Malts Acquire Rodriguez, Miyagi

[JayA]

“We rise to great heights by a winding staircase of small steps.”

Madison Malts general manager Jay Amado led his second trade press conference within a one month period with this quote from early-17th century English philosopher, lawyer, and Attorney General Francis Bacon.

“It’s a process. Not everything is going to be flashy,” he explained for perspective less than a month after moving star 1B Javier Aguilar in a blockbuster trade for draft picks and prospects. “But with each one of these moves, we’re getting better. We’re bringing in players who will fit the model of what we’re trying to do here. What you’re seeing with Takeo and Vicente is a perfect example of that.”

The trade that Amado was referring to was completed a little over a week ago when they dealt AAA relievers Fred Gross and Angel Villa for 26-year-old 1B Takeo Miyagi and 22-year-old C Vicente Rodriguez. It was an interesting move, because the front office has continued to stress that they’re looking for players on the lower end of the age spectrum, allowing to the fact that the Malts are still likely at least half of a decade from being competitive in the majors and both Miyagi and Rodriguez were inserted into the starting lineup as soon as the trade was finalized. “There’s always a balance that you’ve got to think about,” Amado stated when questioned further about the move. “We’re not going to be one of those Yuma-type teams where we’re perpetually rebuilding and trying to make sure we get the top picks. We’re still going to go out there and compete every day to the best of our ability. Takeo and V-Rod are both guys that should help us both now and in the future.”

Since the trade was finalized, the Malts have played 10 games and have gone 6-4 in them. The switch-hitting Miyagi has batted .282 while hitting a team-high 3 HR in that time. His game is completely different from former franchise 1B Aguilar, but the early dividends have looked solid. Rodriguez has similarly looked solid, hitting at a .247 rate with 4 extra base hits and 4 RBI while starting 8 of the first 10 games. While neither is putting up mind-blowing numbers, both players are producing at higher rates in the early going than the players they replaced in the lineup–Javier Aguilar posted a -0.2 WAR in his first 76 games in Madison while Miyagi has quickly posted a 0.1 WAR. Similarly, catcher Marvin Hansen (-0.1 WAR) was also struggling to produce. It’s still too early to declare anything definitively and setting high expectations for two players not in the long-term plans is probably never a great idea. Nevertheless, these are the types of small steps that have to work out if the Malts ever hope to reach great heights.