Sticking Points 2039.5: A Fond Farewell To Mario Guerrer
Posted: Tue Jun 11, 2019 9:18 am
Rockville's owner, in denial, issued an order to Rockville GM Aaron Weiner this week to sign lineup stalwart Mario Guerrer, a player who has spent his entire career in a Rockville uniform. Guerrer, whose .972 OPS last year (5th in the Johnson League) has curiously caused him to resist signing for the league minimum, is set to be a free agent for the first time at age 27.
"It's a very scary idea that I'll be leaving this team," said Guerrer, who was drafted in 2028 by the Pikemen at the age of 17. "It's an adventure, but it's not one I would have chosen."
Guerrer has been one of the team's best players since his rookie season in 2033. He won the Joe Gillstrom Award as the best rookie that season, hitting a remarkable .342 with 25 homers and leading the franchise resurgence back to relevance, with an 82-80 record. Guerrer has posted a thoroughly remarkable .960 OPS in his time with the Pikemen, perhaps the highest mark in the BBA over that time span.
"I know we have a ton of talent, but Mario has been our rock since minute one of his career," said Weiner. "He and Francisco Flores made our team into what it is today. They both came up at the same time, and we could only afford one of those guys, and Francisco asked for a lot less money to stay, and he plays catcher, and so we kept him, but believe me when I tell you that if we could have kept both players, we would have."
Many teams would have been able to keep both players, but Rockville is so loaded with talent that they couldn't keep a player like Guerrer, even though it will definitely hurt the team. With a number of contract considerations coming up over the next few years, including Dan Cannon, Chip Puckett, Manuel Marino, Lorenzo Palacios, and others, Rockville's superstar first baseman will be playing somewhere else next year, as he surely deserves to be paid after six stellar seasons in Rockville.
"I would have liked to have finished off the three-peat, but I'll always have amazing memories of my time in Rockville," said Guerrer. "It's going to be very hard to leave this team but I know they can't pay me at all, and that's the business end of this game."
"It's a very scary idea that I'll be leaving this team," said Guerrer, who was drafted in 2028 by the Pikemen at the age of 17. "It's an adventure, but it's not one I would have chosen."
Guerrer has been one of the team's best players since his rookie season in 2033. He won the Joe Gillstrom Award as the best rookie that season, hitting a remarkable .342 with 25 homers and leading the franchise resurgence back to relevance, with an 82-80 record. Guerrer has posted a thoroughly remarkable .960 OPS in his time with the Pikemen, perhaps the highest mark in the BBA over that time span.
"I know we have a ton of talent, but Mario has been our rock since minute one of his career," said Weiner. "He and Francisco Flores made our team into what it is today. They both came up at the same time, and we could only afford one of those guys, and Francisco asked for a lot less money to stay, and he plays catcher, and so we kept him, but believe me when I tell you that if we could have kept both players, we would have."
Many teams would have been able to keep both players, but Rockville is so loaded with talent that they couldn't keep a player like Guerrer, even though it will definitely hurt the team. With a number of contract considerations coming up over the next few years, including Dan Cannon, Chip Puckett, Manuel Marino, Lorenzo Palacios, and others, Rockville's superstar first baseman will be playing somewhere else next year, as he surely deserves to be paid after six stellar seasons in Rockville.
"I would have liked to have finished off the three-peat, but I'll always have amazing memories of my time in Rockville," said Guerrer. "It's going to be very hard to leave this team but I know they can't pay me at all, and that's the business end of this game."