Legilmador into the swing

by Ghazlakh the Abominable

Voklyn (DNA) – Tavlla Legilmador is enjoying life a lot more than he was last year. "I started off the year really looking forward to the season. My off season workouts had paid off and I could tell we had something special," Legilmador says as he sits back in his deerskin recliner. Looking out the window, the view of the battle plain is spectacular and awe inspiring. "Our pitching staff was solid and throwing smoke, our bats were starting to heat up. It was in the air, you could just smell the success." And he was right. Dagorlad finished first in the in the Troll division and made it to the Mordor Conference finals. "You could just tell."

Legilmador had reason to be excited. He was coming off a year where he had been named to the 2003 All-Star team and ended up hitting .341 with 40 homeruns. With him and Gamilas Eowil-Galad anchoring the middle of the lineup, the team looked formidable at the plate.

And then came the injury. "I saw the ball take off into the gap, so I figured I could score from first. I planted my foot on the corner of second to push off and I felt like my knee exploded." It did. Legilmador’s anterior cruciate ligament was shredded. "I thought it was all over."

Team doctor Juko Bloodsponger operated two days later. "It was a complete reconstruction. It was as bad as any I had ever seen," Bloodsponger recalled. "I thought I was done," Legilmaldor said. "I’d seen other players go down with these and never come back right. But, within a week, I decided I was going to try and be the exception."

Legilmador started his rehabilitation with a vengeance. "He was in the training room working when we came in for pre-game workouts, came and sat on the bench with us for home games, and went back into the training room after the games. He was an animal," says Nusil Ringtooth who was brought into replace Legilmador and backs him up at first base this year. "He was as much a reason for our success last year as anybody. It was hard to not want to play hard after seeing how badly he wanted to be back on the field with us."

This year Legilmador has started slowly. "It’s taken a bit to get the timing back. Spring training helps, but it's not the same as stepping up the plate in Isengard's new white stadium or stepping over the snakes on the way to Minas Morgul's first base." Legilmador smiles as he points out over the plain outside his window. "I mean, it's not like what I do is half as hard as what those guys did. It's just a game." But he turns back with a twinkle in his eye and a stern look, "But it’s a game I want to win every time I play."

Posted at February 7, 2004 05:05 PM | more from Dagorlad