December 16, 2053
by Banjo Jackson
Nashville, TN
A trade between the Bluebirds and Boise Spuds has made both GMs happy as they acquired players they’ve long been targeting. Nashville will send Elvin Hilliard to the Spuds in exchange for RP Josh Dougherty and pitching prospect, Samir Qasim.
“We have been looking at Josh since he was a kid,” said Nashville GM Chad Nason. “He was selected one pick before we took ‘Bumper’, but we were hoping he fell to the second round. Wishful thinking, of course, for a player of his caliber, though, he was listed as a 1B in the draft. We tried for years to acquire him to pair with the reliever we eventually took in the second round of that draft, Ollie Lowry. I just loved the idea of these two flamethrowers coming out of the bullpen as a righty/lefty combo.”
Dougherty will be under team control for the next two seasons while receiving a modest $899,000 salary this season. He will enter the Bluebirds clubhouse a little disappointed because the 6’10 Dougherty will no longer be the tallest man in the building. That honor is held by fellow reliever, Aelbehrt 'Wunderkind' Schlöndorff, who stands at 7’2. Additionally, he will be forced to choose a new jersey number as #69 has been retired by the Bluebirds.
RHP Josh Dougherty
“I’m very excited to be here,” said Dougherty. “I’ve heard the Heartland is the best division in baseball and I’m looking forward to the challenge. I’m more anxious to play baseball in October and hope I can help win a Monty!”
Qasim is an intriguing prospect, but has a few question marks. He is a bit under developed for a 21 year old in short A, but has shown recent improvement and should slot in well with Minor A Springdale Roosters in 2054, where coaches will continue to work on his mechanics. He’s got three decent pitches in his fastball, sinker, and curve, supplemented by two below average pitches – a slider and changeup. His fastball could become more effective if he can raise his velocity to the mid-high 90’s, but his movement and control are his greatest weapons. Whether or not he will become an effective starter remains to be seen, but he should at least be an excellent reliver candidate.
LHP Elvin Hilliard
Hilliard leaves the Bluebirds after three seasons, where he served in the bullpen. However, once he was acquired from the Louisville Sluggers in 2050, he added additional pitches to his repertoire that could see him in the rotation. “We certainly think he’s a starter,” said Boise GM Woody Donahue. “We’ve tried to obtain his services for awhile now and we’re ecstatic!” Hilliard has a 3.00 ERA in 7 seasons and is due $3 million each of the next two seasons.
