From Madmen to Mad Men: Trade Recap Smorgesborg

July 13, 2017, 07:35:13 PM

In years gone by, whiskey drinking, chain smoking, Mad Men in suits and skinny ties pitched Ad campaigns to sell more products and make more money than their competitors. It’s always been assumed that the Madmen took their name from the crazy wrestler by the same name, but after Wednesday it may be more about General Manager Brian Scherdts Ad-man skills at marketing and selling off the talent on his struggling team.

On Wednesday morning, the Madmen hooked up with the Cutthroats on a deal that netted them Orlando Arcia, a young shortstop of the future who already is performing at the major league level plus a third round pick that can be used in the upcoming draft. Fighting to stay on top of the Hector Barbosa division, River City made the move to get the talented bat of Anthony Rizzo. Very few organizations can boast two All-Stars at first base and when you can acquire a bat that shifts a player of Joey Votto’s caliber to designated hitter you’ve made quite the statement.

But Scherdt wasn’t done yet, quickly jumping on the Scurvy Dogs interest in getting back on top of the Inigo Montoya with a blockbuster. The Dogs acquired tons of power in first basemen Jose Abreu, corner outfielder Marcell Ozuna, shortstop Elvis Andrus, and outfielder Carlos Gonzalez along with starting pitcher Danny Salazar. For this mighty haul the Madmen picked up the power prospect Joey Gallo, second base bopper Brian Dozier, minor league starter Clayton Blackburn and the Dogs 1st and 3rd round draft picks with Jose Iglesias and Jaime Garcia balancing out the contracts.\

But Thursday saw a response from the remarkable Sweets who have surprised just about everyone including their own General Manager, Scott Holgate. With the top position in the Barbosa only a game and a half away and the Cutthroats adding on Wednesday the Sweets decided for the first time ever it was time to swing for the fences. The Sweets picked up Nomads fan favorite Paul Goldschmidt and ace starter Jhonny Cueto which should give them the boost they are desperately looking for. In return the Nomads finally acquired their shortstop of the future in Dansby Swanson, up and coming corner infielder Travis Shaw and cap fillers in Albert Pujols and Seth Smith.

Then -taking a que from the Madmen- the Sweets made another move partnering with the Asterisks to pick up John Lester, a top quality starter with enough innings to make it through the rest of the season. In return the Asterisks were able to pick up a good starter on a lower contract in Stephen Stasburg, a useful platoon bat in Franklin Gutierrez and the Sweets 4th round pick.
With all that has happened in the last few days, the draft just a day away, and rumors flying around the league that more trades could be around the corner, the silence the Weekly Bird Call spoke of last week appears to have been the calm before the storm. \

So sit back, loosen your skinny tie, pour yourself an old fashioned or gimlet (whatever you prefer), smoke em if you got em and ride out the storm with the Weekly Bird Call.