MLB Stars On Teams You Forgot They Played For
Baseball is a sport in which players frequently change teams, to the point that it can be hard to keep track of the various stops on a given player’s career.
Even stars who will forever be associated with just one or two teams often had a brief cup of coffee with another team. Whether these stops were too short to be noteworthy or were simply overshadowed by their heroics elsewhere, it’s easy to forget — even for seasoned fans — about some of these stints.
Ken Griffey Jr.: White Sox
Ken Griffey Jr. made his name with the Seattle Mariners, where he was one of baseball’s most electrifying players of the ’90s. Later, he joined his hometown Cincinnati Reds for a productive few years, and he eventually returned to Seattle to close out his career.
However, many fans forget that the Reds actually traded Griffey to the Chicago White Sox midway through the 2008 season. Griffey played in just 41 regular season games for the White Sox, hitting a pedestrian .260 with three home runs. A critical defensive gaffe during a playoff tiebreaker game against the Twins made his tenure in Chicago a time to forget.
Greg Maddux: Dodgers
Crafty starting pitcher Greg Maddux developed into a star with the Chicago Cubs before becoming one of baseball’s most dominant pitchers with the Atlanta Braves of the ’90s and early 2000s.
During the tail end of his career, Maddux spent not one, but two, brief interludes with the Los Angeles Dodgers, in 2006 and 2008. In both cases, he was a late-season acquisition who served as a stabilizing veteran presence. In 2008, at the age of 42, he helped the Dodgers reach the playoffs with a commanding performance across four regular-season appearances.
Steve Carlton: Giants
It’s easy to forget that Hall of Fame southpaw Steve Carlton started his career with the Cardinals, where he was named to three All-Star Games. After all, he spent his next 15 seasons with the Phillies, where he became a franchise cornerstone.
However, it’s even easier to forget that Carlton made multiple late-career stops with several teams. Over the last three years of his career, between 1986 and 1988, he pitched for not just the Phillies, but also the Giants, White Sox, Cleveland, and the Twins. Of these, his time with the Giants was the most brief.
Manny Ramirez: Rays
After eight memorable seasons with the Red Sox, the eccentric Manny Ramirez was traded to the Dodgers in 2008, and then to the White Sox in 2010. In 2011, the veteran opted to sign with the Tampa Bay Rays.
However, his time with the Rays was incredibly short-lived. Ramirez played in just five games, then was informed that he’d failed his second test for performance-enhancing substances. Rather than serve out a 100-game suspension, he chose instead to simply walk away from baseball and retire.
Bartolo Colón: Red Sox
The long and winding road of Bartolo Colón’s lengthy career started in Cleveland and ended in Texas, with numerous stops in between. Although he played for 11 MLB franchises, he’s best remembered for his 2005 Cy Young Award with the Angels, along with his career reinvention with the Mets and Braves.
However, what isn’t particularly remembered is Colón’s 2008 stint with the Boston Red Sox, who signed him as a low-risk veteran addition. He made seven appearances for the BoSox before abruptly leaving the team without permission to spend time with his family. The following year, he’d move on to the White Sox.
Kenny Lofton: Yankees
Kenny Lofton, one of the most feared base-stealers of the ’90s, is best remembered for his time in Cleveland. Over three separate stints, Lofton spent more than nine years playing for Cleveland.
The rest of his career is somewhat of a blur, as he played for 11 teams in total. In fact, Cleveland was the only team with whom Lofton played for more than one season. In 2004, an aging Lofton was signed by the New York Yankees and was utilized mostly off the bench. That season, he played just 83 games and stole seven bases — well below his peak production.
José Bautista: Phillies
José Bautista struggled to find his footing in baseball, splitting his early career between the Orioles, Devil Rays, Royals, and Pirates before blossoming into an unlikely slugger with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2008. During his ten seasons in Toronto, Joey Bats became a franchise cornerstone and led the team to two memorable playoff appearances in 2015 and 2016.
In 2018, Bautista was a free agent and signed a minor league contract with the Braves, who quickly promoted him to the big leagues. After 12 games, he was released and was subsequently signed by the Mets, with whom he’d spend the bulk of the season. In late August, the Mets traded him to the Phillies, where he’d play in 27 games to close out his career.
