Name: Monty Marco
Team: Swanwild Cardsharps
Position: Shortstop
Age: 25?

Seldom is a joke funnier than Swanwild’s baseball team. Since their inception, the Cardsharps have not left the worst of the continent’s three hierarchical divisions. It’s been 26 years since they even came close–much of that time they spent decaying in dead last. Unlike their desert-neighbour Rattlers, isolation has led to total irrelevance, with players only joining to save the last vestiges of a desperate, dying career.

Enter Monty Marco, athlete extraordinaire. Nicknamed by Swanwild’s few baseball fans, “Salvation”.

Monty’s an eccentric fellow. When asked about him, most have been puzzled. No one quite knows where he grew up, or if he’s lying about his age. His appearance reflects an older rat, yet his performance speaks for itself. He barely musters a whisper talking to the media, but is seen frequently chatting with members of the opposing team. Monty shares a vocabulary with his peers, yet still speaks a language they don’t understand. No one knows why he chose the Cardsharps as his team. The cynics suggest he gets off on being the saviour. Supporters argue he wants to avoid suspicion about his body.

Regardless, his acceptance into the association sparked a deeper discussion about prosthetics. Skeptics argued that tech enhanced a swing that crowned him Rookie of the Year, though experiments revealed the contrary. Monty can sprint, field, and throw with his other arm, relying more on exceptional sight of the ball than strength of a bionic arm. For the scrutiny the controversy attached to the team, it brought Swanwild back into the public’s attention.

For once, the Cardsharps dragged themselves back into their division’s playoffs. Their run ended quickly, as a lone superstar shortstop could only accomplish so much. Yet despite the jokes, the playoff droughts, and his oddities, the rat’s presence has convinced passerby free agents to give Swanwild another look. “Salvation” might be dramatic–even for Monty’s talent–but a futile case has finally started to improve.

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