Slugger Shavings 2055.3 - Sayonara Takuda

[RT60]

On July 21, the Sluggers made a move that signaled both a resignation to the team's dire fate this season and to any hope that Yoshii Takuda might turn himself around. Takuda had been a rising star for the Sluggers, bursting onto the scene in 2049 as the #43 prospect in the league with a strong 13-win rookie season. Except for an off-year in 2052 with just 4 wins, Takuda was winning 13-15 games a year. Sadly, he could not escape from a proneness to injury and missed the entire 2054 season. Fans were ecstatic to see him return healthy this season, but unfortunately he appeared to have lost his mojo, going 3-10 with a 5.31 ERA.

Because of his injury in 2054, GM BP was able to renew Takuda's contract for relatively low dollars with a team option each year. Despite this favorable contract, Takuda's anemic performance was causing the organization a great amount of stress. The team was struggling across the board, with no chance of repeating a playoff berth. GM BP had been contemplating a possible move of Takuda, but did not want to act rashly. This pitcher still had a lot of upside. On July 10, Takuda told the press that his arm lost its power, a clear sign that both physically and mentally he was done, at least for the Sluggers. GM BP then began to work the phones.

Soon after, Takuda was traded to Twin Cities in exchange for prospects Alfredo Garcia and Winston Farthing. Slugger fans reacted without emotion to the news. Takuda seemed like a shell of the player he was before his 2054 injury. They understood his stock was not what it once was. They hope that at least one of these prospects challenges for a spot on the team one day. But if not, they at least have memories of what Takuda used to be.

[trmmilwwi]

Takuda has been such a tease.

[BaseClogger]

The prospects are solid.

[RT60]

Since Takuda seems to be just fine, that whole "my arm lost its power" whining he did to the press turned out to be garbage. Oh well.