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

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 06-28-2025, 06:29 PM

Atef Abdelhakim – Starting Pitcher – Jeddah Jackals – 87.0% First Ballot

Atef Abdelhakim was a 5’10’’, 170 pound right-handed pitcher from the capital of Egypt, Cairo. Abdelhakim’s raw stuff was considered above average at best, but he persevered with pinpoint control and very good movement. His arsenal had a decent 93-95 mph fastball, a dangerous knuckle curve, and a rarely used changeup. Abdelhakim wasn’t going to overpower you, but he was great at coaxing ground balls and got many strikeouts from a perfectly placed knuckle curve.

Abdelhakim’s stamina was merely decent relative to other ALB aces, but he had ironman durability with 30+ starts in all of his 16 full seasons. His pickoff move and ability to hold runners was outstanding, although his overall defense was weak. Abdelhakim wasn’t disruptive in the clubhouse, but he was considered to be a selfish loner who mostly cared about his own results. Despite that, he was a big part of extended playoff runs for two franchises.

He quickly emerged as an impressive prospect coming out of Egypt, gaining attention across the region. Basra ultimately locked Abdelhakim up to a developmental contract in October 2005. He spent around four years in their academy in Iraq, debuting with 21 respectable innings in 2009 at age 20. The Bulldogs were a regular contender at this point, falling in that year’s Eastern Conference Final to Kuwait. Abdelhakim’s first playoff start had three runs allowed in a 6.1 no decision.

Abdelhakim was a reliable full-time starter for the next six years in Basra. He won 2010 Rookie of the Year honors and was third in Pitcher of the Year voting in 2010 and 2013 for the Bulldogs. Abdelhakim wasn’t one to lead the conference, but his production was reliable and steady. Basra continued their playoff streak through the 2012 season.

The Bulldogs won the 2010 pennant, falling to 116-win Amman in the ALB Championship. Abdelhakim had an excellent playoff run, winning his three starts with a 1.44 ERA over 25 innings and 27 strikeouts. Basra fell to 86-76, but still made the playoffs and had a surprise run to an ALB Championship win over Alexandria. They won 101 games in 2012, but got upset in the ECF by Abu Dhabi.

Over 10 playoff starts for Basra, Abdelhakim had a 2.85 ERA, 6-2 record, 72.2 innings, 77 strikeouts, 9 walks, 142 ERA+, and 2.0 WAR. He went 4-1 in the 2011 Baseball Grand Championship with a 3.27 ERA over 33 innings, 29 strikeouts, but only 0.2 WAR. The Bulldogs finished 10-9 in the event in a four-way tie for eighth.

In 2012, Abdelhakim became a regular for his native Egypt in the World Baseball Championship. His results were mixed from 2012-25 with a 3.33 ERA over 121.2 innings, 9-9 record, 145 strikeouts, 21 walks, and 2.7 WAR. In 2014, Abdelhakim helped the Egyptians to their best-ever finish in fourth place.

After a decade-long playoff streak, three ALB titles, and five conference pennants, Basra’s reign ended with three straight losing seasons from 2013-15. The Bulldogs would reload and contend again by the end of the decade. Part of the rebuilding process included trading Abdelhakim in February 2016 to Jeddah for a pitching prospect and a third round draft pick.

With the Bulldogs, Abdelhakim had a 92-60 record, 3.30 ERA, 1386 innings, 1569 strikeouts, 186 walks, 120 ERA+, 78 FIP-, and 34.0 WAR. He would become more famous for his time with the Jackals, who were also five seasons and two championships into their own playoff run. Abdelhakim was in a contract year, but Jeddah traded for him with the intent of signing him long-term.

He was third in Pitcher of the Year voting in his Jeddah debut, posting his career bests for wins (21-6), ERA (2.51), and WAR (7.8). The Jackals gave Abdelhakim a five-year, $64,900,000 extension before the season ended. Jeddah finished with a franchise-best 117-45 record, but lost to 114-48 Abu Dhabi in the ECF. Although disappointed, the Jackals bounced back with four consecutive 100+ win seasons.

Abdelhakim put up comparable numbers in 2017, although he was never a Pitcher of the Year finalist again. His ERA wasn’t below three after the 2017 campaign, but he was still a very reliable and consistent starter. Jeddah lost in the first round in 2017, but won it all in 2018 at 105-57, defeating Tripoli in the ALB Championship. The Jackals then stunned the world with a 14-5 finish in the Baseball Grand Championship, becoming the first ALB team to win the top honor.

The 2018 BGC was perhaps Abdelhakim’s finest moment, posting a 1.08 ERA over 33.1 innings, 3-0 record, 29 strikeouts, 6 walks, and 1.3 WAR. He was generally a good playoff pitcher as Jeddah’s postseason streak continued, tossing 92.2 playoff innings for them with a 2.82 ERA, 5-3 record, 82 strikeouts,1 3 walks, 154 ERA+, and 2.3 WAR.

Jeddah won the Eastern Conference again in 2019 at 104-58, but lost the ALB title in a rematch with Tripoli. The Jackals again won 104 games in 2020, but lost to Basra in the conference. They became a playoff underdog with division titles in 2021 and 2022 at 92-70 and 97-65, but they emerged with the pennant both years. Jeddah defeated Cairo for their 4^th ALB title in 2021, but lost the 2022 final to Casablanca.

Abdelhakim had a respectable showing in the 2021 BGC with a 3.16 ERA over 31.1 innings, 1-2 record, 26 strikeouts, 128 ERA+, and 0.5 WAR. Jeddah ultimately was 6-13, tied for the bottom spot. Satisfied with the consistency, Abdelhakim got a five-year, $76,800 extension from the Jackals in May 2021. His ERA did go above four for the first time in 2022 and 2023, but Abdelhakim bounced back to 3.54 in 2024.

Jeddah fell short of the conference finals in 2023 and 2024 with the playoff streak ending in 2025 at 14 seasons. For his overall playoff career, Abdelhakim had an 11-5 record, 2.83 ERA, 165.1 innings, 159 strikeouts, 22 walks, 148 ERA+, 77 FIP-, and 4.3 WAR. As of 2037, he ranks 2^nd in ALB playoff wins, 2^nd in innings, 5^th in strikeouts, and 3^rd in pitching WAR. Abdelhakim certainly earned the reputation as a top playoff performer, playing a big role in both Jeddah and Basra’s sustained streaks.

As Jeddah’s streak ended in 2025, Abdelhakim struggled to his worst season with a 5.14 ERA and 1.5 WAR over 177 innings. He could still locate his pitches, but his fastball was now down to 90-92 mph. Abdelhakim retired that winter at age 36 and Jeddah immediately honored him by retiring his #30 for his decade of steady service. With the Jackals, Abdelhakim had a 148-71 record, 3.59 ERA, 1932.2 innings, 1954 strikeouts, 254 walks, 173/322 quality starts, 10 complete games, 6 shutouts, 117 ERA+, 77 FIP-, and 49.6 WAR.

Overall, Abdelhakim had a 240-131 record, 3.47 ERA, 3318.2 innings, 3523 strikeouts, 440 walks, 296/518 quality starts, 26 complete games, 11 shutouts, 119 ERA+, 78 FIP-, and 83.6 WAR. As of 2037, Abdelhakim ranks 6^th in wins, 10^th in innings, 15^th in strikeouts, and 14^th in pitching WAR. He also had a 1.19 BB/9, which ranks 15^th among all ALB pitchers with 1000+ career innings.

Abdelhakim was never overwhelmingly dominant, but he was remarkably consistent and steady. That got him to accumulations good enough to get the nod from most voters. Most of the remaining doubters were swayed by the playoff results, since Abdelhakim had better rate stats in the playoffs than the regular season. He was certainly critical to dynasty runs for both Jeddah and Basra, earning the first ballot nod at 87.0% as part of the four-player 2031 Hall of Fame class for Arab League Baseball.

Nasser Al-Jarrah – Relief Pitcher – Giza Goats – 70.4% First Ballot

Nasser Al-Jarrah was a 6’4’’, 195 pound right-handed relief pitcher from Wadi as-Sir, Jordan; part of the greater Amman area with around 242,000 inhabitants. Al-Jarrah known for having excellent stuff with strong movement, although his control was above average at best. His velocity peaked in the 97-99 mph range with a sinker/cutter combo, leading to an extreme groundball tendency.

Al-Jarrah’s stamina was good by reliever standards and he had excellent durability, avoiding major injuries across a 16-year career. He was subpar at holding runners and fielding the position. As a teenager, Al-Jarrah moved from Jordan to Egypt on a developmental deal with Giza in December 2006. He spent most of six years in their academy, debuting with 8.1 innings in 2012 at age 22.

The Goats made Al-Jarrah the closer in 2013 and he held that role strongly through 2018. He led the Western Conference four times in saves and twice in games pitched. Al-Jarrah had career highs of 45 saves and 77 games in 2013. 2018 saw his top ERA with 1.11. He was second in both Rookie of the Year and Reliever of the Year voting in 2013. Al-Jarrah took third in Reliever of the Year in 2015, then won the award for the first time in 2016. He took it again in 2018 and was third in that year’s Pitcher of the Year voting.

Giza was generally above .500 in Al-Jarrah’s tenure, but usually fell short of the Nile Division title to either Alexandria or Cairo. The Goats broke through in 2016 at 101-61 for the top seed, but fell to Damascus in the Western Conference Final. Al-Jarrah’s three playoff appearances were a mixed bag with one win, one save, and one loss; allowing three runs in 3.2 innings.

Overall for Giza, Al-Jarrah had 232 saves and 264 shutdowns, a 47-42 record, 2.28 ERA, 568 innings, 808 strikeouts, 127 walks, 167 ERA+, and 20.8 WAR. 2019 was his last year under team control and the Goats opted to trade him in the offseason to Basra for two prospects.

Al-Jarrah delivered for the Bulldogs, winning his third Reliever of the Year with career bests for WAR (5.1), and strikeouts (154). He finished with 38 saves, 1.28 ERA, and an 11-2 record in 72 games and 91.1 innings. Basra made it to the Eastern Conference Final, but fell to Jeddah. Al-Jarrah had three saves and one loss in four appearances, allowing one run in 7.1 innings.

He was now a free agent heading towards age 30 with international offers floating in. Al-Jarrah moved to America on a two-year, $16,400,000 deal with Major League Baseball’s Oakland Owls. In 2020, he had 49 innings of mid relief with a 3.31 ERA. Oakland cut him after 2021’s spring training. Al-Jarrah stayed in MLB and spent 2021 with expansion Birmingham, posting a 5.21 ERA in 19 innings.

Ottawa gave him a look next on a two-year deal worth $16,600,000. He only saw 14 innings in 2022 but looked respectable. Ottawa was upset in the first round of the playoffs despite the #2 seed, but Al-Jarrah did throw three scoreless innings in his one playoff appearance. He earned a greater role in 2023 with a 3.58 ERA over 73 innings and 45 games.

Now 34-years old, Al-Jarrah returned to ALB on a two-year, $7,840,000 deal with Sanaa. The Shockers were a new expansion team for 2024 and made Al-Jarrah the closer, getting 31 saves in 79.2 innings with a 3.05 ERA. He was traded in the offseason to Riyadh for three prospects and a draft pick.

Al-Jarrah had a resurgence in 2025 with a 2.26 ERA in 79.2 innings, 38 saves, and 84 strikeouts. He earned Reliever of the Year, becoming the third in ALB history to win the award four times. Al-Jarrah gave up one run in 1.2 playoff innings as the Rats had a first round exit. This marked the end of his ALB career, as he’d spend his final three seasons back in MLB.

In 2026, Al-Jarrah had a 3.80 ERA in 45 innings for San Diego. The Seals went onto win the World Series and the Baseball Grand Championship, giving Al-Jarrah two shiny rings. He only had one inning (albeit scoreless) in the MLB postseason and didn’t pitch in the BGC. Al-Jarrah joined Anchorage in 2027, but was cut in late August after posting a 5.58 ERA over 30.2 innings. He finished the year with minor league Greensboro.

Al-Jarrah spent the first half of 2028 with Dallas, getting a 4.06 ERA over 44.1 innings. The Dalmatians cut him at the end of July and he finished the year with minor league Columbia. Al-Jarrah retired after the season at age 38, finishing his assorted MLB stints with a 3.92 ERA in 285 innings, 11-15 record, 5 saves, 33 shutdowns, 246 strikeouts, 81 walks, 101 ERA+, 81 FIP-, and 4.0 WAR.

In ALB, Al-Jarrah ended with 339 saves and 378 shutdowns, 75-62 record, 2.24 ERA, 818.2 innings, 1133 strikeouts, 193 walks, 177 ERA+, 61 FIP-, and 29.2 WAR. As of 2037, Al-Jarrah ranks 4^th in saves. Among the other ALB Hall of Fame relievers, he is fifth out of six in strikeouts and WAR. Supporters note that his tallies would’ve been higher without the MLB interludes.

Detractors felt he wasn’t around long enough to get the nod, but having four Reliever of the Year awards and comparable metrics to the other Arab League Baseball HOF closers got Al-Jarrah across the line for most. 70.4% just passed the 66% threshold to make Al-Jarrah a first ballot inductee to cap off a very impressive four-player 2031 class for ALB.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 06-29-2025, 06:41 AM

The African Association of Baseball welcomed three into the Hall of Fame for 2031, all on their first ballot. Former Kampala teammates 1B Relebogile Matima and 1B Ermias Tadele were both absolute slam dunks at 99.3% and 98.5%, respectively. RF Ange Ndikuriyo earned his own firm induction at 77.3%. RF Anthony Chongo was the closest returner to the 66% requirement, getting 57.5% on his ninth attempt. Also above 50% was 1B Lifa Moyo with 52.0% for his fifth ballot, SP Valentine Hategekimana at 50.9% in his seventh go, and CL Deon Westerveld with 50.5% for his sixth try. No one was dropped after ten failed ballots.

Relebogile “Duck” Matima – First Base – Kampala Peacocks – 99.3% First Ballot

Relebogile Matima was a 6’2’’, 195 pound left-handed first baseman from Pretoria, the administrative capital of South Africa with just under three million people. Nicknamed “Duck,” Matima was known for excellent home run power along with above average to good contact hitting against right-handed pitching. For his career, he had an excellent 1.070 OPS and 179 wRC+ facing RHP. The downside was subpar hitting against lefties with a .713 OPS and 93 wRC+.

