Despite their completion of the most famous transaction in the history of North American sports in 1919, trades between the rival Red Sox and Yankees are exceptionally rare.
There have been just four since 2000 and seven in the last 50 years. During periods of heightened animosity, the rivals can go a decade or more without doing business—as was the case from 1972-86 and 1997-2014.
With this in mind, you can forgive outfielder Alex Verdugo for being a little blindsided when Boston traded him to New York on Dec. 5.
