Baseball: The World's Game (OOTP 22 Fictional World)

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2014 in AAB

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In 2013, Johannesburg ended a four-year stretch of losing seasons, but still finished three games short of the playoffs. In 2014, the Jackalopes took the top spot in the Southern Conference at 96-66. It was their first playoff appearance since 2008 and their first time atop the standings since 2002. Their 905 runs scored was the most in the African Association of Baseball by a healthy margin. The only other team above 800 was Cape Town with 854, but they also allowed 858 for an 80-82 season.

Harare repeated as the second place team, although they needed a tiebreaker game over Antananarivo to do it. With the 163^rd game, the Hustlers were 89-74 and the Eagles were 88-75. Harare’s pitching staff set new AAB records for fewest walks (367) and best BB/9 (2.26). Two-time defending conference champ Lusaka collapsed and saw their four-year playoff streak ended. The Lake Monsters were 73-89 in ninth place, their first losing season since 2007.

Cape Town RF Ange Ndikuriyo won Southern Conference MVP and posted only the third hitting Triple Crown in AAB history. In only his third season, the 22-year old Rwandan lefty led in runs (133), hits (207), doubles (60), home runs (64), RBI (179), total bases (459), average (.352), slugging (.781), OPS (1.197), wRC+ (200), and WAR (9.9). The 179 RBI fell one short of Mwarami Tale’s record 180 from 2009.

Ndikuriyo did achieve something never done in any world league before or since, getting both 60+ home runs and 60+ doubles in the same season. Only a small smattering in the higher-offense leagues in later years could claim both marks in separate seasons. Despite that, his OPS ranked only as the sixth-best AAB season to that point and sits 14^th in 2037.

Taking Pitcher of the Year was Antananarivo’s Vasile Russu, a 24-year old Moldovan lefty. He started his career as a teenage amateur in Europe, but was a prospect trade from Barcelona in the brief window that EBF and AAB teams could trade with each other. Russu debuted in 2012 for the Eagles and was a legit ace by his second year. In his third season, Russu posted a 2.56 ERA, 15-6 record, and 266 strikeouts over 193 innings with 6.4 WAR and a 170 ERA+.



Six-time defending Africa Series champ and eight-time defending Central Conference champ Addis Ababa grew their streak of first place finishes to nine. At 94-68, it was the weakest season of their remarkable playoff run. Nairobi repeated as the second place finisher, three back at 91-71.

It was a five game drop to Kinshasa and Kampala tied for third at 86-76. It was the second-best ever season for the Peacocks, who remain one of three AAB teams yet to record a playoff berth. Mogadishu was also in the hunt for a bit, finishing fifth at 84-78.

Veteran Nairobi catcher Steven Isaac won Central Conference MVP in his 11^th season with the Night Hawks. Still only 29, the Ugandan was the WARlord at 7.4 and posted 36 home runs, 91 RBI, and a .329/.387/.625 slash. It was the fourth season with an OPS above one for Isaac, a rare feat by a catcher. The prior June, Nairobi extended him for eight seasons and $100,200,000 to remain a franchise icon.

Pitcher of the Year was Kinshasa’s Girma Kedir in a breakout season. The 28-year old Ethiopian had been only okay in his first five seasons with Durban, who traded him to the Sun Cats in February 2014. Kedir led in ERA (3.12), innings (265.1), quality starts (24), and complete games (13). Kedir also had a 15-14 record, 279 strikeouts, 129 ERA+, and 6.9 WAR. Kinshasa gave him a four-year, $11,660,000 extension in the winter, but he’d never regain elite form in later years.

In the Southern Conference Championship, #2 seed Harare outlasted Johannesburg in a seven game classic, giving the Hustlers their second pennant (2010). Meanwhile, the Addis Ababa dynasty officially came to an end with a 4-3 upset by Nairobi in the Central Conference Championship. The Night Hawks became only the fifth of the ten teams in the conference to win the pennant in 20 seasons since the Brahmas and Kinshasa had largely monopolized the title.



The 20^th Africa Series was guaranteed to crown the ninth unique franchise as AAB champion. The series needed all nine games, but Harare prevailed in a classic over Nairobi. It was only the sixth time that the Southern Conference champ won it all due to the before mentioned dynasties.



A masterful postseason by 2B Fani Ngambi led the way, as the 33-year old South African was both Africa Series and conference finals MVP. In his seventh year with the Hustlers, Ngambi had 25 hits, 15 runs, 8 doubles, 2 triples, 1 homer, 14 RBI, 7 walks, 18 stolen bases, a .424/.471/.678 slash, and 1.149 OPS over 15 playoff starts. He set the AAB playoff record for hits and stolen bases. He would get passed once for the hits mark, but the steals mark remains the AAB record in 2037 and is tied for the world record in any league’s postseason.

Pitcher Bahujnana Kaimal also had a historic postseason run for Harare with a 0.34 ERA over four starts and 26.2 innings, which remains the ERA record for any AAB playoff run with 15+ innings. The 31-year old Mauritian had 23 strikeouts, a 1289 ERA+, 1.2 WAR, 19 hits allowed, and 4 walks.

Other notes: The third Perfect Game in AAB history came from Dar es Salaam’s Kikanda Mumba on June 24 with 16 strikeouts against Luanda. As of 2037, that was the highest strikeout total of AAB’s five perfectos. Paul Lambote became the second pitcher to 3000 career strikeouts, behind only career leader Joel Mwasesa’s 3583.

Luke Tembo and Mwarami Tale became the third and fourth members of the 700 home run club. Tembo joined Tale and three others with 1500 career RBI. Tale and Fani Ngambi both crossed 2000 hits, making it eight AAB batters to reach the mark. Tale had been a big part of Addis Ababa’s dynasty since signing with them in 2010. He’d be back to free agency though for 2015 and at age 34 would ink a four-year, $46,000,000 deal with Johannesburg.

Felix Chaula won his 13^th Silver Slugger as an outfielder. He had also departed the Brahmas dynasty, signing with Mogadishu in 2014 at age 38. Tale won his ninth Silver Slugger in center field. SS Joaquim Artur won his eighth Gold Glove, a record for the position. SS Said Tesfaye won his eighth straight Silver Slugger, also a position record.

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2014 in ALB

Arab League Baseball surprised some observers by lowering their requirement for free agency from eight service years down to seven. This put ALB more in the middle ground relative to the other world leagues. Beisbol Sudamerica had the most restrictive at that point with 10 years, while the most generous was the Oceania Baseball Association at five years.




Damascus shocked the Arab World by taking the Western Conference’s top seed and the Levant Division at 96-66. The Dusters entered the season as one of only three franchises without a single playoff berth. Damascus had been so poor that their only two winning seasons came two decades prior in 1992 and 1993. Their 20 year stretch of losing seasons was the longest in ALB history and one of the all-time worsts in any league.

Reigning conference champ Alexandria won the Nile Division for the fourth straight season. The Astronauts dropped from 107 wins to 91-71, but still held off Giza by six games. Cairo, who missed the playoffs last year despite 97 wins, fell to 79-83. Alexandria’s pitching staff notably set conference records for strikeouts (1870) and K/9 (11.38) which both still hold as of 2037.

Tripoli secured a third straight Mediterranean Division title. The Privateers finished 87-75, topping their closest foe Algiers at 80-82. Casablanca was 78-84, which was the first time in their storied franchise history that they posted three consecutive losing seasons. The Bruins couldn’t turn it around despite having the second richest payroll in ALB at over $89.3 million. Top seed Damascus by comparison had a $42.8 million payroll, the second lowest in the league.

Khartoum was an unremarkable 75-87, yet they boasted the Western Conference’s MVP and Pitcher of the Year. The former was 1B Ali Jassem, who repeated as MVP. The 26-year old Kuwaiti lefty smacked 70 home runs, falling two short of Tarek Abdel Rahman’s record from 2010. Jassem was only the third in ALB history to reach 70, joining world home run king Nordine Soule.

Jassem also led in runs (115), RBI (139), total bases (444), slugging (.764), OPS (1.149), wRC+ (219), and WAR (10.2). He also had a .343 batting average, falling eight points shy of a Triple Crown. The Cottonmouths would extend their slugger after the 2015 season with an eight-year, $74,600,000 deal.

While Jassem missed the Triple Crown, his teammate Mohei Awad did not. It was only the sixth Triple Crown by an ALB pitcher and the first since 2007. The 28-year old Egyptian lefty had a 21-4 record, 1.64 ERA, and 296 strikeouts over 241.1 innings. Awad also led with 28 quality starts, 8.9 WAR, and a 227 ERA+. He pitched one more year for Khartoum, then got the bag in MLB with a massive seven-year, $140,900,000 deal with Chicago.

Tripoli upset Alexandria 2-0 in the first round, sending the Privateers to their second Western Conference Final in three years. Top seed Damascus would keep their magical season going though, taking the WCF 3-1 for their first pennant.



Defending ALB champ Jeddah earned the Eastern Conference’s top seed at 103-59. The Jackals won their fourth straight Saudi Division title, pulling 15 games away from a solid 88-74 Medina. Abu Dhabi won the Gulf Division for the third straight year with their 89-73 mark eight games better than their closest foe Dubai.

In the Iraq Division, last year’s top seed Sulaymaniyah tied for first with Baghdad at 86-76, while Mosul was close behind at 84-78. The Brown Bears won the tiebreaker game for their first-ever playoff berth. Baghdad’s own streak of losing seasons rivaled Damascus at 19 years entering 2014. This leaves the Western Conference’s Tunis as the only ALB team without a single playoff berth through its first 25 seasons.

Basra was a mediocre 72-90, but their first baseman Mohamed Hassan won Eastern Conference MVP. It was the second in three years for the 23-year old Egyptian lefty, who is already in his fifth season. Hassan led in homers (60), RBI (132), runs (118), total bases (440), slugging (.722), OPS (1.104), wRC+ (194), and 9.7 WAR). His .340 batting average was second-best, 13 points from a Triple Crown. Hassan eventually got his long-term deal in 2016 from the Bulldogs worth $139,400,000 over eight years.

Jeddah’s Herdi Wahib won his second Pitcher of the Year, having previously done it in 2011. The 27-year old Palestinian lefty was only two ERA points short of his own Triple Crown with a 2.47 ERA, 18-7 record, and 389 strikeouts. The 389 Ks sits as the seventh-most in a season by an ALB pitcher. Wahib also led in WAR (10.1), quality starts (24), complete games (11), shutouts (6), and FIP- (55) with a 159 ERA+.

