This day in Los Angeles Dodgers history saw the team acquire former National League Rookie of the Year winner Pat Zachry in a trade with the New York Mets. L.A. sent Jorge Orta to the Mets in the Dec. 28, 1982 trade.
The right-hander was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the 19th round of the 1970 MLB Draft and seven years later got traded along with Doug Flynn, Steve Henderson and Dan Norman to the Mets for Tom Seaver.
Zachry made his MLB debut in 1976 and went 14-7 with a 2.46 ERA over 38 starts en route to earning co-Rookie of the Year honors with former San Diego Padres relief pitcher Butch Metzger.
By the time Zachry was traded to the Dodgers, he had begun transitioning to a role out of the bullpen. He primarily was used as a relief pitcher by L.A., appearing in 98 games (one start) over the 1983 and 1984 seasons. Zachry went 11-7 with two saves and a 3.25 ERA over that span.
He was poised to begin a third season with the Dodgers, however got traded to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for Al Oliver on February 4, 1985.
Zachry only appeared in 10 games for the Phillies that season, which wound up being his last in the Majors. He finished a lifetime 69-67 to go along with a 3.52 ERA in 293 games (154 starts) over parts of 10 years.
First trade was difficult for Zachry
Aside from being part of a trade involving Seaver — an eventual Hall of Famer — Zachry was on the move days before getting married to his wife Sharron and the reception was due to be held at Pete Rose’s house.
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