Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Press conference about to begin as Fushigi Yugi Celestial Warriors GM Greg Abcarian arrives at the microphone.

“Let me first say thank you to all of you from the press for coming today.  We have a major trade announcement to make.  While it saddens our heart to trade this player, it helps increase our chances for success in the future.  The trade made today was with the Hyakujuu Shinkansen and it involved us sending Shigekazu Takahashi to them for the following: Hyakujuu’s first and fourth round picks in the upcoming draft and Junji Ohayashi.

“I understand some people are going to complain and raise a fuss about this trade because we are only four games out of 2^nd place.  This trade doesn’t mean we won’t be trying to win.  We have a few other talks at the moment to acquire a new third baseman and a couple of starting pitchers that should keep us competitive now and in the future.  Shigekazu was going to be a free agent at the end of the season and, at 37 years old, we weren’t going to re-sign him, so this was a no-brainer.  Complain all they want; those naysayers will be proven wrong in a year or two.  I will now take a few questions.”

“Is there any truth in the rumors that you are going to let Iwao Sanu go back to school?  It seems to me with that type of power potential, you don’t let him go,” said Toyota Kowasaki from JPTV.

“We are still negotiating with him, so those rumors are false.  He is currently asking more than we are willing to pay, but we have an open communication going and it is very easy going.  Now on the other hand, Shunsen Taguchi is most likely headed to college.”

“How can you say you are trying to win, yet you trade away one of the team’s most important players?” asked Suzuki Daihatsu from Fukuoka Times.

“Well, I know from where you are sitting it looks bad, but this deal was too good to pass up.  Honestly, besides last week, what has he done for us most of this season?  He is 37 years old and had an expiring contract.  Yes, we could have kept him, offered him a contract, and he could have been labeled a ‘type A’ free agent, but when do people sign those guys?  While I’d be a liar if I said Ohayashi is as good as Takahashi, we think he can step in defensively and do a fantastic job there while the rest of the offense picks up some of the lost production.”

“Aren’t you afraid of what this will do at the box office?” asked Isuzu Hino of the Fushigi Yugi accounting department.

“Isuzu, my old friend, no, I am not.  I understand that we will take an immediate hit, but this is about the long-term status of the team.  Over the last few seasons, this team has not been winning like it was supposed to, and that has hurt revenue.  So at the beginning of this season, I made a determination to trade away any excess players (defined as big contracts that are expiring this year) for building blocks of the future.  Last season, I made the mistake of chasing the playoffs, and it cost us drastically.  I won’t make that mistake again.”

“Any truth in that you are currently trying to trade Mushanokoji Furukawa?” asked Subaru Honda of The Japanese Daily.

“This will be the last question I answer today, as I have GM duties I need to attend to.  Furukawa is with us under contract for the next year and a half.  He is a great teammate and does the things we ask of him.  Now if a good offer comes along, we’d be foolish not to take it, as we have Augusto Delgado waiting in the wings.

“Well, I’d like to thank all of you for coming, and remember to support your C-Warriors.  Also, on August 1, it will be 75% off on all Shigekazu Takahashi items.  Thank you and good night.”