One the eve of the 2041 trade deadline, the Boise Spuds made the first splash, acquiring veterans Ryosei Akiyama and Frank Mahaffey from the Brooklyn Robins in exchange for three minor league prospects."We're extremely delighted how we've performed this year so far," Boise general manager Joe Lederer told reports. "But we think we can go deep into the playoffs and figured we should strengthen the club any way possible. It's been a magical year, so why not go for it?" At the moment, Boise has surprised the entire Brewster with a league-best 81-46 record and on their way to reaching the post-season for the first time in the franchise's seven year history.
Akiyama, 26, will add an additional left-hander to the Boise bullpen along with Dave Walsh. For the year, Akiyama is 3-5 with 15 saves with a 3.38 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. The southpaw is holding left-handed hitters to a .176/.261/.294 slash line. "It's all about match-ups in the playoffs," Lederer added. "Ryosei can shut down the best lefty bats and provides us with the type of strikeout pitcher we've struggled to develop." Akiyama had spent the first seven years of his big league career with the Brooklyn organization since being acquired in a 2034 trade with Chicago. A two-time All-Star, including in 2041, Akiyama is a pending free agent at season's end.
Also entering free agency at the conclusion of the season is the Spuds' other acquisition, Frank Mahaffey. Mahaffey, who just hit his 300th career home run two days ago, is likely to take over as the team's designated hitter against right-handers. On the season, Mahaffey is hitting .275 with 38 HR and against righty pitching, the 30-year-old from Las Vegas has an .951 OPS.
"We've rotated the lefty platoon spot at designated hitter all year long with Drew (Hair) and Adam (Parrish). They've really done a great job but when Frank was made available, we had to act quick," Spuds manager Millard Davis told Treasure Valley Sports. "The addition of another left-handed bat also allows us to move one of the guys to the bench for pinch-hitting duties."
Here's how Mahaffey stacks up with Boise's left-handed DHs against RHP
| PLAYER | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frank Mahaffey | .286 | .347 | .605 | .951 |
| Adam Parrish | .287 | .416 | .503 | .919 |
| Drew Hair | .257 | .307 | .464 | .771 |
Xin, 25, made his rookie debut earlier this season for Boise, earning two saves to go along with a 3.00 ERA and 1.30 WHIP. Hicks, a second-round pick in 2040, is the highest-rated prospect in the deal. After missing most of his senior year in high school to an elbow injury, the Boise organization had brought the teenager along slowly. In one-plus professional seasons, Hicks is 2-7 with 18 saves in 48.1 innings (5.96 ERA, 1.45 WHIP). Medina, 20, was the team's #17 ranked prospect in the pre-season and projects to be an athletic hitter with doubles power, a plus-arm and the ability to play multiple positions in the infield.
