WINNER: Edmonton
GM Chris Robillard made it well known that he was selling once he traded away staff ace Bobby Lynch earlier in the summer to Calgary. Two weeks prior to the deadline, the Jackrabbits sent another key member of its rotation, Jesus Ramos, to Wichita. The return was underwhelming but Ramos was a pending free agent, so Robillard was able to get something for a player he wasn't intending on extending. (NOTE: Wichita was able to sign Ramos to a team-friendly $18M/3 year deal after the trade.) In addition to the impressive haul for Lynch, Edmonton has gone 21-11 since the deal (July 28) and finds themselves not only in the Frick League Wild Card race, but only two games back of division-leading Calgary.
LOSER: Twin Cities
The moves made by GM Scott Piccoli have been discussed widely on the forums and in multiple podcasts. Piccoli's track record speaks for itself, going to the playoffs three times in the last six years, plus two heartbreaking Game 163 losses in 2034 and 2036, but on paper, three of Twin Cities four deals (tied for the most trades at the deadline with Las Vegas) look like diminished returns. In summary, it appears Twin Cities jumped the gun in moving three All-Stars (CL Lorenzo de' Medici, 3B Joey Newhouse, and SP Josh Brown) and a high-ceiling reliever in Claude Michaud, all who have a combined 15 years of club control remaining, plus sending homegrown staff ace Chris Kelly to Jacksonville. The loss of Kelly, making an arguably below-market $15.7M for each of the next five seasons, is unlikely to be replaced by the prospects Piccoli received. Yes, 2039 has been a disappointment for the River Monsters, but why not run it back for at least one more year with this fantastic core in 2040?
WINNER: Calgary
The Pioneers didn't make any front page deals at the deadline, but GM Kevin Dickson dealt from the team's strength, sending expendable prospects and $17M in cash in three separate deals for two minor prospects, reclamation project Yoshitoshi Ota, and tantalizing reliever Claude Michaud. Calgary's starters rank second in the Frick in ERA - thanks to a dangerous rotation that included the aforementioned Bobby Lynch, who was costly in prospects to acquire - but their bullpen ERA of 4.92 is 13th best. Michaud is a lottery ticket who has the potential to immediately improve the pen, or at worst, will be a better-than replacement-level arm making under $2M for the next several seasons during arbitration. With Edmonton breathing down Calgary's neck for the Frontier Division title, Dickson strengthened his team without giving away (any more of) the future. Bonus points are award for the recent team-friendly six-year extension signed by Chip Puckett, who was acquired in a July deal.
WINNER: Las Vegas' Landis odds
The 2038 Landis runner-up Hustlers are looking to return to the championship in long-time GM Matt Rectenwald's final season at the helm before taking over the Nashville franchise in 2040. Las Vegas was the busiest of all Brewster clubs, making four deadline deals (tied for the most with Twin Cities), with rumors of several more big and small deals that failed to come to fruition. Rectenwald likely overpaid to acquire pitcher Edris Mtume from Omaha, but the Las Vegas front office has been buzzing since making the deal. Additionally, the Hustlers added solid starter Josh Brown from Twin Cities and took a zero-risk flier on veteran Reece Wareham, sending prospects Randy Bader and Jaime Sanchez to Atlantic City in exchange for retaining the remaining expiring 2039 salary of Wareham. In addition, Rectewald was able to send 1B Gervasio Ridder and his $56 contract over three more seasons for promising catching prospect Alberto Rodriguez, 2038 first-round pick Rafael Flores and a handful of minor league relievers.
LOSER: Las Vegas' future
The Hustlers had arguably the weakest farm system before the deadline wheelin' and dealin', but there is no question the cupboard is nearly entirely bare for incoming general manager Brett Schroeder. Schroeder is on record saying he's okay taking over a 2040 Las Vegas franchise that he's expecting to "fall off a cliff," knowing full well the state of the franchise (READ: blame) lays at the feet of outgoing GM Rectenwald. The rebuilding process for Schroeder starts with the hopeful liberation of reliever Mauro Flores and his $76.5M remaining contract, otherwise a potential 2039 Landis appearance for Las Vegas might be it's last for several seasons to come.
