Washington traded its star shortstop less than two years after he helped lead the team to the World Series.
That happened last week, when the Nats dealt shortstop Trea Turner to the Los Angeles Dodgers, along with pitching ace Max Scherzer. But it also happened in 1934, when the Washington Senators traded popular player-manager Joe Cronin to the Boston Red Sox.
Cronin, like Turner, was a 28-year-old All-Star shortstop in the prime of his career. Both men played seven seasons in Washington, with remarkably similar stats – the same .842 OPS and a nearly identical batting average (Cronin .