July 2, 2061
by Banjo Jackson
Nashville, TN
Every December comes a time where young Bluebird hatchlings grow their wings and fly away to other teams in the Rule 5 draft. This past winter was no different and Imran bin Numair knew he would never crack the Nashville pitching staff. After all, bin Numair has just turned 23 the day before the Rule 5 draft and never made it past Short A. He showed promise as an IFA and was signed for $8.61 million in 2055, but failed to develop to Nashville’s standards. Luckily, for bin Numair, Long Beach has much lower standards and drafted The Flame in the 2nd round of the Rule 5 draft.
RHP Imran bin Numair
But after winning 9 games for the Surfers by mid-June, bin Numair proved too promising for even Long Beach, so they traded their best pitcher to the lowest of the low in the Pacific – Vancouver. Since being acquired from the Surfers, bin Numair has picked up two more wins in relief, including a win against the Bluebirds to avoid a sweep. In tonight’s game, The Flame pitched 2.2 perfect innings. After a grand slam off the bat of Francisco Calderón put the Bluebirds up 5-1, bin Numair came in and shutdown the star-studded Nashville lineup, while the Bluebirds bullpen faltered and lost the game 6-5.
“We obviously like Imran,” said GM Chad Nason. “I mean, we overpaid for his talents to give him a shot, but it just didn’t work out for us. He’s been fantastic this year and has 11 wins. The league leader in wins has to be on the all-star game roster, right?”
While bin Numair is on pace for 22 wins, he is also on pace for a negative WAR. His 4.54 ERA is pedestrian and may cause him to battle for a roster spot every season, yet, he will always be able to call himself an all-star regardless of the outcome of his career.