Matima was above average at drawing walks, but struggled with strikeouts against both sides. He had an impressive 51 home runs per his 162 game average, but could find the gap too with 35 doubles and 3 triples per 162. Matima’s speed was average, but his baserunning ability was mediocre. He never took his glove anywhere but first base with below average but serviceable defense. Matima occasionally was a designated hitter, but he had more than 90% of his starts at first.

Few players became more universally beloved across the continent. Matima was considered one of the game’s great ironmen, starting 140+ games in all but the final season of a 17-year career. He was a fan favorite with an outstanding work ethic and always went out of his way to greet fans. Matima was especially adored in his home country South Africa and in Uganda, where he’d spend his entire pro career.

After dominating the South African amateur ranks, Matima was picked third overall by Kampala in the 2008 AAB Draft. He was a full-time starter right away and an immediate success, winning 2009 Rookie of the Year and a Silver Slugger with a 53 home run, 1.031 OPS, 5.6 WAR campaign. Matima also regularly returned home to South Africa from 2009-25 in the World Baseball Championship. Over 151 WBC games, Matima had 109 hits, 81 runs, 15 doubles, 42 home runs, 88 RBI, .231/.349/.535 slash, 5.6 WAR.

Matima’s second season was his finest by many metrics, although he was second to Mwarami Tale in the MVP race. Matima won another Slugger and led the Central Conference and posted career bests in runs (127), home runs (65), total bases (440), slugging (.730), OPS (1.136), wRC+ (197), and WAR (8.9). It was easy to get overlooked playing for Kampala, who had been a consistent loser to that point. The Peacocks had finished 83-79 in Matima’s first two seasons, but fell back below .500 for the next three years.

Despite team woes, Matima thrived with additional Silver Sluggers in 2012 (his only one as a DH) and 2014, leading both years in total bases. His 2014 effort also earned a second place in MVP voting, leading the conference in runs (116), homers (61), and RBI (136). The Duck stayed loyal to his original team with a charitable $28,520,000 over seven years signed in October 2014.

Matima wanted to see Kampala become a winner and they started making progress. The Peacocks went 86-76 in 2014, but fell to 75-89 in 2015. Then Kampala had its best seasons to date at 94-68 in 2016 and 92-70 in 2017, although they missed the playoffs both years. In 2017, Matima won his lone MVP and another Silver Slugger, leading for the final time in homers (54), RBI (120), and total bases (366).

In 2018, Matima’s Hall of Fame classmate Ermias Tadele signed as a free agent to become the staff ace. That was the final piece as Kampala finally made the playoffs after 24 years, dominating the Central Conference at 111-51. Matima was MVP of the conference finals victory over Brazzavile, then helped as the Peacocks defeated Johannesburg for their first Africa Series title. In 12 playoff starts, Matima had 14 hits, 6 runs, 4 doubles, 5 homers, 11 RBI, 1.195 OPS, and 0.7 WAR.

Kampala then had a solid showing at 10-9 in the Baseball Grand Championship, one of five teams tied for seventh. Matima had a strong showing on the world stage with a 1.410 OPS, 311 wRC+, 1.9 WAR, 11 homers, 15 RBI, 18 hits, and 13 runs. In 2019, Matima was still a quality tarter, but posted his career lows in OPS and WAR to that point. The Peacocks finished 96-66, missing the playoffs in third place.

Matima’s play hovered around the 3.5 WAR mark for the next few years, but did notably win his lone Gold Glove in 2020. Kampala didn’t need him to dominate as they put together a dynasty run. The Peacocks won three straight Africa Series titles from 2020-22, beating the Jackalopes in 2020, Lilongwe in 2021, and Antananarivo in 2022. Matima’s playoff stats were surprisingly mediocre with a sub-.700 OPS and negative WAR over 38 games.

In the 2020 Baseball Grand Championship, Matima looked more like his old self. He had a 1.006 OPS, 170 wRC+, and 1.0 WAR in 16 starts as Kampala again was 10-9. Now 36-years old, Matima signed a three-year, $22,200,000 extension with the Peacocks. He had a lackluster showing in the 2021 BGC with a .619 OPS, 71 wRC+, and 0.0 WAR. However, Kampala surprised many with a 14-5 finish, second only to 15-4 New Orleans.

Matima was better in the 2022 BGC with a .772 OPS, 0.6 WAR, and 130 wRC+. Kampala and Caracas finished tied for the top spot at 13-6, but the Colts’ 4-1 win in their head-to-head matchup again kept the Peacocks in second place. Still, three straight AAB titles and repeat second place outings in the Grand Championship cemented Kampala’s 2020s run as one of the all-time dynasties.

Kampala had a shot at a four-peat, but lost in a 2023 rematch with the Eagles. Matima had an impressive career resurgence with a conference-best 1.030 OPS, winning his seventh Silver Slugger with a second place in MVP voting. That year, Matima also crossed the 700 home run and 1500 runs scored career milestones. Hoping for a late stage renaissance, the Peacocks gave him another two years and $41,200,000.

He wasn’t able to match that production in 2024, although he did still hit 49 home runs with 100 runs. Matima had 2.7 WAR and 118 wRC+ with the Peacocks dropping to 84-78, ending their dynasty run. Kampala fell below .500 in 2025 and Matima was relegated to a bench role with 43 games and 14 starts. He retired after the season at age 40 and immediately had his #25 uniform retired for his role as a franchise record. The Peacocks were a perennial loser before Matima arrived and by the time his 17-year career was done, they had won four Africa Series rings in a five year stretch.

Matima ended with 2517 games, 2490 hits, 1670 runs, 539 doubles, 41 triples, 785 home runs, 1843 RBI, 1165 walks, 2613 strikeouts, 110 stolen bases, .277/.365/.609 slash, .974 OPS, 157 wRC+, and 83.7 WAR. As of 2037, Matima ranks 9^th in games, 6^th in runs, 16^th in hits, 5^th in total bases (5466), 16^th in doubles, 8^th in home runs, 6^th in RBI, 15^th in walks, 2^nd in strikeouts, and 11^th in WAR among position players. Among AAB batters with 3000+ plate appearances, Matima ranks 68^th in OBP, 22^nd in slugging, and 26^th in OPS.

By any measure, Matima qualifies as an inner-circle Hall of Famer. However, he does fall short of the very top tier of guys like Mwarami Tale and Felix Chaula, who both overshadowed Matima in his best years. Like those two, Matima is a beloved and cherished figure in African baseball, earning a near unanimous 99.3% with the African Association of Baseball’s 2031 class.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 06-29-2025, 09:21 PM

Ermias Tadele – Starting Pitcher – Kampala Peacocks – 98.5% First Ballot

Ermias Tadele was a 6’2’’, 195 pound left-handed pitcher from Debre Markos, Ethiopia; a city of around 134,000 in the country’s Amhara Region. Tadele was renowned for having incredible movement on his pitches along with excellent control. His raw stuff graded as merely above average, but Tadele didn’t need to overpower you thanks to well-placed pitches that fooled hitters with zany movement.

Tadele’s fastball peaked in the 93-95 mph range and was part of a four pitch arsenal along with a changeup, screwball, and changeup. Each were considered potent, but the changeup was probably his strongest offering. Tadele’s stamina was good relative to other AAB aces and he had fantastic durability, tossing 220+ innings each year from 2011-24. He had a strong pickoff move, but graded as below average defensively otherwise.

With his incredible talents, Tadele stands as AAB’s best pitcher to date for many fans and observers. However, you could argue he still underperformed his gifts. Tadele rubbed many coaches and teammates the wrong way due to perceived selfishness and laziness. Even if he was a knucklehead, Tadele’s ability and results were undeniable.

Tadele left Ethiopia as a teenager and moved to Somalia on a developmental deal with Mogadishu in August 2004. He spent most of six years in their academy before debuting in 2010 with a 4.69 ERA over 63.1 innings at age 22. Tadele earned a full-time rotation slot the next year and delivered his good result, starting a 14-year streak of 5+ WAR seasons.

In 2014, he led the Central Conference in WAR (8.1), wins (17-15), FIP- (65), and shutouts (4), taking third in Pitcher of the Year voting. Despite his efforts, the Mighty Mice were generally in the upper-middle tier during his time. Despite good results, Tadele’s attitude and personality grated on Mogadishu’s staff. He made it clear that he was excited to cash in big in free agency, due after the 2017 season.

With that, Tadele was traded in July 2016 to Maputo for prospects. With Mogadishu, Tadele finished with a 77-70 record, 3.56 ERA, 1412.0 innings, 1223 strikeouts, 322 walks, 114 ERA+, 74 FIP, 48 complete games, 8 shutouts, and 38.1 WAR. Meanwhile the Piranhas were on the cusp and narrowly made the playoffs in 2016, although they fell to Johannesburg in the Southern Conference Championship. Tadele got destroyed in his one playoff start, allowing seven runs in 4.1 innings.

Tadele led in WAR at 8.8 in his lone full year with Maputo, who took first at 101-61. The Piranhas Luanda to win the pennant, then fell to Tadele’s former squad Mogadishu in the Africa Series. Tadele had a far better postseason in 2017 with a 1.71 ERA over 26.1 innings with 25 strikeouts. It was the perfect way to end a contract year as he approached free agency set to turn 30 in April. For Maputo, Tadele had a 22-16 record, 3.14 ERA, 321 innings, 377 strikeouts, 76 walks, 125 ERA+, 52 FIP-, and 12.8 WAR.

Kampala felt they were close to finally earning their first playoff berth and went all in, signing Tadele to a seven-year, $77,300,000 deal. It was certainly a winner, as he also gave them his best seasons, leading the Central Conference in WAR each year from 2018-23. Tadele won his first Pitcher of the Year in 2018 with a 21-6 record, 2.41 ERA, and 259 strikeouts.

The Peacocks finished 111-51 in 2018 and won their first Africa Series, defeating Johannesburg in the finale. Tadele posted a 3.32 ERA over 19 playoff innings in the series. He had a strong 2.25 ERA over 32 innings with 32 strikeouts in the Baseball Grand Championship as Kampala finished 10-9. This wasn’t Tadele’s first time on the global stage though, as he had pitched for his native Ethiopia in the World Baseball Championship.

From 2012-25, Tadele tossed 160.1 innings in the WBC with a 2.58 ERA, 14-7 record, 179 strikeouts, 45 walks, and 4.8 WAR. He notably tossed back-to-back shutouts in the 2019 edition. Ethiopia’s deepest runs with Tadele were a third place finish in 2013 and a fourth in 2024.

Tadele was second in 2019’s POTY voting despite his first ERA title (2.52) and a new best WAR to that point of 9.0. Kampala just missed the playoffs at 96-66, but bounced back for one of AAB’s all-time dynasties. The Peacocks won 109, 102, and 104 games from 2020-22 en route to three consecutive Africa Series titles. Kampala beat Johannesburg in the 2020 final, Lilongwe in 2021, and Antananarivo in 2022.

2021 saw Tadele’s second ERA title and Pitcher of the Year, posting career bests in ERA (2.33) and strikeouts (279). He was second in 2022’s POTY voting, then won his third trophy in 2023 with career bests in WAR (10.0), WHIP (0.87), and wins (23-1). Tadele’s .958 win percentage in 2023 set a new AAB record and his WAR total was the third-best to that point. It still ranks as the eighth-best WAR by a pitcher in AAB as of 2037.

Tadele had a weak 2020 postseason showing despite the team’s title, posting a 4.94 ERA over 23.2 innings with 18 strikeouts. He fared better in the Baseball Grand Championship with a 3.07 ERA over 29.1 innings with 35 strikeouts as Kampala was 10-9. Tadele was then outstanding in his remaining postseason outings, including a 1.06 ERA over 34 innings with 21 strikeouts in 2021. Believe it or not, he was even better in the BGC.

Over 35 BGC innings in 2021, Tadele won all four starts with a 0.51 ERA, 42 strikeouts, and 2.03 WAR. As of 2037, it is one of 33 times that a pitcher recorded 2+ WAR in the BGC, pushing Kampala to a 14-5 finish; second only to 15-4 New Orleans. Tadele kept rolling with a 1.42 ERA over 25.1 innings in the 2022 AAB title run. He then posted a 1.31 ERA over 34.1 innings with 38 strikeouts and 1.4 WAR in the 2022 BGC. The Peacocks tied for first with Caracas at 13-6, but ended up in second place as the Colts had won the head-to-head battle.

In 2023, Kampala’s four-peat bid in the Africa Series was denied in a rematch with Antananarivo. Tadele was again strong in the playoffs with a 1.52 ERA over 23.2 innings. With the Peacocks, he had a 10-3 record and 2.29 ERA over 125.2 playoff innings with 107 strikeouts, 23 walks, 180 ERA+, and 4.6 WAR. For his entire AAB career, Tadele had a 2.53 playoff ERA, 12-4 record, 156.1 innings, 135 strikeouts, 32 walks, 161 ERA+, 57 FIP-, and 5.9 WAR.

As of 2037, Tadele is AAB’s all-time leader in playoff pitching WAR, wins, and shutouts (3). He also ranks third in strikeouts. Tadele’s stats across his BGC appearances are even more tremendous with a 1.72 ERA in 130.2 innings, 11-3 record, 147 strikeouts, 15 walks, and 5.9 WAR. He ranks fifth in BGC pitching WAR and is one of only three pitchers to have a sub-two ERA and at least 125 innings. Among qualifiers, Tadele also has the best WHIP (0.75) and BB/9 (1.03) in tournament history. He also ranks 17^th in strikeouts, 14^th in innings, and his .509 opponent’s OPS is 3^rd.

After having arguably his best year in 2023, Tadele fell off in 2024 to a 3.91 ERA and only 200 strikeouts. While he was still worth 5.9 WAR, this was his weakest showing since his early years with Mogadishu. The Peacocks dynasty ended with a 84-78 record in Tadele‘s final of seven seasons. For the Kampala run he had a 131-51 record, 2.78 ERA, 1607.1 innings, 1759 strikeouts, 312 walks, 149 ERA+, 57 FIP-, and 59.2 WAR.

Tadele’s personality clashes meant his #11 uniform wasn’t retired, but he was very popular with many Peacocks fans. You could certainly argue he was the biggest final piece in turning Kampala into a dynasty. Tadele’s big game stats certainly placed him among the best in any league. He was now soon to be 37-years old though and felt he had something still to offer. Bujumbura agreed and signed Tadele for two years and $35,200,000.

