A quick glance at three of the biggest trades in Twins history.
ROD CAREW
FEBRUARY 3, 1979
Traded by the Twins to the California Angels for Ken Landreaux, Dave Engle, Paul Hartzell and Brad Havens.
THE AFTERMATH
The Twins finished above .500 in 1979 as Landreaux batted .305 with 15 HR, 83 RBI. Engle became a budding catching star in the early 1980s, then developed a mental block throwing the ball back to the pitcher. Landreaux was traded to the Dodgers before the 1981 season for Mickey Hatcher and two prospects. Engle was traded before the 1986 season. After '79, the Twins didn't finish above .500 until 1987.
FRANK VIOLA
JULY 31, 1989
Traded by the Twins to the New York Mets for a player to be named later, Rick Aguilera, David West, Kevin Tapani, and Tim Drummond. The Mets sent Jack Savage (Oct. 16, 1989) to the Twins to complete the trade.
THE AFTERMATH
Tapani became a key starter and Aguilera the closer on the 1991 World Series championship team. West, supposedly the jewel of the Mets' farm system, was a decent middle reliever in 1991 but never lived up to his hype.
CHUCK KNOBLAUCH
FEBRUARY 6, 1998
Traded by the Twins to the New York Yankees for Brian Buchanan, Cristian Guzman, Eric Milton, Danny Mota and cash.
THE AFTERMATH
Guzman and Milton became key cogs in the resurgence of the Twins. The club ended a streak of eight losing seasons in 2001, then won four division titles in five seasons from 2002 through 2006.
Star Tribune file photographs