The Jackals would give Wahib a seven-year, $104,000,000 extension in March 2016. They had a strong pitching staff altogether as Nour Al-Haj won his third Reliever of the Year, becoming the sixth pitcher to win the award thrice. The Lebanese righty had 249 saves in nine seasons with the Jackals, although he’d sign a free agent deal in the winter with Baghdad.

Abu Dhabi edged Baghdad 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs, giving the Destroyers their third Eastern Conference Final appearance in five years. The defending champ Jeddah sank their battleship easily though with a sweep.



Damascus was the feel-good story, but Jeddah denied them the ultimate prize 4-2 in the 25^th Arab League Championship. The Jackals became the fifth team to repeat as ALB champ, joining Medina (1992-93), Casablanca (1994-95), Mosul (1998-99), and Amman (2009-10).



Finals MVP was veteran catcher Anees Samaka, who signed with Jeddah in 2014 after bouncing between EBF, MLB, E2L, and ALB in the prior six seasons. The 33-year old Algerian journeyman had nine playoff starts with 9 hits, 7 runs, 1 double, 4 home runs, and 5 RBI.

Other notes: 2014 marked the final season for the legendary Nordine Soule, who played his final two years with Casablanca after winning seven MVPs with Basra. The world’s home run king also made history in 2014 by crossing 2500 career RBI. He retired with 2518, which was the most by any player within any one league. Soule was second in the world behind Prometheo Garcia, who had 2618 between CABA and MLB.

At retirement, Soule had 1073 home runs, 2518 RBI, 3339 hits, 2162 runs, 3056 games, 10,846 at-bats, 7334 total bases, and 153.5 WAR. As of 2037, each of those stats are still ALB’s all-time best. Soule’s 1.064 OPS was only behind Mohammed Mohamed’s 1.076 at retirement. While the Comoran lefty would eventually surrender the world homer king crown, Soule’s crown as ALB’s all-time best slugger is generally undisputed.

Baghdad’s Mohamed Mansour drew 110 walks, topping the previous ALB record of 106. Mansour’s mark remains the record as of 2037. Mohamed Aziz and Mahmoud Abbas became the seventh and eighth to reach 2500 career hits. Abbas and Mohammad Al-Munibi became the seventh and eighth to 1500 RBI. Aziz became the fourth to cross 1500 runs scored and Abbas became the fifth member of the 600 homer club.

Al-Munibi won his seventh Silver Slugger at third base. 2B Mohamed Mustafa won his eighth at second base. Abdullah Al-Tamtami became the third pitcher to reach 3500 strikeouts.

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2014 in ABF

The Asian Baseball Federation increased the minimum service years requirement for free agents from six years to seven. The previous six had been one of the lowest of any world league, while seven puts them in the median.



Faisalabad repeated as both the South Division champ and the East League’s top seed at 99-63. The Fire grew their playoff streak to five seasons. In the North Division, Dushanbe (90-72) narrowly edged Asgabat (89-73). The Dynamo earned repeat playoff berths, while the Alphas ended a five-year postseason drought. Last year’s North Division champ Tashkent was a non-factor at 73-89.

Reigning ABF champ Hyderabad would narrowly earn the second wild card at 85-77, growing their playoff streak to four seasons. The Horned Frogs were two ahead of Lahore, four better than Karachi, and five ahead of Kabul. Although Bishkek hadn’t made the playoff since 2010, they hadn’t posted a losing season since joining ABF 2000. That run ended with a 67-95 record in 2014, the worst season for the Black Sox since 1959.

Dushanbe shortstop Nizami Aghazade won his third straight East League MVP. Still in only his third season, the 26-year old Kazakh righty led in the triple slash (.339/.435/.630), OPS (1.064), wRC+ (231), WAR (13.3), total bases (345), home runs (42), and runs (105). His 102 RBI was two shy of his second Triple Crown. Aghazade now has three consecutive 13+ WAR efforts to start his career.

Pitcher of the Year was Musa Ismayilov in his second year with Hyderabad. This was the one notable season for the 27-year old Uzbek righty, who led in WHIP (0.81), and shutouts (7). Ismayilov also had a 1.95 ERA over 244.2 innings, 288 strikeouts, 16-7 record, 156 ERA+, and 4.6 WAR. This was only the second time in ABF history that the POTY winner had less than 5 WAR.

Faisalabad ousted defending champ Hyderabad 3-2 in the first round of the playoffs, while Asgabat upset Dushanbe with a road sweep. This was the first-time the Alphas had been to the East League Championship Series since joining ABF with their most recent LCS coming in the 1999 Eurasian Professional Baseball season. Top seed Faisalabad was in their first ELCS since winning the 2011 ABF title. The Fire would secure their second pennant, winning 4-2 over Asgabat.



The West League was loaded in the Central Division, led again by two-time defending WL champ Baku. The Blackbirds at 104-58 earned their sixth division title in-a-row and third straight 100+ win season. They had to fend off a strong effort from Tehran at 100-62, who earned their fourth straight wild card. The Tarpons earned repeat 100+ win seasons as well. The division also had 96-66 Mashhad who earned their third straight wild card.

Over in the Turkish Division, 91-71 ended a long run of futility for Adana. The Axemen ended a 12-year playoff drought with only their second winning season in that stretch. Adana held off Istanbul (86-80) and last year’s division winner Ankara (82-80).

Mashhad’s Ahour Sabbari won West League MVP with ABF’s best two-way season to date. The 24-year old Iranian lefty played the outfield offensively and in 102 games and 96 starts had 6.8 WAR, a .296/.371/.575 slash, 183 wRC+, 26 home runs, and 46 stolen bases. On the mound, Sabbari had a 2.75 ERA over 251.2 innings, 16-13 record, 284 strikeouts, 115 ERA+, and 5.2 WAR. The Mercury rewarded him with an eight-year, $61,400,000 deal to remain with the squad after the 2015 season.

Tabriz’s Gevorg Qasimov won back-to-back Pitcher of the Year honors. The 29-year old Uzbek also became only the third ABF pitcher to win the award four times, having also done it in 2008 and 2010. In 2014, Qasimov led in ERA (1.79), strikeouts (337), WHIP (0.74), K/BB (11.2), shutouts (8), and WAR (9.0). He also had a 21-5 record in 247 innings and a 181 ERA+. Qasimov would get the bag the following spring on a six-year, $62,500,000 extension with the Tiger Sharks. Sadly, he’d suffer major injuries that effectively put him out of the game before turning 33.

Mashhad shocked Baku with a 3-2 upset in the first round, giving the Mercury their first West League Championship Series appearance since 2007. Adana knocked off Tehran 3-1 for their first WLCS since 2001. Mashhad then rolled to a sweep of the Axemen for their fourth pennant (1990, 1992, 1994, 2014).



The 30^th Asian Baseball Federation Championship lacked drama as Faisalabad swept Mashhad, giving the Fire their second title in four years. 2011 league MVP Rafkat Kudaybergenov was finals MVP in his tenth season for Faisalabad. The 28-year old Uzbek first baseman in 15 playoff starts had 20 hits, 13 runs, 4 doubles, 6 home runs, and 14 RBI. It was the first sweep in the ABF Championship since 2008.



Other notes: Gaziantep had a historically bad offense with 448 runs scored, the second-worst in West League history behind only Tabriz’ 443 in 1989. The Gorillas set all-time WL worsts in slugging (.310), and doubles (195) and had the second-most strikeouts (1793). Izmir was also lousy with the fewest homers in WL history (61). Their .311 slugging would’ve been the new league worst if not for Gaziantep.

Petri Viskari became the sixth member of the 500 home run club. Borzoo Atashi became the 11^th to reach 2000 hits. Khalil Shaan was the seventh pitcher to 3500 strikeouts. 3B Shaheed Abbas won his tenth straight Gold Glove, becoming the first ABF player at any position to win the award ten times. 2B Mehrdad Javadi and CF Ziad Tarkhan both won their seventh Silver Slugger in a row.

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2014 in SAB

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Two-time defending Indian League champion Visakhapatnam was the #1 seed at 99-63, earning a fourth straight South Division title. Chennai was second in the division at 90-72, which earned them the wild card. It was an impressive turnaround for the Cows, who limped to 66-96 the prior season. It ended a three-year playoff drought for them.

Mumbai narrowly missed the top seed, but easily won the West Division at 97-65. The Meteors got their fourth playoff berth in five years and their tenth since 2001, but it was only their second division title in that stretch. Ahmedabad usually spoiled that for them, including having won the prior three division titles. The Animals collapsed to 72-90 for the worst-ever season in their storied history. This ended a 29-year run of winning seasons, which one only one less than Ho Chi Minh City’s record 30-year adjacent run.

The Central Division had a tie for the top spot at 88-74 between Kolkata and Lucknow. With both two games behind Chennai for the wild card, this meant that the division winner would be the only playoff team of the two. The Cosmos won the tiebreaker game for their fifth straight division title and seventh straight playoff berth. This was Kolkata’s weakest season of that run, as they had won 100+ in the prior four campaigns.

Mumbai’s Basava Sanjahay became only the fourth player in South Asia Baseball history to win five MVP awards. The 34-year old first baseman had returned to his original Meteors squad after playing 2011 and 2012 with Kanpur. Sanjahay had won one Indian League MVP with the Poison (2011) and three with Mumbai (2005, 2006, 2007).

In 2014, Sanjahay led the league in home runs (52), runs (105), slugging (.635), OPS (.977), and wRC+ (195). He added 116 RBI, a .273 average, .342 OBP, and 8.3 WAR. It would be Sanjahay’s last great season, as he’d drop off significantly in the next two years, retiring after getting benched in 2016.

Pitcher of the Year was Visakhapatnam’s Theo Rodgers in his ninth year with the Volts. The Indian-American dual national at age 31 won his first ERA title (1.72) and led in wins (22-4), WHIP (0.90), quality starts (26), and shutouts (6). Rodgers also had a 205 ERA+, 5.8 WAR, and 243 strikeouts over 230 innings. As of 2037, his 1.72 ERA is the 20^th-best qualifying season in SAB history.

