November 11, 2059
by Banjo Jackson
Nashville, TN
After the recent loss in the Cartwright Cup to the Portland Lumberjacks, Nashville GM Chad Nason headed back to the drawing board. The Bluebirds are loaded with talent, but with a $120 million salary cap, every superstar cannot be retained when they all deserve nine figure contracts. Brooks Eliot will be seeking a long term contract and locking up the shortstop position is paramount. Eric Stevens will also be seeking a long-term commitment and the Bluebirds would be silly to not consider paying one of the league’s top pitchers. So who gets the short stick?
Star slugger, Majd bin Nawaf, appears to be the odd man out in Nashville. The league leader in HR and RBI has been shipped out to Yellow Springs with two years remaining under team control. Bin Nawaf was expected to make over $9 million this year and now those resources can go towards other extensions.
LF Majd bin Nawaf
“Majd was a vital part of our lineup during his time here in Nashville,” said Nason. “However, the emergence of Prince and Usamah lurking in the minors leaves us in a good position. We will also look to add De-shi Kuo to the roster for some more added oomph from the left side. Plus, we like the return we got that will help make our farm the best in the league.”
What return could possibly be worth it for a perennial Silk candidate under team control? Well, it would dhave to be a whopper; and a whopper it was. BBA’s top ranked prospect, Zee-loo Tsao, headlines the deal, but the 22 year old hasn’t shown many signs of putting together all the tools that scouts see and he will need to be added to the 40 man roster this season. Tsao batted .310 in Short A, but struggled in Single A, hitting just .210. He appears to be better suited in the corners, but can play CF in a pinch.
CF Zee-loo Tsao
Nashville also landed a pair of highly-touted prospects with high upside in Carter ‘Fortnite’ Cramer and Brent ‘Black Jack’ Chappel. The former is a CF selected 8th overall in the 2057 draft and looks like he can stick in CF. He possesses amazing power and played well in Short A last season, slashing .295/.363/.522 in 2059 after two solid seasons in Rookie Ball. He is currently ranked the #72 prospect in the BBA. Chappel, 17, was drafted 4th overall in last year’s draft and posted a 1.72 ERA in Rookie Ball and is ranked as the #43 BBA prospect. He looks to be a middle of the rotation starter with three great pitches and the ability to keep the ball in the park.
CF Carter Cramer
SP Brent Chappel
This haul will certainly cause Nashville to leapfrog into the #1 farm system in the BBA, though they were already arguably #1. SS Cesar Aybar, who started the year in Nashville, will also be headed to the Nine. The Bluebirds will be looking to add a couple more pieces to the roster this offseason, but don’t expect any splashes as big as this one.
