Shin Seiki 2037 Draft Preview

[Evas]

January 21, 2023
by Evas

Gary Trundleburry, Shin Seiki Post
06/08/2037: Nagoya, Japan

The draft is once again upon us. It will be another busy day, as usual, in West Virginia and Yuma. And a relatively quiet one here in Shin Seiki. As is the apparent strategy, the Evas have once again dealt away much of the volume of their draft capital. This year, however, it was not used to bolster the PEBA roster. It was consolidated, along with a pile other assets, into the number 1 overall pick in the draft. It is bizarre that the Evas were able pull off landing #1, and at such a reasonable price.

When the final deal with Charleston was announced, my mind went racing with possibilities. This pick could be the foundation of a new era. The draft pool is as deep as it has ever been. There are potential Aces galore and bats that could dominate the SL for years to come. The Evas have a massive hole at catcher. They could take their pick. I’ve been researching the top prospects for weeks, trying to parse out which direction Shin Seiki might go, and what would mean to the near term and long term outlook. It seemed like they could land anything GM Kevin Vail‘s heart might desire.

And there’s the rub.

Last night, panic raced through the Evas headquarters after an out-of-character meltdown by owner Anthony Burton. Burton of course has an office in SS headquarters, but he rarely occupies it. He prefers to flit in and out of suites during games, and the occasional video conference call with the front office staff. The acquisition of the #1 overall pick, and all the possibilities that entails, called for something special. Burton had the the most elaborate lunch spread you could imagine brought in – wagyu steaks, lobster, caviar, bald eagle eggs, etc. – you get the idea. He went all out.

After the feast, and much back slapping by Burton, the group finally got down to business. That’s when things broke down.

The following is a dramatization based on partial accounts from multiple sources. If you enjoy this dramatization, you might consider looking into my fiction series: Gary Thunderpen: Scribe of the Gods, available on Amazon, or at your local Sheetz.

Scene: – the Shin Seiki Evas’ front office, conference room 12SE40, which seats 40 and has a projector, according to confidential data acquired from Microsoft Outlook.

1PM sun streams in from a high angle, through partially open blinds, cutting beams in the cigar smoke pouring our ot of Burton’s mouth. No one else smokes, or comments on his smoking. Clearly, he is he big boss man. Though not literally the 1980’s WWF wrestler of that name. That guy is dead, probably.

Burton:

Team, I am proud of the position in to which you have managed to get the Evas. The PEBA squad has a lot of positives and is in the mix for the playoffs once again. We have a few impactful bats on the verge of breaking in to the big league, and, of course, managing to secure the #1 overall pick. I believe this pick is going to be the foundation of the Evas for the foreseeable future.

Vail:

I agree. Acquiring this pick has been my main focus for the past several seasons. With this pick secured, the future of the franchise is secured.

Burton:

That is what I wanted to hear! So are you going with Shiori or Ho? What about Jouda? Is Puckett in play?

Vail:

No.

Burton:

Goater? Pasco, perhaps?

Vail:

No.

Burton:

Is there some other 5-Star guy flying under the radar that most people are unaware of?

Vail:

No.

Burton furrows his brow and places his giant expensive cigar in to a very fancy ashtray. He meanders over to a fancy polished mahogany globe of an olde-time earth map, the kind that says things like “Here there be dragons!”. He opens the globe, revealing many fancy bottles of booze. Probably single barrel vodka and things like that. He pours himself a 3 fingers of golden brown liquid, that glimmers like the hope of new nation, into a stout and fancy glass. He then sits back down at the table.

Burton:

Leave us.

A legion of overfed scouts, analysts, assistants, and coaches scuttle out of the room fast. They are scared of the big boss man. Head scout Jun Takeuchi is the last to leave. He squints like he is trying to solve puzzle, while looking at the two remaining titans of baseball. HE closes the enormous fancy door after him silently. GM Kevin Vail sits calmly a the table near Burton. His laptop, full of the knowledge of the huge Shin Seiki scouting system and its gigantic budget.

Burton:

I do my best to not interfere. I know you see that. I have read your scouting report of me where you consider me “Hands-Off”. But I am truly confused here. If you are not planning on drafting any of the players your own team considers 5-Star talents, and you are not going to trade the pick, that only leaves a couple options. Either you plan on drafting a player and not signing him, to secure the #2 pick next season for some reason, or you are going to draft a player. So, are we going to be drafting a player?

