Spuds fans were blindsided this morning by the news that longtime captain and fan favorite, Dennis French, had been traded to the Charlotte Cougars.It was speculated that the end of French’s tenure with the Spuds was coming, though perhaps not this soon. French had only a year and a half remaining on his contract, and extension talks had stalled. The team’s options, more or less, were to ride it out and possibly end up with a comp pick in the draft, or to trade him for prospects before his time was up. They opted for the latter as soon as it became clear that they weren’t going to be in contention for the playoffs this season, a fate which may have been sealed by the recent sweep at the hands of division-leading Calgary.
The prospects coming back to Boise are pitcher Willard Labonte, who has potential to become a mid-rotation starter, and catcher John Adams, who at 5’5” and 225 pounds is affectionately called “His Rotundity”. He has one of the best throwing arms in the CPL, having gunned down 20 out of 30 runners in steal attempts this season. Even so, neither of them are “can’t miss” prospects, and some fans are outraged that Boise didn’t hold out for a bigger return for their franchise player.
Spuds fans, when they heard about the return for Dennis French.
A bright side to this might be that with French’s salary off the books, Boise will have the funds to pursue extensions for pitcher Robin Cooper and first baseman Pepe Madrid, both due to become free agents after this season. Cooper has been the unquestioned ace of the staff, and Madrid has been a longtime fan favorite, so Boise is keen to retain both players.
French departs the Spuds as the franchise leader in games played, WAR, hits, runs, RBI, doubles, triples, stolen bases, outfield assists, and of course, “Most Valuable Potato” awards.
