The Edinburgh News
2029-09-03
Twenty-four hours.
In that space of time, Claymores’ slugger José Guillén went from, arguably, the high point of his accomplished career to, arguably, the low point.
Guillén was just 9 days into a rehab stint with the AAA Aberdeen Golden Sands when he entered himself in the history books.
On Aug. 22, the 31-year-old outfielder hit four home runs in a game against the Newport News Anchormen – the first player in Global Baseball Brotherhood history to accomplish that feat.
To put that into perspective, no player in major league PEBA history has yet hit four homers in a game. In fact, Guillén is only the second player at any level of the PEBA-verse to go yard four times in a single game. The first was Valentín Dávila, who did so on May 1, 2028 in a game against Sherwood Park (Bakersfield) while playing for the AA Hamilton Industrialists (Kalamazoo).
Guillén, understandably, was caught up in his historic moment.
"I could feel the anticipation from the crowd, the look in my teammates' eyes," he said after the game. "I was already thrilled, but as I stepped in the box I said, please God, let me hit one more."
Just one day later, the scene would be very different.
In the third inning of the rain-delayed series wrapup against Newport News, Guillén slipped on wet outfield grass, his knee twisted, and he crumpled to the ground in obvious pain.
The doctors’ verdict after the game: a torn meniscus. Guillén’s season – and quite possibly his career with the Claymores’ organization – was over in a flash.
“It just cannot be,” he said in an emotional news conference just hours before he was due to go in for surgery. “I had been out for two months with a hamstring injury, and this was supposed to just be a chance to get back in shape for the playoff drive in Scotland … and now this.”
The irony of suffering a season-ending injury while on rehab was not lost on Claymores’ brass, who concede that Guillén’s talents can be mind-blowing at times. But the slugger misses almost as many games as he plays. Last season, he was headed for the best year of his career when he encountered a string of no fewer than seven injuries that caused him to miss 50 games.
He rebounded in time for the 2028 playoffs and was named MVP of the Wildcard round and seemed primed for a big 2029 when the injury bug bit again. On June 24, he strained his hamstring and was sidelined for seven weeks, before reporting to Aberdeen for rehab.
The rest is history – good and bad.
“It’s terrible for José,” said Malcolm Wilkes, Imperial League columnist for PEBA Weekly. “But I hear he’s been asking for something like $20 million a year over six years, and there’s no way Scotland will do that – especially not with the emergence of Vincent Powell as a genuine star.
“I hate to say it, but I think we’ve seen the last of José Guillén with the Claymores.”
GM Vic Caleca, reached via Skype at his office in Central Indiana, wouldn’t comment on that possibility.
“We don’t conduct our personnel business in the media,” Caleca said. “We’re sad that José has to go through this and we’re disappointed not to have him with the team as we drive for the playoffs. But I’m not Nostradamus, and neither are you.
“Let’s finish up this exciting season first, and then we’ll see what the future might hold.”