It was a tough 2025 for Tadele with a 4.22 ERA over 190 innings, 112 strikeouts, and 2.6 WAR; all career worsts. His velocity had dropped into the low 90s at best in his later Kampala years, still surviving with stellar movement. Unfortunately, that started to fade as well as he peaked in the 85-87 mph range for the final year. Tadele retired after the 2025 campaign at age 37.

Tadele finished with a 239-150 record, 3.20 ERA, 3530.1 innings, 3471 strikeouts, 748 walks, 291/455 quality starts, 97 complete games, 22 shutouts, 128 ERA+, 66 FIP-, and 112.7 WAR. As of 2037, Tadele is AAB’s career leader in wins, starts (455), innings, and pitching WAR. The next best pitcher isn’t even particularly close in WAR with Bahujnana Kaimal’s 72.97 nearly 40 full points back. Tadele’s WAR is 4^th among all AAB players.

He also ranks 4^th in strikeouts, 7^th in complete games, and 3^rd in shutouts. On the downside, Tadele’s longevity meant he leads in hits allowed at 3182 and is 9^th in losses. Among pitchers with 1000+ innings, Tadele is 22^nd in ERA, 22^nd in WHIP (1.11), 24^th in opponent’s OPS (.660), and 22^nd in BB/9 (1.91). With those stats, it isn’t a surprise that most view Tadele as the African Association of Baseball’s greatest pitcher through its first 40+ seasons.

If the regular season stats didn’t sway you, Tadele’s playoff stats were incredibly elite. His Baseball Grand Championship numbers were even more incredible considering that was against the best of the best. Tadele was probably on pace for a Hall of Fame career before the Kampala signing, but that run made him an African baseball legend.

The franchise had never made the playoffs prior to his signing. He was there seven years, which saw the Peacocks win four Africa Series titles, five conference titles, and finish second twice in the Grand Championship. Tadele certainly cemented himself as an inner-circle legend, co-headlining AAB’s 2031 HOF class at 98.5% alongside his former teammate Relebogile Matima. Tadele also is considered by many to be the top player yet to come out of Ethiopia.

Ange “Village Idiot” Ndikuriyo – Right Field – Cape Town Cowboys – 77.3% First Ballot

Ange Ndikuriyo was a 6’1’’, 200 pound left-handed right fielder from Kibuye, Rwanda; a town of about 12,000 people on the eastern shores of Lake Kivu. Ndikuriyo was an excellent home run hitter with very good contact skills against both sides. His 162 game average got you 48 home runs and 35 doubles, which made Ndikuriyo his conference’s leader in slugging percentage four times in AAB. He also had an above average eye for drawing walks and avoiding strikeouts.

Ndikuriyo was a pretty good baserunner, but was limited by subpar speed. That also meant he had poor range as a career right fielder, posting lousy defensive metrics. Ndikuriyo also had a few starts in left field and as a designated hitter, but more than 80% of his starts came in right. His durability was quite strong, which pushed him to an 18-year career along with a stellar work ethic. Ndikuriyo was a true fan favorite and was affectionately nicknamed “Village Idiot,” for his endearing self-deprecating sense of humor.

In June 2008, a teenaged Ndikuriyo left Rwanda for South Africa on a developmental deal with Cape Town. His entire AAB career came with the Cowboys, who called him up in 2012 as a full-time starter at age 20. Ndikuriyo hit 50 home runs with 137 RBI to earn 2012 Rookie of the Year honors. He would hit at least 47 home runs in all nine of his seasons for Cape Town.

Ndikuriyo’s third season was his best by almost all metrics, earning his first MVP and Silver Slugger. His 2014 was only the third Triple Crown hitting season to that point in AAB with career and Southern Conference bests in runs (133), hits (207), doubles (60), homers (64), RBI (179), total bases (459), average (.352), slugging (.781), OPS (1.197), wRC+ (200), and WAR (9.9). He also had his best OBP at .417. The 179 RBI fell one short of the then-AAB record and still ranks as the 13^th-best in any league as of 2037. Ndikuriyo’s OPS also is the 14^th-best qualifying in AAB with the total bases ranking 10^th.

He went onto win MVP again in 2016 and 2018 with a second place finish in 2020. Ndikuriyo earned Silver Sluggers from 2016-20, a stretch where he led in RBI, OPS, and slugging thrice; wRC+ twice and total bases, and once in runs, homers, and WAR. Despite Ndikuriyo’s efforts, Cape Town was generally mediocre and averaged 76.3 wins per season during his tenure. They only had two winning seasons, falling one win short of the playoffs in 2017 at 93-69 and an 82-80 mark the next year.

After that 2017 campaign, Cape Town signed Ndikuriyo to an eight-year, $56,980,000 extension. They hoped contention was imminent, but the Cowboys were back below .500 by the end of the decade. Ndikuriyo was a beloved superstar, but had grown frustrated with nine years of general mediocrity. He also knew he had the talent to play on the biggest stage, thus he opted out of his contract after the 2020 season and tested free agency at age 29.

This ended his career in Africa, finishing with 1375 games, 1499 hits, 959 runs, 368 doubles, 477 home runs, 1150 RBI, 592 walks, 1065 strikeouts, 90 stolen bases, .300/.375/.665 slash, 1.040 OPS, 172 wRC+, and 58.4 WAR. Ndikuriyo was THE reason to watch baseball in Cape Town in the 2010s and the Cowboys later honored him by retiring his #3 uniform. But only staying in AAB for nine years limited his final accumulations.

As of 2037 in AAB, Ndikuriyo ranks 81^st in runs, 57^th in total bases (3330), 79^th in doubles, 30^th in home runs, 41^st in RBI, and 30^th in WAR for position players. There were some voters who felt Ndikuriyo wasn’t around long enough to deserve the Hall of Fame spot, especially since he wasn’t even top 100 in hits. Plus, the lack of team success was used against him by detractors. The rate stats show his dominance though, as among batters with 3000+ plate appearances, Ndikuriyo’s OPS ranks 8^th and his triple slash ranks 50^th/44^th/6^th.

The majority of voters agreed that Ndikuriyo’s nine year run was remarkable enough to get the nod and many gave him at least some credit for his later run in Major League Baseball. Some wonder if he could’ve ended up alongside guys like Mwarami Tale and Felix Chaula in final totals had he stuck around. In any event, Ndikuriyo received 77.3% to secure a first ballot induction, bookending an impressive three-player 2031 class for the African Association of Baseball.

Ndikuriyo still had the second half of his career to go, beginning in 2021 on a four-year, $81,400,000 deal with MLB’s New Orleans. The Mudcats had earned three playoff berths in the prior five years, but hadn’t made it out of the second round of the playoffs. In 2021, New Orleans stunned many with an incredible 112-50 season. The Mudcats went all the way and won the World Series over Detroit, staking their claim as one of MLB’s best-ever teams.

The 2021 debut was Ndikuriyo’s best MLB season with 46 home runs, .945 OPS, and 5.7 WAR. Most importantly, he was World Series MVP, posting 19 hits, 12 runs, 3 doubles, 6 homers, 17 RBI, .946 OPS, and 0.8 WAR over 18 playoff starts. New Orleans then earned the Baseball Grand Championship crown with a 15-4 finish. Ndikuriyo’s BGC stats were solid with 16 hits, 15 runs, 5 doubles, 7 home runs, 14 RBI, 10 walks, .991 OPS, 163 wRC+, and 0.8 WAR. He absolutely solidified his spot as a world class player with that run.

Ndikuriyo regressed to a .752 OPS, 106 wRC+, and 2.0 WAR in 2022. He bounced back the next two years, finishing his New Orleans run with 607 games, 598 hits, 336 runs, 100 doubles, 161 home runs, 384 RBI, .267/.324/.532 slash, 133 wRC+, and 16.4 WAR. The Mudcats had a second round exit in 2023, but missed the playoffs his other two seasons both at 86-76. Ndikuriyo did have a 1.125 OPS in his six playoff games in 2023, ultimately the final playoff games of his career.

Now 33-years old, Ndikuriyo surprisingly couldn’t find a long-term deal. He signed for one year and $7,800,000 in 2025 with Halifax, posting .809 OPS, 129 wRC+, 2.5 WAR, 35 home runs, and 85 RBI. He went to Salt Lake City in 2026, but missed more than half of the season to injury. Ndikuriyo was on a strong pace with 2.7 WAR and .988 OPS over 72 games.

Ndikuriyo joined Sacramento in 2027, but stunk with -0.5 WAR and .678 OPS over 110 games and 78 starts. Atlanta gave him a look in 2028 with respectable tallies in 121 games and 94 starts, posting 2.5 WAR, .887 OPS, and 2.5 WAR. Ndikuriyo wrapped with Hartford in 2029 with .945 OPS and 1.7 WAR in 78 games and 43 starts. He went unsigned in 2030 and retired that winter at age 30.

For his MLB tenure, Ndikuriyo had a very solid career with 1143 games, 1107 hits, 597 runs, 177 doubles, 274 home runs, 705 RBI, 283 walks, 655 strikeouts, .274/.325/.526 slash, 130 wRC+, and 25.3 WAR. He wasn’t generally in awards conversations, but that was a quite respectable run for a guy who joined a new league at age 29.

Ndikuriyo’s grand totals for his pro career had 2518 games, 2606 hits, 1556 runs, 545 doubles, 27 triples, 781 home runs, 1855 RBI, 875 walks, 1720 strikeouts, 119 stolen bases, .288/.353/.603 slash, .956 OPS, 154 wRC+, and 83.6 WAR. Ndikuriyo falls short of being a true “inner-circle” type guy, but his Cape Town run especially made him a worthy choice for a Hall of Fame slot in AAB.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 06-30-2025, 06:16 AM

The 2031 World Baseball Championship was the 85^th edition of the event and was hosted in San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador. It also featured the first format change since 2021 and had the largest change since the 1950s. Baseball had continued to grow in popularity exponentially through the 2020s, leading to another expansion of teams in the WBC. For the prior decade, 96 teams participated spread out across eight divisions.

For 2031, this grew to 112 teams, meaning each division would have 14 teams. The divisional round continued to be a round robin, but the expansion meant each team now would play 13 games instead of the previous 11. Since 1956, only the division champion advanced to the next round. The expansion doubled the playoff field to 16, allowing for both the first and second place divisional finishers to advance.

The next phase remained four-team double round robins, although now split into four groups. The top two teams from each group advanced to a best-of-three quarterfinal, followed by a best-of-five semifinal and the best-of-seven World Championship. Overall though, many smaller nations were excited at the chance to participate more regularly and more games generally meant more money as well.

Division 1 had an intense three-way tie for first at 11-2 between Canada, Ecuador, and Moldova. By the tiebreakers, the Canadians finished first and the Moldovans second, leaving the Ecuadorans out of the group stage. Canada advanced for the 42^nd time in WBC history, although they hadn’t done it since their 2023 world title. Moldova became the 87^th unique nation to earn a playoff spot. The small Eastern European nation hadn’t been a regular participant until the 2021 expansion. England was a competitive fourth in D1 at 9-4. Algeria, last year’s surprise world champ, was a non-factor at 6-7.

Last year’s runner-up the United States rolled the Division 2 field at 12-1. The Americans have moved forward in 63 of the 85 WBCs thus far. There was a three-way tie for second at 9-4 with Panama advancing on a tiebreaker over both France and Belgium. It was only the fifth time the Panamanians had advanced, last doing it back in 2009.

The Czech Republic and China both advanced out of Division 3 at 10-3 with the Czechs taking first on the head-to-head. Wales was a close third at 9-4 with Scotland, Bangladesh, and Burkina Faso each in the mix at 8-5. The Chinese ended an eight-year drought and advanced for the 28^th time. The Czechs earned repeat trips for the first time, picking up their seventh division crown overall.

Division 4 was very competitive with Poland and Japan prevailing at 9-4. Kenya, Malaysia, and Spain each were 8-5 while Myanmar, Nigeria, and Portugal all went 7-6. The Poles took first on the tiebreaker for their 11^th playoff trip and first since the 2028 runner-up finish. The Japanese secured their third playoff trip in five years and their 23^rd overall.

A top-heavy Division 5 had India and Vietnam dominate the field both at 12-1. Honduras was a distant third place at 9-4. The Indians took first on the tiebreaker for their 12^th division title. India remained strong with their third playoff trip in four years, having finished third overall in 2030 and fourth in 2028. It was the fifth playoff trip for the Vietnamese and their third in six years.

D6 had a three-way tie with Haiti, the Netherlands, and Germany each at 9-4. The Haitians took first on the tiebreakers with the Dutch second, leaving last year’s fourth place finisher Germany on the outside. Somalia and Venezuela were also close behind at 8-5 while Mexico and Turkey were 7-6. It was Haiti’s fifth division title, ending a drought all the way back to 1988. The Dutch moved forward for the ninth time and ended their own sizeable drought dating back to 2012.

South Korea and Romania took top honors in Division 7 at 10-3 with first place going to the Koreans. Bolivia and Russia were the next closest competitors at 8-5. South Korea earned its 20^th division title, but surprisingly hadn’t done it since 2004. The Romanians advanced for the second time in three years and seventh time overall.

Lastly in Division 8, Indonesia led the way at 11-2 for a 28^th division title and their third in four years. Brazil and Peru both went 9-4 with the Brazilians advancing on the tiebreaker, while Iraq was next at 8-5. The Brazilians ended a rare five-year drought, moving forward for the 36^th time. That is the third most behind the US (63) and Canada (42). Brazil was tied with Mexico entering the 2031 event.

Group A had a three-way tie at the top with Brazil, Canada, and Poland each at 4-2, while Panama was ousted at 0-6. The tiebreakers sent the Brazilians and Canadians forward to the new quarterfinal round. In Group B, India and Romania prevailed at 4-2 over the Netherlands at 3-3 and Czechia at 1-5.

In Group C, China took top billing at 5-1. South Korea and Vietnam were both 3-3 with the tiebreaker favoring the Koreans, while Haiti was 1-5. And in Group D, the United States rolled at 5-1 and advanced with 3-3 Japan. Both Indonesia and Moldova were 2-4.

The quarterfinals saw two sweeps with Japan over China and the US over South Korea. The other two matchups needed all three games with India edging Canada 2-1 and Brazil over Romania 2-1. The Indians earned their third trip to the final four in four years, while it was the second in three years for the Japanese. The Koreans hadn’t been a semifinalist since their fourth place finish in 2004, although it was their 12^th time making it that far. The Americans grabbed their 55^th semifinal trip, Japan its 13^th, and India its 7^th.

