September 8, 2042
1. Well, thanks to a 5-1 week, we've found ourselves seven games up on Hawaii, a.k.a. Ron and Justin's favorite Pacific team. With only 22 games to play, this puts us in the driver's seat to secure the Pacific division. Let's hope I didn't just jinx it.
2. I've been mulling my recent trades:
a. Received 3B Jose Cortes for SP Aurelio Castillo, RP Francisco Concepción, and 2B Xue-qin Man.
---Likely an overpay as I like Castillo and Concepcion an awful lot compared to the value Cortes brings, but, I felt, Cortes is a solid performer at a position of need for us (and he's a captain to boot, which I needed also).
b. Received 2B Edgardo Encarnación and OF Sergio Salazar for SS Daryl Pris, SP John Bartlett, RP Rafael Torres, and RP Kwan-cheol Park.
---I'm extremely excited to bring in a solid bat for the middle infield in Encarnacion. If he can stay healthy, he'll be a +AVG and +OBP speedster. Salazar was a late add-on to the deal. Jacksonville had mentioned their overabundance of outfielders in their system, and we were happy to take "The Chosen One" off their hands. He looks to be a solid +defender, +speed, and decent bat from the right side of the plate. And, unfortunately, he immediately became our number eight prospect, according to OOTP. Salazar will likely need another year in the minors to season. On the flip side of the deal, I hate looking at who I gave up as I was a big fan of all four. Pris is just an impossible guy not to want on the field. His elite infield defense and serviceable bat from the left side should make him a solid contributor for any team he's on. The other three guys were all top relief prospects in our organization. Looks like we'll be drafting another 15 pitchers in the 2043 draft.
c. Received a Tower of Pears for DH Dusty Rhodes.
--- I love Dusty Rhodes, but he just wasn't helping contribute to many wins anymore. Chicago was willing to take him off our books and give him some at bats, so we were happy to oblige. The pears were already browning and one had a bite taken out of it when we received the Tower of Pears, but, I suppose, we should expect nothing less from Chicago's owner, Vance Velocity.
d. Received RP Bill O'Connor, RP Jong-min Min, and RP Bo "Shoeless" Zhai for 3B Hector Ojeda and SP Francisco Estrada.
--- Calgary reached out for the services of Ojeda, and we found a bundle of players to make it work. O'Connor finds himself back with us after an offseason trade where we sent him to Calgary for OF Aires Gonzalez. It's nice to have O'Connor home, especially after sending all our other top relief prospects to Seattle and Jacksonville. But, the highlight of the trade was bringing my family's foreign exchange student from a couple years back, Bo 'Shoeless' Zhai, to the California organization. Bo is a top notch kid with a bright future. If his skills don't develop on the field, he'll definitely find himself working inside the Crusader offices one day.
3. Horrible Simpson smashed six homers in our last three games. If he can remain hot through the end of the season and into the playoffs, we've got a tremendous shot at bringing a Landis back to Sacramento.
4. @Lane called me out on a recent AFBI for being a bit pessimistic about the Crusaders. First off, I'd like to thank Stephen for straightening out my shitty thoughts. Second, the Heartland can go F themselves, because the Pacific is representing the Frick League in the Landis this year. Let's go, bitches!
5. I'm hungry for this (with a Hot n' Tot or a Purple Cow):