LOSERS: Division Leaders Not Named Calgary
Let's do a quick glance at all the action taken by current division leaders in the Brewster during the deadline, excluding previously discussed Calgary:
TEAM | DIVISION | DEADLINE MOVES |
---|---|---|
Rockville | Johnson Atlantic | zip |
New Orleans | Johnson Southeast | zero |
Phoenix | Johnson Sun Belt | added Juan Santana (99 OPS+) |
Yellow Springs | Frick Heartland | zilch |
California | Frick Pacific | nada |
WINNER: Atlantic City
The Gamblers have long been out of the playoff picture, but that didn't stop GM Joshua Biddle from being sellers now to improve down the road. A pre-season roll of the dice for one year of three-time Puckett Award winner Reece Wareham came up snake eyes but Biddle was able to swallow the remaining money and ship Wareham to Las Vegas for Randy Bader, a nineteen-year-old catcher with both upside and warts, and back-end of the rotation starter Jaime Sanchez. Additionally, in gambler fashion, Atlantic City traded disappointing starter Yoshitoshi Ota to Calgary for $7.1M in cash, which Biddle can then use in a variety of ways down the road for the rebuilding franchise, where any sized win deserves to be celebrated.
LOSERS: Future Johnson League hitters
In 2040, after the league's expansion and realignment, batters in the newly formed Johnson League will be facing newly-traded Chris Kelly, Bobby Lynch, Jesus Ramos, and Josh Brown on a regular basis. Please send all complaints to the desks of C. Robillard and S. Piccoli.
WINNER: Omaha
GM Justin Niles may oversee the Hawks, but was shark during the trade deadline, making two deals that greatly improved the franchise's minor league system. In an oft-discussed trade, Niles shipped two meddling relievers (Pavel Bure Jr. and Luis Gonzales) to Huntsville for a pair of nineteen-year-olds, intriguing outfielder Andre Ly and a potential ace in former first-rounder Timo Dooley. Omaha was also involved in the massive Ridder/Mtume deal with Las Vegas which netted the Hawks a trio of young relievers/spot starters, scout-favorite catcher Alberto Rodriguez, and 2038 first-round pitcher Rafael Flores. Omaha will be saddled with Ridder's huge contract for the next four years, but could cut the deal short by not realizing vesting option conditions starting in 2041. Let's face it...Ridder making over $18M per year might be the biggest winner of them all.
WINNER: Santana/Crocker deal
A case of the rare win-win deal for both sides, Phoenix and Montreal made a small but smart trade in the final hours of the deadline. The Talons acquired Juan Santana, who Montreal covered the remaining salary for 2039, leaving Phoenix only on the hook for Santana's final year of arbitrations, projected at $7.3M. Santana should immediately fill-in in right field for disappointing Jayden Harsnett, who was forced into action when former All-Star Thad Meyer went down in May with a torn ACL. Santana's addition to the offense ought to help Phoenix in a run for the Landis. For Montreal, they save some money moving Santana, who was expendable with superstar-in-waiting Jim Antolin due to debut in 2040. Plus the addition of Peter Crocker adds a much-needed plus-bat prospect to the Blazers' farm system. Kudos to general managers Sean Marko and Kevin Spencer for improving their clubs for now and the future, respectively.
WINNERS: Two-Pitch Pitchers
The likes of Raul Garcia (Vancouver), Juan Valdes (Twin Cities) and Angel Gomez (Twin Cities) were apparently highly-valued by their new general managers, but unfortunately between the three relievers, the combined number of their usable pitches could be counted on Antonio Alfonseca's hand. The list of hurlers with a two-pitch arsenal making it as starters is short, so expectations should be tempered. But good on these kids who will be given every chance to make it in a rotation in the Brewster minors.
LOSER: Huntsville
Sometimes a team needs to shore up its bullpen heading into the playoffs, but Huntsville's trade with Omaha to acquire two relievers - or, at best, a reliever and a spot-starter - doesn't make a lot of sense as they sit in fourth place in the Southeast Division. Yes, their bullpen - ranked 14th in ERA in the Johnson League - could use an improvement but the cost was a former first-round pick Timo Dooley and Andre Ly, a well-rounded toolsy outfielder who has yet to turn 20. Phantoms GM Vic Caleca has stated that his owner endorsed the deal, but not for the reasons you'd think. Silver lining? Pavel Bure Jr. is probably assured a job towing cars after his playing days end.
LOSER: Frick Pacific
In the highest contested division race in the league (only three games separate first-place California from fourth-place Valencia), no moves were made to distinguish anyone from the pack. That said, San Fernando can potentially get reigning Nebraska Award winner Feliciano Rafael back from the injured list in time for the playoffs, so it's one of those roster moves that could feel like a trade, but what's the rest of the division have to say for themselves?
WINNER: Brewster GMs enjoying the flurry of activity
The feedback amongst the League's general managers was this was one of the more entertaining, if not exciting, trade deadlines in recent memory. With so much action and so many close divisional and wild card races, a happy and exhilarated league is a strong league. And a strong league like the Brewster makes all our experiences that much better. Great job all around and good luck down the stretch! Oh, and Jon Reed. #shotsfired