The United States swept Japan 3-0 in the semifinal to earn repeat finals trips and a 51^st shot at the world title. Brazil edged India 3-2 in a classic on the other side, sending them to their 10^th finale and first since the 2025 runner-up finish. The Indians officially were third for back-to-back seasons and Japan was fourth for the third time.

The 85^th World Championship was not the first time the Americans and Brazilians had met for the title. The US was victorious in their 1966, 1976, and 1984 encounters. 2031 had the same end result as the United States swept Brazil, making the US 42-9 all-time in the final. Despite having won nearly half of the world titles, the Americans hadn’t taken the top spot in a decade. Prior to that, the US hadn’t gone longer than three years without a championship.

It did also continue the general parity for the top spot, as there have been 11 different world champs since the Americans’ 2020 title. With the defeat, Brazil was now 4-6 in their finals appearances. With the expanded field and more games, the US did set new event records for hits (272) and home runs (105). Their 202 runs scored fell just short of the top mark of 204 by the Americans way back in 1952.

Records were also shattered by Tournament MVP Thomas Rich, the reigning National Association MVP with Indianapolis. The 32-year old first baseman set new WBC records for runs (39), total bases (126), home runs (26), and WAR by a position player (4.42); marks that all still hold as of 2037.

Rich beat the previous records by large margins also with the previous highs being 35 runs (Morgan Short, 2008), 108 total bases (Connor Neumeyer, 1972), 20 home runs (Neumeyer), and 3.49 WAR (Ezekiel Thomas, 2008). It was the second-best WAR mark by any player, still behind Nick Hedrick’s incredible 4.66 on the mound back in 1957.

In 26 games, Rich also had 42 RBI, 4 doubles, 15 walks, a .407/.492/1.167 slash, 1.659 OPS, and 349 wRC+. His RBI mark was the second-best behind Thomas’s 46 in 2008. Rich remarkably had three different games with three homers. Prior to that, only Russia’s Grigori Ovsianikov had posted three such games in a WBC career.

Best Pitcher went to Zimbabwe’s John Ziocha, the two-time defending National Association Pitcher of the Year for Wichita. In 20 innings, the 24-year old lefty had a 0.45 ERA with 8 hits, 3 runs (one earned), 28 strikeouts, 5 walks, 1-1 record, and 1.2 WAR. It was one of the last hurrahs for the young phenom, as Ziocha would be plagued by severe shoulder inflammation in the next few years.

Other notes: In part due to the extra games, Brazil’s Octavio Furtado set a new event record with 50 hits allowed. 2031 had two no-hitters, the first coming from Cameroon’s Vinny Nga against Chile on January 11 with 18 strikeouts and one walk. Three days later, Russia’s Oleh Kravets did it with 15 Ks and one walk facing Mauritania.

Brazil’s Alonzo Porfirio hit for the cycle on January 29 against Romania, becoming the 21^st player to do so. Canada’s Mark Johnston smacked four home runs on 1/23 against Panama, the 14^th such game in WBC history. Carrying over from the prior year, Chile’s Will Arocha had a 20-game hitting streak. It was only the 11^th hitting streak of 20+ games in WBC history.

Below are the updated all-time event stats. Brazil passed Mexico outright for the third-most points after entering the year tied.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-01-2025, 06:59 AM

Luanda finished first in the African Second League’s Southern Conference at 100-62, earning their first playoff trip since getting relegated to A2L for 2026. Lubango was a close second at 97-65, followed by a steep gap to the next teams Nampula (88-74) and Lilongwe (87-75). The Browns earned their second conference finals appearance in three years.

Asmara crushed the Central Conference competition at 112-50, setting a new A2L wins record. The Anteaters’ only previous playoff trip was their 2020 title, but that was in the trial years prior to promotion/relegation being instituted. Bangui repeated as the second place finish at 99-63, holding off Lubumbashi for the spot.

Top seed Luanda prevailed 4-1 over Lubango for the Southern Conference Championship, guaranteeing a spot in the African Association of Baseball’s First League for the Landsharks for the first time since 2025. The Central Conference final had a shocking 4-3 upset by Bangui over 112-win Asmara. The Badgers earned their third promotion, although they had gotten relegated right back one year later in their prior AAB stints. In the 14^th Second League Championship, Luanda defeated Bangui 5-3.

Other notes: Zanzibar’s Beadoum Djimet set a new A2L single-season record with 23 triples. Maputo’s Lawrence Kanku set the saves record with 42. Bangui’s Mark Fetene set a playoff record with nine doubles. At 54-108, Bloemfontein posted the worst record in Southern Conference history and the second-worst in A2L history. Kisangani had gone 53-109 the prior year and was only marginally better in 2031 at 58-104. Lubango’s Abbas Mohamedi had a seven hit game against Blantyre, the third-such game in A2L history. Yunus Omari became the second to hit 400 homers in A2L.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-01-2025, 10:10 PM

In their second season back in the European Second League, Zaragoza dominated the Western Conference standings at 107-55. It was a 13 game drop to second place with four teams intensely fighting for the remaining three playoff spots. Oslo (94-68) and Cardiff (93-69) both advanced outright. The Octopi earned their second playoff trip since returning to E2L in 2028, while this was the first playoff trip since 2023 for the Crew.

Gothenberg and Liverpool tied for the final spot at 91-71. The Gales won a tiebreaker game to advance for their first postseason appearance in nine years. It was the sixth straight winning season for the Phantoms, but they and Stuttgart (82-80) remained the only original E2L teams yet to get promote at least once. Lisbon was the next closest team in the playoff race at 85-77.

Dresden’s E2L debut failed miserably at 44-118, sending them right back down to European Tier Three. It showed that the brand new ET3 teams were still a long way from reaching E2L levels. Dresden posted the worst record in E2L history and had all-time conference worsts in runs (391), hits (962), and triple slash (.180/.253/.279).

In the double round robin, Cardiff clobbered the field at 5-1 to earn their second-ever promotion, having won the E2L title in 2014. Oslo also advanced by going 3-3, ending their lone E2L run at four seasons. Top seed Zaragoza was denied as they and Gothenberg both finished 2-4. In the Western Conference Championship, the Crew won a seven game classic over the Octopi.

The Eastern Conference was top heavy with Helsinki (111-51) and Thessaloniki (107-55) lapping the field. The Honkers were only the third team in E2L history to win 110+ games and their 769 runs scored was the second-most in E2L history behind their own 771 from 2028. The Finnish capital had gotten promoted that year, but dropped back after one season. The Tritons earned their second playoff trip in three years.

Belgrade was a firm third at 99-63, giving the Bruisers three straight playoff trips since their first relegation for 2028. Vienna grabbed the final spot at 93-69, finishing seven games better than their next closest foes Bucharest and Lviv. Tue Vultures were in the second year of their current E2L run after a brief 2027-29 return to the European Baseball Federation’s Elite Tier.

E2L newcomer Gdansk also was relegated right back to ET3 after one year, although their 58-104 wasn’t nearly as bad as Dresden’s efforts in the WC. Varna (63-99), Yerevan (65-97), and Dnipro (66-96) each were in danger, but escaped demotion. Riga at 68-94 also notably only had 951 hits with a .181 average and .259 OBP; each ranking as the second-worst in conference history.

The top two prevailed in the double round robin with both Helsinki and Thessaloniki at 4-2, while Belgrade and Vienna were each 2-4. The Honkers picked up their third promotion back to the big time, hoping to fare better. The Tritons ended their current E2L stint at six seasons. In the Eastern Conference Championship, Thessaloniki upset Helsinki 4-1 to secure their third appearance in the finale.

Thessaloniki became two-time Second League Championship winners, defeating Cardiff in a seven game classic. The Tritons joined Seville and Valencia as the teams to win the E2L title twice.

Other notes: Zaragoza’s Marc David had the 6th hitting Triple Crown in E2L history with 59 homers, 134 RBI, and a .316 average. Stuttgart’s Alexander Hamann won his sixth Pitcher of the Year; only one other pitcher had even won thrice. Cardiff’s Fritz Gocke set a playoff record drawing 20 walks.

In the third season for European Tier Three, Toulouse quickly made its escape after its 2030 demotion, crushing the field at 116-46. Bordeaux earned the other promotion at 96-66, holding off Florence (91-71), Geneva (90-72), and The Hague (89-73). The Blue Angels notably had finished 74-88 in their first two seasons. Athens was 81-81 in its first ET3 season. In the championship series, the Toads topped Bordeaux 4-2.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-02-2025, 06:13 AM

Cape Town’s dynasty run was snapped in the African Association of Baseball’s Southern Conference. The Cowboys were the reigning AAB champ and had won the conference title four times in their five-year playoff streak. They had also been the Baseball Grand Champion in 2029 and the BGC runner-up in 2030. Still competitive at 88-74, Cape Town ended up tied with Harare in fourth. Last year’s second place team Port Elizabeth took first for the first time at 103-59.

Johannesburg was second at 98-64 to end their five-year playoff drought. The Jackalopes had been third place in the prior two seasons. Bulawayo was third at 90-72, an impressive AAB debut for the 2030 African Second League champs. The Buzz allowed the conference’s fewest runs at 672, while Johannesburg was AAB’s top scoring team at 890 runs. The Elephants were only five runs away from both conference bests with 890 scored and 677 allowed. The 2029 A2L champ Mauritius would be relegated right back after a last place 58-104, ten games worse than their nearest rival Dar es Salaam.

Leading Port Elizabeth’s efforts was Southern Conference MVP Charlie Senkumba in right field. The 28-year old Ugandan lefty led in OPS (1.062), wRC+ (168), and WAR (7.0). Senkumba had 202 hits, 119 runs, 54 doubles, 39 home runs, and 115 RBI. He held off Johannesburg’s Louie Mnguni, who was the leader in homers (66) and RBI (152).

It was a contract year for Senkumba, who left for free agency and inked a huge seven-year, $265,400,000 deal with Dar es Salaam. He’d only be with the Sabercats one season, opting out of his deal after their 2032 relegation. Senkumba then signed at six years and $211 million with Kinshasa.

Gaborone was unremarkable at 74-88, but they had Pitcher of the Year Mert Seyoum. In his fourth season, the Ethiopian lefty led in ERA (3.04), strikeouts (285), WHIP (0.94), K/BB (7.5), and shutouts (3). Seyoum had a 14-9 record, 8 saves, and 149 ERA+ over 224.2 innings.

Also notable was Cape Town closer Sipho Zuke with his sixth Reliever of the Year win and fifth consecutive. Zuke was the seventh in all of pro baseball history to win the award 6+ times. The 31-year old South African in 2031 had 35 saves, a 1.45 ERA< 74.1 innings, 130 strikeouts, and 4.9 WAR.

Djibouti was the top dog in the Central Conference at 108-534, leading in both runs scored (892) and fewest allowed (662). The Berserkers were in their fourth season in the top tier and earned their first-ever playoff berth. Djibouti and Port Elizabeth were the first of the teams that debuted with the African Second League in 2018 to finish atop the standings in the AAB’s first league.

It was a tight fight for second with Nairobi and Addis Ababa even at 96-66, while Brazzaville just missed at 92-70. The Night Hawks won the tiebreaker game to secure their third playoff berth in six years. Reigning conference champ Mogadishu, winners of 111 games in 2030, fell to 83-79 in 2031.

Four teams were in immediate danger of relegation with the unfortunate distinction going to Ndjamena at 62-100. Mombasa (63-99), Bujumbura (65-97), and Bukavu (66-96) each narrowly escaped demotion. This was the first relegation for the Magic, who hadn’t posted a winning season since 2023.

Addis Ababa DH Dagne Mersha won his third Central Conference MVP, having previously done it in 2027 and 2028. The 32-year old Ethiopian lefty led in homers (74), RBI (158), runs (138), total bases (435), slugging (.726), OPS (1.132), wRC+ (186), and WAR (8.3). In April, he signed a four-year, $100,800,000 extension to stay with the Brahmas.

It was Mersha’s fifth time leading the conference in home runs and fifth 70+ homer season, a world record. He also became the third in world history with five 150+ RBI seasons, joining world home run king Majed Darwish and Nordine Soule. Mersha reached the 500 home run and 1000 runs scored milestones in 2031 He was the 17^th in AAB to reach the former and the 46^th to reach the latter.

Kinshasa was middling at 80-82, but they had Pitcher of the Year Lawal Deffallah in his fourth full season. The 24-year old Chadian led in strikeouts for the third consecutive year with 329 and led in WAR (8.9). FIP- (58), and quality starts (22). Deffallah had a 16-11 record, 3.20 ERA, and 140 ERA+ in 241.2 innings.

Port Elizabeth defeated Johannesburg 4-1 for the Southern Conference Championship, while Djibouti rolled to a 4-0 sweep of Nairobi in the Central Conference Championship. The Elephants and Berserkers became the first teams to debut in A2L in 2018 to earn a pennant in AAB; an impressive accomplishment after only 14 years as franchises. This also guaranteed AAB’s 16^th different franchise to win it all.

The 37^th Africa Series went to Djibouti 5-3 over Port Elizabeth. LF Bernard Kenei was finals MVP in his fifth season for the Berserkers. In 11 playoff starts, the 26-year old Kenyan had 17 hits, 9 runs, 2 doubles, 2 triples, 1 homer, 4 RBI, 10 stolen bases, .974 OPS, and 0.7 WAR.

Other notes: Harare’s Namir Jamal stole 142 bases, which was the 4^th-best in AAB history to that point and one of only 14 seasons in all of world history of 140+ steals. Jamal’s 141 runs scored was also a top ten season in AAB. Mauritius’ pitching staff had only 12 saves all season, a new AAB worst. Mbuji-Mayi’s Lelo da Rocha became the 11^th in AAB history with a six-hit game.

Nairobi’s Ibukun da Costa had AAB’s 14^th four home run game and had the second 10 RBI game. He also became the 17^th member of AAB’s 500 home run club. Maninho Magaia became the 6^th in AAB with 800 career home runs. He played one more year and ended with 843, 5^th on AAB’s all-time list. Magaia also won his 7^th Silver Slugger at 1B and CF Noel Malama won his 7^th. Salum Khosa became the 12^th to 1500 runs scored and Menzi Maketa became the 12^th to 1500 RBI.

