The Twin Cities River Monsters and Sacramento Mad Popes have seemed to spark up a friendly rivalry recently. The two teams have exchanged wins in each of the last two post seasons as well as having a public beef over who has the better closer. But an event that happened last spring may have taken this rivalry past the point of friendship.
Sertac Safavi started his career with the El Paso Chilli's in 2050 as a September call up. In 2051 he won the Gillstrom award with .347/.437/.575 batting line. That winter, he was traded to the River Monsters in a deal for prized pitching prospect Micah Harrington. Safavi became part of a young core that lead the River Monsters to the Cartwright Cup in 2052 and another playoff appearance in 2054.
Heading into 2055, there were high hopes for the 27 year old Safavi. He was coming off his best season as a River Monster(.294/.377/.524) and the team seemed poised for another run. Unfortunately, Joe King and the M'opes had other ideas.
In the first inning of a meaningless spring training game, Safavi took a 3-1 fastball deep off of Joe King. We're not sure if Safavi took his time rounding the bases, said something to King or maybe King was just being an A-hole. But in Safavi's next at bat, with two out and nobody on, Safavi took a fastball to the head. He was immediately taken out of the game and brought to the medical facility for concusion testing. Sadly, the results came back positive.
Savafi was set to miss 7 weeks of action. Just as he was about to start rehab, he suffered a setback and missed another 5-6 weeks. Eventually he made his return to the lineup, but something was off. He wasn't his usual self. Safavi couldn't find a groove all year. Denying it had anything to do with concussion, he ended with a .237/.320/.389 line, by far the worst of his career. Safavi was so bad, he was left off postseason roster in every series.
In a post season press conference Safavi confessed a different narrative. He said...
"I was dizzy all year. Everything was spinning. Between at bats I'd go in the clubhouse and throw up. I just couldn't get comfortable at the plate. So while my teammates were living the dream in the playoffs, I saw some specialists and they confirmed my biggest fear. I'm suffering from CTE and it's not likely to get better. They say it's best if I retire."
Scouts seem to back up the diagnosis. Safavi, went from 8/7/8/8/6 to 5/7/6/8/6 in a matter of months. It's a sad ending for someone who the team viewed as a core player. Luckily the team insured his contract and will not be charged for the $9 million he was due this season. But it's another blow to a team that is also losing David Simpson, Roberto Rivera and others.
Safavi has not ruled out comeback, though it seems unlikely. Maybe a GBC team picks him up or possibly he latches on with a BBA team on a AAA contract. Heck, Twin Cities may bring him back and give him an opportunity when the time is right.
