The Senators Clark Griffith moaned that it was “the dumbest deal I ever made,” after he traded Buddy Myer to the Red Sox for shortstop Topper Rigney in 1927. Rigney lasted for 45 games, while Myer led the league with 30 stolen bases and batted .313 in 1928; Griffith had to give up five players to get Myer back after the season. Myer became Washington’s solid second baseman for a decade, leading the league in fielding in 1931 and 1938, and winning the AL batting crown in 1935 with a last-day splurge of base hits. He edged Joe Vosmik, .3495 to .3489, when the Cleveland outfielder tried to nurse his lead by sitting out a game on the last day of the season. Myer was a lefthanded batter so adept at dragging the ball that he beat out 60 bunts in one season. He batted over .300 nine times, and retired at the start of WWII.