Promotion/Relegation: Luanda was promoted into the Southern Conference, while Mauritius was relegated to the African Second League. In the Central Conference, Bangui moved up and Ndjamena moved down.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-02-2025, 05:41 PM

Alexandria and Jerusalem battled for the Western Conference’s top seed with the Astronauts (102-60) taking it over the Jets (100-62). For Alexandria, they allowed the fewest runs in Arab League Baseball at 646 to win the Nile Division. The Astronauts earned their fifth playoff berth and fourth division title in seven years. Jerusalem led the conference in runs with 872 for a sixth straight Levant Division crown and eighth straight playoff trip. The Jets also earned a fourth consecutive 100+ win season.

Last year’s Western Conference final saw Cairo defeat Khartoum. Neither were a factor in 2031 with the Pharaohs at 75-87 and the Cottonmouths at 73-89. This was Cairo’s first losing season since 2015 and only the second time they’ve missed the playoffs since 2017. Algiers kept their playoff streak going to eight years as the only Mediterranean Division team above .500 at 90-72. It was the seventh division title of that streak for the Arsenal.

The wild card race was focused in the Levant with Damascus taking the first spot at 86-76. Both Amman and Beirut were one back at 85-77 with the Aviators winning the tiebreaker game to advance. Giza and Oran were the next closest teams both at 81-81. The Dusters secured a fourth straight wild card and Amman ended a five-year postseason drought.

Tunis at 77-85 was largely irrelevant, but they had the Western Conference’s MVP in 1B Abdullah Al-Hafith. The 26-year old Iraqi righty led in hits (213), RBI (149), total bases (467), triple slash (.366/.403/.740), OPS (1.143), wRC+ (193), and WAR (8.7). Al-Hafith also had 116 runs, 52 doubles, and 58 home runs; falling eight homers short of Wissam Magdy to get a Triple Crown.

Veteran ace Diyar Abbas won his third Pitcher of the Year at age 36, having previously done it with Riyadh in 2020 and 2026. The Iraqi righty was traded to Alexandria in 2030. In 2031, Abbas won his second ERA title with a career best 2.55. He also led in wins (20-5), K/BB (14.3), complete games (9), and WAR (8.1). Abbas had 271 strikeouts over 243.1 innings and a 65 FIP-. He became the third ALB pitcher to 250 career wins and the sixth to 4000 career strikeouts.

Jerusalem closer Aaron Buber also made history, becoming one of only seven in world history to win the Reliever of the Year award six or more times. He’s the only one to do it in ALB, posting 35 saves, 2.19 ERA, 149 strikeouts, and 4.0 WAR in 98.2 innings in 2031. Buber also became the second in ALB history to 400 career saves. The Israeli righty returned to the Jets after pitching there from 2019-26, where he won ROTY four times. Buber earned his fifth in 2025 for Casablanca.

Damascus defeated Amman 2-0 in the wild card round, then pulled off the surprise 2-1 upset over top seed Alexandria. On the other side, Algiers ousted Jerusalem 2-1 on the road. Both the Astronauts and Jets continued recent playoff disappointment trends. It was the fourth straight year Jerusalem won 100+ games and missed the conference final, while Alexandria remained pennant-less despite five playoff trips since 2025. In the Western Conference Final, the Arsenal outlasted the Dusters 3-2 for their third pennant, all coming recently (2026, 2028, 2031).

Reigning ALB champ and three-time defending Eastern Conference champ Muscat took the #1 seed for the fourth consecutive season. The Threshers finished 99-63 for a fifth straight Gulf Division title and sixth in seven years. Doha was a solid second in the division at 90-72 to earn repeat wild cards. The Dash allowed the conference’s fewest runs with 663, closely followed by Muscat at 676.

Medina was the top scoring team with 880 runs and used that power to win the Arabia Division at 92-70. The Mastodons earned a third division crown in a row and their sixth playoff trip in seven years. Riyadh was second at 87-75, which just barely got them the second wild card. The Rats secured their fourth playoff trip since 2025.

Three teams battled for the Mesopotamia Division with Mosul (87-75) squeaking it out for their fourth straight division title. Baghdad (86-76) and Basra (85-77) both fell just short of the Muskies and of Riyadh in the wild card race. Sulaymaniyah notably dropped to 79-83, ending their four year playoff streak.

Doha LF Abdullah Nazerudeen repeated as Eastern Conference MVP. The 27-year old Yemeni righty led in total bases (428), batting average (.365), slugging (.713), OPS (1.122), wRC+ (190), and WAR (8.7). Nazerudeen added 219 hits, 112 runs, 47 doubles, 46 homers, and 121 RBI. The Dash would sign him to a four-year, $68,100,000 extension after the 2032 campaign.

Pitcher of the Year went to Baghdad righty Mohammed Ibrahim. The 27-year old Iraqi was in his sixth year with the Brown Bears and led in WHIP with 1.00. Ibrahim had a 3.01 ERA and 17-9 record over 233 innings with 250 strikeouts and 7.5 WAR. This earned him a big extension in the offseason from Baghdad at $188,800,000 over six years. Sadly, Ibrahim would be plagued by major injuries after this with a torn flexor tendon in 2032, fractured elbow in 2023, and another ligament tear in 2034.

Riyadh got the 2-1 road win over Doha in the wild card round, but promptly was swept by Muscat in round two. Medina swept Mosul to set up a rematch in the Eastern Conference Final. The Threshers kept their dynasty rolling, defeating the Mastodons 3-1 for a fourth consecutive pennant. That feat had only previously been achieved in ALB by Medina from 1992-95. It was a remarkable haul for Muscat, having only joined up with the 2016 expansion.

The 42^nd Arab League Championship was a rematch from 2027, which saw a 111-win Algiers defeat a 105-win Muscat. Since then, the Threshers won 114 games and lost in the 2029 final to Damascus, then took the title at 102-60 in 2030 over Cairo. In 2031, Muscat prevailed 4-1 over the Arsenal, becoming the seventh repeat champ in ALB history and the first since Amman in 2023-24. It was Algiers’ first-ever finals loss, having also won in 2026.

1B Abdul Jalil Dahir had a dominant postseason, winning MVP of the Eastern Conference Final and the ALB Championship. In his eighth year with Muscat, the 32-year old Lebanese lefty made 11 playoff starts with 18 hits, 10 runs, 2 doubles, 5 homers, 13 RBI, 1.206 OPS, 198 wRC+, and 0.9 WAR.

Other notes: Damascus’s Kerlos Sharaf hit 70 doubles, three short of his ALB record from 2028. It was the 8^th 70+ double season in all of world baseball history with Sharaf as the only player to do it twice. Jerusalem’s Hassan Shanshol stole 133 bases, joining AAB’s Tsegaye Alemu as the only players in world history to steal 130+ bags in four different seasons. Through 2031, there have been only 37 total seasons in world history of 130+ steals.

Oran’s Alaa Khalil had a four home run game against Damascus, the 17^th such game in ALB history. Mosul’s Uday Easho had a 34-game hitting streak, falling three short of the ALB record set by Dahir in 2028. Wissam Magdy and Walid Bennani became the 9^th and 10^th ALB sluggers to join the 700 home run club. Sami Sayed was the 19^th to 600 homers and the 14^th to 1500 runs scored. Osama Ahmed was the 25^th to 2500 hits and Kadda Hadj Lamri was the 36^th to 500 homers.

In pitching milestones, ALB wins and strikeouts king Ahmed Hussain became the first in league history with 300 career wins. He struggled to 5-9 in 2031 with Casablanca, joining the Bruins after a 19-year run with Basra. As of 2037, Hussain is one of only 46 pitchers in world history to achieve the feat. Muhammad Nour was the 16^th to win 200 games in ALB. RF Nathan Nasreddine won his 9^th consecutive Gold Glove while Ahmed Yasser Basha also won his 9^th in right field. 3B Malik Zouaoui won his 11^th Silver Slugger.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-03-2025, 04:04 AM

For the fifth consecutive season, Hyderabad earned the East League’s top seed as the Pakistan Division champ. The Horned Frogs finished 103-59 to grow their playoff streak to eight seasons. Rawalpindi was second in the division at 94-68, earning the first wild card. The Red Wings used impressive power, setting an EL record for team home runs at 295. It was an impressive turnaround for Rawalpindi, whose last playoff trip was 2017 and last winning season was 2023.

Tashkent ended an even longer playoff drought going back to 2013 and posted their first winning campaign since 2020. At 92-70, the Tomcats were one win ahead of Almaty for the North Division title. 91-71 was enough to get the second wild card for the Assassins over defending EL champ Lahore (90-72), Bishkek (87-75), and Peshawar (85-77). Almaty earned its 11^th playoff trip in the last 12 years.

The Longhorns had their postseason streak ended at three seasons and the Predators had theirs snapped at four years. Peshawar had been in the ELCS all four of those years. The EL’s top scoring team was the Predators with 752 runs, while the Black Sox allowed the fewest at 529; both missed the playoffs. Faisalabad at 82-80 notably improved after five straight sub-70 win seasons. Namangan, who debuted in 2030 at 86-76, fell back to earth at 69-93.

Almaty LF Youssouf Raza won East League MVP for the fourth time in five years, becoming the fourth four-time MVP in Asian Baseball Federation history The 30-year old Pakistani righty led in WAR (9.4), slugging (.698), and RBI (137). Raza smacked 55 home runs with 182 hits, 120 runs, 30 doubles, 1.106 OPS, and 219 wRC+.

Rookie of the Year Dzhurakon Asadullayev notably was third in MVP voting in his debut for Osh, who picked him second in the 2030 ABF Draft. The Kazakh first baseman led in OPS (1.108), doubles (49), walks (100), total bases (387), OBP (.423), and wRC+ (221). Asadullayev also had 101 runs, 182 hits, 50 homers, 126 RBI, and 9.3 WAR.

Tashkent righty Ashat Ryskulov secured Pitcher of the Year, leading in ERA (2.28), wins (18-10), WHIP (0.83), quality starts (27), and WAR (7.6). The 28-year old Uzbek struck out 281 over 248.1 innings with 160 ERA+ and 67 FIP-. The Tomcats would be unable to extend Ryskulov after the 2032 season, as he left for a six-year, $124,800,000 deal with Dushanbe.

Hyderabad survived 2-1 against Almaty in the opening round and Rawalpindi topped Tashkent 2-1. The Red Wings then swept the Horned Frogs in round two 2-0, earning their first East League Championship trip since their 2010 title. The Tomcats survived 2-1 in the loser’s bracket over the Assassins. Hyderabad then rolled Tashkent 2-0 to earn a second shot at Rawalpindi in the double-elimination bracket.

The rematch was lopsided in favor of the top seed as the Horned Frogs got revenge 4-1 against Rawalpindi. Hyderabad earned its fourth pennant in six years and tenth overall, leading all ABF teams (1986, 1987, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2013, 2026, 2027, 2027, 2031). The Horned Frogs joined Isfahan (1997-2002) as the only other ABF franchise with four finals trips in a six year stretch.

Baku looked to keep the historic dynasty going. The two-time defending ABF champs bested their 113-win effort of the prior year with a 114-48 mark in 2031. This was the third-best win total in ABF history behind only Tehran’s 116 wins in 2016 and their 115 in 2015. The Blackbirds led in scoring with 821 runs and set new ABF power records with 312 homers and a team .510 slugging percentage. They also allowed the fewest runs (518), earning a fourth West Division title in five years and an eighth playoff trip in a decade.

Mashhad’s ABF-record playoff streak grew to 11 seasons, returning to the Central Division perch at 98-64. Last year’s WLCS runner-up Tabriz was one back at 97-65 to get the first wild card, while the reigning division champ Isfahan fell to 79-83. The West Division’s Adana took the second wild card at 96-66, holding off 90-72 finishes by Ankara and Istanbul along with 89-73 Gaziantep. The Axemen ended a three-year playoff drought.

Leading Baku’s historic power output was 1B Artyom Masharipov, who repeated as West League MVP. The 27-year old Azeri slugger led in home runs (64), RBI (152), runs (139), total bases (458), slugging (.751), OPS (1.165), wRC+ (206), and WAR (10.9). Masharipov added 207 hits, 51 doubles, a .339 average, and .414 OBP. The Blackbirds wisely locked up their home country hero to a league-record eight-year, $227,200,000 extension in February.

Masharipov joined Gokhan Karatas as the only ABF sluggers with multiple 150 RBI seasons. There have only been 12 such seasons in ABF history with Adana’s Abed Kapani also hitting the mark in 2031. He also had to fend Mashhad’s Artem Abdrakhmanov for MVP, as the Mercury LF became ABF’s first-ever .400+ hitter with a .407 average. Abdrakhmanov’s mark ranks as the 15^th-best qualifying average in world baseball history. He also had 9.1 WAR, 1.083 OPS, 224 hits, 97 runs, 49 doubles, 20 triples, 14 homers, and 81 steals.

Baku’s Agshin Jumayev became the third in ABF history with five Pitcher of the Year award wins, joining Hall of Famers Oskar Tamm and Yazeed Anwari. It was a three-peat for Jumayev, who also won in 2025 and 2027. The 30-year old Tajik lefty led in wins (22-6), ERA (2.21), and FIP- (60). Jumayev struck out 398 over 248 innings with 8.6 WAR.

Jumayev also threw his second career no-hitter on April 5 in an 18 strikeout, two walk effort against Istanbul. He missed out on a third straight Triple Crown as Ankara’s Hasan Yousefi fanned 417, the fifth-best single season in ABF history. Yousefi also had him beat in WHIP (0.83), K/BB (17.4), and WAR (9.20), but had a weaker ERA at 2.98. Still, the Alouettes gave the 31-year old Iranian lefty a six-year, $145,200,000 extension before the season.

Adana shocked Baku 2-0 in the first round while Mashhad outlasted Tabriz 2-1. The Axemen kept rolling with a 2-0 win over the Mercury in round two, securing their second West League Championship Series trip in five years. Adana hasn’t had any luck getting over the hump recently, dropping five straight WLCS trips.

The double-elimination format kept the defending champ Blackbirds alive, as they topped Tabriz 2-0 and bested Mashhad 2-1 to secure a rematch with the Axemen. The seven-game WLCS saw Baku earn revenge 4-2 over Adana for a third consecutive pennant. The Blackbirds earned their eighth West League title (2010, 12, 13, 22, 24, 29, 30, 31) since joining ABF in the 2000 exodus from Eurasian Professional Baseball

Baku joined Hyderabad as the only ABF franchises to earn three consecutive finals trips. The Horned Frogs did it in 1997-99 and in 2026-28, but had been unable to pull off the championship three-peat. Each of the finals since 2026 featured one of the two, but they hadn’t met recently until now. They had met with Hyderabad defeating Baku back in the 2013 final.

