Friday, November 29, 2013

2013 BRASS Free Agency - Hail to the King

In somewhat of a surprise move, the California Roadrunners signed the top free agent starting pitcher, Felix Hernandez, to an epic, seven-year, $58M deal this off season. The contract signed by Hernandez is the largest in California history, and is second to only Justin Verlander's seven-year, $60M deal in the league. Hernandez finished the 2013 season as a Santa Barbara Outlaw after being traded from Superior in July in a package deal that sent top prospect Bubba Starling from the Outlaws to the Blues. Overall, Hernandez posted a 14-10 record with a 3.53 ERA and 203 strikeouts in 217 innings. He was somewhat of a disappointment for Santa Barbara in the regular season, but did manage to contribute a 4-3 record and 49 strikeouts in 8 starts for the Outlaws.

It's quite possible that Santa Barbara management became soured over the idea of signing The King for the long-term after his less-than-stellar performance during the last third of the season. Without knowing how much Yukon the Outlaw front office had consumed, the Roadrunners knew they had to step it up in order to acquire one of the best pitchers in the game. "We are all very happily surprised when we found out that our brothers from the AL West decided not to match our offer for The King," explained the team's GM, Brendan Conrad. "We knew we were either going to have to pay top dollar for one of the game's best, or make the Outlaws open up and take it all."

The deal for California changes the landscape in the AL West. Once overlooked as a team rebuilding, the Roadrunners now find themselves in a position to once again challenge for the division. In an earlier trade with the Cook County Maulers, the team made amends with right-handed starter, John Lackey, and traded away J.J. Hardy to get him back. California now boasts a competitive rotation that is now anchored by Hernandez. When asked about California being done in free agency, the Roadrunner GM replied, "Well, of course you never know; we do have a few bucks left to spend even after we put Felix on the payroll. I would say this: never count us out... especially if it involves weakening our rivals in the wild West."

No comments:

Post a Comment