OF Angel Gonzalez
Gonzalez was drafted way back in the 2037 BBA draft at the age of 17, 9th Overall by the Vancouver Mounties. He worked his way to the majors in 2039, and by the time he was 20, was already a full-time starter, made his first All-Star game, and finished runner-up in Rookie of the Year. Very impressive, but what happened the very next year? League MVP, the last Mountie to ever do so. He finished that year (2041) with a league-leading 8.4 WAR. By 2044 he had established himself as one of the better center fielders in the league, and looked all but set to lead the franchise for years to come.. But then came a twist.
After a string of disappointing seasons with a most recent 68-94 campaign, and with Gonzalez about to run out of team control, the Mounties traded away the 25-year-old outfielder to the San Fernando Bears, receiving RP Ricardo Galindo, SP Hani Goddard, SP Don Castor and.. well we'll get to that later. The point is, it was not an easy trade to make, but for Gonzalez it was easier to sign the 6-year, $107,000,000 contract the Bears immediately gave him. After some more great seasons as a Bear, which included a runner-up league MVP run in 2049, he was dealt to Rockville in the 2050 offseason. However, after just one season in Rockville, he was traded back to Vancouver in 2052. Now 32, Gonzalez continued to wow with his bat and outfield defense, though now he was relegated to the corners. Despite this, he somehow never made it back to an All-Star game in a Vancouver uniform, but played a major part in Aaron Wharram's plans to win a Monty. He also won the team's Douglas Newhouse Award in 2056.
Unfortunately, the Mounties never did win a Brewster with him, and after the Mounties opted out of his contract in 2058, he signed with Twin Cities and played two seasons before signing with San Fernando to help with their play-off push. He finishes his Mounties career playing 13 seasons total with the team. He achieved the second most WAR amongst hitters in Mounties history with 47.8, 3 All-Star appearances (2040, 2041, 2042), and of course, league MVP (2041).
C Davenport Hinkle
Remember above where I said there was a player dealt to the Mounties in the Angel Gonzalez deal that we'd get to later? Well here he is. Hinkle was originally drafted 13th Overall in the 2043 BBA Entry Draft at the age of 18 by the Twin Cities River Monsters and was immediately recognized as a Top 50 prospect. He played solid but had a very turbulent 2044, when he was dealt to San Fernando in a package deal for 3B Alex Ramirez. San Fernando would not be his forever home, as he was dealt just two weeks later, this time to Vancouver in a package deal for... CF Angel Gonzalez. That's right, our two hall-of-famers were once traded for each other. It took quite awhile for Hinkle to work his way up to the majors, as he spent roughly six seasons working his way up to the majors in 2049. In 2050, he was named the full-time starting catcher for the Mounties.
It was a slow start offensively, but his elite glove behind the plate and power bat made up for it with an All-Star selection in 2050 and 2051. When Aaron Wharram arrived when Hinkle was 30, he began to flourish even more, hitting career highs in most offensive stats and WAR, including a 5.7 WAR and golden bat season in 2057. This also accumulated four straight All-Star appearances from 2057 to 2060. He was always considered one of the best catchers in the league in the late 2050's.
Similarily to Gonzalez, the Mounties failed to win a Brewster with him, and even after the dumpster fire 2059 season, Hinkle refused to waive his NTC to go to a contender. At the time it may have felt like an inconvenience to a rebuild, but looking back Wharram is glad they held on to him as at this point he hasn't yet played with another BBA team his entire 13 year career. With the soon-to-be 37 year old set to hit free agency, it will be a sad day to see him go, which is why they felt it appropriate to add him now. He achieved 34.9 WAR, ninth amongst all the batters in Mounties history. He also nabbed 6 All-Star appearances, a diamond glove in 2051, and a golden bat in 2057.