The 47^th Asian Baseball Federation Championship had Baku make history, completing the three-peat with a 4-2 win over Hyderabad. The Blackbirds became five-time ABF champs (2012, 2024, 2029, 2030, 2031) and their 114 wins were the second-most ever by an ABF champ behind only 2017 Tehran’s 116-46. The three-peat certainly gave Baku a claim for ABF’s best dynasty ever, averaging 109 wins per season over the run.

Blackbirds manager Jeb Leiter had become a legend with three rings in only three seasons as the skipper. He’s the second manager in all of baseball history to win three titles in his first three seasons as the top coach, as Kirk Scott did it from 2020-22 with Kampala in the African Association of Baseball. The only other ABF manager with three rings was Erick Kent, who won in 1985, 88, and 89 with Istanbul.

League MVP Artyom Masharipov had a dominant postseason as both WLCS and finals MVP. In 19 playoff starts, he had 22 hits, 16 runs, 3 doubles, 2 triples, 8 homers, 15 RBI, 1.066 OPS, 187 wRC+, and 1.3 WAR. Teammate Agshin Jumayev also was impressive, breaking his own ABF playoff strikeouts record with 71. He also broke the playoff innings record (51.2) and was the fifth to record five wins in a postseason run. Jumayev had a 1.92 ERA with two complete games and a five-hit, 11 strikeout shutout in the game six finale.

Other notes: Veteran slugger Hakan Mocuk became ABF’s new career home run king in his fifth season with Baku. The 37-year old Turk hit 38 to finish the year at 692, leaping over Habib Saquib (686), Ali Sungu (683), and Fakhri Rajavi (678) in the rankings. Mocuk was already the RBI leader and now had 1927, in striking distance of the 2K club.

Mocuk also won his 12^th Silver Slugger and 11^th at third base. He joined the legendary Nizami Aghazade as the only 12+ Slugger winners at any spot in ABF Mocuk and Ismayil Kostenko also became the 17^th and 18^th ABF batters to 2500 career hits. Kostenko and Ismail Akbar became the 8^th and 9^th to reach 1500 RBI. Two-way player Safdar Kahlwan won his 9^th Silver Slugger and 8^th as a pitcher. LF Youssouf Raza won his 8^th Silver Slugger and 3B Mahtab Malik won his 7^th.

While Baku set the league home run record, they also set an all-time West League worst with 70 stolen bases. Mashhad’s Ishtaq Shahzad set a single-season record with 31 triples. Gaziantep’s Svan Arnason struck out 21 on March 24 against Izmir, which was the 14^th game in ABF history of 21+ Ks.

Elnur Hasanov became the 6^th ABF ace to 4500 career strikeouts, wrapping up his career with 4640. Hasan Yousefi became the 22^nd to 3500 Ks. C Ali Mahdian won his 11^th Gold Glove and CF Anatoly Memmendov won his 10th, both hold their position record.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-03-2025, 08:27 PM

Visakhapatnam earned the Indian League’s top seed for the seventh time in eight years, this time at 100-62 atop the South Division. Since 2023, the Volts have averaged an impressive 105.8 wins per season, although they haven’t won the pennant since the 2023-25 three-peat. Visakhapatnam had a .478 team slugging percentage, which was the third-best in IL history.

Defending South Asia Baseball champ Ahmedabad won the West Division for the sixth consecutive season at 98-64, taking first by 15 games over Pune and Vadodara. The Animals led the league in scoring with 833 runs. A tight Central Division saw Jaipur (93-69) edge out Delhi (92-70). The Jokers earned their fourth playoff trip in five years, while the Drillers made it three straight berths as the first wild card. Jaipur notably had 374 doubles as a team, the second-best in Indian League history.

Hyderabad at 91-71 got the second wild card, ending a five-year playoff drought for the Hippos. Bengaluru was the only other team really in striking distance at 87-75. The Blazers’ postseason drought grew to 26 seasons despite allowing the fewest runs at 584. Last year’s Central Division champ Kanpur fell to 79-83, while Indore went from a 92-win wild card down to 78-84.

Chennai struggled to 71-91 despite having Indian League MVP Davinder Abhik. The 23-year old Indian right fielder was in only his second full season and posted 60 doubles, tying the SAB single-season record set in 2022 by Gotam Bhagwan. Abhik also led in hits (233), triples (21), stolen bases (111), batting average (.373), and WAR (9.2). He had 120 runs, 15 home runs, 96 RBI, 1.009 OPS, and 182 wRC+. Abhik’s 233 hits ranked as tied for the 8^th-most hits in an SAB season through 2031.

Oleg Karmenok won Pitcher of the Year in a split effort. The 6’7’’ Russian lefty debuted in 2026 with Surat with decent results, then put it all together in 2031. The struggling Silver Sox traded Karmenok at the deadline to Visakhapatnam. Combined, the 27-year old led in ERA (2.54), wins (19-7), complete games (10), shutouts (4), and WAR (7.1). Karmenok struck out 254 over 237 innings with 160 ERA+ and 67 FIP-. He was a rental for the Volts and left in the offseason for a six-year, $105,600,000 free agent deal with Ahmedabad.

Delhi edged Hyderabad 2-1 in the wild card round, but was dispatched 3-1 by Visakhapatnam in the divisional series. Ahmedabad outlasted Jaipur 3-2 on the other side, setting up a rematch in the Indian League Championship Series. They developed a fierce playoff rivalry especially recently, although they had battled during the Animals’ dynasty era also. Ahmedabad had won over the Volts in the 2030 ILCS, but Visakhapatnam had won in 2024.

Going further back, Ahmedabad beat Visakhapatnam in the 1990, 91, and 98 ILCS. The Volts’ first-ever pennant notably came over the Animals in 2012. In the 2031 encounter, home field advantage held with a 4-2 Visakhapatnam win over Ahmedabad. The Volts became six-time Indian League champs (2012, 13, 23, 24, 25, 31).

Dhaka’s playoff streak grew to 11 seasons, although they won the division and earned the Southeast Asia League’s top seed for only the third time of the run. The Dobermans won the West Division at 108-54 with a historic offense, setting new SAB records for batting average (.303), on-base percentage (.353), hits (1780), and doubles (401). Their 988 runs were the third-best in SAB history behind only 2008 Hanoi (1006) and 2030 Ho Chi Minh City (994).

The Hedgehogs won a third consecutive division title atop the South at 102-60. Reigning SEAL champ Yangon dominated the Central at 98-64 for their sixth playoff berth in seven years. Since 1995, the Green Dragons have only missed the playoffs twice. Yangon led SEAL with only 696 runs allowed. They also notably scored 911, while HCMC had 936 runs.

In the wild card race, Bangkok (92-70) and Mandalay (91-71) advanced with Hanoi (86-76), Colombo (85-77), and Da Nang (84-78) as the first teams out. The Mammoths extended their playoff streak to six seasons, hoping to make it to the SEAL Championship for six straight years. The Bobcats ended a three year playoff drought

Dhaka’s record-setting offense was spearheaded by a record-breaking season by Southeast Asia League MVP Kap Mitanu. The 27-year old Indian set the new SAB single-season record for hits at 256, obliterating the previous best of 241 by Arnav Sumedh. Interestingly, Bangkok’s Arav Walif also broke that record in 2031, although his 244 was still well short of Mitanu. To that point, this was the 18^th-most hits in any season in all of pro baseball history.

Mitanu also led in runs (136), RBI (161), total bases (447), average (.399), OBP (.432), OPS (1.129), wRC+ (188), and WAR (10.8). He just missed a .400 average, which had only been reached thrice in SAB previously by a qualifying hitter. The 161 RBI also ranked as the 7^th-most in SAB history. Mitanu also had 45 doubles, 44 home runs, and 42 stolen bases. After the season, the Dobermans locked him up on an eight-year, $191,800,000 extension.

Da Nang’s Ricky Geraghty was a surprise Pitcher of the Year winner, leading in ERA (2.92), FIP- (71), and WAR (5.7). The 31-year old American was in his fourth season in Vietnam after starting his career with Major League Baseball’s Wichita Wasps. Geraghty tossed 209.1 innings in 2031 with 273 strikeouts, a 14-8 record, and 157 ERA+. This ended his Da Nang run, as he’d be traded in the offseason to Visakhapatnam.

Bangkok swept Mandalay 2-0 in the wild card round, but was promptly swept 3-0 by Dhaka in the divisional series. Despite their 11-year playoff streak, this was the first time since their 2023 pennant that the Dobermans advanced to the Southeast Asia League Championship. The Mammoths also notably missed the SEAL final for the first time since 2025.

Defending champ Yangon edged Ho Chi Minh City in a 3-2 divisional series classic. The Green Dragons then won on the road in a seven-game thriller against top-seed Dhaka. With the repeat, Yangon became 14-time Southeast Asia League champs (1980, 82, 83, 96, 2001, 06, 12, 14, 15, 17, 20, 22, 30, 31). This was behind only Ho Chi Minh City’s 15 pennants. Combined with Mandalay, the SEAL title has gone to a team from Myanmar in six straight seasons.

Despite the relative successes of both teams, the 52^nd SAB Championship was only the second finals meeting between Yangon and Visakhapatnam. The Green Dragons won back in their 2012 encounter, spoiling the Volts’ first finals trip. Yangon prevailed in 2031 by a 4-2 margin to become six-time South Asian Baseball champs (2001, 12, 15, 17, 22, 31).

The Green Dragons were tied with Ho Chi Minh City for the most SAB rings by a SEAL team at six, although both were far behind Ahmedabad’s 13. LF Hemi Sita won finals MVP in his sixth year with Yangon and 13^th in SAB. In 18 playoff starts, Sita had 29 hits, 12 runs, 5 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homers, 13 RBI, 1.221 OPS, 209 wRC+, and 1.2 WAR. The 29 hits were tied for the third-most in a SAB playoff run.

Other notes: The high hit totals in 2031 produced SAB’s longest-ever hitting streak, a 38-game run in the late summer by Colombo’s Chanratana Try. The previous best was 35 by Abhiji Srivas in 2019. Mandalay’s Jay Prasad notably had the third-longest in SAB with a 33-game run in 2031.

Can Tho had SEAL’s second-worst record at 62-100, but they had an all-time poor pitching staff. The Typhoon set all-time SAB team worsts for ERA (5.58), hits (1783), and H/9 (11.28). They also had the second-most runs allowed (940) and earned runs (882), both behind only 2009 Vientiane’s 955 and 888. Can Tho’s 1.521 team WHIP was the third-worst in SAB history.

Rajshahi also had poor pitching in 2031, setting an all-time worst for strikeouts (1143) and K/9 (7.11) along with the third-fewest saves (14). Also poor was Vientiane, who allowed the third-most runs (929), hits (1696), and had the third-worst H/9 (10.62). The Vampires’ Henry Goh allowed 296 hits, setting a new SAB individual worst.

In other pitching notables, 2031 was SAB’s first since without a single no-hitter since a three year run from 2018-20. Quang Thinh Phan became the 15^th ace to reach 200 career wins. Dusit Kyo and Amir Kapur became the 20^th and 21^st to reach 3500 strikeouts. Raj Bhaskar was the 19^th closer to 300 saves.

In hitting milestones, Binh Su Bac became the 5^th member of SAB’s 3000 hit club. Shivansh Mahapatra and Sokha Khhem became the 33^rd and 34^th to 2500 hits. Vij Kumaragupta and Gunavati Candrajita were the 17^th and 18^th to reach 1500 runs scored. Abhiji Srivas was the 21^st to 1500 RBI. Arav Walif and Cao An Ngo were the 30^th and 31^st members of the 500 home run club.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-04-2025, 06:14 AM

Freetown had West African Baseball’s best record in 2031 at a franchise-best 111-51, earning the Western League’s top seed for the third time in four years. The Foresters also guaranteed their seventh trip to the WLCS in eight years. Freetown led WAB with 564 runs scored and set all-time league pitching records for strikeouts (1896), and K/9 (11.80). It was a hot ticket in Sierra Leone with the Foresters posting a 2,202,335 season attendance; second-best in WAB history behind Cotonou’s 2,248,829 from the prior season.

The South Division wasn’t a guarantee either for the Foresters with Abidjan as WAB’s other 100+ win team in 2031 at 101-61. The Athletes earned a wild card, making the playoffs for the 11^th time in 14 years. Abidjan led WAB with 932 runs scored.

Nouakchott won the North Division at 98-64 for back-to-back playoff berths. It was their first time leading the standings since 2004. Two-time defending WL champ Dakar was second in the North at 93-69, firmly taking the second wild card ahead of 87-75 Conakry. The Dukes grew their playoff streak to eight seasons. Monrovia, a 90-win wild card last year, dropped to 80-82.

Veteran slugger Abdel Aziz Ashraf won his first Western League MVP in his 16^th season for Abidjan. The 36-year old Egyptian lefty crushed 70 home runs for the 7^th season in WAB history of 70+ homers. Ashraf had done it before with 71 back in 2023, which held as the WAB record for one year before Desmond Jaiyeola crushed 78. They are among 16 players in all of pro baseball history with multiple 70 home run seasons.

Both also made WAB history in 2031 by joining Darwin Morris in the 800 home run club. Jaiyeola became the new WAB home run king in his final season, finishing with 829. Ashraf finished the season with 806, tying Morris’ top mark which had held since 2014. Jaiyeola also wrapped up with 2512 hits, 1617 runs, 361 doubles, 1858 RBI, and 62.7 WAR across his run as a top flight DH.

Ashraf had a career-best 168 RBI in 2031, which ranked as the 5^th-highest in WAB. He also led in total bases (431), slugging (.693), OPS (1.037), and wRC+ (166). Ashraf posted 6.2 WAR with a .302 average, 188 hits, 122 runs, and 27 doubles. On the downside, he struck out 235 times, leading the league for the sixth time.
Ashraf finished the season with 3121, passing Aliassou Lankoande’s 3007 to become WAB’s biggest whiffer. As of 2037, he’s one of only 29 in world history with 3000+ strikeouts. Ashraf signed a three-year, $34,800,000 extension with the Athletes before the season.

Dakar ace Chidozie Iyakson also made history as the first six-time Pitcher of the Year winner in WAB. The 30-year old Nigerian lefty also won from 2024-27 and in 2029. In 2031, Iyakson led in WAR (7.5) and FIP- (59). He had a 2.55 ERA over 208.1 innings with 291 strikeouts and 174 ERA+. This was Iyakson’s final full WAB season, as he’d miss most of 2032 to a torn meniscus in his knee. He would opt out of his deal and bolt for MLB in 2033 on a five-year, $102 million deal with New York. Iyakson’s nine year reign with the Dukes would go down though as the best such stretch in league history.

