Inhistoric.com

Not since the Boston Red Sox sold Babe Ruth had a baseball transaction gone more awry. The Chicago Cubs, dissatisfied with center fielder Lou Brock -- who was slumping following his breakout year in 1963 -- decided to trade Brock and two others to the Cardinals for Ernie Broglio (and two others).

At the time, most thought the Cubs had gotten away with robbery. Broglio was an established pitcher who, in 1960, led baseball with 21 wins and was top-5 in ERA and strikeouts. The year before, Broglio finished with 18 wins and a 2.99 ERA. Brock on the other hand had regressed to a .251 batting average and was struggling mightily in the outfield.

"I thought it was a dumb trade," said Cardinals ace Bob Gibson. "I didn't know how good Lou would be. No one knew. I didn't even remember facing him. I heard it and thought, 'For who? How could you trade Broglio for that?'"

"Most of us were upset," said St. Louis first baseman Bill White. "We traded three guys for a guy who was very raw and didn't know how to play. I didn't like it. If anybody tells you they approved of that trade, they're lying."

Lou Brock batted .358 after the trade and helped the Cardinals, who had lost 17 of their prior 24 games, make up an 11-game deficit. The redbirds pulled even with the Cincinnati Reds on the last day of the regular season. Jim Bunning and the Reds were thrashed 10-0 by the Phillies while St. Louis and Bob Gibson handled the Mets 11-5. The Cardinals won the National League by one game over Philadelphia and Cincinnati, thus advancing them to the World Series.

St. Louis then beat the Yankees in seven games to capture their first title in 18 years. Brock batted .300 in the series and went 2-4 with a home run in Game 7. He went on to become one of the greatest players in franchise history and retired as the game's all-time steals leader and a member of the 3,000-hit club.

The Cubs however did not receive Hall-of-Fame-caliber pitching from Ernie Broglio. The right hander suffered from injuries and never returned to his old self. Broglio gave the Cubs 7 wins and 19 losses before retiring at the end of the 1966 season.

There have been many lopsided trades in the history of baseball, though none are as infamous as Brock-for-Broglio. This is because the loser in the deal was the Chicago Cubs, a team that would go an entire century without a championship. While Lou Brock played another 15 seasons with St. Louis and helped them win an additional World Series in 1967, the Cubs experienced almost no success whatsoever. Had Brock stayed on board with Chicago, the Cubs' era of losing likely would've come to an end.

"As long as people remember him," Broglio said of Brock, "I know they are also going to think of me."