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Today in White Sox History: February 24

A giveaway trade from Les O’Connor gets cleaned up quickly by Frank Lane.

By Mark Liptak Updated
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Eddie Lopat had a 3.26 ERA and 1.3 WAR in his rookie season of 1944 on the South Side. But he’d find his fame later in his career, tormenting the White Sox as a member of the Yankees.

1948

White Sox GM Les O’Connor sent pitcher Eddie Lopat to the Yankees for three players.

Lopat was a soft-tossing, off-speed pitcher who won 50 games in four years with the Sox, twice having an ERA off less than 3.00. He would quickly develop into one of the aces on the Yankees dynasty of the 1950s, winning 113 games in seven-and-a-half years. He also went 4-1 in World Series play.

Of the players the Sox got in return, only pitcher Bill Wight had any success on the South Side, winning 34 games in three seasons.

It wasn’t really a lost deal, though. Another one of the players acquired, catcher Aaron Robinson, would be sent in November 1948 to the Tigers for a youngster named ... Billy Pierce.

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