Bums Remove Pitchers from Block - Forever June 18, 1999
Vero Beach, FL (AP) - In the wake of the most recent trade debacle for the
Vero Beach Bums, in which owner Jason Gohlke was saved from his own
sleep-deprivation-induced idiocy by his own sleep-deprivation-induced
hesitation, the Bums front office released the following statement.
"The Vero Beach Bums would like to announce that, effective immediately
and extending indefinitely, neither Albie Lopez, nor Willie Adams, nor
Ismael Valdes will ever be placed on the trading block again.
Individually and as integral members of a rotation that will be together
for many years, these three players are worth more than any trade could
bring.
"Very few pitchers in the league have been able to accomplish as much as
they have in their short careers to this point, and, with their
combination of pinpoint control and excellent pitches, Lopez, Adams, and
Valdes have no equal.
"We thank the other PVBL owners for their interest; however, it would not
be beneficial for the Bums either now or in the future to trade any of
these players."
The Bums structured a draft-deadline deal with Calgary and Thunder Bay to
acquire the 2nd and 5th draft picks and SS Rod Lewis in return for Willie
Adams, Ismael Valdes, and CF Chuck Carr. In addition, Frank Thomas was to
go from Calgary to Thunder Bay via Vero Beach. This trade was voided by
the front office because it was submitted after the deadline. The Bums
chose to accept that ruling and not attempt to trade for the picked
players after the draft, to the chagrin of Marc-Andre Gagnon of the
Calgary Cowboys and Mr. Jesse Gouldson of the Thunder Bay Storm.
"My apologies to Mr. Gagnon and Mr. Gouldson," added Bums owner Jason
Gohlke. "I think that they understand that these pitchers were far too
valuable to give up -- despite the fact that it almost happened.
Thankfully, some sense of self-preservation caused me to avoid closing the
deal before the deadline."
Earlier in the week, the Bums dealt LF Albert Belle and SS John Valentin,
as well as the 8th pick in the 2nd round, for picks #19 and #20 and 3B
Mike Kinkade. The Springfield Atoms did not use that pick, to Gohlke's
annoyance. "I was sitting there, watching the pick go unused, and
fuming," said Gohlke. "Had I known Springfield was going to default on
that pick, I would have kept it; I could have gotten a quality player.
Perhaps Springfield might compensate the Bums for the loss of that pick by
sending over another player, although I certainly wouldn't expect that to
happen."
