No PP: The Shogunate Shift.

[ae37jr]

"The Shogunate Shift."
November 2063 | Twin Cities River Monsters | By the "Beneath the Surface" staff

INT. RIVER MONSTERS FRONT OFFICE LATE NIGHT
The fluorescent lights hum over the war room. Empty coffee cups. Crumpled roster sheets. One whiteboard with "2064 STAFF?" scrawled in all caps. Two men remain.

Gerald Brandt, manager of the Monsters, pacing like a lion in cage spikes.
Alan Ehlers, general manager, sitting back in his chair, arms crossed, gaze steely.
A faded #3 Tokugawa Yamashita jersey hangs above the door like a shrine relic.

BRANDT: (slams a stat sheet down)
You ever read the end of a samurai story, Alan? The old master lays down his blade, and the apprentice steps forwardquiet, steady, unshaken. That's Angelo Rodriguez. It's time.

EHLERS: (without looking up)
You sure about that? 'Cause I've read that story too. And sometimes the apprentice fumbles the blade, drops it in a rice field, and the whole village burns.

BRANDT:
Yamashita's asking for three mil a year through age 40. You want to build a shrine or win a pennant? We've squeezed every drop from that orange. Angelo's 32, throws a bowling ball, and doesn't ask for the spotlight.

EHLERS: (turns in his chair, taps the jersey)
This guy was the rotation. From mop-up man to playoff starter. We paid him peanuts and he gave us war stories. You're ready to toss him to the unemployment line like a cheap ramen wrapper.

BRANDT:
You wanna pay $3 million to lead the league in walks? Fine. I'll pay Rodriguez next to nothing for a 2.40 ERA and a five-pitch mix that makes hitters question their existence. Tokugawa was the past. Angelo is the bridge.

EHLERS: (raises an eyebrow)
He's fragile with poor control too. Don't act like Rodriguez is carved from titanium. He's 32 and already been passed around more than a karaoke mic in Shinjuku.

BRANDT:
But this is the first time anyone's actually listened to his song.

EHLERS: (leans in, voice softens)
You think this kid's ready to take on Yamashita's burden? The postgame glare? The playoff innings? The pressure of the Murk Mob....most loyal fanbase in the BBA... screaming your name in four syllables?

BRANDT: (smirks)
He doesn't need a chant. He needs a damn contract. This guy is the bargain player we dream of.

EHLERS: (sighs)
You've already written the eulogy.

BRANDT:
No, Alan. I'm writing the next chapter. Tokugawa just had his hero's goodbye. Top of the sixth inning, I went out there and took the ball from him after he outdueled Bin-ying Yen in a game that put us up 3 games to two in the Cartwright Cup against the rivaled Bluebirds. As he tipped his cap to the 67,281 members of the Murk Mob, that was the loudest crowd I have ever heard in my life. Ya-Ma-Shi-Ta... Clap, Clap... Clap, Clap Clap. It doesn't get any better than that. Let that be the memory. He has given us everything he had for the last 13 years. But it's time....

EHLERS: (looks up at the jersey. Long pause. Tears in his eyes)
Nobody warned me how hard this GM Shit was going to be. I'll offer Rodriguez a 3+3 contract. But Yamashita is going to come back and be a pitching coach when he retires. I don't care if I actually have to write a damn team news myself to make it happen.

BRANDT: (nods)
Deal... the torch is passed.

EHLERS:
Just make sure Rodriguez doesn't drop it.