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

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-22-2025, 07:04 PM

For the 2032 season, Arab League Baseball increased the active roster size from 25 to 26. ALB had founded at 25, bumped to 26 in 1997, but was back to 25 for 2010. They joined Chinese League Baseball and South Asia Baseball as the only leagues with a 26-man active roster with everyone else lower.

Reigning Western Conference champ Algiers took the top seed at 102-60 to extend their playoff streak to a decade. It was their tenth Mediterranean Division title in 12 years and their fifth 100+ win season of the run. Alexandria repeated as Nile Division champ at 97-65, their sixth playoff trip in eight years. Khartoum was a competitive second at 92-70 for their second wild card in three years.

Damascus won the Levant Division at 96-66, their first division title since 2019 despite being on a five-year playoff streak. Jerusalem entered 2032 on an eight-year division title streak, but plummeted to 72-90 for their first losing campaign since 2020. Aleppo was second at 90-72 for the second wild card, earning their first-ever postseason trip since arriving in the 2024 expansion. Casablanca was the next closest in the wild card race at a very distant 82-80. The Dusters led in scoring with 902 runs while Giza allowed the fewest (690) despite a middling 77-85 season.

Leading the scoring for Damascus was Western Conference MVP Ibrahim Amin in his lone season with the Dusters. The 28-year old CF had spent his first six seasons with his hometown Cairo, but got traded in February for prospects. Nicknamed “Claw,” Amin led in runs (130) and WAR (9.1). He had 209 hits, 56 doubles, 34 home runs, 126 RBI, 105 stolen bases, and .980 OPS. Amin left for free agency and got a hefty payday in Major League Baseball at $242,900,000 over eight years with Omaha.

Algiers righty Haidar Chakir won Pitcher of the Year. The 31-year old righty was in his 11^th season with the Arsenal and led in wins (19-8) and strikeouts (296). Chakir had a 3.17 ERA over 235.2 innings, 137 ERA+, and 6.0 WAR, missing the Triple Crown by ten points.

The Algerian had been a finalist thrice before, which earned him a seven-year, $81,200,000 extension after the 2030 campaign. Algiers had taken a chance with that deal, as he had suffered a torn labrum in August 2030, but were rewarded in 2032. Although Jerusalem struggled, their closer Aaron Buber notably won his seventh Reliever of the Year award. He’s only the fourth in world history to win the award 7+ times and the first to achieve the feat in the 21^st Century.

Aleppo edged Khartoum in the wild card round 2-1 for their first-ever playoff series win. The Alliance then stunned top seed Algiers 2-1 in the second round to advance to the Western Conference Final. Damascus swept Alexandria on the other side for their third WCF trip in four years. Aleppo’s magic ran out as the Dusters dusted their Syrian rival with a 3-0 sweep, winning their fourth pennant (2014, 16, 29, 32).

For back-to-back seasons, a competitive Eastern Conference didn’t have any 100+ win teams. Dubai took the top seed at 97-65 for their second Gulf Division title in four years. Doha was next in the division at 91-71 for a third consecutive wild card. Two-time defending ALB champ and four-time defending conference champ Muscat was third at 89-73.

That same record earned division titles for Sulaymaniyah in the Mesopotamia Division and Jeddah in the Arabia Division, albeit barely. The Sultans earned their fifth playoff trip in six years, edging out Kuwait by two games and Mosul by five. The Jackals hadn’t made the playoffs since their record 14-year streak ended in 2025. Jeddah was one game ahead of Medina, four better than Sanaa, and six ahead of Riyadh.

Medina and Muscat tied for the second wild card with Kuwait two back, Sanaa three away, and Mosul four back. In the tiebreaker game, the Threshers defeated the Mastodons to keep their five-peat dream alive and extend their playoff streak to six seasons. It was only the second playoff miss in eight years for Medina. The Muskies also notably had a four-year streak end. The Mastodons led in scoring at 888 runs and the Dash allowed the fewest at 675.

