accounting of how McGriff landed in all the places he landed … at least the ones that came about via trade.

You might also want to read through my rundown of some great McGriff cards over the years — 19 in all, which is one for each season of his career. That piece is right here.

Now, here are all the players traded for Crime Dog over the course of his career, along with a card of each guy that’s roughly contemporary to the deal…

(Transactions culled from Baseball-Reference.com)

McGriff from Yankees to Blue Jays

The New York Yankees drafted McGriff in the ninth round of the 1981 June Draft and held onto him for a couple of minor league seasons.

Then, on December 9, 1982, the Yanks traded McGriff, Dave Collins, Mike Morgan, and cash (they were the Yankees, after all) to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Tom Dodd and Dale Murray.

Murray played only a few games in 1981 and didn’t land on any 1982 cards, so we’re left with his 1983 Topps (#42) card and a heap of era-specific confusion thanks to his name.

The Days and Nights of Tom Dodd featured just 8 appearances in the majors, with the O’s in 1986. I couldn’t find any big league cards, so we’ll go with his 1986 Donn Jennings Southern League All-Stars (#12) issue.

McGriff from Blue Jays to Padres

On December 5, 1990, the Blue Jays sent McGriff and Tony Fernandez to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Roberto Alomar and Joe Carter.

It was a challenge deal of the highest order, with the teams swapping All-Star middle infielders and feared sluggers.

The Blue Jays reaped more immediate benefits, with Carter and Alomar contributing to a couple of World Series titles, but McGriff won a rare Padres home run title and deposited plenty of West Coast memories on his way to the immortality.

The 1990 Upper Deck Roberto Alomar (#346) and 1990 Topps Traded Joe Carter (#20T) cards are just two of many pasteboards featuring the superstars. But these are the types of visions Jays fans had swimming through their heads when they found out about the trade as Christmas approached.

McGriff from Padres to Braves

In one of the most important deadline deals ever, the Pads traded Crime Dog to the Atlanta Braves for Vince Moore, Donnie Elliott, and Melvin Nieves on July 18, 1993.

In 68 games with the Bravos, McGriff hit .310 with 19 home runs and 55 RBI to help Atlanta hold off the San Francisco Giants in the old National League West.

In many ways, it was the last great pennant race, as realignment (and that dratted strike!) would change the playoff chase forever in 1994.

The guys who went to San Diego weren’t quite as impactful …

Moore never made the majors, but he did get a 1992 Bowman (#443) card that lines up well with the high school GQ issues of Chipper Jones, Mariano Rivera, and Manny Ramirez from the same set.

Elliott appeared in 31 games for the Pads in 1994-95 and shows up here on his 1993 Bowman (#58) card.

And Nieves, shown here on his 1993 Upper Deck (#21), eventually developed into a power threat for the Tigers later in the decade.

McGriff from Devil Rays to Cubs

McGriff stuck around Atlanta for several seasons, until the Tampa Bay Devil Rays bought his contract in November of 1997.

Then, on July 27, 2001, the Rays traded Crime Dog to the Chicago Cubs for a player to be named later and Manny Aybar. On August 6, Jason Smith became the PTBNL.

McGriff hit 12 dingers down the stretch on the North Side, then 30 the next year. He’d finish up with two one-year deals in 2003 (Dodgers) and 2004 (Rays).

For their part, Aybar never appeared for the Rays but signed with the Giants as a free agent that fall. He’s on his 1999 Upper Dec (#469) card with St. Louis her.

Smith was in his first year in the bigs when the Cubs traded him, so this 2001 Upper Deck (#287) is among his rookie cards. He’d end up appearing in parts of nine seasons for eight(!) different franchises.

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That was all she wrote as far as McGriff trades, though he did change hands a few other times via releases, free agency, and buyouts.

Rolen, meanwhile, split his 17 seasons among four clubs — Phillies (7 years), Cardinals (6 years), Blue Jays (2 years), and Reds (4 years).

You might enjoy my survey of early Rolen cards, which you can read right here.

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Until next time, don’t forget to stop and take a bite out of crime life. We only get one Hall of Fame ceremony a year, after all, and the summers just keep Rolen by like thunder.

Thanks for reading.

Adam