A Magician at Shortstop

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - Luis Aparicio was a Hall of Fame shortstop, a 13-time All-Star, a 9-time Gold Glove winner, a fan favorite everywhere he went, so why was he traded so often? Little Louie was traded on this date in 1963, along with Al Smith, from the Chicago White Sox to the Baltimore Orioles for Hoyt Wilhelm, Dave Nicholson, Pete Ward, and Ron Hansen.

Aparicio was traded three times during his career. The White Sox traded for him twice.

When he retired in 1973 Aparicio was the all-time leader in games played, assists and putouts by a shortstop. He was the American League stolen base leader nine years in a row. He helped the White Sox get to the World Series in 1959 and helped the Baltimore Orioles win the World Series in 1966. In an 18-year career, the Venezuelan born Aparicio never played a single big league inning at any position other than shortstop?

Luis Aparicio was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984.

Contributing sources:
Baseball-Reference

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