Visakhapatnam swept their divisional foe Chennai 3-0, while Kolkata upset Mumbai 3-1. The Cosmos earned their fourth Indian League Championship Series appearance in six years, while the Volts picked up their fourth straight berth. Their only prior collision was Kolkata’s 2011 victory. After needing a play-in game just to be in the field, the Cosmos secured the pennant 4-2 over Visakhapatnam. This made Kolkata three-time Indian champs (2010, 2011, 2014).



Both division champs went 101-61 with Yangon atop the South and Hanoi atop the North. The reigning SAB champion Hounds had the #1 seed via the tiebreaker, extending their playoff streak to ten years. It was also Hanoi’s ninth 100+ win effort in that run and seventh division title. For the Green Dragons, their remarkable playoff run grew to 20 years. Yangon became the fifth franchise in any world league with a 20+ streak and sit three way from the all-time mark of 23 by both Ahmedabad and Ho Chi Minh City.

The Green Dragons also won their fourth straight division title and the 15^th of that run. It didn’t come easy with Vientiane only four back at 97-65. The Vampires earned a third straight wild card. The second spot went to 92-70 Mandalay for their second in four years. The Mammoths were four ahead of Bangkok and seven better than Dhaka. The Dobermans saw their own impressive playoff streak ended at nine seasons.

Vientiane’s Huynh Pham won his second Southeast Asia League MVP in three years. The two-way lefty on the mound had a 2.73 ERA over 237.2 innings, 15-10 record, 334 strikeouts, and 6.0 WAR. Playing first base in 98 games and 92 starts, Pham added 4.6 WAR, a .350/.392/.627 slash, 23 home runs, and 72 RBI.

In his third year with Dhaka, Jay Singh became a three-time Pitcher of the Year winner. His previous trophies came back in 2007 and 2008 with Jaipur, winning ERA titles both years. The 32-year old lefty had SEAL’s best ERA at 2.28 and led with a 0.81 WHIP. Singh added a 16-12 record, 251 strikeouts, and 6.5 WAR in 201 innings. He’d sign a five-year extension in April 2015 with the Dobermans, but would be traded by a rebuilding Dhaka two months later to Hyderabad, where he’d play out his excellent career.

Hanoi outlasted Mandalay 3-2 in the first round while Yangon downed Vientiane 3-1. This set up yet another SEAL Championship showdown between the two and renewed the playoff rivalry. Apart from the prior year, they had met each year of the last decade at some point in the playoffs, including LCS meetings in 2007, 2008, and 2012.

Despite having the same record, the 2014 meeting lacked competitive drama with a Green Dragons sweep over the Hounds. This was Yangon’s eighth pennant overall and their fifth during their 20-year playoff streak. Of their nine playoff meetings in ten years, the Green Dragons have four wins and Hanoi has five.



The 35^th SAB Championship was an all-timer needing all seven games. It joined the 1992 final between Ahmedabad and Ho Chi Minh City as the only finales decided by extra innings in game seven. Kolkata went ahead in the top of the tenth inning to win game seven 7-6, earning their second SAB title (2010). The Cosmos had also seen a 2-1 win in ten innings earlier in the series.



1B Umesh Pant was finals MVP, bolstered by a 5-5, 2 double, one homer, 3 RBI game during the series. The 33-year old Nepali in 17 playoff starts had 24 hits, 10 runs, 7 doubles, 3 home runs, and 9 RBI. LF Lwin Swe Ko also had a big postseason, winning LCS MVP. In 17 starts, the 30-year old Burmese righty had 19 hits, 9 runs, 2 doubles, 3 triples, 5 home runs, and 12 RBI.

Other notes: Visakhapatnam’s Kasi Kumar set a playoff record for OPS at 1.632 over nine games. He went 17-31 with 10 runs, 4 doubles, 1 triple, 3 homers, and 9 RBI. Dhaka’s Xuan Hung had only the fifth game in SAB history with four home runs, doing it against Phnom Penh on June 7.

Hanoi’s Majed Darwish had his world record eighth straight 150+ RBI season (151) and his tenth 50+ home run season (58). He still was five seasons away from matching world home run king Nordine Soule’s 15 seasons with 50+ dingers. Darwish became the seventh member of SAB’s 700 homer club and tenth to 1500 runs scored in 2014. The 31-year old Bahraini also won his eighth Silver Slugger (seventh as a designated hitter).

Ratan Canduri became the third to 800 career home runs, joining Devavesman Toppo and Tirtha Upadhyaya. Janesvara Aryasva became the eighth to 600 homers. Catcher Lance Tong won his eighth Silver Slugger, setting the position record. Both Jay Singh and Sarthak Patil reached 3500 strikeouts, making eight pitchers to do so. SP Yar Mai Zaw won his seventh Gold Glove.

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2014 in WAB

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Two-time defending WAB Western League champ Dakar absolutely dominated the field, beating their own franchise record of 102-60 from the prior season. At 108-54, the Dukes were 21 games ahead of second place. They also led the WL in both runs scored (916) and fewest allowed (711).

Second place at 87-75 was Banjul, earning their first-ever playoff berth since joining West African Baseball in the 2009 expansion. The Bucks came close to matching Dakar’s run output at 898, but also allowed 824. Bouake had become the first expansion playoff team at 98-64 in 2013, but the Blood Hawks struggled to tenth place in 2014 at 73-89.

The other wild cards went to Abidjan (85-77) and Freetown (82-80). The Athletes returned to the playoffs after having their eight-year streak snapped in 2013. The Foresters’ wild card streak grew to four years as they allowed only 713 runs. Both Cape Verde and Monrovia fell one short of the final spot at .500. The Diplomats set a new WL record with 384 doubles, but couldn’t overcome poor pitching. Kumasi (78-84) notably had their bid for a third straight playoff berth thwarted.

Western League MVP was Cape Verde LF Ibrahim Sani. In his fifth season, the 26-year old Nigerien lefty led in RBI (158), total bases (416), and batting average (.378). Sani had 45 home runs, 222 hits, 112 runs, 39 doubles, a 1.142 OPS, 186 wRC+, and 8.4 WAR.

Abidjan’s Christopher Larbi won his third straight Pitcher of the Year, leading in wins (20-5), strikeouts (314), quality starts (23), and WAR (7.0). His 2.62 ERA was second Shehu Fatai’s 2.28, keeping Larbi from a repeat Triple Crown. The 28-year old Ghanaian lefty had a 176 ERA+ over 223 innings.

Abidjan swept Freetown 2-0 in the first round, but fell 2-0 to Banjul in round two. Top seed Dakar was a heavy favorite to win a third straight Western League pennant, but the Bucks pulled off one of WAB’s biggest-ever upsets. Banjul won the WLCS 3-1 to become the first-ever WAB expansion team to win a pennant.

The Bucks also made history with the quickest pennant for any expansion team in any world league at six seasons. The Chinese League’s Shantou would also match this feat in 2014. MLB’s Virginia Beach and Edmonton both had the previous best at seven years.



The Eastern League was extremely top-heavy with the top three each winning 101+ games. All three earned repeat playoff berths as well. Defending WAB champ Cotonou took the top seed at 108-54 for their fifth straight playoff berth and fourth time in first place during that run. The Copperheads offense was historic with a WAB-record 1012 runs scored, which held as the top mark until 2033.

A close second was 104-58 Lome, earning their third straight playoff berth and fourth in five years. The Lasers had the fewest runs allowed in WAB at 662. Port Harcourt meanwhile was third at 101-61, close behind with only 686 runs allowed. The Hillcats had their third playoff appearance in four years.

The fourth and final playoff spot went to Niamey at 88-74, ending a two-year playoff drought. The Atomics extended their streak of winning seasons to 17 years, tying the WAB record set by Kumasi from 1975-91. Last year’s ELCS runner-up Ibadan was the only other team in striking distance at 83-79. The Iguanas still managed their 11^th winning season in a row.

Leading Cotonou’s record-setting offense was Eastern League MVP Fares Belaid. It was the second MVP in three years for the 25-year old Tunisian designated hitter, who broke the single-season world record for hits with 266. The previous world high was 261 by the Arab League’s Hassan El Zamek in 261. As of 2037, Belaid still has the world record, although he’d top himself four more times in later years.

Belaid also led the league in runs scored at 146, which was six behind Darwin Morris’s WAB record from 2001. He also led the league in triples (29), total bases (437), stolen bases (91), batting average (.389), and WAR (9.1). Belaid added 44 doubles, 23 home runs, 142 RBI, and a 1.041 OPS. He had three games with five hits and had a 21-game hit streak. Belaid beat out Port Harcourt slugger Zakari Emmanuel for MVP with the latter leading with 54 home runs and 162 RBI.

Lome veteran Nana Villars won his second Pitcher of the Year, having also won in 2010. The 31-year old Ghanaian righty had a 16-4 record, 2.90 ERA, and 272 strikeouts over 217 innings. Villars also had a 161 ERA+ and 6.6 WAR.

Port Harcourt swept Niamey in the first round, then got swept by Lome in the second round. Every Eastern League Championship Series of last five years was won by either the Lasers (2012) or Cotonou (2009, 2010, 2013), but this was their first time meeting in the ELCS. In a five-game classic, Lome upset the reigning champion Copperheads for their second pennant.



The Lasers made it two WAB titles in three years, winning the 40^th West African Championship 4-1 over Banjul. It was also the fifth straight title for an Eastern League team. Lome saw a WAB playoff record set by 1B Aboubakar Yao with 8 doubles. Yao also had 16 hits, 10 runs, and 12 home runs in 12 playoff starts.



Other notes: 2014 was the final season for legendary shortstop Darwin Morris, who retired at age 43. The 11-time MVP had bounced between five times in his final years and had dealt with injury woes. Morris retired with 194.4 WAR, the second-most in world history by any position player to that point behind only Jimmy Caliw’s 214.0 between his MLB/OBA tenures.

Morris retired as WAB’s all-time leader in games played (2939), hits (3288), runs (2234), home runs (806), RBI (2129), total bases (6681), and stolen bases (1165). He would lose the top spot in each as offensive numbers would explode across WAB in later years, but his WAR total still would be more than 60 points ahead of second place as of 2037. Morris’s 1.053 OPS would still be third in WAB in 2037 among any player with 3000+ plate appearances. Most still agree that Morris was WAB’s best-ever player and you could make a case that he’s a top ten talent in all of baseball history.

