The Five Worst Trades in Kansas City Royals History

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3. David Cone for Chris Stynes and two minor leaguers (April 6, 1995)

This trade marked the second time that the Royals had David Cone, and the second time they traded him for virtually nothing (the first time will be a bit later in the post). However, unlike that first trade, this one was done with the desire to shed payroll.

Cone, in that final year with the Royals, went 16-5 with a 2.94 ERA and a 1.074 WHiP, winning the American League Cy Young award. One would have imagined that he could have brought in an impressive crop of prospects that could have helped the Royals become contenders in the latter half of the decade. Instead, the Royals received back two players who never reached the majors and Chris Stynes. The one major league player, Stynes, spent parts of two seasons with the Royals before being sent to the Cincinnati Reds, where he turned into a useful utility player.

Stynes, in his 58 game Royals tenure, produced a .260/.293/.315 batting line, hitting seven doubles and stealing five bases. Cone, meanwhile, pitched another seven years, making two All-Star teams and led the American League with 20 wins in 1998. Oh, and Cone was a key part of four World Series winning teams for the New York Yankees. Perhaps the Royals could have had another chance at postseason play during that time frame had he remained with the team.

One would have thought that the Royals would have learned their lesson about trading David Cone the first time. Instead, history repeated itself in Kansas City.