[MIJB#19]

General Manager Notes: Exodus continues: Bye, McCorkle
Yup, Craig McCorkle is out. And so is Bart Farrell.

We found new homes for linebacker Craig McCorkle and safety Bart Farrell. McCorkle moves to the Arizona Miners, while Farrell joins the Texas Sharks. In return, we received fourth and fifth round picks in the 2089 draft respectively. Earlier on, we sent the 1.27 and 2.27 picks to the reigning IHOF champions (Houston Mustangs) for their first round pick in 2089 and their third round pick.

Craig McCorkle, inside linebacker, last season moved to the strongside. We picked him 18th overall in the 2079 draft and after a season of third linebacker duties, he burst into the league as a full time starter in 2080. In 2081 he earned his first All-IHOF first team selection and he repeated that in 2085. Last season he was a second teamer. Six season straight he topped the century mark in tackles. In 143 regular seasons games he made 940 tackles, 292 assists, 25.0 sacks, 16 interceptions, defended 99 passes and forced 21 fumbles. Yes, this guy has been a beast and at 29 years old is still at the top of the game. Yeah, we miss him already.

Bart Farrell was our short term replacement for last season's free agency loss Bart Guthrie. Farrell played very well in the free safety slot, but for dubious reasons we were not allowed to offer a cap out to him. A shame, as it would have made us keep him. But so be it, off he goes after just one season. Good luck in Texas!

Attempts to persuade the moronic player agents of the three remaining expensive star players resulted in another failure. It's becoming pretty clear: by tomorrow, we'll make a decision on which of these three guys will leave Maassluis: Theodore Bondy, Kirk Hitchcock and Keith Oliver. Traditionally we've been a team of elite defensive tackles and wide receivers, which doesn't bode well for Hitchcock, unless he actually wants to play elsewhere. But, honestly, I haven't made up my mind yet. We have a very sound trade offer for Bondy, whilst the other two guys have been overlooked on the market. Perhaps their inflated salaries scare other team's general managers away.

One fellow general manager asked about Keith Oliver's contract demands. I was polite, offered the insight, but also added: this is what he wants us to pay. Oliver will lower his demands elsewhere, he knows he's much more valuable to us than for another team. [Yes, I'm convinced that's how FOF8 works, it makes you pay for cohesion boosts].

Will 2088 be a lost season? Hell, no. It's way too earlier to make such claims. We're salvaging a majority of our starters and I'm convinced we'll be competitive and fill some of the voids with guys that were main backups last season. The glaring holes are at quarterback and defensive tackle, we'll have to figure out what to do there though...

All in all, this interesting and moving off-season continues...