Another record broken by Fares Belaid in 2014 was playoff triples, as he managed six in only five games. There were two no-hitters thrown in 2014, which would be the final WAB no-nos thrown until 2021. Ahamad Mathew became the second to 700 career home runs and the sixth to 2500 hits. Christopher James became the first to 300 saves. He would finish with 377 saves, which held until the mid 2030s as WAB’s all-time record. SP Isaac Appiah, 1B Aliou Niang, and LF Julius Ayuba each won a seventh Gold Glove.

[MrNFL_FanIQ]

2014 in CLB

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Shanghai had the Northern League’s top record at 98-64, extending their playoff streak to a Chinese League record seven seasons. Eight games back in second was Xi’an at 90-72, earning their second playoff berth in three years. Ultimately, only three games separated second place from sixth.

Taking the final two playoff spots at 89-73 were defending NL champ Hangzhou and Qingdao. Harbin (88-74) and Shijiazhuang (87-75) both just missed the cut. The Devils earned their second playoff berth in three years. It was the first winning season for the Unicorns, who were part of the 2009 expansion. Dalian, first in the standings the prior year, finished ninth at 80-82.

Shijiazhuang LF Cheng Kang made history in his second season with only CLB’s third-ever hitting Triple Crown with 45 home runs, 102 RBI, and a .336 average. Only Shichao Zhang in 1984 and Liang Xu in 2009 had done it previously. Kang won his second Northern League MVP, joining very elite company with two MVPs in his first three years.

The 25-year old lefty also led the league in hits (189), total bases (344), OBP (.419), slugging (.612), OPS (1.031), wRC+ (252), and WAR (12.6). Kang’s season was so strong that he won Batter of the Month honors four times. Kang also picked up MVP honors in the All-Star Game.

Zhengzhou’s Yuandong Wang became only the fourth pitcher in CLB history to win Pitcher of the Year four times. The 27-year old lefty previously took it in 2009, 2010, and 2011 for the Zips. Wang won his first ERA title (1.25) and led with career bests in strikeouts (366), WHIP (0.72), and WAR (9.6). He had a 12-10 record over 245.2 innings and 187 ERA+.

In the Northern League’s Round Robin, top seed Shanghai finished first at 4-2. Both Xi’an and Hangzhou were 3-3 and Qingdao was 2-4. The Attack had the tiebreaker to advance to the semifinal for the first time since 1998. Meanwhile, the Seawolves had their second in three years. Shanghai was the heavy favorite, but Xi’an stunned them with a firm 4-1 victory. The Attack secured their fifth China Series appearance and first since 1995.



Reigning CLB champ Chengdu topped the Southern League standings at 96-66, matching Shanghai for CLB’s longest-ever playoff streak at seven years. Despite having two CLB titles in their run, this was the first time since 1998 that the Clowns finished first place in the SL regular season standings. Repeating as the second place finisher was Chongqing at 93-69.

Shenzhen’s playoff streak grew to four seasons at 90-72, although their first place streak ended at three years. The Spartans had historic pitching with a 1.77 team ERA and 337 runs allowed. That was tied for the second-fewest runs allowed by any CLB team and ranked third best in ERA. Both marks remain in those spots in 2037. Despite that, Shenzhen was only two games away from missing the playoffs entirely.

Shantou was one back at 89-73, taking the fourth and final playoff spot. Nanning at 88-74 fell one game short, while Changsha (83-79), Kunming (83-79), and Dongguan (82-80) were also in the mix. The Scorpions became the first of the 2009 expansion teams to earn a playoff spot. 88 wins was the first winning season for the Nuts. Meanwhile Hong Kong, winners of 91 in 2013, plummeted to 12^th at 71-91.

Chengdu’s Peng Wang won his third Southern League MVP in four years. The 30-year old first baseman led in home runs (52), RBI (114), OBP (.386), slugging (.693), OPS (1.078), and wRC+ (279). Wang’s .301 batting average fell two short of a Triple Crown season. He also had 12.9 WAR in what would be his final CLB season. Wang would leave for MLB money on a seven-year, $166,600,000 deal with San Francisco.

Notably, Wang was beaten in WAR by Shantou CF Zhenfeng Liu’s incredible 14.75 effort, which was the third-best in CLB history by a position player. His solid defense in center helped, but the 25-yar old Liu also had 111 runs, 45 homers, 102 RBI, 26 triples, 18 doubles, and a 249 wRC+.

Shenzhen’s Zheng Zhang won his third straight Pitcher of the Year. The 28-year old righty led in ERA again (1.12) and led in innings (274), quality starts (31), shutouts (8), and WAR (11.9). Zhang added 318 strikeouts, a 16-9 record, and 211 ERA+. He had only one more year with the Spartans before finding a payday in Russia for $65,200,000 over six years with Yekaterinburg.

#2 seed Chongqing ruled the Round Robin at 5-1, earning repeat semifinal appearances. #4 seed Shantou surprisingly joined them at 3-3, while both Shenzhen and Chengdu were 2-4. The semifinal was an all-time classic with the Scorpions taking it in seven games. Game seven needed 12 innings with Shantou prevailing by a 3-2 final.

Shantou joined West African Baseball’s Banjul in earning a finals appearance in only their sixth season since expansion, the fastest in any world league in baseball history. The Scorpions further made history though and did what the Bucks couldn’t do; win it all.



It took another seven game thriller, but Shantou defeated Xi’an in the 45^th China Series. WAR leader Zhenfeng Liu was finals MVP with 22 hits, 12 runs, 4 doubles, 7 triples, 3 home runs, and 7 RBI over 20 playoff starts. The seven triples set a CLB playoff record. The Scorpions became the 18^th different franchise in CLB to win the championship.



Other notes: Shanghai’s Yusheng Shang stole 101 bases, only the seventh time in CLB history that someone stole 100+. It was his second time, as he had 106 in 2012. CF Sheng-Yu Pei won his eighth Silver Slugger.

[MrNFL_FanIQ]

2014 in APB

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Last year, Taipei set the Austronesia Professional Baseball wins record at 119-45, only to suffer a Taiwan-Philippine Association Championship loss to Zamboanga. The Tigercats stayed strong despite that disappointment with APB’s top record in 2014 at 107-55. Taipei earned a third straight Taiwan League title and their fifth in six years. It’s also six straight years with 98 or more victories.

Defending APB champ Zamboanga repeated as Philippine League champ at 99-63, holding off 91-71 Davao and 88-74 Cebu. The Zebras pitching staff allowed 987 hits with a .840 team WHIP; both the second lowest in TPA history behind only Tainan’s 1969 efforts.

Zamboanga’s pitching staff saw multiple records fall via Ching-Chen Yao, despite missing two months to a hamstring injury. Yao had a 0.73 ERA over 172 innings, beating the APB record of 0.89 set by Ahmad Syahmi Rusli. 162 innings were the qualifier for rate stats. With that, Yao also set the record for H/9 (3.66), WHIP (0.54), and opponent’s triple slash (.121/.156/.166) with a 322 OPS. These and his .933 winning percentage (14-1) are all still APB records as of 2037.

Yao’s mark was also the second-lowest qualifying ERA in any world league behind only CLB’s Zhiyuan Lai’s 0.71 in 1975. The OPS stands as a world record as of 2037 as well. The 26-year old lefty also had 12.1 WAR and 290 strikeouts, as well as a 22 strikeout game over 9.2 innings against Quezon. Despite all of that, Yao did NOT win his third Pitcher of the Year. Instead, Cebu’s Favian Frias won his second.

Frias’ effort was historic as well, matching Yao’s 0.54 WHIP to tie for a new world record. Yao did beat him officially with a .5407 WHIP compared to Frias’ .5447. Still, only once in the next two decades would any pitcher in any world league best that. The extra innings gave Frias more WAR at 14.4, which ranked as the 11^th-best APB effort by a pitcher to that point.

The 26-year old Frias over 253.1 innings led in strikeouts (388) and quality starts (31) and had his own 1.07 ERA and 19-8 record. Frias had an opponent’s OPS of .358, which would’ve been the new APB record if not for Yao. Frias’ triple slash of .129/.158/.200 were each only behind Yao.

Adding to Frias’ resume was APB’s 37^th perfect game on June 2 with 12 strikeouts against Taichung. Frias had a 250 ERA+ while Yao’s was a bonkers 362, but being healthy for a full year gave Frias the hardware. Even when accounting for the incredibly low-offense APB world, these were two remarkable pitching seasons.

Meanwhile, Taiwan-Philippine Association MVP went to Hsinchu LF Liu Hu. The sixth-year righty led in home runs (48), runs (93), OBP (.362), slugging (.594), OPS (.956), and wRC+ (204). Hu added 10.1 WAR, a .284 average, and 84 RBI. His Sweathogs earned their first-ever winning season in 2014 at 84-78. Hsinchu made sure to lock Hu up, giving him an eight-year, $160,600,000 extension in August 2014.



Defending Sundaland Association champ Bandung repeated atop the Java Sea League at 97-65, besting Surabaya by six games. The Blackhawks had a 1.87 team ERA and allowed 348 runs, which were both the second-lowest totals in all of APB history to that point. The only better was Jakarta’s 1.73 ERA and 324 runs allowed in 1985.

Pekanbaru won the APB title in 2011, but were just above .500 in the next two years. The Palms returned to the top of the Malacca League in 2014 at 94-68. Medan, who won the title in the prior two seasons, was second at 89-73. Kuala Lumpur was third at 87-75, which was their first winning season since leaving South Asia Baseball for APB in 2008.

Leading the Palms was 1B Ali Yusuf, who repeated as Sundaland Association MVP. The 29-year old Indonesian lefty led in OBP (.365), slugging (.559), OPS (.924), and wRC+ (221). Yusuk added 9.8 WAR, a .281 average, 38 home runs, and 81 RBI. Pekanbaru would give Yusuf a six-year, $125,400,000 extension in June 2015.

Bandung’s Gosner Rahmawati repeated as Pitcher of the Year. The 26-year old lefty led in wins (20-5), and ERA (1.28). Rahmawati had 280 strikeouts over 260 innings with a 189 ERA+ and 7.8 WAR. The Blackhawks had extended him for five years and $56,700,000 the prior winter with it already paying dividends.

Taipei’s playoff woes continued as once again despite being the top seed, they lost the Taiwan-Philippine Association Championship. It wasn’t even particularly close as Zamboanga won 4-1 for the repeat and their fifth pennant overall. The Tigercats are now 0-5 in the Association final in the last six years despite averaging 107 wins over that stretch, making a case as one of the all-time great flops in baseball history.