Jose Canseco: Devil Rays
Slugger Jose Canseco, the first-ever member of the 40/40 (home runs and stolen bases) club, made his name with the Oakland A’s before he was traded to the Texas Rangers in a blockbuster 1992 trade. For the rest of the ’90s, Canseco was still effective, but bounced around from team to team.
In 1999, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays — a struggling team in their second season — signed Canseco to bolster their offence. He brought star power and production to the young team, hitting 34 home runs in 1999. Despite his contributions, the Devil Rays opted to release him in 2000.
Roger Clemens: Blue Jays
Ace Red Sox pitcher Roger Clemens had something to prove after Sox general manager Dan Duquette stated that Clemens was in the “twilight” of his career. Fuelled by this comment, Clemens declined to re-sign with the Red Sox and instead inked a deal with the Toronto Blue Jays, a divisional rival.
Clemens had two of the best pitching seasons of all time with the ’97 and ’98 Jays, winning the Cy Young Award both years. In 1999, Clemens was dissatisfied with the team’s playoff chances and was traded to the Yankees. While his Red Sox and Yankees tenures (along with a stint in Houston) are fondly remembered, many forget just how dominant he was during his short stay in Toronto.
Vladimir Guerrero: Orioles
Vladimir Guerrero, a free-swinging slugger with a cannon for an arm, spent the bulk of his Hall of Fame career with the Montreal Expos and Anaheim/Los Angeles Angels before reviving his career in 2010 with the Texas Rangers.
After a strong season in Texas, Guerrero hoped to continue his success when he signed with the Baltimore Orioles for the 2011 season, but it quickly became clear that his power was greatly diminished. While he had a decent season, he hit only 13 home runs and wouldn’t suit up for another Major League game.
Rickey Henderson: Blue Jays
Baseball’s all-time stolen base king, Rickey Henderson, played for a ton of teams late in his career, but between 1979 and 1992, he played for just two teams: The Oakland Athletics and the New York Yankees.
However, midway through the 1993 season, the A’s — out of playoff contention at this point — traded him to the Toronto Blue Jays, who were looking to bolster their team and win a second consecutive World Series. Henderson’s time in Toronto was brief and not up to his usual high standard. That said, he was a part of Toronto’s World Series victory and was on second base when Joe Carter hit his iconic walk-off home run.
Mike Piazza: Marlins
It’s always big news when a star is unexpectedly traded mid-season, and it’s even bigger news when said star is traded once more, after just a week with their new team. That’s exactly what happened to Mike Piazza during the 1998 season.
Embroiled in a contract dispute with the Dodgers, Piazza was traded to the Florida Marlins in a blockbuster trade on May 15th. On May 22nd — exactly one week later — the Marlins opted to trade him again, and he was sent to the New York Mets. It was a strange chapter in between his time with the two teams for whom he’s best remembered.
Gary Sheffield: Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers saw Gary Sheffield as a prospect when they drafted him in 1986, and just two years later, they promoted the teenaged Sheffield to the big leagues. However, injuries, inconsistent play, and allegations of a poor attitude during his four seasons in Milwaukee eventually caused the Brewers to move on and trade him to the San Diego Padres ahead of the 1992 season.
Sheffield had a monster season in 1992 for the Padres, and although he spent only a year and a half in San Diego, it was during this period that he became a superstar. He played until 2009, hitting 509 home runs along the way.
Randy Johnson: Giants
Randy Johnson’s early career began with a nearly forgotten stint with the Montreal Expos before he emerged as one of the most dominant pitchers of the ’90s with the Seattle Mariners.
After a cup of coffee with Houston in 1998, Johnson moved to the Arizona Diamondbacks, with whom he won the 2001 World Series. He then spent 2005 and 2006 with the Yankees before returning to Arizona in 2007 and 2008. In late 2008, the 45-year-old Johnson decided to sign with his hometown San Francisco Giants, and it was in San Francisco that he won his 300th game and closed out his career.
Pete Rose: Expos
Pete Rose will forever be remembered as a Cincinnati Red, though he was also a crucial part of the Phillies’ 1980 World Series win. However, after his four seasons in Philly — and before his final three seasons in which he returned to the Reds — Rose spent part of the 1984 season playing for the Montreal Expos.
In Montreal, Rose recorded his 4,000th hit — becoming just the second player ever to achieve the feat. In August of 1984, the Expos traded him back to the Reds, who immediately named him player-manager.
