How Mid-Season Trade Let Cal's Andrew Vaughn Reset His Career

Major league baseball’s postseason awards will not be announced until November, but we’re ready to reveal our unofficial MFP award — Most Fortuitous Player.

As MLB’s postseason gets under way this week, is there a player in either league whose career path was upgraded as radically as that of Andrew Vaughn?

Vaughn and the Milwaukee Brewers join baseball's postseason on Saturday in Game 1 of the NL division playoffs aginst the Chicago Cubs. First pitch is 11:08 a.m. PT on TBS.

Things began to change for the 27-year-old former Cal star on June 13, when he was traded by the Chicago White Sox to the Brewers for pitcher Aaron Civale and cash.

But Vaughn, who already had been demoted to the minor leagues by the White Sox, remained there to start his tenure with Milwaukee. His future held no promises.

Andrew Vaughn. | Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Brewers elevated him to the big club on July 7 and Vaughn’s career got new life.

Vaughn had suffered through a miserable 2024 campaign with the White Sox, who lost a modern-day MLB record 121 games. They were 15-35 when he was traded in June. Then he joined a Milwaukee club that was 50-40 the day he made his debut.

Vaughn slammed a 3-run homer in his first at-bat, triggering a five-run first inning in the Brewers’ 9-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers.

After batting just .189 with five home runs and 19 RBIs though 48 games with Chicago, Vaughn instantly found a rhythm at the plate with Milwaukee.

Over his first 29 games, he batted .343 with nine home runs, 35 RBIs and a 1.051 OPS as the Brewers extended their lead in the NL Central by going 25-4.

They finished the regular season Sunday at 97-65, a franchise record for victories and the most in baseball. The White Sox wound up 60-102, the worst record in the American League.

Vaughn cooled a bit, as did the Brewers. But in 64 games with his new team, Vaughn hit .308 with nine homers and 46 RBIs, the best stretch of his five-year career and 119 points higher than his White Sox batting average.

Here are seven more baseball trades that worked out splendidly for former Golden Bears (presented chronilogically):

Orval Overall

DATE: June 2, 1906

THE DEAL: Overall was sent by the Cincinnati Reds with $2,000 to the Chicago Cubs for pitcher Bob Wicker.

THE OUTCOME: The 25-year-old right-hander was 4-5 with a 4.26 ERA with the Reds in 1906 before the trade. He went 12-3 with a 1.88 ERA for the Cubs the rest of the season. In 4 1/2 seasons through 1910, Overall posted an 82-38 record with a 1.82 ERA and 27 shutouts. He won 20 games twice and led the NL with 205 strikeouts in 1909. He was 3-0 with an 0.99 ERA in the Cubs’ 1908 and ’09 World Series victories — the franchise’s last Fall Classic titles for 107 years, until 2016.

Monte Pearson

DATE: December 11, 1935

THE DEAL: Pearson was traded by Cleveland with pitcher Steve Sundra to the New York Yankees for pitcher Johnny Allen.

THE OUTCOME: Over the next four seasons, the right-hander was 56-22 in the regular season and unbeatable in the World Series. Playing on powerhouse teams with Hall of Famers Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Bill Dickey and Lefty Gomez, Pearson was 4-0 with a 1.01 ERA in the Series, helping the Yankees to a combined 16-3 record in the Fall Classic with four world titles.

Jackie Jensen

Date: Dec. 9, 1952

THE DEAL: The Washington Senators traded the former Cal two-sport star to the Boston Red Sox for pitcher Mickey McDermott and outfielder Tom Umphlett.

THE OUTCOME: Over the next six seasons, Jensen batted .285 with 157 home runs, 667 RBIs, a .378 on-base percentage and 86 stolen bases. Playing centerfield alongside Ted Williams, he led the American League in RBIs three times, in triples with 11 in 1956 and stolen bases with 22 in 1954. Jensen was MVP of the AL in 1958 when he batted .286 with a career-high 35 home runs and an AL-leading and career-high 122 RBIs.

Mike Epstein

DATE: May 8, 1971

THE DEAL The first baseman was traded by the Washington Senator with relief pitcher Darold Knowles to the Oakland A's for catcher/outfielder Frank Fernandez, pitcher Paul Lindblad, first baseman Don Mincher and cash.

THE OUTCOME: Epstein played 24 games with the Senators in ’71 and hit just one home runs before being shipped the Oakland. He played 102 games with the A’s that season and had 18 HRs and 51 RBIs. In 1972, he led the A’s with 26 home runs, helping the team win the first of three straight World Series.

Andy Messersmith

DATE: Nov. 28, 1972

THE DEAL: Traded by the California Angels with infielder Ken McMullen to the Los Angeles Dodgers for future Hall of Famer but aging outfielder Frank Robinson, infielder Billy Grabarkewitz, pitcher Bill Singer, pitcher Mike Strahler and versatile Bobby Valentine.

THE OUTCOME: Just 8-11 for the Angels in 1972 a year after winning 20 games, Messersmith went 53-30 with 42 complete games, 13 shutouts and 611 strikeouts over the next three seasons with the Dodgers. He was second in the Cy Young voting in 1974 when he was 20-6 with a 2.59 ERA and was fifth the year after when he posted a 19-14 record with a 2.29 ERA and led the AL with 40 games started, 19 complete games and seven shutouts.

Messersmith played the 1975 season without a contract and, as a result, was granted free agency on March 16, 1976. He signed a 3-year, $1 million contract with the Atlanta Braves, helping to usher in the sport’s free agent era.

Jeff Kent

DATE: Nov. 13, 1996

THE DEAL: Cleveland traded second baseman Kent, pitcher Julian Tavarez, infielder Jose Vizcaino and a player to be named later (pitcher Joe Roa) to the Giants for third baseman Matt Williams and a player to be named later (outfielder Trent Hubbard).

THE OUTCOME: Kent played six seasons in San Francisco, hitting 175 home runs and collecting 689 RBIs. He was a three-time All-Star and was a four-time top-10 MVP finisher, winning the award in 2000, when he clubbed 33 homers and had a career-high 125 RBIs. He helped the Giants reach the World Series in his final season of 2002.

Marcus Semien

DATE: Dec. 9, 2014

THE DEAL: Semien was traded by the Chicago White Sox with pitcher Chris Bassitt, catcher Josh Phegley and utility man Rangel Ravelo to the Oakland A's for pitchers Jeff Samardzija and Michael Ynoa.

THE OUTCOME: After batting .240 with eight home runs in 85 games over two seasons with the White Sox, the Berkeley-born shortstop came alive with the A’s. He hit 107 home runs in six seasons and in 2019 finished third in the AL MVP voting after hitting 33 home runs with 92 RBIs.

He signed a one-year free-agent contract with the Toronto Blue Jays before the 2021 season, when he again was third in voting for the MVP. That set him up to land a seven-year, $175 million free-agent deal with the Texas Rangers. In his second season, he was third in the AL MVP race once more, helping the franchise to its first-ever World Series crown.

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