[Westheim]

February 9 – 30-yr old SP Hector Lara (86-123, 4.27 ERA) returns to the Crusaders for 3-yr, $2.47M. The Raccoons receive a supplemental round draft pick.
February 9 – The Warriors ink C Sidney Aycock (.274, 19 HR, 222 RBI) to a 1-yr, $456k contract. The Raccoons receive another supplemental round draft pick.
February 9 – Career saves leader Andres Ramirez (83-99, 2.55 ERA, 607 SV) at age 38 receives a 2-yr, $1.58M contract from the Condors. Ramirez comes of a World Series title with the Capitals.
February 10 – Because the damage to the ligaments in his elbow is too extensive to ever return to pitching effectively again, 28-yr old SP Ramon Sotelo (60-76, 3.62 ERA) is forced to retire. The Venezuelan right-hander spent his entire career with the Wolves, who signed him at the age of 17. The former #5 prospect spent more than three of his ten years as a professional recuperating from injuries.
February 18 – 38-yr old ex-IND SP Robbie Campbell (232-171, 3.31 ERA) jumps onto the Cyclones’ bandwagon on a 1-yr, $580k contract.
February 27 – 31-yr old left-handed MR Javier Ortíz (21-14, 3.40 ERA, 9 SV), who had suffered severe skull fractures in an off-field assault last August, announces that he has lost virtually all eyesight in his left eye, whose socket had been shattered in the attack, and retires from baseball. Ortíz appeared in 312 games for the Indians, Titans, and Pacifics.
March 6 – The Condors add 32-yr old ex-VAN 1B/3B Jesus Galindo (.262, 10 HR, 65 RBI) to a 1-yr, $362k contract.
March 8 – The Raccoons agree to terms with 34-yr old ex-PIT SP Manuel “Bam Bam” Movonda (149-145, 3.78 ERA). The Colombian right-hander signed a 1-yr, $425k contract. The Raccoons forfeit their second round draft pick to the Miners.
March 18 – The Condors keep splurging money at people, signing 30-yr old ex-LVA CL Cory Maupin (32-34, 2.82 ERA, 170 SV) to a 1-yr, $670k contract.
March 28 – Veteran OF Clement Clark (.308, 55 HR, 755 RBI), who spent the last few years with the Crusaders, joins the Thunder. The 35-year old receives a 1-yr, $372k contract.

About fifteen years later, we have come full circle. Around 1984/85, I was trying to get the Falcons to trade Movonda for one of my starters, we actually HAD a deal – and I didn’t pull through. The thoughts haunted me for years. Oh, what could have been!

Now, Movonda is a Raccoon and our new #2 starter. For what it’s worth. He pitched to a 4.96 ERA and 1.54 WHIP last season, and everything that made me make an offer was the .349 BABIP he suffered from. We surrendered our own second round pick rather than the second round pick we got from the Condors.

And by the way, whom else will these Condors sign!? They have like 80 players a salaries of a billion dollars by now! Their roster strikes horrible fear, and they gobbled up ex-Coons David Brewer, Ben O’Morrissey, and David Vinson in the last few months, plus a-little-longer-ex-Coons Roberto Carrillo and Toru Fujita – that’s right, one of the SACs, the Single Appearance Coons. Whom else do they have? Woody Roberts, Bastyao Caixinha, Harry Griggs, Andres Ramirez, Cory Maupin, Bruce Boyle, Jesus Galindo, Raúl Solís, Chun-mei Liang, Rory Gorden, Dale Wales, Antonio Rodriguez, Luis Maldonado, Martin Horn, Serafim Laborinhos … they can’t even fit them all onto the roster! Those are your 1998 champions, right there. I’ve got five on it!

The rotation is now fixed at Saito – Movonda – Lopez – Farley – Rivera. Esteban Flores and Bryce Hildred are no longer needed, but neither has options left. One possible move would be to have Flores pitch as mop up / swing man and instead send Pancho Padilla (who has one last option) to AAA. Hildred will be waived anyway. Worst thing that can happen is that we won’t have to pay the $150k for the seventh guy on the depth chart – at best.

With Jose Ramos going unsigned, we are looking at having six of the first 57 picks in the 1998 draft, and eight of the first 85.

The draft will be the high point of the year. It could only be topped by Kisho Saito pitching a no-hitter and striking out 15 in the same game.