Vail:

Assuming I get to make that call, yes, we will be drafting a player.

Burton squints and grips his fancy glass hard, with his strong hands. His knuckles whiten. The big boss man can clearly afford world class trainers because he looks like he is very strong, despite being 60 years old.

Burton:

Enough with the games. What are you up to?

Vail:

We are going to draft my son, Thomas #1 overall.

Burton sits still as a statue. A menacing boss statue. A vein in his forehead bulges. His face reddens. The glass in his hand cracks, but doesn’t shatter. His composure is hanging on be a thread. And the big boss man is heavy.

Burton:

How on Earth can you possibly justify that!?! I understand your pride in your son. And he is certainly a good prospect. But he is not nearly the top starter prospect in the draft. This is obvious nepotism. You are spending organizational resources on your own goals. I should fire you. Why should let you make that pick?

Burton’s tempo and volume continued to escalate as he talked. He was angry. So angry. And he was about to friggin’ lose it.

Vail:

I can understand your concern and how you might view this as wasteful, but I assure you – it is not.

The Shin Seiki Evas organization, and all of the success it has had over the past 28 seasons is built on 3 pillars. The first is the fan base. It is huge, enthusiastic, and devoted. Without them, none of this would be possible.

Burton nods slowly, agreeing, but unmoved.

The second pillar is you. Your approach allows the organization to pursue the right strategy, with a lot of freedom and a large budget. You never interject yourself in decision making, even while setting reasonable goals. Many other organizations are hamstrung by tight-fisted or controlling owners, but not the Evas.

Burton leans back and raises an eyebrow.

The third pillar, to be frank, is me. I have guided this organization from being regional Japanese team in the old LRS, through the dissolution of the LRS, which many teams did not survive, to become one of the premier franchises in PEBA – able to go toe-to-toe with any organization on Earth. And we won some championships along the way.

Drafting and developing Tommy is my top baseball priority. Full stop. Higher than winning a championship with the Evas in 2037. I am going to pursue that goal, no matter what. Even if that means I would do so in another organization. That would not, in my opinion, be the best outcome for the Evas. Because I would dismantle this organization brick-by-brick from the outside.

So nepotism is the price of doing business for the Evas. It’s not the first time I’ve done this either. I drafted my nephew, Taj, in the 10th round in 2032. He is not a significant prospect. But I am going to give him a low leverage job as long as he wants one.

And to be clear, this is not the end of the nepotism. I have at least one more nephew who I may maneuver to acquire. Or maybe not. My call either way. If you stop me, you’ll be competing against me, and them, for the next 20 years. And you will lose.

I understand this is a lot to digest. I understand if you decide to fire me. No hard feelings if so. I’ll leave you to your thoughts. But unless you stop me, Tommy will be an Eva tomorrow. Now if you will excuse me, I have late round picks to prepare for.

Vail gets up calmly, and exists the room, closing the door with a bit more force than Takeuchi did. The sound of the firm closing echoes through the room. Burton is still.

Soon, he gets up, and opens the blinds. Nagoya sunshine floods over him. His cracked glass slowly leaks on the table.

He stares at Genesis Park. The banners. Suddenly, his head drops. A low growl starts is throat. It grows louder. And louder. AND LOUDER.

With a start, he sprints towards the half emptied buffet table. With one swipe of his muscled paw, he sends platters of cake flying and crashing in to window. Porcelain shards fly and the window is covered in frosting like a diabetic car wash.

He smashes the table with both hands like the hulk. Glasses fall and shatter. With a scream-yell he flips the table- all the food goes flying and covers the wall. But he is not done. Pushing the limits of his 60 year old frame, he lifts the table over his head, and rams it in to the window like a battering ram. Unfortunately for him, he was not aware that the window was made of bullet proof glass (it was changes after some particularly explicit threats from Toyama fans).

The glass proved to be table-proof as well. When Burton made contact, table was immediately bounced back, causing him to lose his balance, fall on his behind like a toddler, and drop the table on his head. Splitting his bald scalp. He pushes the table to the side. Blood runs down his face and neck.

Just then, his secretary meekly enters the room. She gasps at the scene. Burton is covered in frosting and blood. Sitting on the ground, half-dazed, half-embarrassed, and half exhausted.

Slowly he gets up.

Burton:

Tell the helicopter pilot to get ready. We are to be in the air in 5 minutes. I will take the back stairs to the landing pad.

Burton left without saying another word.