The Sundaland Association Championship had drama as it was the first to need all seven games since 2008. Pekanbaru denied Bandung’s repeat bid, giving the Palms their third-ever pennant (1965, 2011, 2014). The Palms would earn their second APB Championship win in four years, denying Zamboanga’s repeat bid.



The 50^th ABP Championship went 4-2 to Pekanbaru over the Zebras with 3B Nicky Abizar leading the way. The 11^th-year Palms star had been steady, winning his eighth Silver Slugger in 2014. He added finals MVP to his trophies along with his second championship ring. In 13 starts, the 33-year old Abizar had 12 hits, 10 runs, 3 doubles, 5 home runs, and 10 RBI.



Other notes: Bima Idris became the 19^th pitcher to 200 wins and the 25^th to 3500 strikeouts. Metta Adam became the seventh to reach 300 saves. Ignatius Handayani became the 17^th member of the 400 homer club. RF Troy Ferra won his eighth Gold Glove and RF Shih-Chieh Tseng won his seventh. Ching-Hui Lin won his eighth Silver Slugger and his fourth in right field. His first four came as a DH.

[MrNFL_FanIQ]

APB After 50 Years

The end of the 2014 season marked 50 years of play for Austronesia Professional Baseball, becoming the eighth major pro league to reach the milestone. Below is a look at how the first 50 years played out.



APB has seen an impressive among of parity overall, not counting the four teams that joined in the late 2000s. The longest playoff streak was only seven years (Davao from 2005-2011). The Devil Rays have the top team score of any Taiwan-Philippine Association team and have the most playoff appearances at 16. They have the best average wins of any Philippine League team, but are third in the TPA.

Surprisingly, Taichung has the best winning percentage in the TPA despite being ranked 8^th in playoff appearances in the TPA. Taipei has the most playoff berths of the Taiwan League teams at 13. Taoyuan has the most APB championships of the group with six despite having a below .500 winning percentage. The Tsumani and Davao are tied for the most TPA pennants at 8 each.

Medan has the top Sundaland Association team score at 95, tied for the top overall with in APB with Davao. The Marlins have the most playoff appearances of any team at 18, although Jakarta has the best win percentage with 85.1 wins per year. The Jaguars have the most APB titles (6) of the SA teams and the most pennants of any team at 9. However, Jakarta has the fourth most playoff berths in the SA. Surabaya leads all Java League teams with 13. The Malacca League is led by Medan’s 18 with Batam at 15.

Of the original 20 teams, 16 have won at least one APB championship with only Depok, Singapore, Tainan, and Palembang ringless. The Demons are the only original team without at least one pennant while the other three each have three or four. The Panthers have the worst average wins per year (76.6) of the original teams.

[MrNFL_FanIQ]

2014 in OBA

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Reigning Oceania Champion Christchurch repeated as Australasia League champ at 105-57, earning their tenth pennant. The Chinooks’ 816 runs scored were the best in all of OBA. Melbourne was their closest foe at 99-63, extending their streak of winning seasons to 12 years. The Mets had the fewest runs allowed in OBA at 509.

There was a decent drop to third place Perth at 90-72. Both Sydney and Canberra won 90+ games in 2013, but both fell below .500 in 2014. Expansion Hobart was fifth at 81-81, their best mark yet since joining OBA in the 2006 season.

Christchurch DH Roe Kaupa remained a critical signing with his second Australasia League MVP in two seasons with the Chinooks. It was the third MVP for the 27-year old Papuan lefty, who also won in 2011 with Timor. Kaupa posted the ninth Triple Crown hitting season in OBA history with 66 home runs, 159 RBI, and a .335 batting average. There wouldn’t be another hitting Triple Crown in OBA until 2036.

Kaupa’s 66 home runs was tied for the fourth most in an OBA season and was only three behind Vavao Brighouse’s record 69 from both 1988 and 1995. Kaupa was only the third OBA player to top 150+ RBI, falling two short of Brighouse’s record 161. Kaupa’s 159 still ranks second-best as of 2037. He also scored 130 runs, six short of Kiryl Savchuk’s record 136 from 2001.

Additionally, Kaupa led the league in total bases (467), OBP (.410), slugging (.771), OPS (1.180), wRC+ (212), and WAR (10.1). The 467 total bases fell five short of the record 472 set the prior year by Merlin Megson. Kaupa’s OPS was also the second-best ever season only behind Megson’s 1.209 and his slugging mark ranked third-best. Those marks still hold as of 2037.

Perth’s Raj Marple won his second Pitcher of the Year in three years. The 27-year old Australian lefty led in strikeouts (411), K/BB (7.1), quality starts (33), FIP- (57), and WAR (12.2). Marple also had a 2.39 ERA, 22-11 record, 324 innings, and 157 ERA+. He by far had the most WAR, although he was just behind Melbourne’s Sarwan Singh in ERA (2.20) and wins (25-11).



Tahiti destroyed the Pacific League competition at 109-53, returning to the thrown after a second in 2013 and third in 2012. The Tropics led the PL in both runs scored (813) and runs allowed (533). This was Tahiti’s 12^th consecutive 90+ win season and their seventh pennant in that stretch. It was also their 12^th PL title overall, behind only Guam (14) and Honolulu (13) for the most.

A distant second at 18 games back was 91-71 Samoa, followed by Guam at 89-73. The two-time defending PL champs Guadalcanal fell from their historic 115-win 2013 effort down to a fourth place 87-75. Vanuatu notably was fifth at 86-76, posting their first winning season since joining OBA in the 2006 expansion.

Pacific League MVP was Guam 1B R.W. Putnam. The 24-year old Hawaiian lefty was already in his sixth season with the Golden Eagles and exploded with league bests in runs (125), home runs (57), RBI (131), total bases (392), slugging (.690), OPS (1.074), wRC+ (204), and WAR (10.2). Putnam also had a .322 average, placing third. He was committed to Guam, signing an eight-year extension back before the 2012 season.

Flynn Murphy won Pitcher of the Year in his debut with Tahiti. The 31-year old Australian lefty had taken twice back in 2009 and 2010 with Auckland. Murphy joined the Tropics for 2014 on a five-year, $48,500,000 deal and immediately delivered, leading in wins (24-9), ERA (2.43), WHIP (0.90), quality starts (31), and WAR (10.9). He had 311.1 innings and 395 strikeouts, second to Akira Brady’s 440. It did end Brady’s streak of four straight POTY wins, although he topped 400 Ks for the fifth straight season.



Despite the general success of both franchises, the 55^th Oceania Championship was the first-ever finals meeting between Christchurch and Tahiti. The Chinooks pulled off the repeat, taking the series 4-1. It was Christchurch’s third-ever title (1963), putting them at 3-7 all-time in the championship compared to Tahiti’s 5-7. The Chinooks became the seventh franchise to earn a repeat.



Finals MVP was 1B Bernard Nyikeine, who won PL MVP the prior year with Guadalcanal. He joined the Chinooks for 2014 on a seven-year, $95,200,000 free agent deal. Although the 29-year old New Caledonian’s regular season production dropped steeply, he stepped up in the playoffs going 8-19 with 1 home run, 3 RBI, and 1 run.

Other notes: Christchurch’s Alison Kila set a new single-season OBA record for K/9 at 14.02, which remains the all-time mark as of 2037. Kila struck out 380 batters over 244 innings. PL MVP R.W. Putnam had a 31-game hit streak, which was three away from Kiryl Savchuk’s record 34.

Arjita Gabeja became the second OBA player to reach both 700 home runs and 1500 runs scored. The effort also earned his tenth Silver Slugger and second as a DH. He would retire after 2017 with 786 homers, short of Vavao Brighouse’s record 804. Gabeja would pass Junia Lava for the all-time runs mark, finishing with 1683. He ranks fourth as of 2037. Tahiti’s Ashton Hughes won his 12^th straight Gold Glove in center field. This joined OF Martin Topio (13) as the only OBA players with 12+ Gold Gloves.

[MrNFL_FanIQ]

OBA After 55 Years

*Editors note: I meant to do an OBA after 50 years post, but forgot. So here’s one after 55 years.

The Oceania Baseball Association became the seventh world league to complete 50 seasons. 2014 marked the 55^th year of OBA and below are the results thus far.



Melbourne’s impressive decade of dominance pushed them to the top team score of all OBA teams and the best average wins per year among Australasia League teams at 85.4. The Mets also have more pennants than anyone at 15. They and Adelaide are tied for the most OBA titles among AL teams at eight each as the Aardvarks have fared well in the finals.

Christchurch has the second-most pennants of the AL teams with 10, but a lackluster 3-7 finals record compared to Adelaide’s 8-1. Perth actually has the worst win tally of the original AL teams, but has eight pennants and are 4-4 in the finals. Sydney is the only of OBA’s original 16 teams without a single pennant.

In the Pacific League, Honolulu’s eight OBA titles match the high mark of Melbourne and Adelaide and gives them the PL’s best team score. Guam has the best average wins of any OBA team at 88.6 and has the Honu beat in pennants 14-13. The Golden Eagles have six OBA titles, which ranks fourth best among all teams. Tahiti is close behind with five and has 12 pennants overall.

The PL has had less overall parity than the AL, although all of its original eight teams have at least one pennant. Fiji is the only of the PL’s originals without an OBA ring. New Caledonia at 75.8 wins per season has the least wins of any original team. Naturally, the four 2006 expansion teams have yet to find success in their limited nine year existences.

[MrNFL_FanIQ]

2014 in EPB

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Two-time defending European League and reigning Eurasian Professional Baseball champ Rostov topped the EL standings at 102-60. The Rhinos scored 695 runs, which was the top mark in EPB. In a close battle for second, Moscow (94-68) edged Kazan (92-70) for the wild card. This ended a two-year drought for the Mules and stopped the Crusaders’ two-year streak. The former powerhouse Minsk followed up their franchise-worst 67-95 from 2013 by losing thrice more at 64-98.

Leading Moscow back to the playoffs was European League MVP Yuriy Isakov. The 24-year old Azeri left fielder was in his sixth season already with the Mules and led in hits (214), doubles (36), total bases (369), stolen bases (93), triple slash (.381/.441/.657), OPS (1.097), wRC+ (228), and WAR (11.8). Iaskov’s .381 average was the second-best in EPB history to that point behind only his own .411 from 2012. In May 2014, Moscow gave him the bag with an eight-year, $64,900,000 extension.

