This offseason, two of the most impactful trades in SPL history were made when Norfolk traded away not one, but two Cy Young Award Winning Pitchers. Both were in their primes, and one was the consensus best starting pitcher in the AL. How does something like that happen? Here at the Satchel Paige News, we got the scoop. We went behind the curtain and interviewed the man behind the magic, the GM of the Norfolk Whiskey Jacks...
SPN: We’ll start with some “yes or no” questions, if that is ok…Were you drunk or hungover when you decided to trade Matos?
Norfork GM: Yes
SPN: Were you drunk or hungover when you decided to trade Leonard?
Norfork GM: Yes
SPN: Do you wish that you still had them on your team?
Norfork GM: Yes
SPN: Were you drunk/hungover when you accepted the trade offers?
Norfork GM: No
SPN: Then why make those trades?
Norfork GM: Are we done with the Yes/No?
SPN: Yes
Norfolk GM: The honest version was that I had gone to the 49ers playoff game during the SP offseason and hadn’t been paying close attention. I generally only keep one team per WIS game but I picked up a 2nd in a league swap to fill a league. This third one was passed on by my buddy Sermonauthor, so I probably was spread a little thin (for me, real world keeps me pretty busy). I don’t normally drink and I woke up hungover, stumbled to my iPad, and saw “arbitrate” as the option by my players. I thought, “WTF happen to ‘negotiate long-term’?”
SPN: Why didn’t you ask in a forum?
Norfolk GM: I was hungover, a little angry, and just went ahead and arbed the guys. I was hoping that one or both would be open to re-sign but both were upset about the third arb.
SPN: Your team was a title contender, why not keep Matos and Leonard and make a run at it?
Norfolk GM: Well, a bunch of things ran through my drunken mind. The first was that Sermonauthor passed this team on to me and he always loves a big deal. So, in the spirit of Sermonauthor, a deal would be in order. Secondly, there are a bunch of extensions coming up and I was a little concerned about affording everyone long-term. Thirdly, there are some holes on the roster than needed addressing and those holes had been somewhat exposed in the past two disappointing postseasons. So, I was open to shaking things up if I felt that could have some flexibility down the road. Lastly, it seemed like the process might be fun and it was. The game is supposed to be fun.
SPN: Take us through the trade process.
Norfolk GM: Yeah, given the expected demand and given my real world schedule, I figured it best to set a deadline. Obviously, I was frustrated that I had devalued my own asset but I figured that I should just move forward as quickly as possible. I could have waited to the trade deadline to determine who really want to make a big push for the title and, in the real world, I might have done that, but that would be more time consuming, less fun, and still risky.
SPN: Tell us about the demand.
Norfolk GM: Eight teams trade chatted me within the first few hours. There is no way that I could have taken the time to go through the systems and haggle over players. So I asked for first offers…
SPN: How were those first offers?
Norfolk GM: All over the place. Some teams figured that I was just going to dump the players and made token offers, hoping to get lucky. Some offers had a lot of upside and a lot of risk. Some were more certain but less risk. Others offered financial flexibility, some offered better players but no financial flexibility. They really were 8 different offers.
SPN: How were your communications with the other GMs?
Norfolk GM: Mostly positive, but it is a situation where you have eight different personalities who all have the objective of getting an elite pitcher. Some were always online. Some weren’t. Some asked a lot of questions and some were more “take it or leave it.” Some were easier to deal with than others but managing that many personalities for more than a few days was going to be cumbersome.
SPN: So after your initial interactions, you asked for final offers.
Norfolk GM: Correct.
SPN: How did that go?
Norfolk GM: Extremely tricky. I tried to tell every GM where he or she stood. Some weren’t inclined to move an offer, some hated the process and dropped out, and that left really two teams willing to raise the stakes for both Leonard and Matos. As teams jockeyed for the best offer, considerations like getting Matos to the opposite league became a strong consideration. If I was going to move Matos, I wanted to move him to a situation where he could be long-term. I did fear that Matos could end up haunting me if he hit FA and it was open season. I didn’t want to compound my mistake in that regard. I’d rather just worry about him in World Series, if we ever make it there
SPN: Take us into those final moments, what pushed you over the top?
Norfolk GM: We really liked New Orleans offer for Leonard and that was mostly locked in early in the day. There was a late offer but we liked the ability to get a position player, a pitcher, a prospect, and cash in one deal. Moreover, we were able to stagger some of our player salaries which should help us when it comes to re-signing guys…In the Matos deal, Iowa City’s offer was adjusted earlier in the day to the point of our satisfaction. There was another very strong, yet risky offer from Philidelphia, but that meant keeping Matos in the AL. The Stomp GM declined to increase the offer (which was fair) so Iowa City inched to the front by offering a starter, bullpen help (which ended up killing us the last two years), and sent Matos to the NL. We were able to revamp the rotation, add to the prospect pipeline (which was dry), and solidify the bullpen with younger players considering we had older bullpen free agents. Washington came into the mix very late, as a dark horse team. They made a really strong push at the last minute but I had pretty much come to terms with Iowa City at that point.
SPN: What were the reactions from fellow GMs?
Norfolk GM: Mostly positive. They were respectful of the process and, in general, very entertained. Some GMs, predictably, suggested that they could have topped the winning offers. The rules were pretty simple. Best offer wins. If a team was interested in topping the existing offers, they were giving that opportunity.
SPN: What is the reaction around Norfolk?
Norfolk GM: The fans are a little disappointed but I promised them that I would put a winning product on the field. It’s on me to do that.
SPN: Your nine-year old son was recently caught on youtube fighting with a classmate who called you a “drunk and an idiot.” Have you spoken to your son about that incident?
Norfolk GM: I told him to stop defending me. That was the hardest part. I didn’t want him to defend me anymore. I can’t change the mistakes that I’ve made. I just have to be a better person going forward.