Muscat right fielder Ahmed Yasser Basha won his third Eastern Conference MVP, having won in 2027 and 2029. He also earned his tenth Gold Glove and sixth Silver Slugger in his 11^th season starting for the Threshers. The 31-year old Egyptian led with a .358 batting average, his fifth batting title. Basha had 211 hits, 104 runs, 41 doubles, 33 homers, 122 RBI, 103 steals, 1.007 OPS, and 7.4 WAR. He also hit for the cycle in September against Dubai. Muscat had extended their long-time star before the season at $210,900,000 over six seasons.

Jeddah’s Mimi Abdelrasoul won Pitcher of the Year in his second year with the Jackals. The 30-year old Egyptian righty started with Suez, but signed for 2031 with Jeddah at $122,600,000 over six years. Abdelrasoul led in wins (21-5), ERA (2.34), innings (250.1), complete games (9), shutouts (5), FIP- (62), and WAR (8.8). He had 261 strikeouts, 35 away from a Triple Crown.

Doha beat Muscat 2-0 in the wild card to officially end the Threshers’ reign atop the Eastern Conference. The Dash then upset divisional foe Dubai 2-0 in round two, earning only their fourth-ever EC finals trip and first since 2018. Jeddah swept Sulaymaniyah for their first appearance since their 2022 pennant. Doha continued to roll to a 3-0 sweep over the Jackals, going 7-0 across their Eastern Conference playoff games. It was only the second pennant for the Dash, who won it all in 1997.

In the 43^rd Arab League Championship, Doha brought the cup home to Qatar for only the second time with a 4-2 series win over Damascus. American RF Dennis Peters was finals MVP in his third year with the Dash, having come over after 13 seasons with MLB’s Miami. The 37-year old righty in 12 playoff starts had 12 hits, 8 runs, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 3 homers, and 7 RBI.

Other notes: 2032 was the final year for pitcher Ahmed Hussain, struggling to a 4.80 ERA over 105 innings in relief in his second year with Casablanca. His previous 19 years with Basra made him ALB’s GOAT pitcher in the eyes of many. A six-time Pitcher of the Year, the Qatari lefty retired as ALB’s all-time leader in wins (312), strikeouts (5295), innings (4454), and WAR (135.79).

Hussain is second in total WAR in ALB behind only hitting GOAT Nordine Soule’s 153.53. As of 2037, Hussain also is tied for 100^th on the world WAR leaderboard among all players ever. He also ranks 31^st in wins, 25^th in strikeouts, and 35^th in pitching WAR, cementing his spot as one of the game’s legendary aces.

Jerusalem’s Nathaniel Labbe had a four home run, 12 RBI game against Alexandria. This set WAB’s single-game RBI record and was the 19^th-four homer game in ALB. There had only been two previous 12 RBI games in world history. The world record was by Moo-Yeol Lee with a staggering 15 in East Asia Baseball’s inaugural 1921 season.

Wissam Magdy notably smacked 77 home runs, his fifth 70+ season. This ranked as the 4^th-best in ALB history with Magdy holding the top two spots at 89 in 2027 and 82 in 2026. Algiers’ Kerlos Sharaf had a .403 batting average, the 7^th season in ALB history above .400.

Magdy and Osama Ahmed both reached 800 career home runs, a mark met by six total. Magdy, Walid Bennani, and Lyes Adel all reached 1500 RBI, a club with 24 guys in ALB. Bennani also became the 15^th to score 1500 runs. Emad Tarek and Sumaihan Alhaj became the 37^th and 38^th members of the 500 home run club. Muhammad Nour became the 13^th pitcher with 3500 strikeouts and Bakr Mahdi became the 31^st to reach 3K.