Kazan’s Roman Khilkevich won Pitcher of the Year. The 26-year old Belarusian lefty had a big comeback after a torn rotator cuff the prior season. Khilkevich led in wins (25-8), innings (279.1), strikeouts (308), quality starts (26), and WAR (8.1). He had a 152 ERA+ and 2.06 ERA, second only to Samar’s Semyon Vankov at 1.83.



Omsk earned back-to-back playoff berths and their fourth in five years. For the third time in that stretch, the Otters led the Asian League standings at 104-58. Nine games away in second was Ufa at 95-67, earning their first playoff berth since 2007. Last year’s AL champ Ulaanbaatar fell to third at 88-74. Yekaterinburg was fourth at 83-79, which grew their streak of winning seasons to 16 years. It was notably the Yaks’ lowest win total of that run.

Ufa’s Nikolay Kargopolcev repeated as Asian League MVP and won his third in four years. The 27-year old Russian right fielder led in runs (91), homers (47), RBI (109), total bases (344), slugging (.609), OPS (.928), and wRC+ (177). Kargopolcev also had a .294 average and 6.7 WAR. The Fiends had given him an eight-year, $74,700,000 extension the prior spring.

Pitcher of the Year also went to Ufa and Kolya Portnov. The 28-year old Russian righty led in wins (20-8), ERA (1.93), quality starts (27), and WAR (9.0). Portnov added 298 strikeouts in 256.2 innings and a 167 ERA+. The Fiends wouldn’t splurge on him and he’d leave after the 2017 season for Irkutsk.

The European League Championship Series was a seven-game classic, but Rostov pulled off the three-peat and beat Moscow. The Rhinos are the first EL to three-peat since the 2005-07 Mules. Omsk ousted Ufa 4-2 in the Asian League final for their third pennant in five years and their seventh overall. With the loss, the Fiends remained the only charter EPB team still without a pennant.



Rostov’s repeat bid was denied in the 60^th EPB Championship. Omsk prevailed 4-2 for their second title, joining the 2010 trophy on the shelf. Seven-time Gold Glove RF Elbeyi Shevchenko was the finals MVP, stepping up with his bat in the playoffs. In 12 starts, he had 11 hits, 8 runs, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 3 homers, 5 RBI, and 5 steals. This would be the big highlight in a Hall of Pretty Good career for Shevchenko, who would win 11 Gold Gloves over 13 years starting for the Otters.



Other notes: CF Khuday Kakimow won his eighth Gold Glove and SS Mehmet Ucar won his seventh.

[MrNFL_FanIQ]

2014 in EBF



The Northern Conference’s Northwest Division was remarkably stacked with four teams at 98+ wins. This group ultimately had the top three records in the entire European Baseball Federation. Paris repeated as the top overall seed at 106-56 and earned a third straight playoff berth. Only one back was 105-57 Amsterdam, who finished back-to-back seasons as a 100+ win wild card team.

Close behind was 103-59 Antwerp for their first-ever playoff berth in the EBF Elite tier, taking the second wild card. The Airedales smacked 287 home runs, the third-most by a team in EBF history. Brussels posted back-to-back 98-64 seasons but yet again, the Beavers had the misfortune of that not being enough for a playoff berth. This was the ninth straight winning season for Brussels, who have averaged 95.8 wins in that run.

The #2 seed went to defending European Champion Dublin, who dominated the British Isles Division at 98-64. The Dinos grew their playoff and division title streak to seven years and had their tenth straight 90+ win season, averaging 101.3 wins over the decade. Birmingham was a distant second at 86-76, which snapped their four-year playoff streak.

The Baltic Sea Division went to Oslo for the sixth consecutive year. The Octopi were 97-65, nine better than Warsaw and ten ahead of Stockholm. Cologne was the only North Central Division team above .500 at 94-68, giving the Copperheads five straight division titles. Prague’s three-year playoff streak ended at 80-82.

Unfortunately for Luxembourg, sharing the stacked Northwest Division gave them the worst record in the Northern Conference at 59-103. The Lancers had been conference champ only five years prior, but were now relegated for the first time. They would be the only relegated team from the NC, as no one else lost 100+ games. Vilnius (64-98) and Frankfurt (66-96) were the closest to demotion, but survived.

Oslo shortstop Harvey Coyle joined Sean Houston as the only six-time Northern Conference MVPs. Unlike Houston, Coyle earned his consecutively. The 27-year old English switch hitter led in home runs (58) and WAR (12.9) while winning his seventh Gold Glove with a 32.4 zone rating and 1.151 EFF. Coyle added 127 RBI, a .325/.390/.692 slash, and 202 wRC+.

It was his seventh consecutive season worth 12+ WAR, certainly living up to the $142,200,000, eight-year extension he signed the prior December. This was already the EBF record for 12+ WAR seasons and tied WAB legend Darwin Morris for the most by any position player in world history. Legendary South American pitcher Mohamed Ramos did it nine times for the world record at that point.

In his first full season, Paris lefty Gian Tosoni won Pitcher of the Year. The 26-year old Italian had been a part-timer with 22 games in the prior three years for the Poodles. Tosoni led in wins (21-8) and posted a 2.47 ERA over 259 innings, 276 strikeouts, 150 ERA+, and 5.7 WAR. Apart from this season, Tosoni had an unremarkable journeyman career. He needed elbow ligament reconstruction surgery in late 2016 and was never quite the same after.

Amsterdam again suffered a first round playoff exit as a 100+ win wild card, losing 2-1 to Cologne. Antwerp avoided the same fate, winning 2-0 at Oslo. The Octopi remained a playoff dud with their fifth round one exit of their six-year playoff streak. Home field prevailed I round two as Paris topped the Copperheads 3-1 and Dublin dropped the Airedales 3-1.

The reigning champ Dinos had a shot at a historic fourth Northern Conference crown in five years. This was the Poodles’ third straight conference final, having lost to Dublin the prior year and to Cologne in 2012. Paris reserved their fortunes with an emphatic sweep of the Dinos, giving the French capital its first pennant since 1997. It was the sixth pennant overall for Paris.



The Southern Conference had significant parity as only seven wins separated the top overall seed from the second wild card team. Fresh off their European Second League championship in 2013, Valencia’s top tier return was an impressive 95-67 season. This won the Southwest Division and earned their first-ever EBF Elite playoff berth.

The Vandals followed the path laid out by Zaragoza, who made the E2L finals in 2012, then won the SC pennant in their 2013 top tier debut. The Gold Hawks were two behind Valencia at 93-69, which snagged them the first wild card. Elsewhere in the division, Barcelona (85-770 and Lisbon (82-80) missed the cut. Notably Madrid dropped to 71-91, their worst season since 1967.

Marseille had the #2 seed, winning the South Central Division at 94-68. The Musketeers were six ahead of Rome, seven better than Zurich, and ten ahead of Milan. Marseille returned to the playoff field after having a four-year streak snapped in 2013.

Budapest won the East Central Division and Athens took the Southeast Division; both at 90-72. Both won by three games with Bucharest behind the Bombers and Yerevan behind the Anchors each at 87-75. Athens won its sixth straight division title and earned a seventh playoff berth in a row, while Budapest had its second berth in three years. Notably Vienna fell to 75-87, seeing their bid for a third consecutive division title thwarted.

It was a major traffic jam for the second wild card with Rome (88-74) emerging with the slot. Zurich, Yerevan, and Bucharest were each one back, Barcelona was three back, Milan was four back, and both Lisbon and Malta were six back. The Red Wolves had just gotten promoted back after a four-year stint in the Second League. This was their first top-tier playoff berth since 2000.

Seville at 61-101 had the worst record and was relegated for the second time. The Stingrays had gotten dropped after 2005, but had made it back after only one year. They were the only SC team to fall with no one else losing 100+ games. Munich was the closest to doom at 66-96, which was a notably bad season for a historically strong franchise. The only time the Mavericks ever did worse was a 63-99 campaign back in 1966.

Belgrade was generally irrelevant at 77-85, but their second-year LF Danijel Rajovic won Southern Conference MVP. The 24-year old Serbian lefty led in total bases (399), OPS (1.113), wRC+ (202), and WAR (9.9). Rajovic also had 43 home runs, 126 RBI, 222 hits, a .380/.430/.683 slash, and 113 runs.

Zagreb likewise wasn’t great at 80-82, but their third-year lefty A.J. Magee won Pitcher of the Year. The 24-year old from Northern Ireland led in wins (20-9) and complete games (12). Magee added a 2.24 ERA, 257.1 innings, 227 strikeouts, 7.7 WAR, and 173 ERA+. Little was expected of him as an amateur, getting picked late in the fourth round in 2009. Magee’s legendary changeup would make him arguably the best European pitcher over the next decade.

Defending conference champ Zaragoza swept Budapest in the first round while Athens swept Rome. The Gold Hawks would fall to Valencia in a round two sweep and Marseille outlasted the Anchors 3-2. This was Marseille’s first Southern Conference Championship appearance since 2009. Valencia would deny the Musketeers 4-2 and mirror Zaragoza’s run from the prior year.

Valencia and Zaragoza were the first teams to start with the Second League’s creation in 2005 and earn an EBF Elite conference title. Both also pulled off going from a Second League finalist one year to a top-tier finalist the next. The Vandals would suffer the same fate as the Gold Hawks though, falling in the European Championship.



The 65^th European Championship saw Paris cruise to a sweep of Valencia, giving the Poodles their third title (1970, 1997). This also made five straight seasons where the Northern Conference champ won it all. CF Joris Kostic had a huge postseason, taking MVP of the conference finals and the European Championship.



The 34-year old Austrian had signed a five-year, $49,000,000 deal in 2012 with Paris after a nine-year run with Krakow, including an MVP back in 2004. Injuries had limited the former #1 overall pick, but he delivered big in 2014 for the Poodles. In 11 playoff starts, Kostic had 18 hits, 11 runs, 2 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, 12 RBI, and 4 stolen bases with a 1.236 OPS and 260 wRC+.

Other notes: EBF’s 34^th and 35^th perfect games were thrown in 2014. On May 26, Tirana’s Miles Wilson did it with four strikeouts against Munich. Then on September 16, Amsterdam’s Rick Butler did it in a 10 K effort over Frankfurt. Notably, these would be the last perfect games in EBF until 2022. Krakow’s Romualdas Malinauskas had a 34-game hitting streak, which ranked ninth to that point in EBF history.

