DeShields was born in Seaford, Delaware where he was raised by his mother and grandmother. He was an All-American in baseball and basketball at Seaford High School. DeShields signed a letter of intent to play college basketball at Villanova University. However, after being selected as the 12th overall pick in the 1987 MLB draft, he chose a career in baseball; he signed for $130,000 with the Montreal Expos.\n', '

DeShields became the regular second baseman for the Montreal Expos in 1990, finishing in second place for the NL Rookie of the Year award. He suffered from a sophomore slump in 1991, but went on to post his two best years in 1992 and 1993, hitting .294 and averaging 45 stolen bases.\n', '

On November 19, 1993, DeShields was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for then-prospect Pedro Martínez. In retrospect, this is considered one of the worst trades in Dodgers history. DeShields hit a mediocre .241 during his three years in Los Angeles, while Martinez went on to win three Cy Young Awards and established himself among the greatest pitchers of all time.\n', '

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