Medina’s Fekri Al-Baada had a 36-game hitting streak, falling one short of Abuil Jalil Dahir’s league record 37 from 2028. Two other guys had also gotten to 36 in ALB. Shawn George and Mahmoud El-Said both tied the playoff record for walks drawn with 10. Hafidh Rana set the playoff record for batting average at .632, minimum 20 plate appearances. He went 12-19 with 21 PAs. Abu Dhabi’s bullpen had 23 saves all year, a new ALB low. Dubai’s offense had 390 doubles, the 5^th-best team mark in ALB history.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-23-2025, 06:04 AM

Last year’s East League finalists finished even for the top seed and the Pakistan Division title at 105-57. The Asian Baseball Federation doesn’t use a tiebreaker game and the formula gave the crown to Rawalpindi, their first division title since 2017. For the defending EL champ and reigning Baseball Grand Champion Hyderabad, they had to settle for a wild card. The Horned Frogs’ playoff streak grew to nine seasons with their sixth straight 100+ win season.

In the North Division, Osh stunned the field in first at 91-71. The Oxen joined ABF in the 2030 expansion and had won 54 and 63 games in their first two seasons. Bishkek and Tashkent were both two back at 89-73 with the tiebreaker giving the Black Sox the second wild card. Bishkek ended a four-year playoff drought. Also just short in the wild card race were Lahore (88-74), and Namangan (85-77).

Notably, Karachi (69-93) and Peshawar (70-92) both had their first losing seasons since 2024. Almaty at 82-80 extended their streak of winning seasons to 13 despite missing the playoffs. The Longhorns led the EL with 758 runs scored, while both Rawalpindi and Tashkent allowed the fewest at 503.

East League MVP went to Namangan 1B Rabbani Ghalib, who was the #1 overall draft pick for their inaugural 2030 campaign. He won Rookie of the Year and has only gotten better since, leading in 2032 in home runs (54) and WAR (9.4). The 25-year old Afghani lefty had 191 hits, 113 runs, 112 RBI, 1.068 OPS, and 208 wRC+. Ghalib had a 24-game hitting streak in the spring and a 28-game streak in the summer.

Rawalpindi’s Islam al-Qutaiba won Pitcher of the Year, leading in wins (18-3), ERA (1.49), WHIP (0.63), and FIP- (48). The 27-year old Pakistani righty had 271 strikeouts in 181 innings with 7.3 WAR. The effort by al-Qutaiba was one of only 15 qualifying seasons in ABF history with an ERA below 1.50. His WHIP was also one point away from Faysal Jabalandi’s record 0.62 from 1990. Unfortunately for al-Qutaiba, his season was ended on August 30 with a torn rotator cuff.

All of the first and second round playoff matches for the East League needed all three games. Rawalpindi beat Bishkek and Hyderabad topped Osh in the first round. The Horned Frogs then won on the road over their divisional rival to secure their sixth ELCS trip in seven years. In the loser’s bracket, the Black Sox ousted the Oxen to set up a rematch with the Red Wings.

Bishkek surprised Rawalpindi in the loser’s bracket rematch, earning their first East League Championship Series trip since their three pennants from 2020-23. Hyderabad clobbered the Black Sox with a 4-0 sweep in the ELCS, earning repeat pennants and their fifth in seven years. The Horned Frogs led all ABF teams with 11 pennants (1986, 87, 97, 98, 99, 2013, 26, 27, 28, 31, 32).

Baku’s dynasty seemed to only be getting stronger in the West League. The Blackbirds were the three-time defending ABF champs, having won 100, 113, and 114 games atop the West Division. In 2032, Baku was even better at 118-46, a new ABF record. The Blackbirds also set ABF team records for runs scored (962), team slugging (.543), and home runs (349).

Mashhad repeated as Central Division champs at 106-56, fending off a fierce challenge by Tabriz. The Mercury’s ABF-record playoff streak grew to 12 seasons, while the Tiger Sharks notably had their third consecutive wild card. Mashhad also set a new league attendance record with 2,262,372 tickets sold. Ankara was second in the West at 101-61, easily taking the second wild card for their third berth in five years. The next closest foe was a distant Gaziantep at 93-69. The Alouettes allowed the fewest runs in the WL at 568.

Baku 1B Artyom Masharipov won his third consecutive West League MVP. The 28-year old Azeri led in home runs (60), RBI (148), total bases (433), and slugging (.689); each for the third straight year. Masharipov had 202 hits, 125 runs, 47 doubles, 1.062 OPS, 182 wRC+, and 8.2 WAR.

