I think at the time BA was way over rated, which has made this trade seem a lot worse than it really was. If I remember correctly Madlock only had 1 or 2 more really good years in his career after he left the Cubs. Murcer and Ontiveros were not very good, but they both put up at least 1 solid season for the Cubs. I can easily think of 3 much worse trades that the Cubs have made. Bill Madlock was a very, very, very good baseball player. Career OPS+: Ron Santo - 125 Bill Madlock - 123 By the way, Bobby Murcer was also a very, very, very good baseball player. The problem was that he was 30 years old at the time of the trade. Madlock was 25. Two of my favorite Cubs as a kid were Madlock & Murcer.