About two weeks ago, the iconic Gears of War pro player Billy “MentaL” Putnam announced that he is stepping down from the game’s eSports scene. He also tweeted that he wanted to pursue a career in the Call of Duty League and, today, reports have surfaced that he will be signing with a franchise team as a substitute player. Putnam has been competing in GoW with over a decade.
Reports suggest that the Los Angeles Guerrillas will be trying out the MentaL as a backup player for their roster. He is also expected to play in the Call of Duty Challengers tournament. As the said franchise is looking to rebuild its roster for the league’s second season, the lineup consists of former Minnesota RØKKR Exceed, ex-OpTic Gaming Chino, and the 18-year old prodigy NeroPoison. As the rules don’t dictate that the players be signed to a team, it is currently unclear if the four players will flag under the Los Angeles Guerrillas jersey for the Challengers cup.
Putnam is considered in the Gears of War eSports community to be one of the greatest players it has ever seen. He has an impressive 22 tournaments with at least $250,000 prize money under his name. There was no doubt that when he announced retirement and showed interest in the CoD League, teams were quick to consider him to empower their rosters.
The most recent Gears of War Pro League Season proved that MentaL has not washed up from the competition and continues to dominate its opponents. His former team, UYU, won the entirety of the tournament with a perfect 16-0 map win. The team collected $100,000 in prize money and the bragging rights of being the defending champions.
The Los Angeles Guerrillas performed mediocre over the inaugural season of the CDL. As mentioned, the management is looking to rebuild its lineup for the 2021 season. It has since let go of Saints, Spart, Decemate, Blazt, Aqua, and Lacefield. That leaves Vivid in their original roster, alongside Ricky, who is listed as an assistant coach and a substitute player. For its core roster, reports also indicate that the Guerrillas are looking to add the lineup that won the 2018 Call of Duty World League Championship for the World War II tournament. Players include Apathy, Silly, and Assault.
During the recent Call of Duty League 2020 Week 4 in Los Angeles, the Guerrillas finished in the 7th to 8th place and accumulated zero points for their CDL points.