Ankara’s Hasan Yousefi won his second Pitcher of the Year, having also done it back in 2028. In his 12^th season for the Alouettes, Yousefi led in ERA (1.98), strikeouts (364), WHIP (0.76), K/BB (22.8), complete games (20), shutouts (6), and WAR (8.8). The 32-year old Iranian lefty had a 22-7 record over 250 innings, missing the Triple Crown by one win. In July, Yousefi became the 14^th ABF pitcher with 4000 career strikeouts. Ankara gave him a six-year, $145,200,000 extension back in February 2031.

Baku bested Ankara 2-1 and Mashhad swept Tabriz in round one. The Mercury then shocked the reigning champ Blackbirds 2-0 in round two, giving Mashhad its second West League Championship Series in four years. It was their fifth appearance of the playoff streak, having won pennants in 2025-26. The loser’s bracket began with the Alouettes ousting the Tiger Sharks 2-1.

The Blackbirds again defeated Ankara 2-1, giving Baku another chance to keep the four-peat alive. The longer seven game series allowed the Blackbirds their revenge 4-2 against Mashhad, securing their ninth pennant (2010, 12, 13, 22, 24, 29, 30, 31, 32). Baku was the first team in ABF history to win four consecutive pennants. With their best team yet by record at 118-46, many thought they also secure the first-ever four-peat atop all of ABF.

Hyderabad played spoiler in the finals rematch, much as they did in the 2031 Baseball Grand Championship when they took first at 14-7 while Baku was tied for third at 13-8. Not only did the Horned Frogs upset Baku in the 48^th ABF Championship, but they did it with a sweep. Hyderabad became seven-time ABF champs (1986, 87, 99, 2013, 26, 27, 32) and beat the Blackbirds for the second time, having won in their 2013 encounter.

Veteran 3B Umut Akoyl was finals MVP, having signed with the Horned Frogs the prior year following six years with Kabul. The 31-year old Turk had 14 hits, 5 runs, 4 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homers, and 9 RBI in 14 playoff starts. A bad playoff record did get set by five-time Pitcher of the Year Agshin Jumayev, allowing 13 home runs. He had a 4.78 ERA over 43.1 innings.

Other notes: ABF home run king Hakan Mocuk became the 1^st to reach 700 homers and the 1^st to 2000 career RBI. It was his last of six seasons with Baku, having played with Izmir in his first 12 seasons. Mocuk played three more seasons in a part-time role with Tashkent. Sultan Han and Ismayil Kostenko became the 19^th and 20^th members of the 500 home run club.

H.A. Rahman became the 3^rd to reach 1500 runs scored. He played two more years and finished at 1724, behind only Mehmit Fatih Canaydin’s 1880. Kazim Belal was the 18^th to 2500 hits. Agshin Jumayev and Kkairi Qaderi became the 23^rd and 24^th pitchers with 3500 strikeouts and Hamid Osam was the 38^th to reach 3k. Yasar Khatter became the 5^th reliever with 300 saves.

C Ali Mahdian won his 13^th Gold Glove, becoming the first catcher in any world league to win the award 13 times. He was only the 3^rd to win 13+ Gold Gloves at any position in ABF. Two-way player Safdar Kahlwan won his 10^th Silver Slugger and 9^th as a pitcher. LF Youssouf Raza won his 9^th Silver Slugger and SS Vugar Sodikov won his 8^th.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-23-2025, 03:47 PM

Ahmedabad won the West Division for the seventh consecutive year and took the Indian League’s top seed at 103-59. The Animals allowed the fewest runs at 585. Reigning IL champ Visakhapatnam won a third South Division in a row at 100-62. The Volts won the division and won 100+ games for the seventh time in eight years. It was also their tenth year running with 96+ wins. Hyderabad was a competitive second in the South at 96-66 to get repeat wild cards.

Lucknow earned the Central Division title at 92-70, their first playoff trip since 2019 and first winning season since 2020. Delhi was second at 89-73, narrowly grabbing the second wild card over Nagpur (88-74) and Vadodara (85-77). Defending Central champ Jaipur missed at 81-81.

