Luis Gonzalez Trade Hits 16th Anniversary

Sep 17, 2014; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks former outfielder Luis Gonzalez against the San Francisco Giants at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

On this day 16 years ago, the Arizona Diamondbacks acquired a not very well-known outfielder by the name of Luis Gonzalez from the Detroit Tigers. It ended up being a trade that would change the course of the Diamondbacks franchise.

In exchange for Gonzalez, the Arizona gave up young outfielder Karim Garcia. Being only 23 at the time of the deal, Garcia was considered to be an outfielder with a lot of promise and upside.

Garcia never lived up to that promise and potential though. His best season came in 2002 where he hit .297 with 16 homers and 52 RBI in only 53 games, but the 2004 season was his last at the big league level. Garcia is probably best known for being involved in the brawl between the Yankees and Red Sox during the 2003 American League Championship Series.

More from Arizona Diamondbacks

• What Eduardo Escobar’s Contract Means For The Arizona Diamondbacks
• Arizona Diamondbacks Little Known Link to Red Sox-Dodgers World Series
• Arizona Diamondbacks: Brad Ziegler Stays Classy in Twitter Farewell
• Arizona Diamondbacks Officially Bounced From MLB Playoff Contention
• Arizona Diamondbacks: Zack Greinke Still Going Strong at 34

When the D-Backs got Gonzalez, they were getting a steady outfielder who put up solid, but nothing spectacular in terms of numbers during his career up to that point. In fact, his best season in terms of production came in Detroit that year where he hit .267 with 23 long balls and 71 RBI.

Little did the organization and fans throughout the Valley know they were actually getting a superstar player in the deal.

Starting in the 2000 season, “Gonzo” as fans would call him would have five straight seasons of at least 25+ home runs and 100+ RBI. He had the best year of his career during the magical 2001 season where Gonzalez hit 57 homers, drove in 142 runs and hit .336.

Oh yeah, Gonzo also got the hit, a blooper over the head of Derek Jeter, that gave the D-Backs their only World Series and to this day, the only major sports championship that the Valley has seen.

The only unfortunate thing for Gonzalez that season was he finished third in the National League MVP voting behind Barry Bonds, who set the single-season record for home runs, and Sammy Sosa, who hit 64 long balls of his own. Gonzalez would win the Home Run Derby in Seattle though and went on to win the only Silver Slugger award of his career.

Gonzo would go on to have a couple more quality seasons while in a D-Backs uniform, but by the end, he was a shell of his former self. He would end his career with the Dodgers, which was tough for many D-Backs fans to watch, myself included, and the Marlins, where he still hit a respectable .261 at age 40.

There is no question that the Gonzalez/Garcia trade will down as the best in franchise history and one of the most lopsided in the history of baseball. Garcia would never become more than a reserve outfielder while Gonzalez turned out to be the greatest player in D-Backs history.

We can only hope that another trade like this can be in this club’s future.