Off Topic
This is part a series of retrospectives looking back at every year in the franchise history of the previous forms of the Swamp Foxes: The Rockville Pikemen, Carolina Kraken, Hackensack Bulls, and Manhattan Myst. For a full introduction and glossary of terms, here's the introductory post.
2059 Rockville Pikemen Record: 77-85, 6th/8 in JL Atlantic
After right fielder Eric Wagner opted out of his contract, Rockville was in need of a low-cost replacement outfielder, and they found a great one already in their organization: 21-year-old Octávio Martínez had never played above A-ball, but he was tabbed as the man for the job, and he delivered. Although Martínez still needed some seasoning in a few areas, most notably plate discipline, where he walked only ten times in 593 season plate appearances, he turned out to be a more than adequate big leaguer, putting up 2.1 WAR with a .295 batting average, and winning the JL Rookie of the Month Award in August.
Another rookie who impressed was Masahiko Harada, who settled in nicely as the full-time designated hitter. The 22-year-old hit 36 home runs, which is especially impressive considering he played in Rockville's famously homer-suppressing ballpark. He finished second in JL Gillstrom voting behind Charlotte's Lawrence Stewart, an egregious injustice that is still a point of contention between the North Carolina rival teams to this day.
But it wasn't all rookies steering the ship for the Pikemen. Longtime third baseman César Rodríguez signed a one-year deal to stay with the team, and perhaps fearing the end of his career, he responded by delivering the best season of his career. It earned him a 3-year extension in July — which went poorly, of course. After all, he was an old, washed up veteran.
Let that be a lesson, fellow GMs: Never trust a fluke season from a guy on the wrong side of 30.
But the team's MVP had to be fan favorite Richard Vernon. He batted .345, was the only hitter in the Atlantic to eclipse 200 hits, and was Rockville's lone All-Star representative. He also posted career highs in triples (12) and OPS (.865).
The pitching rotation was led by veterans, with Jon Keys returning on a one-year deal, and being one of the more consistent starters on the staff. It was a big comeback year for a guy who posted a 6.82 ERA the previous year.
Nathaniel Davis also had a big return to the rotation, after missing most of '57 and '58 with a torn UCL. He led the staff in wins while pitching to a clean 4.00 ERA.
Rockville also used a six-man pitching rotation for the entirety of the season, and the extra rest probably helped with durability. It should be noted that none of their starting pitchers missed a game due to injury for the entire year.
Rockville's season trajectory had them flirting with .500 until about the end of June (37-39), then they slowly sunk into the depths of the second division. But they were never that terrible, either — at no point were they more than ten games under .500.
However, the biggest tragedy of Rockville's season was something that didn't happen on the field. In June, they made catcher António Meadows their first-round pick and dubbed him the face of the franchise, and Meadows responded by retiring without signing a contract. We don't know what was said in negotiations, but it must have been pretty terrible to cause the kid to give up on baseball entirely. Maybe he'll pull a Bo Jackson and return one day, but until then, we hope he's found something fulfilling in his life.
League Awards:
JL Puckett Golden Bat, Richard Vernon
Most Valuable Pikeman:
2B/SS Richard Vernon, .345/.394/.471, 28 SB, 88 R, 5.2 WAR
Most Valuable Strikeman:
SP Nathaniel Davis, 27 GS, 11-9, 4.00 ERA, 3.5 WAR
Minor League Player of the Year:
3B Iván Alvarado (AA), .329/.384/.513, 20 HR, 62 RBI, 3.8 WAR
Weird Statistic of the Year:
The remarkable thing about Richard Vernon's standout season is how few home runs he had: just 3. To find the last player with 200+ hits and 3 HR or fewer, you'd have to go back to 2051, when Carlos Gutiérrez of Charlotte did it with 205 hits and just one single round-tripper.
Transaction of the Year:
As much as Rockville's first round draft choice ended in disaster, they made up for it with these two picks in the second round. Majd is a promising starter currently on the major league staff, and Sa was part of the 2062 trade that brought Juan Hernández to the Swamp Foxes.Monday, May 12th, 2059:
Drafted SP Kasib Majd in the 2059 first-year player draft (Round 2, Pick 9, 43rd overall pick).
Drafted 2B Shu-de Sa in the 2059 first-year player draft (Supplemental Round 2, Pick 4, 70th overall pick).