August 26, 2058
by Banjo Jackson
Nashville, TN
Having clinched the playoffs yesterday, the Nashville Bluebirds kept quiet as the trade deadline approached. After all, they are leading the division by 20 games and not a lot of areas of upgrade, if any. But that just isn’t the MO for the always tinkering GM, Chad Nason. Recent reports showed the Bluebirds had six pitchers in the top 100 Starting Pitchers rankings, but with only five rotation spots, it appeared the team could spare one of their elite pitchers.
“We are accustomed to replenishing our roster through our farm system,” said Nason. “We’ve been incredibly blessed over the past several years, but as many of these young guys have graduated to BBA all-stars, it’s left our farm a little more barren than we like. We think it’s still pretty good, certainly better than 19th ranked by OSA, but we still wanted to plan for the future.”
That being said, Nason pulled off a last second trade with Charlotte, sending Jim Fleming to the Flyers for a pair of prospects, headlined by Lucas McNeill, Jr.. Fleming was already seen as the odd man out, splitting time shuttling to the bullpen with Eric Stevens. Fleming has a 3.27 ERA this season and has been absolutely brilliant in August with a 0.97 ERA in five starts. Steven Clayton is due to return off the IL in the next week, but it is unsure who will pitch in the open starter spot until then.
SP Jim '91 Cents' Fleming
Luke, as the club has instructed media to address the young shortstop, needs little introduction. The acquisition has caused many in the organization to be wary, as the previous McNeill stint in Nashville brought along telenovela-level drama. Bumper was a great player on the field and accrued nearly 30 WAR in six seasons with the Bluebirds, however, the adopted older brother of Luke was riddled with drug problems and affairs. The extra baggage he had with his parents was well-documented and even his departure from the Bluebirds left an ugly after-taste with the city of Nashville. As a younger brother who didn’t grow up much with Bumper, Luke looks to create a legacy of his own with a clean image. The youngster celebrates his 18th birthday with a new set of luggage and heads to Santo Domingo, where the Sea Turtles begin the playoffs. Luke is known for his bat-to-ball skills and slick fielding. He has all the tools to stay at shortstop at the highest level. Though he won’t hit for power, he should be a candidate to hit .300 every year.
SS Lucas 'Luke Cage' McNeill, Jr.
The Bluebirds also received 3B prospect Isaac Buggins and DH Fawwaz Amin, who looks to replace Roger Kidd who was sent down to AAA to figure out his offensive woes. Amin appears to just be a short term solution while the former Silk winner looks to rebound. Buggins has a cool name and is a decent enough prospect at 3B or COF.
3B Isaac Buggins
It wouldn't surprise anyone if this storyline continued to grow, but for now Luke will be looking to lead his new team to a Short A championship while the Bluebirds look to continue their dominance without one of their star pitchers and win another Monty.
