by Jeff Dieffenbach

The New England Revolution and NY/NJ MetroStars took part in what was arguably the biggest trade in MLS history with the Revs sending Mamadou Diallo, Andy Williams, and Ted Chronopolous to the New York/New Jersey MetroStars in exchange for Diego Serna, Brian Kamler, and Daniel Hernandez.

With roughly as many games played after the trade as before, it makes sense to evaluate the trade. On the surface, the move appeared to make sense for both clubs at the time, as neither threesome enjoyed particular traction.  But more and more it appears the Revolution got the short end of the stick.

On the basis of effectiveness, the Revs threesome performed twenty percent more productively than their MetroStars counterparts before the trade (5.9 points per thousand minutes vs. 4.8; 2 points per goal and 1 point per assist).

However, the MetroStars realized a bit more overall production out of their pre-trade trio than did the Revs out of theirs (2 goals, 6 assists, 10 points, vs. 1 goal, 5 assists, 7 points) by virtue of more minutes played (2,086 vs. 1,178).

The trade lit a fire under both threesomes, giving credence to the “lack of traction” observation, as they increased both their effectiveness (points per thousand minutes) and their production (absolute points).

Across the board improvement, yes. Balance, no.

To be sure, through July 31, the effectiveness of Serna, Kamler, and Hernandez improved by 50% after they joined New England (7.1 vs. 4.8). Unfortunately, their playing time dropped by 12%, due in large part to Serna’s health. An automobile accident followed by a season-ending torn ACL and meniscus conspired to keep 2001’s second leading scorer off the pitch.

Conversely, the effectiveness of Diallo, Williams, and Chronopolous also improved after the trade, but by a much larger 160% (15.2 vs. 5.9). Diallo’s improvement stands out the most: 6.1 points per thousand minutes before the trade compared to 31.3 after (1 goal, 1 assist vs. 11 goals, 3 assists). And the power of their effectiveness was multiplied by a substantial 140% increase in minutes played.

On an absolute basis, the MetroStars shot the lights out post-trade, comparatively speaking. Together, they’ve tallied 13 goals and 17 assists versus a mere 4 and 5 for the Revolution.

Perhaps most impressive is the new chemistry among Diallo, Williams, and Chronopolous specifically and the MetroStars in general. On 8 of their 13 post-trade goals, the assist was made by another of the trio. Twice, all three players combined for a strike: both times Diallo goals off of assists by both Williams and Chronopolous, including a July 20th stab-in-the-heart against the Revolution.

More importantly, as a team, the Revolution’s winning percentage languished both before and after the trade, with only a slight improvement (0.385 post-trade vs. 0.333 pre-trade), leaving them to sit six points out of the post-season picture. The MetroStars, on the other hand, climbed to the top of the Eastern Conference and into the thick of the playoff chase (0.545 vs. 0.375).

Clearly, the MetroStars got the better of the trade. What’s next from Revolution management? Taylor Twellman (atop the points table, but with Diallo not far behind) and Steve Ralston (a league leading 15 assists, trailed closely by Williams with 12) for two pairs of boots and a bag of soccer balls?

Don’t think it impossible. On January 23^rd of 1920, in another interaction between these two great cities, Babe Ruth was traded from the Boston Red Sox to the New York Yankees for $125,000 and, at least until now, the distinction of generally being regarded as the worst trade in baseball and perhaps all of sports history.