Abidjan topped Dakar 2-0 in the first round of the playoffs, then got ousted 2-1 in round two by Nouakchott. The Night Riders earned their first trip to the Western League Championship Series since 2020 and they hadn’t won a pennant in the 21^st Century. Freetown extended that drought for them, taking the WLCS 3-1 for their third pennant in eight years. The Foresters became five-time Western League champs (1977, 2011, 2024, 2028, 2031).

A very competitive Eastern League had only six wins separating the four playoff teams. Both division champs finished 97-65 with Ouagadougou atop the Interior and reigning WAB kings Cotonou atop the Coastal. The tiebreaker gave the top seed to the Copperheads, boosting their hopes for a sixth consecutive EL pennant. The Osprey picked up their second playoff trip in four years.

Right behind Ouagadougou in the Interior was Kano (95-67) and Benin City (94-68). It was the second year of since the realignment to divisions, where both division’s second place team advanced as a wild card. This meant the Condors continued on and the Blue Devils were denied, despite Benin City having the fourth best overall record. Lagos was second in the Coastal at 91-71 and held off 86-78 Port Harcourt for the remaining playoff slot.

The Condors earned repeat playoff trips and the Lizards ended a three-year drought. Both Benin City and Port Harcourt were denied a third straight berth. The Blue Devils had led the EL with 927 runs, while Cotonou allowed the fewest at 675. Also of note was Niamey falling to 72-90, their first losing season since 2020.

Benin City third baseman Joao Sebastiao da Silva repeated as Eastern League MVP, leading in runs (127), homers (60), total bases (467), slugging (.746), OPS (1.153), wRC+ (177), and WAR (9.5). The 28-year old Angolan added 217 hits, 42 doubles, 14 triples, 130 RBI, and a .347 average. In the offseason, da Silva opted out of his current deal to ink a new historic seven-year, $274,500,000 extension with the Blue Devils. This made da Silva the first WAB player with an annual salary above $40 million.

Ibadan was mid at 78-84, but their ace Yakubu Babawo won Pitcher of the Year in only his second season. The 23-year old Nigerian lefty led with 20 quality starts and posted a 2.88 ERA over 206 innings, 16-6 record, 281 strikeouts, 165 ERA+, and 4.9 WAR. Babawo bounced back swimmingly after a fractured elbow ended his rookie campaign prematurely.

Kano edged Lagos 2-1 in the first round and gave Ouagadougou a spirited fight in round two before falling 2-1. This set up a rematch of the 2027 Eastern League Championship Series, which was the second of Cotonou’s five consecutive pennants. Many thought they’d complete the six-peat, but the Osprey earned the impressive 3-1 road win. This was Ouagadougou’s first-ever pennant, having gone 0-6 in their previous ELCS tries. This left Benin City and Doaula as the only original WAB teams yet to make the final.

In the 57^th West African Championship, Freetown capped off their 111-win campaign with a 4-1 finals win over Ouagadougou. The Foresters staked their claim as one of WAB’s all-time best teams, becoming only the eighth to win the title and win 110+ games. Freetown became three-time champs, having won in 1977 and 2028. 1B Youssoupha Diop won finals MVP in his 14^th season starting for the Foresters. The 34-year old Senegalais lefty in nine playoff games had 10 hits, 7 runs, 3 doubles, 3 homers, and 9 RBI.

Other notes: WAB hits king Fares Belaid became the world’s hit king in 2031, reaching a mark most figured was impossible. The 42-year old Tunisian had a respectable full season with Abidjan, recording 198 hits, 106 runs, 35 doubles, 16 triples, 20 homers, and 2.4 WAR. With that, he finished the season with an incredible 5041 career hits.

The legendary Prometheo Garcia had held the world record since the 1960s with a staggering 4917 hits combined between CABA and MLB. The #2 mark had been Stan Provost’s 4133 until EBF’s Jiri Lebr made a run and finished at 4651. Belaid had entered the season as world doubles king and further added to that distinction, becoming the first to reach 900 for a career. He also became the world triples king in 2031 at 467, passing Carsten Dal’s 457 from EBF.

Belaid was the WAB record holder in games, at-bats, runs, hits, total bases, singles, doubles, triples and stolen bases. In 2031, he became the second in world history with 2500+ runs scored. With 2599 runs, Belaid still had a shot to catch world home run king Majed Darwish of SAB for the most runs at 2664. Belaid had signed a three-year, $35,300,000 extension with Abidjan after getting traded to the Athletes in July 2030. He intended to return for the 2032 campaign, his 25^th year in WAB.

Despite a lackluster 73-89 record, Jos’s offense posted 408 doubles, one short of the WAB record. Leading that effort was Madi Dicko with 68, falling two short of the WAB individual mark reached by Isah Saka in 2026 and Adrian Kollie in 2021. 70+ doubles has only been reached eight times in world history through the 2031 season.

Port Harcourt’s Ngalle Eto’o set a single-season record among pitchers with 162+ innings with a 0.43 BB/9. He had an absurd 30.0 K/BB, striking out 240 with only eight walks over 169.1 innings. Shaiu Hassan became the 4^th to reach 2000 RBI and Jonah Moiseiwitsch became the 4^th to 2000 runs scored.

Donatien Nda was the 10^th to 600 home runs. Nda and Rasaq Kadir became the 23^rd and 24^th to 1500 RBI. Kadir won his 8^th Silver Slugger in CF. Abdel Aziz Ashraf was the 17^th to 1500 runs scored. Tamsir Camara, Ali Zakaryaou, and Desmond Jaiyeola all reached 2500 hits, making that a 38-player club for WAB. SS Saturday Solomon won his 9^th consecutive Gold Glove.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-04-2025, 06:10 PM

Harbin had Chinese League Baseball’s top record at 109-53, dominating the Northeast Division. For the third consecutive season, the Hellcats had the Northern League’s best record. They did it in 2031 with record-breaking offense, setting the new CLB record for runs scored at 758 and team slugging at .448. Harbin also allowed the fewest in the NL for the season at 507 runs. They also had 1495 hits, the third-best in CLB history. Harbin posted a 2,067,520 season attendance, just short of the league record 2,090,696 they set the prior year.

Qingdao was an impressive #2 seed in the NL at 101-61, dominating the Southeast Division for their second playoff berth in four years. The East Central had the tightest battle at Shijiazhuang (91-71) narrowly dethroned reigning CLB champ Jinan (90-72). The Serpents ended a nine-year playoff drought with impressive power, setting a new CLB team record with 235 home runs.

The West Division was also a tight fight as Urumqi (86-78) advanced over Lanzhou (84-78). The Unicorns got their second playoff trip in four years. For the Lava, it was an impressive accomplishment to post a winning campaign in only their second-ever season. Zhengzhou was 79-83 for only their second playoff miss in six years.

Jinan 1B Syamsul Azzahari won his second Northern League MVP, having previously done it in 2027. In 2031, the 29-year old Malaysian lefty led in hits (213), runs (124), average (.353), and OBP (.416). Azzahari added 54 home runs, 135 RBI, 1.071 OPS, 202 wRC+, and 10.3 WAR. Prior to the season, the Jumbos gave their long-time star one of China’s richest contracts yet at eight years and $281,800,000.

Although not an MVP finalist for 69-93 Xi’an, there was great excitement following 1B Liren Poh’s home run chase. The 30-year old righty socked 70 dingers, tying the CLB record set by Peng Wang in 2011. Poh also led with 140 RBI, the third-best in CLB history. Poh had 402 total bases, which was only the 11^th time in the ultra-low scoring CLB that a player posted 400+ bags.

Pitcher of the Year went to Harbin’s Lei Jiang in his fifth season. The 26-year old righty had missed big chunks of the prior three years to torn back muscles. Jiang was healthy for 2031 and led in ERA (1.78), wins (24-4), and quality starts (27). He struck out 269 over 222.2 innings with a 188 ERA+ and 7.2 WAR. After the season, the Hellcats gave Jiang a four-year, $27,680,000 extension.

Harbin was the top team in the Triple Round Robin at 6-3, earning repeat semifinal trips. Urumqi and Shijiazhuang were both 5-4 and Qingdao went 2-7. The Unicorns advanced over the Serpents on the tiebreaker for a third semifinal trip, having previously won the Northern League crown in 2022 and 2024.

Few expected the Unicorns to win a third pennant, looking very mismatched on paper at 86-76 versus the 109-53 Hellcats. However, Urumqi did it emphatically 4-1, leaving Harbin without a China Series trip despite three consecutive years as the top seed with 100+ wins. The Hellcats’ have now gone 28 seasons since their last finals berth.

Chongqing was again the Southern League’s top seed, winning the Central Division by 14 games at 98-64. The Cavaliers earned their sixth playoff trip in seven years. Next best was Guangzhou at 92-70, who beat Foshan by eight to repeat in the Southwest Division. The Gamecocks led in scoring with 721 runs and set a new CLB record with a team .318 OBP. Guangzhou’s 116 triples were also the second-most in CLB history.

Dongguan earned their third playoff trip in four years, winning the East Division at 88-74 and allowing the fewest runs at 480. The Donkeys were three games better than defending SL champ Wenzhou, who was the only team from the 2030 SL playoff field to miss in 2031. Hong Kong at 84-78 barely repeated in the Southeast Division ahead of Macau (83-79) and Xiamen (79-83).

Second-year RF Yan Bashi won Southern League MVP for Guangzhou, leading in OPS (.955) and wRC+ (197). The #6 overall pick from the 2028 CLB Draft added 8.9 WAR, 193 hits, 93 runs, 17 doubles, 20 triples, 30 homers, 101 RBI, and a .329/.376/.579 slash.

Xiamen’s Jingbo Gao got Pitcher of the Year, leading in quality starts with 27. The 27-year old righty had a 214 ERA over 269.2 innings, 16-11 record, 286 strikeouts, 143 ERA+, and 6.4 WAR. This earned Gao a five-year, $48,500,000 extension with the Mutts.

The Triple Round Robin had Guangzhou (7-2) and Hong Kong (6-3), while top-seed Chongqing (3-6) and Dongguan (2-7) were ousted. This gave the Gamecocks back-to-back semifinal trips, but they’d be denied again. The Champions won in a seven-game thriller, securing their ninth trip to the China Series (1978, 82, 97, 2007, 18, 19, 21, 22, 31). This tied HK with Beijing for the most finals berths

By win total, the 62^nd China Series was one of the weakest finals you’d find with 86-win Urumqi and 84-win Hong Kong. It was a rematch of the 2022 final, which was HK’s last title in a 2-1 result. The Unicorns got revenge in a seven-game classic, the first China Series to go the distance since Urumqi’s first title over Shantou in 2024.

Finals MVP went to rookie Pengqing Gao, the 14^th overall pick by the Unicorns in the 2030 CLB Draft. In 21 playoff starts, the switch-hitting left fielder had 18 hits, 13 runs, 11 homers, 17 RBI, 1.135 OPS, and 1.5 WAR. He notably had a three-home run game during the series, going 5-5 with 6 RBI.

The 11 homers tied the former CLB playoff record, which HK’s Binghui Wen shattered with 14. The 26-year old Wen also set a CLB playoff record for total bases with 72 and fell two short of the RBI record with 22. Wen and teammate Faxien Rao both scored 18 runs, tying Kenny Sang’s playoff record from 2025.

Other notes: Tao Cai became the 4^th member of the 500 home run club. He finished the year at 526, still just behind the other three members. However, Cai is within striking distance of the top slot of 552 by Cheng Kang. The 35-year old Changsha LF finished 2031 with 1268 RBI, barely behind Kang’s 1272 for the top spot. Cai did pass Zhen Zhang’s 4468 to become CLB’s total bases leader with 4586.

Changsha’s Ponziano Gonzalez had 381 strikeouts in 2031, the 11^th-best by a CLB pitcher and the most in 30 years. Harvey Chong had a 28-game hitting streak carrying over from the prior year, the 2^nd-longeest in CLB behind Feng Smith’s 32 from 2028. 3B Luis Alvarado and CF Xiaotian Shu both won their 7^th Gold Gloves. It was Shu’s first in CF, having won six in LF.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-05-2025, 04:11 AM

Austronesia Professional Baseball had generally been the lowest scoring of the world baseball leagues. In the 2020s, the Taiwan-Philippine Association had an ERA of 2.83 and the Sundaland Association was at 2.53; both the lowest in the world. Chinese League Baseball had long seen similar numbers, but CLB made rule changes for 2028 to boost their scoring output somewhat.

Following their neighbor’s lead, APB made similar changes for 2031 designed to increase offensive output overall. The TPA would go from a 2.77 ERA and .222 batting average in 2030 to a 3.25 ERA and .241 average. The SA went from 2.39 and .213 in 2030 up to 2.90 and .232. APB remained the lowest scoring of the world leagues, but they were at least now in the “low” to “very low” scoring territory on the historical scale and no longer “extremely low.”

Cebu’s reign atop the Philippine League extended to seven seasons, setting a franchise record at 109-53. The Crows allowed the fewest runs in the Taiwan-Philippine Association at 480 and had the second-most runs at 701. Cagayan de Oro was a very distant second at 87-75, but that earned them their second-ever playoff berth (2021). The Critters held off Quezon (84-78) for the #2 spot. Last year’s association finalist Manila plummeted to the bottom at 66-96.

Four teams finished within four games of the Taiwan League’s top spot. Tainan narrowly took it at 91-71, advancing to the playoffs along with 90-72 Hsinchu. Reigning APB champ Taipei and last year’s TL winner Taichung both missed the cut at 87-75. The Titans earned their second playoff trip in four years, while the Sweathogs ended a three-year drought.

Hsinchu took advantage of the new offensive rules and set several APB team records. The Sweathogs set new high marks for team batting average (.263), slugging percentage (.435), runs (713), hits (1459), and doubles (260). “The King” Binh Tang led the efforts again with a historic 11^th Taiwan-Philippine Association MVP. He joined OBA/MLB legend Jimmy Caliw (12) and WAB legend Darwin Morris (11) as the only 11+ MVP winners in all of world baseball history. Tang earned his 11^th Silver Slugger as well and his 8^th at first base.

