With the 2035 season officially in the past, the Madison Malts now turn to the first offseason under new general manager Jay Amado, who the team agreed to terms with just after the draft. Going just 36-49 after the hire, the brash Amado came in and immediately started cleaning house, beginning with bringing in Hirohisa Hayakawa as the new manager, ousting Akihisa Nishida after just 84 games. From there, the two sat down and came up with a plan for each and every player in the organization, eventually arriving at the conclusion that no fan ever wants to hear: a rebuild was in order.
The Malts got straight to work on revamping a minor league system that ranked dead last in the league, and featured zero prospects in BNN’s Top 100. Within the first month, starting catcher Antonio Mesegue was shipped to Kentucky for new organizational top prospect CF Aaron Lawrence and a 2nd round draft pick while prospects Chan-Su Chang, Jesse Oglethorpe, and Ricardo Chacon were sent to New Jersey in return for pitchers Ivano Gramsci, Lawrence Robinson, Ramon Munoz, and a 1st round draft pick. While none of these players are ML-ready, it was enough to give the Malts something that they haven’t had in a long time: a defined direction.
With the offseason upon us now, and winter meetings coming up soon, all eyes now turn to the one difference-maker that Madison has: 2035 Most Valuable Player Pablo Garza. The 27-year-old paced the team with his third straight 30+ HR season last year, while also leading the SL with 108 RBI and posting a .279/.347/.499 slash line. A fan favorite, many find themselves in disbelief of the rumors that Garza may be on the block. “If this idiot really trades him, I will absolutely refuse to give another penny of my money to this organization,” commented one fan who has been a season ticket holder since the team arrived in Madison from Canton. At 28, Garza is still young enough that he could play in the organization for the better part of the next decade, but the team is reportedly set on getting as much return as possible for him before the inevitable big payday that will come after the 2036 season.
“It’s always tough. We love Pablo,” Amado said when asked what his plan was for the superstar moving forward. “But we have to consider all the variables from both ends. Pablo deserves a chance to compete for more than just individual titles—I think we all agree with that. But right now, we’re at the very beginning of what could be a long process in turning this team into a playoff team for the first time. We’re going to evaluate everything. Nothing is a done deal, but we have to do our due diligence to try to right this ship not just in the near-term, but for the years and decades to come.”
Early reports are that the Malts are asking for multiple high draft picks and prospects for the MVP, but no specific details about any offers have emerged. Neither the team nor Garza were available for comment on whether any specific suitors had emerged. Right now, the only thing certain is that the Winter Meetings should be a cause of both anxiety and hope for long-suffering fans of the franchise.