Carsten Dal became EBF’s new career hits king, passing Jacob Ronnberg’s 3520. Dal would finish after 2015 with 3633 and although his reign would be short-lived, he still ranks third as of 2037. Dal ended 2014 only nine runs behind Ronnberg for the most runs in EBF history.

Dal did make world history in 2014 by passing EAB’s Yoon-Soo Hyoun (449) as the world leader in triples, finishing his career with 457. He would hold that distinction for around 20 years. He was already the world’s stolen bases leader with 1984 after the 2014 season.

Francisco Cruz (who would later pass Dal in hits) became the eighth member of the 3000 hit club. Alan Dikov became the 14^th to reach 600 home runs. Cruz, Per Berg, and Sam Connor each reached 500 homers, making 29 guys in that club. Both Connor and Berg also got to 1500 RBI, making 21 sluggers to do so. Berg, Jiri Lebr, and Amerigo Cortes each earned their 2500^th hit in 2014, putting 32 players past that distinction. Blazej Swierczewski was the 15^th to score 1500 runs.

In pitching milestones, Stefan Sedlak became the tenth closer to earn 300 saves. Geoffrey Hebert was the 47^th to reach 3000 strikeouts. MVP Harvey Coyle won his seventh Gold Glove and eighth Silver Slugger at shortstop. 1B Wilfried Keilbach won his ninth Gold Glove, tying the position record. LF Alessandro Surina won his eighth Gold Glove.

Promotion/Relegation: Only the worst team in each conference was dropped in 2014; Seville and Luxembourg. Thus, the Second League finalists Cardiff and Sarajevo were promoted. The Crew were moved to the British Isles Division, while Reykjavik was swapped into the Lancers’ Northwest Division spot. The Salukis were placed into the South Central Division and that division’s champ Marseille was sent to plug the Stingrays’ Southwest Division spot.

Both Seville and Luxembourg were placed in the Second League’s Western Conference, which required one team to swap conferences. Wroclaw would be the squad to move into the Eastern Conference’s vacancy.

[MrNFL_FanIQ]

2014 in BSA

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Defending Bolivar League champ Medellin took the top seed again at 103-59, winning a fourth consecutive Colombia-Ecuador Division. The Mutiny have averaged 102 wins per season over this impressive run. Guayaquil was nine back at 94-68, which was plenty for the first wild card. The Golds earned back-to-back wild cards and their sixth playoff berth in seven years. Guayaquil also grew its streak of winning seasons to 11.

The #2 seed was Santa Cruz at 96-66 atop the Peru-Bolivia Division, returning to the playoffs after their seven-year streak ended in 2013. Second was Callao at 89-73, who took the second wild card by three games over Colombia’s Barranquilla. It was the fifth playoff berth in seven years for the Cats. Meanwhile the Blues notably were the first of the 2009 BL expansion teams with a winning season. Last year’s P-B division winner Arequipa was a non-factor at 75-87.

Barquisimeto took the Venezuela Division firmly at 95-67, 13 games better than their nearest foe Valencia. The Black Cats grew the longest active playoff streak in Beisbol Sudamerica to seven years, although it was their first division title since 2011. Last year’s BLS runner-up Maracaibo fell off to 76-86.

Both major award winners went to Barquisimeto, led by Bolivar League MVP Jerome Gendron. The third-year left fielder from French Guiana led in the triple slash (.379/.406/.645), OPS (1.051), and wRC+ (187). Gendron added 8.0 WAR, 209 hits, 100 runs, 34 home runs, and 90 stolen bases.

Meanwhile teammate Sebastian Marquez won his third consecutive Pitcher of the Year and his fifth in six years. He became the eighth in BSA history to win POTY five or more times. The 28-year old Venezuelan righty led in wins (19-10), innings (269.2), strikeouts (313), WHIP (0.91), complete games (18), and shutouts (4). Marquez was second in ERA (2.44) and WAR (8.0), behind only Santa Cruz’s Mano de Anda at 2.16 and 8.7. The Black Cats gave Marquez a six-year, $68,200,000 extension in April.

Guayaquil beat Callao 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs, but fell 3-1 to Medellin in the Divisional Series. On the other side, Santa Cruz survived in five against Barquisimeto. This gave the Mutiny their third straight Bolivar League Championship Series appearance and the first since their 2008-2010 three-peat for the Crawfish. Medellin would secure the repeat 4-2 over Santa Cruz, giving the Munity their 12^th pennant overall. This put them one behind Caracas for the most by any BL teams.



Fortaleza won Copa Sudamerica in 2013 as a wild card. The Foxes would be the #1 seed in 2014 at 104-58 for their third straight playoff berth and sixth in seven years. Fortaleza set a new Southern Cone League record for team on-base percentage at .340 and had the third-most runs in league history at 844. Both marks sit third as of 2037.

It was notably the Foxes’ first North Division title since 2010 and didn’t come easy with defending division champ Recife at 102-60. The Retrievers easily got the first wild card for their fifth playoff appearance in six seasons. Belo Horizonte bounced back from an abysmal 61-win 2013 to go 88-74 in 2014, but the Hogs fell short of the second wild card.

Concepcion won a third straight South Central Division title at 93-69 and earned their fourth straight playoff berth. The Chiefs set the new league record for doubles with 302, which still holds in 2037. Cordoba (89-73), Santiago (88-74) and Salta (84-78) were their foes, but each also fell just short for the second wild card. Notably, the Silver Hawks were the first of the 2009 expansion teams in the Southern Cone with a winning record.

Sao Paulo won the Southeast Division at 93-69 for their fifth straight playoff berth and fourth division title of that run. Montevideo was right behind at 91-71 and got the second wild card, ending a 15-year playoff drought. That had been the longest active drought in BSA. The Venom also set a new league record with a team .495 slugging percentage. Last year’s division winner Rosario fell to 77-85.

Recife swept the major awards, led by the second MVP for 3B Niccolo Coelho. In his ninth year for the Retrievers, the 31-year old Brazilian righty led in OBP (.423), slugging (.702), OPS (1.125), wRC+ (201), and WAR (11.4). Coelho added 51 home runs, 117 RBI, a .354 average, and 118 runs. He beat out a 66 home run, 146 RBI season by Fortaleza’s Antonio Arceo. The beloved Coelho singed a seven-year, $68,900,000 extension in August 2012.

Teammate Samuel Alves was Pitcher of the Year in his tenth season for Recife. The 32-year old Brazilian righty led in ERA at 1.88 and posted a 16-5 record, 234 strikeouts, and 6.7 WAR over 215.1 innings. Alves would miss most of 2015 to a hamstring strain, but still earned a five-year, $53,700,000 that winter.

Sao Paulo swept Montevideo in the first round and took Fortaleza to the limit, although the top-seeded Foxes escaped with a 3-2 divisional series win. Recife had no trouble and swept Conception, setting up a rematch in the Southern Cone Championship. This had become quite the recent playoff rivalry between the division rivals.

The Retrievers upset the top-seed Foxes in the 2009 divisional series, then upset them in the 2010 LCS. Fortaleza got revenge as the road underdog in the 2013 LCS. The Foxes had home field in 2014, but this time it wasn’t a curse. Fortaleza rolled 4-1 over Recife to repeat and earn their tenth pennant.



The 84^th Copa Sudamerica was the fifth rematch in cup history and the first since Lima vs. Asuncion in 1997-98. It was the third meeting between Medellin and Fortaleza with the Foxes having won in both 1967 and 2013. The 2014 showdown would be far more exciting than the 4-1 result from the prior year, needing all seven games for the first time since 2003.

Medellin finally got one over Fortaleza, ending a 44-year Cup drought back to 1969. The Mutiny (1931, 34, 37, 47, 69, 2014) joined Sao Paulo, Salvador, and Buenos Aires with the most Cup wins at six apiece. Leading the way was two-time league MVP Manuel Marquez, who was the MVP of all three playoff rounds. In his 11^th year with the Mutiny, Marquez had an all-time legendary playoff run.



The 30-year old Colombian RF in 17 playoff games had 34 hits, 18 runs, 7 doubles, 2 triples, 11 home runs, 28 RBI, a .472/.480/1.083 slash, 324 wRC+, and 2.4 WAR. The 28 RBI and 78 total bases were world records in any league’s postseason and still hold as such in 2037. The 11 homers tied the then-world record, although that would later get topped elsewhere. Marquez still has BSA’s HR and hits records.

Other notes: Owen Arcia became Beisbol Sudamerica’s all-time hits leader in 2014, passing Javier Herrera’s 3597. Arcia would play one more year and end with 3940, which is still BSA’s top mark as of 2037. He also passed Herrera’s 618 doubles to become the BSA leader. Arcia would finish with 643, which still holds as the BSA best. He also would retire with 1904 runs, second to Milton Becker’s 1980. Longevity and consistency were the key for Arcia, who only won a Silver Slugger once in his 20-year run.

Santiago’s Cierco Lugo became the eighth BSA player with a four home run game, going it against Cordoba on August 21. Arsenio Arauo, D.J. Serna, and Hector Correa each joined the 600 home run club, making it a 17-member club. Correa also became the 14^th to reach 1500 runs scored. Catcher Cicero Lugo won his seventh straight Silver Slugger. Hugo Ayala and Delfino Rivera became the 29^th and 30^th to reach 300 career saves.

[MrNFL_FanIQ]

2014 in EAB

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Three of the four division champs were repeat winners in the Japan League. Kyoto took the top overall seed at 101-61 for their fourth Central Division title in five years. Two-time defending champ Hiroshima won a third straight West Division at 97-65, beating Kumamoto by seven games. Sendai repeated in the North Division at 89-73, topping Sapporo by five games.

The one new division winner was Yokohama in the Capital Division at 95-67, edging last year’s #1 seed Chiba by three games. The Yellow Jackets ended what was the JL’s longest active playoff drought at 22 seasons. The prior year, Yokohama had posted their first winning season since 2000.

Hiroshima LF Hitoshi Kubota made history as the first six-time MVP in East Asia Baseball history. The 31-year old switch hitter won his third straight Japan League MVP and his eighth Silver Slugger. The Hammerheads star led in runs (110), OPS (1.047), and wRC+ (207). Kubota added 47 home runs, 122 RBI, a .332 average, and 9.2 WAR.

