Poblanotes 50.5- But The Cat Came Back
Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2022 11:26 am
If you have kids, or ever were a kid, you're probably familiar with the song "The Cat Came Back". In case you're not, it concerns a farmer (I think) trying more and more desperate measures to get rid of his cat. He puts it on a train, shoots it into space on a rocket, etc., only to find it sitting comfortably back on his porch the next day.
Anyway, that's me and Gary Goodchild...
I drafted Gary with my first draft pick ever after getting the GM job in Jerusalem. He zipped through the minors and was the staff ace on my 2046 Burt League Champions. Then I got the job here in El Paso, and figured I'd never see Gary again...
Fast forward a few seasons. The intervening years had not been kind either Gary or myself. He'd signed a big free agent contract and immediately started pitching poorly, while I couldn't get much traction on my pitching staff in Texas. Then last season, I had the opportunity to trade for him. He came burdened with that contract, but the asking price was Ramon Pagan, who was making good money himself, and too old to be part of the next relevant Chilis team. So I pulled the trigger... and Goodchild immediately showed me why he was available for trade...
So this year, I decided to give him another chance... heck he's only 23. Nope- same results. I put him on waivers; unsurprisingly no one claimed him. I sent him to AAA, figuring that would be the last I saw of him until maybe I could package him with a prospect to get rid of his salary. Then, I had an opening in my rotation, and when I reached down to Albuquerque for a starter... guess who was having the best year...
So he's back with me, and I'm resigned to the idea that he's in my life to stay. He'll probably be a groomsman at my wedding and a pallbearer at my funeral. And he'll still probably have an 8.00 ERA...
Anyway, that's me and Gary Goodchild...
I drafted Gary with my first draft pick ever after getting the GM job in Jerusalem. He zipped through the minors and was the staff ace on my 2046 Burt League Champions. Then I got the job here in El Paso, and figured I'd never see Gary again...
Fast forward a few seasons. The intervening years had not been kind either Gary or myself. He'd signed a big free agent contract and immediately started pitching poorly, while I couldn't get much traction on my pitching staff in Texas. Then last season, I had the opportunity to trade for him. He came burdened with that contract, but the asking price was Ramon Pagan, who was making good money himself, and too old to be part of the next relevant Chilis team. So I pulled the trigger... and Goodchild immediately showed me why he was available for trade...
So this year, I decided to give him another chance... heck he's only 23. Nope- same results. I put him on waivers; unsurprisingly no one claimed him. I sent him to AAA, figuring that would be the last I saw of him until maybe I could package him with a prospect to get rid of his salary. Then, I had an opening in my rotation, and when I reached down to Albuquerque for a starter... guess who was having the best year...
So he's back with me, and I'm resigned to the idea that he's in my life to stay. He'll probably be a groomsman at my wedding and a pallbearer at my funeral. And he'll still probably have an 8.00 ERA...