Slayers land Firbal

The Slayers swung another big trade today with the acquisition of Firbal the Nasty from Wilderland. The Slayers parted with a young, good-looking prospect in Terra Treegirl as well as well-rounded reliever in Piarg Halflingslobberer. The Slayers will also send Gamailborn in the trade.

"This could be the best hitter we've had in terms of all-around ability." K.L. spoke, "Imrilron is great for his HR, defense, and batting average, but Firbal could bring similiar qualities as well as speed, baserunning, and stealing ability - traits we have traditionally had little of. Treegirl will be missed, but we feel she'll be better in a different environment than ours, given what her strengths as a pitcher are."

Firbal is batting .329 with a .996 OPS and should help round out the Slayer lineup. Terra Treegirl was having some success in Nurn, but with little playing time. 1-0 with a 1.04 ERA in 8 IP this year. Halflingslobberer was just starting to get the beginnings of playing time - doing well with a 2.86 ERA in 14 innings so far. Gamaiborn is off to another slow start with a .208 BA and 7 HR.

"The Nasty" will be the starting 1B. The question is who will fill the other spot in the roster. Some think the team will bring up Driderwalker for depth at 1B, although Vogel will likely get some looks as well for his sheer versitility. Less likely, though possible, is a pitcher being called up. Quinn Ladygrass is ready for major league action and now there is a roster spot for her. Fosco Sandybank and Gemina Velenda are also patiently awaiting their next chance.

Some wonder why the team would be worried about the offense. Imrilron is supposedly declining (at least according to scouts - who dropped him again last week), and is getting up in age. Perhaps the team is looking for his successor. That said, the offense has been wildly inconsistant thus far, and part of that may be the lack of ability to manufacture runs. Firbal could help with that as his singles could be followed up with a stolen base, or advancing to third on another single.

Placement in the order is another topic for discussion. Batting him somewhere around Imrilron and Chubb would be the traditional case, but leadoff is another option. Foxburr is the current leadoff hitter, but has hit lower in the Slayer order before.

Regardless, the Slayers pick up a young hitter that has the makings of being someone special as he enters his prime years. Chances are, where to bat him is a problem K.L. doesn't mind having.

Posted at March 2, 2006 12:11 AM | more from Minas Morgul