The 31-year old Vietnamese first baseman led in runs (115), hits (205), RBI (116), triple slash (.348/.415/.615), OPS (1.029), wRC+ (193), and WAR (11.1). Tang also had 32 doubles and 39 home runs. In APB, there have been only 22 qualifying seasons with an OPS above one to this point; Tang has four. This was also his eighth season above 10 WAR. He hit for the cycle for the first time in his career in June against Kaohsiung. In July, the Sweathogs extended their megastar on a six-year, $234,500,000 deal.

Tainan’s Yu-Kang Chiang won Pitcher of the Year in his fifth season. The 26-year old Taiwanese lefty led in wins (23-3), ERA (1.17), WHIP (0.73), quality starts (29), ERA+ (278), FIP- (30), and WAR (12.1). Chaing tossed 230.1 innings with 343 strikeouts, finishing third with teammate Kuan-Yang Kang leading at 384. Back in April, the Titans extended Chiang at $99,800,000 over six years; a quite reasonable deal for a POTY winner.

The top seeds prevailed in the divisional round with Tainan sweeping Cagayan de Oro and Cebu surviving 3-2 against Hsinchu. This set up a rematch of the 2028 Taiwan-Philippine Association Championship, which was the final pennant of a four-peat for the Crows. Cebu returned to the perch by winning 4-2 for their tenth pennant (1980, 90, 91, 92, 2012, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31). This is the most among TPA teams. For the Titans, their pennant drought grows to 52 years.

Kuala Lumpur earned the Sundaland Association’s top seed at 98-64 atop the Malacca League; earning their first playoff trip in a decade. Medan at 88-74 took the #2 slot for back-to-back years, holding off Batam (86-76) and Pekanbaru (84-78).

Reigning SA champ Jakarta narrowly repeated atop the Java Sea League at 90-72, growing their playoff streak to seven seasons. Surabaya and Semarang tied for second at 88-74 with the Sunbirds advancing by winning the tiebreaker game. This ended a 19-year playoff drought for Surabaya, which was the second-longest active drought in APB behind Depok’s 31-year skid. The Demons led the SA with 583 runs in 2031, but finished a mere 79-83. The Sliders allowed the fewest runs at 430.

Sundaland Association MVP went to 1B Ashraf Zeky in his seventh year starting for Surabaya. The 30-year old Malaysian righty led in walks (78), OBP (.390), and OPS (.937). Zeky had 179 hits, 82 runs, 26 doubles, 36 homers, 93 RBI, 193 wRC+, and 7.9 WAR.

Medan’s Pao-Huang Lin won his third consecutive Pitcher of the Year and again won the ERA title, this time at 1.09. This ranked as the 14^th-best qualifying ERA in APB as of 2037. The 24-year old Taiwanese lefty had a 16-4 record over 182 innings with 293 strikeouts. He was also the leader in WHIP (0.81), shutouts (5), ERA+ (269), FIP- (33), and WAR (9.0). Lin also had an incredible 22 strikeout game over 11 innings against Palembang on May 25, missing the single-game record by one. Lin’s season was shorted with a damaged elbow ligament in mid-August, putting him out ten months.

Kuala Lumpur swept Surabaya in the divisional round and Jakarta topped Medan 3-1. This sent the Jaguars to the Sundaland Association final for the sixth time in seven years, while the Leopards last made it in 2021. KL still was pennant-less since leaving South Asia Baseball and joining APB in 2008. Kuala Lumpur finally ended that drought with a 4-2 series win over Jakarta.

The 67^th Austronesia Championship saw Kuala Lumpur victorious 4-2 against Cebu, making the Leopards the 19^th different franchise to win APB’s top prize. Finals MVP went to pitcher Hari Xi in his eighth year in the Leopards rotation. The 28-year old Indonesian had a 13-strikout no-hitter in game six, the first ever no-hitter in a championship clincher in all of pro baseball history. This was the third no-hitter in APB finals history. Xi tossed 30.2 playoff innings with a 0.88 ERA, 3-0 record, 1 save, 50 strikeouts, 7 hits allowed, and 1.6 WAR.

He was only the sixth pitcher in APB playoff history to strikeout 50+ batters in a run. Two others achieved the feat, aided by the expanded postseason. KL teammate Thipanraj Shahdan tied the playoff record with 59 Ks while Cebu’s Hakimi Aziz fanned 51.

Other notes: Hakimi Aziz also notably had a no-hitter against Tainan in May, giving him three for his career Aziz had tossed two perfect games the prior year. Cebu’s Chia-Jen Han had the 57^th APB perfecto on August 3, fanning 14 against Batangas.
Semarang’s pitching staff allowed 202 walks with a 1.24 BB/9, both of which were the second-lowest in APB history. Taryono Putra became the 17^th closer to 300 career saves.

Cebu’s Francis Zavalas posted only the third-ever four home run game by an APB slugger on July 10 against Zamboanga. Taoyuan’s Wei-Yin Yang had the 20^th six-hit game in APB and became the first to do it twice, having also done it in 2025. Pete Gipit and Wei-Yin Wang became the 62^nd and 63^rd to 2000 hits. 1B Robert Corrado won his 10^th Gold Glove and P Kuan-Yang Kang won his 8^th.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-05-2025, 07:55 PM

Since 2011, the Oceania Baseball Association had required only five years of minimum service for players to reach free agency; the lowest of the world leagues. In an effort to keep players from leaving the region so quickly, OBA bumped that back up to the original six years starting in 2031. OBA still was among the lower of the world leagues, leaving CABA, SAB, and EAB with the five year standard. Those leagues had only recently made their switches down to five.

For the first time in 34 years, Perth finished atop the Australasia League standings. The Penguins had been close recently, taking third at 90-72 in 2030 and second in 2029 at 93-69. Perth pulled off a 105-57 mark in 2031 and led the Oceania Baseball Association with 779 runs scored. The Penguins became nine-time league champs (1960, 61, 78, 79, 86, 93, 94, 97, 2031).

Sydney was second at 97-65, followed by reigning OBA champ Brisbane at 92-70 and Melbourne at 90-72. The Snakes notably posted a 17^th consecutive winning season, one season short of Honolulu’s OBA record. The Black Bears allowed OBA’s fewest runs at 520.

Leading the way for Perth was Australasia League MVP Jody Riley in his fourth season. The 25-year old Australian first baseman led with 56 home runs and 122 RBI. Riley added 168 hits, 110 runs, 21 doubles, 1.036 OPS, 178 wRC+, and 7.6 WAR. The Penguins had picked Riley fifth overall in the 2027 OBA Draft.

Brisbane’s Jayden Rhode won Pitcher of the Year in his in his seventh season. The 28-year old Australian righty won the ERA title at 2.31 and led in FIP- (67), and WAR (8.0). Rhode won his fourth Gold Glove and had 319 strikeouts over 260.2 innings with a 17-10 record and 165 ERA+. The Black Bears would commit to Rhode the following March with a six year, $180,900,000 extension.

The Pacific League saw a major shakeup at the top of the standings. Defending champ New Caledonia plummeted to 66-96 after their surprise 2030 title. Port Moresby, who won six pennants in the 2020s, finished 72-90 for their first losing season in a decade. This opened up the chance for some to end a significant title drought.

Guadalcanal and Fiji took advantage, tying for the top spot at 96-66 to require a tiebreaker game for the first time since 2003. The Green Jackets prevailed and ended their 17-year title drought, becoming eight-time PL champs (1961, 64, 66, 68, 77, 2010, 12, 13, 31). Honolulu was also a competitive third at 91-71. Guadalcanal led the PL with 762 runs scored while the Freedom allowed the fewest at 603.

Fiji LF Pierce Meecham was Pacific League MVP in his fifth season. The 28-year old Australian lefty led in runs (112), hits (224), doubles (38), RBI (122), total bases (418), triple slash (.360/.384/.671), OPS (1.055), wRC+ (206), and WAR (9.6). Meecham’s 42 home runs were second to Honolulu’s Liam Winmar at 48, missing the Triple Crown by six. The Freedom extended Meecham after the season for five years and $77,900,000.

Tahiti was mid at 82-80, but they saw the Pitcher of the Year Steven Gamboa. The 34-year old Timorese lefty had a 19-10 record, 2.45 ERA, 290.1 innings, 301 strikeouts, 147 ERA+, and 4.8 WAR. He led in shutouts (5) and also walks (88). It was Gamboa’s one season with the Tropics. He had been with Honolulu from 2022-30 and returned to the Honu for 2032.

The 72^nd Oceania Championship was a rematch of the second, which saw Guadalcanal victorious over Perth back in 1961. The Penguins got the long-waited revenge with an emphatic sweep, becoming five-time OBA champs (1960, 1978, 1993, 1994, 2031). Journeyman 2B Brodie Hazlett was finals MVP, going 9-16 with 5 runs, 3 triples, 2 RBI, and 4 steals.

Other notes: Quinn Burry became the 50^th pitcher to 3000 career strikeouts. Jordy Vincent and Evan Yoshida were the 68^th and 69^th to 1000 runs scored, while Pat Nicholson and Sumeet Singh were the 73^rd and 74^th to 1000 RBI. 3B Natam Chrostek and 1B David Odom won their 8^th Gold Gloves and C Kristian Duenas won his 7^th.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-06-2025, 06:49 AM

Only three wins separated the four playoff teams in Eurasian Professional Baseball’s European League. The top two records were both in the North Division, led by reigning EL champ Moscow at 95-67. The Mules were one game better than 94-68 Kazan, who ended a three-year playoff berth. It was Moscow’s third straight playoff trip, but they hadn’t won a division crown since 2021. The Mules allowed the EL’s fewest runs (575) and the Crusaders scored the most (745).

Over in the South Division, Krasnodar was first at 93-69 with Samara one back at 92-70. The Steamers earned their first playoff trip since their back-to-back pennants in 2017-18. The Steelers meanwhile grew their postseason streak to five years. Tel Aviv was also in the mix and the first team out at 88-74, tying a franchise-best for wins by the 2020 expansion Aeros.

Volgograd notably fell hard after their franchise-best 113 wins the prior year, finishing 76-86. This was only the second time since 2020 that the Voyagers missed the playoffs or had a losing season. Gomel notably fell off after taking three straight North Division titles, dropping to 73-89 in 2031.

Nizhny Novgorod was a lackluster 73-89 despite an outstanding third season by European League MVP Maksim Krutov. The 25-year old Russian left fielder won a Gold Glove and led in runs (112), home runs (51), RBI (131), OBP (.419), slugging (.710), OPS (1.129), wRC+ (214), and WAR (11.3). Krutov had 191 hits, 24 doubles, 13 triples, 59 stolen bases, and a .344 average; missing the Triple Crown by .022. Krutov had been the #1 overall pick in the 2028 EPB Draft by the Ninjas and was living up to the hype.

Kazan’s Oleh Kravets won Pitcher of the Year, posting the top WAR (8.4) and FIP- (64). The 28-year old Russian righty had an 18-9 record, 2.59 ERA, 138 ERA+, 260.2 innings, and 316 strikeouts. Also of note, Volgograd’s Aleksei Kotyukh became the eighth closer in EPB history to win Reliever of the Year four times. He led with 32 saves in 2031 and had a 1.75 ERA over 77.1 innings with 113 Ks and 4.3 WAR.

Moscow outlasted Samara 3-2 in the first round while Krasnodar downed Kazan 3-1, pitting the division champs against each other in the European League Championship Series. The Mules’ repeat bid was successful with a 4-1 victory over the Steamers. The Russian capital earned its 12^th pennant of the 21^st Century and 15^th overall.

The top four records in the Asian League were all in the East Division. Novosibirsk narrowly repeated as the top seed at 95-67, finishing one game better than the three-time defending AL champ and reigning EPB champ Vladivostok. The Nitros led all of EPB with 781 runs, while the Shibas had the fewest runs allowed at 522. Novosibirsk’s playoff streak grew to three seasons and Vladivostok’s to four.

Khabarovsk (89-73) held off Ulaanbaatar (87-75) for the second wild card, giving the Rockets their second wild card in three years. Over in the West Division, Ufa (85-77) took first over Omsk (83-79), and four-time defending division champ Nur-Sultan (80-82). The Fiends ended a 12 year postseason drought.

Novosibirsk RF Jabir Abdul won Asian League MVP in his fourth season and third as a starter. The 23-year old Israeli led in runs (113), RBI (111), and total bases (375). Abdul added 203 hits, 34 doubles, 12 triples, 38 homers, .974 OPS, 174 wRC+, and 7.2 WAR.

Vladivostok’s Airat Mamedov won Pitcher of the Year in his tenth year in the Shibas rotation, posting a 16-6 record, 2.22 ERA, 207 innings, 257 strikeouts, 163 ERA+, and 6.5 WAR. The 31-year old Uzbek signed a seven-year, $111,600,000 extension to remain with Vladivostok for the long haul. His teammate Kazybek Orazow notably won his third consecutive Reliever of the Year, posting 36 saves, 1.35 ERA, 106.2 innings, 173 Ks, and 6.0 WAR.

Both first round matchups needed all five games. Novosibirsk survived against Khabarovsk, while Ufa used its home field advantage to dethrone the reigning champ Vladivostok. The Nitros earned a repeat trip to the Asian League Championship Series, while the Fiends hadn’t made it that far since 2018. Novosibirsk was denied again despite the #1 seed, falling to Ufa in a seven-game classic. It was only the third pennant for the Fiends, who won in 2015 and 2016.

Incidentally, both of Ufa’s prior finals trips saw faceoffs with Moscow that needed all seven games. The Fiends won their lone title in the 2015 encounter, while the Mules won in 2016 for their most recent EPB ring. Round three in the 77^th EPB Championship also needed all seven games with Ufa coming out on top over Moscow. The Mules are now 5-10 all-time in their finals trips.

LF Daniel Correia was a surprise finals MVP for Ufa. The 30-year old from Portugal had joined the Fiends in 2025, but had only been an occasional starter. Correia started all 19 playoff games and got 24 hits, 12 runs, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 3 homers, and 6 RBI. Moscow’s Yakov Starenkyi also notably set new EPB playoff records for hits (30) and singles (21).

Other notes: Moscow’s Georgi Mezin tossed EPB’s 34^th perfect game and the first since 2022, fanning eight on May 23 against Tel Aviv. For only the 11^th time in EPB, there was a four home run game as Yacub Hristov of Krasnodar did it on August 23 against Samara. The feat hadn’t happened since 2017. Anatoliy Dmitrenko became EPB’s 34^th member of the 2500 hit club. CF Robert Albrecht won his 10^th consecutive Gold Glove, tying the position record. RF Dmitri Khodakovsky won his 7^th Silver Slugger

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

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