50th Anniversary: Cardinals trade Ernie Broglio for Lou Brock

The St. Louis Cardinals/Chicago Cubs trade of Ernie Broglio for Lou Brock marked its 50th anniversary today.

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Nobody knew it at the time but it would change history. It may have been seen as one of the worst trades in Cubs history. Just over two years later, Broglio was out of baseball as he pitched in his final game on July 2, 1966.

In five and a half seasons with the Cardinals, Broglio posted a 70-55 win-loss record with a 3.43 ERA in 200 appearances, including 151 starts. Broglio’s best years were behind him. During the 1960 season, Broglio finished third in the Cy Young voting after posting a 21-9 record with a 2.74 ERA in 52 appearances, including 24 starts.

After being traded to the Cubs, Broglio posted a 7-19 record during his final two and a half seasons. This came along with a 5.40 ERA over 59 appearances, including 33 starts.

As for Brock, he hit .257/.306/.383 during two and a half seasons in Chicago. He was not the stolen base threat that he became with St. Louis. Brock swiped 50 bases as a Cub and got caught 22 times. With St. Louis, Brock hit .297/.347/.414 before retiring at the end of the 1979 season. Brock swiped 888 bases as a Cardinal and finished with a combined 3,023 hits between the two clubs. With the Cardinals, Brock was selected for six All-Star Games and won two World Series in 1964 and 1967. In 1985, Brock was elected by the BBWAA in his first year on the Hall of Fame ballot with 79.7% of the vote.

What people don’t forget is that the Cardinals sent Doug Clemens and Bobby Shantz with Broglio to Chicago. Chicago sent over Jack Spring and Paul Toth with Brock. Broglio and Brock were the two names that made this trade happen.