September 17, 2063 — From Flatline to First Place
A week ago, the Gold were cracking. Slipping. Second-guessing themselves. The division lead was gone. The bats were quiet. The fans were restless. Most of us, myself included, were starting to prepare our usual end-of-season eulogies for another Johannesburg campaign that ran out of gas just before it got interesting.
And now? It's the middle of September, 13 games to play, and Johannesburg is not only alive, but they’re back to leading the division.
They’ve won six straight, swept the Sharks in Sydney, and reclaimed a small semblance of control of the AfSAmOc Division. It’s the kind of run that makes you look around and ask, “Wait, are we actually going to do this?”
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The Return of the Forgotten Prospect
If this season ends the way Johannesburg hopes, if the Gold finally break through and crash the postseason, Juan Anaya’s name won’t just be remembered. It’ll be etched.
Not as a prospect, but as a resurrection.
Anaya isn’t some wide-eyed kid getting his first taste of the bigs. He’s 28 years old. He’s been here before. In fact, back in 2058, he was the story, lighting up BBA pitching as a rookie with the Mexico City Aztecs, winning the Johnson League’s Joe Gillstrom Newcomer of the Year Award and looking every bit like a big leaguer destined for a long career.
Then came the spiral. The sophomore slump turned into a three-year fade. Injuries. Inconsistency. Journeyman status. By the time the 2062 off-season rolled around, Anaya was out of contract, out of options, and off nearly everyone’s radar. All except one team: Johannesburg of the GBC.
The Gold signed him to a minor league deal in quiet ink. He started the year in Double-A Falkland Island, just another name on a lineup card. But then he hit (.858 OPS). And he ran (17 steals in 18 attempts in 44 games). And he made it impossible to ignore. A promotion to Triple-A Durban followed. He kept shining there, too (.291/.301/.582 with a perfect 7-for-7 on the base paths).
Still, no one expected this.
Called up on the morning of September 10 with the team spiraling and the bats silent, Anaya stepped in and didn’t blink. He drove in the go-ahead run in his debut. He homered the next night. Through four games, he collected nine hits, three steals, and a city’s worth of belief.
This isn’t some breakout star on the rise. This is a guy who already was, fell off the mountain, and has now climbed back, not for glory, but for relevance. Anaya’s rewriting his career. And if the Gold do the unthinkable and play into October, he’ll be the chapter that changed everything.
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A Sweep in Sydney? Believe It.
I’ve covered this team since the days when a three-game win streak felt like a miracle. So understand how surreal it is to say this: the Gold marched into Sydney, stared down their closest rivals, and swept the damn series.
It wasn’t lucky. It wasn’t messy. It was dominant. The offense exploded. The bullpen held. The pitching staff, which had looked gassed and brittle two weeks ago, suddenly looked fresh and feisty. Aaron Bridges was sharp. Jeff Bannon delivered. Even Max Dawe bounced back with a strong showing.
And when it mattered most, when the standings were dead even and the margin for error was gone, it was team captain Simao Hayagawa who came through with a ninth-inning RBI double to take the series lead. Because of course it was.
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Thirteen Games. One Goal.
And now, we arrive at the final stretch.
Thirteen games, all of them at home. Cairo first. Then Sydney again, followed by Sao Paulo for four and a three game series hosting Buenos Aires to close the 2063 regular season. Four teams, one ballpark, and one opportunity to finish what this team started back in April when they decided mediocrity wasn’t going to cut it anymore.
The franchise record for wins is already in the rearview. The first winning season in club history is locked in. But none of that matters if this team can’t finish the job.
They’ve never made the playoffs. Not once. Not in this league. Not in this city. Not in this lifetime.
But they’ve never had a stretch like this, either.
So cue the lights. Open the gates. And if you’ve got a broom lying around the house, bring it to the ballpark.
There’s sweeping left to do.
—Jakob