Kyoto’s Takeo Nagai won Pitcher of the Year and his fourth Gold Glove. The 30-year old righty was in his third year with the Kamikaze, signing for seven years and $64,600,000 in 2012 after starting with Kitakyushu. Nagai led in wins (21-7) and quality starts (27). He added a 2.40 ERA over 247.2 innings, 252 strikeouts, 146 ERA+, and 7.4 WAR. Nagai also had a no-hitter against Yokohama in July with five strikeouts and two walks.

Both first round series went all five games with Hiroshima edging Yokohama and Kyoto topping Sendai. The Kamikaze and Hammerheads had won the last four pennants between them, but this was their first Japan League Championship Series meeting ever. Hiroshima had swept Kyoto in the first round in 2013 en route to repeat titles. The Kamikaze got their revenge, beating Hiroshima 4-3 in a classic. It was Kyoto’s third title in five years and their sixth overall.



The big shocker in the Korea League was the collapse of defending EAB champ Daegu. The Diamondbacks won 109 games en route to the 2013 title, but plummeted to 67-95 in 2014. That was Daegu’s lowest win total since 1968. It did open up opportunities for new potential contenders.

Ulsan had the top seed at 105-57, winning the South Division and earning a third straight playoff berth. Gwangju gave them a strong challenge at 101-61, easily getting the first wild card. It was repeat playoff berths for the Grays and their sixth in seven years.

Incheon bounced back from a 72-win 2013 and won the North Division at 102-60. While it was the Inferno’s second berth in three years, it was their first division title since 2006. Second in the division was Seongnam at 89-73, which narrowly gave them the second wild card. The Spiders ended a five-year playoff drought.

Just missing the cut were Daejeon (88-74), Jeonju (87-75), and Pyongyang (86-76). For the Ducks, this was their first winning season in 15 years. Unfortunately for them, they continued EAB’s longest active playoff drought at 26 years going back to 1988.

Stunning the baseball world in his first full season was DH Kunihiko Ishiguro, who won Korea League MVP for Gwangju. He officially wasn’t a rookie because of 74 games in 2013, but he had only started six games. Ishiguro started all 162 in 2014 and the 21-year old lefty crushed 79 home runs. This broke EAB’s previous high of 73 by Soo-Geun Yim in 2005. The only seasons with more in any world league to this point were the bonkers 91, 85, and 85 by South Asia Baseball’s Majed Darwish from 2008-10.

Ishiguro also led the league in runs (133), RBI (163), total bases (491), slugging (.765), OPS (1.124), wRC+ (198), and WAR (9.8). He remains EAB’s single-season home run king as of 2037 and his total bases record held until 2028. The RBI mark ranked third-best to that point with Jae-Hee Sin’s top mark of 175 from 1921 holding strong.

Ishiguro also had 209 hits, a .326 average and .359 OBP. His slugging was only the seventh-best in EAB history to that point, owing to a lack of non-homer extra base hits. Convinced they’d hit the jackpot, Gwangju gave him an eight-year, $82,540,000 extension in the winter.

Jae-Ha Jung won his second Pitcher of the Year and his first with Seongnam, who he signed with in 2013 for six years and $87,000,000. Jung won POTY previously in 2011 with Daegu. In 2014, the 29-year old righty led in wins (20-10), quality starts (22), and complete games (19). Jung added a 2.87 ERA over 267 innings, 282 strikeouts, and 6.5 WAR.

Seongnam stunned top seed Ulsan with a first round sweep, giving the Spiders their first Korea League Championship Series since 2008. The disappointments continue for Ulsan, who have been ousted in the first round in their last seven playoff appearances. Five of those seven were 100+ win season as well, adding to the sting for the Swallows.

On the other side, Gwangju outlasted Incheon 3-2 for their third KLCS in five years. However, the Grays title drought dated back to 1993. Seongnam’s title drought was back to 2003. Although both were wild cards, 101-win Gwangju was the major favorite. Yet, the Spiders pulled off the upset 4-2 for their fifth pennant.



The 94^th East Asian Championship was the first to go all seven games since Niigata/Goyang in 2008. Kyoto prevailed over Seongnam to give the Kamikaze their third title in five years and their fifth overall (1974, 1976, 2010, 2011, 2014). They’re the first team to win three in five years since Kitakyushu’s 1992-94 three-peat. The only other teams do achieve that were Hiroshima (1969-72), Pyongyang (six from 1961-68), Hamhung (1955-58), and Sapporo (1947-51).



Leading the way was LF Mitsunari Murakoshi, who was finals and JLCS MVP. The 27-year old in 14 playoff starts had 21 hits, 5 runs, 4 doubles, 2 triples, 3 home runs, and 10 RBI. Manager Julian Loftus became only the fourth manager in EAB history with three titles. He did this despite retiring just above .500 after the 2015 season at 1146-1122. Loftus had an odd career before starting with Kyoto in 2002, holding managing jobs in BSA with Arequipa, OBA with Honolulu, and AAB with Harare.

Other notes: Koji Iwasaki became the third member of the 800 home run club. He played one more year to retire with 813, which ranks sixth as of 2037. Soo-Geun Yim became the 21^st to reach 3000 hits. SS Do-Hyeon Ju won his eighth Gold Glove. C Ha-Jun Au and OF Sang-Jun Gang won their seventh Silver Sluggers.

[MrNFL_FanIQ]

2014 in EAB

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Defending Central American Baseball Association champion Torreon set a franchise-record at 107-55, earning the Mexican League’s top seed and the North Division title. Both wild cards came out of the division as well led by 101-61 Juarez. The Jesters earned their third playoff berth in four years and led the ML with 835 runs scored.

Hermosillo (93-69) narrowly edged Monterrey (92-70) for the second wild card. The Hyenas ended a three-year playoff drought, while the Matadors ended a three-year streak. Despite missing the field, Monterrey’s record streak of winning seasons grew to 28 years. Leon repeated as South Division champ at 93-69 and allowed the fewest runs at 555. Ecatepec and Guadalajara were both 84-78, falling nine games short of both the division and the second wild card.

Mexico League MVP went to Hermosillo 1B Juvenal Romo. The 28-year old Mexican lefty led in home runs (62), RBI (138), total bases (428), slugging (.732), OPS (1.113), and wRC+ (205). Romo also had 8.6 WAR, a .335 average, and 106 runs. Romo played one more year for the Hyenas, then left for MLB with a seven-year, $155,000,000 deal with St. Louis.

His Hermosillo teammate Jamarca Akim won his third straight Pitcher of the Year. Still in only his fifth year as a starter, the 25-year old Jamaican led in strikeouts (317), complete games (16), FIP- (44), and WAR (11.5). Akim added a 2.18 ERA over 252.1 innings, 18-10 record, and 175 ERA+. Also of note, Monterrey’s Wes Vegas won his third Reliever of the Year. The 28-year old joined the Matadors after seven years with Guatemala.

Both first round series went all five games with the 100+ win teams winning. Torreon survived against Hermosillo while Juarez as a wild card ousted Leon. This put the 2013 Mexican League champion Tomahawks against the 2012 champ Jesters in the MLCS. Torreon earned the repeat 4-1 over Juarez for their fourth pennant (1979, 1987, 2013, 2014).



Jamaica had the top record in the Caribbean League at 100-62 for their second playoff berth in four years. Notably, this was the first Island Division title for the Jazz since their 1980 CABA title. Honduras (96-67) narrowly won their second Continental Division title in three years, needing a tiebreaker game win over Nicaragua (95-68) to take it. The Navigators were still the first wild card to end a two-year playoff drought.

Only one win back on Nicaragua was Haiti for the second wild card at 94-68. The Herons were three ahead of last year’s CLCS runner-up Panama at 91-71. Haiti earned their third straight wild card and grew their winning season streak to 21.

Costa Rica (88-74) and Havana (86-76) were the next closest in the wild card mix. Two-time defending Caribbean champ Santo Domingo dropped to .500, ending their playoff streak at five years. The Dolphins scored the most runs (796) but allowed the most (786). Also notable, Puerto Rico went from 89 wins and a wild card in 2013 to a lousy 66-96 in 2014.

Jamaica swept the top awards led by MVP CF Herve Mickler. The fifth-year Aruban led in slugging (.783), OPS (1.165), and wRC+ (209). Mickler added 9.0 WAR, a .325 average, 53 home runs, and 116 RBI. He had signed an eight-year, $113,300,000 extension entering the 2014 campaign. Mickler edged out Santo Domingo 1B Noah Breton for MVP despite Breton leading in homers (65), RBI (127), runs (131), and WAR (9.7).

Pitcher of the Year was Nicky Castaneda, who repeated as the ERA champ with 2.31. The 25-year old Mexican also had a 14-6 record over 210 innings, 243 strikeouts, 164 ERA+, and 6.1 WAR. This effort earned Castaneda a six-year, $82,000,000 extension the following spring, although he’d be nearly above average for the rest of his career.

Jamaica survived 3-2 over Haiti in the first round of the playoffs for their first Caribbean League Championship Series berth since 1982. Although Honduras beat Nicaragua in the tiebreaker game for the division, the Navigators got revenge on the road 3-1 in the first round. This was Nicaragua’s first CLCS since their four straight appearances from 2008-2011. The Navigators cruised to a surprise sweep of Jamaica for their fourth pennant (1989, 1990, 2008, 2014).



The 104^th CABA Championship was an all-timer. It was the fourth time that the series was decided in an extra-innings game seven. In the top of the 12^th inning, Nicaragua scored twice en route to a 5-3 win over Torreon to deny the Tomahawks repeat. Finals MVP was 1B Ricart Becerra in his second year with Nicaragua. In 14 playoff games, the 30-year old Mexican had 23 hits, 10 runs, 4 doubles, 4 home runs, and 16 RBI.



Nicaragua had been the only of the original 24 teams without a single CABA championship entering 2014. With the Navigators win, 26 of CABA’s current 32 franchises have won it all at least once. This also continued a run of parity with eight unique champs in the last eight seasons.

Other notes: Merida’s Issmael Palos threw CABA’s 34^th perfect game on June 23 against Juarez. This outing was also historically significant as Palos did it with zero strikeouts. As of 2037, this is the only perfect game in any world league ever without a single strikeout and only the fourth no-hitter without a strikeout.

Casimiro Salceda became the 16^th member of the 600 home run club. David Jack became the 46^th to reach 500 homers. CF Santiago Flores won his seventh Gold Glove.