The Drillers expanded their playoff streak to four years with impressive offense, setting IL single-season team records for batting average (.297), hits (1965), and triples (91). Delhi also had 883 runs and a .342 on-base percentage, both ranking as the third-best in Indian League history. For the Patriots, they notably set an IL record with 411 stolen bases.

Veteran 1B Alfonso Giraldes won Indian League MVP in his sixth year with Ahmedabad. The 34-year old Filipino led in home runs (56), slugging (.760), OPS (1.149), and wRC+ (213). Giraldes had 169 hits, 103 runs, 28 doubles, 127 RBI, .341 average, and 7.9 WAR. He would decline the final year option of his Animals deal, joining Ho Chi Minh City in 2033 on a four-year, $70 million deal.

Ricky Geraghty won repeat Pitcher of the Year awards, having done it with Da Nang in the Southeast Asia League in 2031. He was traded after four years with the Nails to Visakhapatnam, winning an ERA title at 2.55. The 32-year old American had an 18-3 record, 194 innings, 226 strikeouts, 158 ERA+, and 4.6 WAR. It was Geraghty’s fifth season in SAB, beginning his career with MLB’s Wichita Wasps.

Delhi edged Hyderabad 2-1 in the wild card round, then upset top seed Ahmedabad 3-1 in the divisional series. The Drillers earned their first Indian League Championship Series trip since their 2029 SAB title. Visakhapatnam earned a third straight ILCS trip with their 3-1 divisional series win over Lucknow. The Volts outlasted the Drillers 4-3 in an absolute classic in the ILCS that required extra innings in game seven.

In the bottom of the 13^th inning, RF Gunavati Candrajita had the walk-off RBI single for a 6-5 final, giving Visakhapatnam repeat pennants. Game six had also seen a walkoff extra innings RBI single, that one by Nurul Sultana for a 4-3 win in 10. The Volts became seven-time kings of India (2012, 13, 23, 24, 25, 31, 32).

All three division champs in the Southeast Asia League were 12+ games better than second place. Defending SAB champ Yangon was 36 games ahead of their nearest foe in the Central Division at 111-51. The two-time reigning SEAL champs earned their seventh playoff trip in eight years and the top seed, leading the league with 961 runs. In the last 38 seasons, the Green Dragons have a remarkable 36 playoff appearances.

Mandalay won the West Division at 106-56 and Ho Chi Minh City claimed the South at 104-58. The Mammoths playoff streak grew to seven seasons and the Hedgehogs’ run extended to four years. Mandalay allowed SEAL’s fewest runs at 598. HCMC’s offense had a .301 average and .352 OBP, both ranking as the second-best in SAB history behind Dhaka’s .303/.353 from the prior year.

Bangkok and Colombo were both 92-70 in the South Division and took the wild card spots. Khulna was the only other team close in the fight at 88-74. The Bobcats secured repeat wild cards and the Catfish got their third in four years. Notable was Dhaka at 83-79, ending their 11-year playoff streak. The Dobermans were the #1 seed and LCS runner-up the prior year.

Southeast Asia League MVP went to DH Khan Nishar in his third season with Yangon. The 32-year old former second baseman played his first seven seasons with Kanpur before signing with the Green Dragons. In 2032, he led in runs (142), walks (96), average (.358), OBP (.445), OPS (1.121), wRC+ (184), and WAR (9.1). Nishar had 216 hits, 38 doubles, 11 triples, 44 homers, 128 RBI, and 50 steals. The 142 runs ranked as the eighth-best single season in SAB history.

Munfik Madushanka won Pitcher of the Year with Mandalay. It was the sixth season for the lefty from Sri Lanka, but his second as a full-time starter. The 27-year old Madushanka led in wins (20-8), ERA (2.89), WHIP (0.98), and quality starts (22). He struck out 309 over 239.2 innings with 150 ERA+ and 6.2 WAR. The prior September, the Mammoths gave Madushanka a six-year, $74,300,000 extension.

Bangkok edged Colombo 2-1 in the wild card round, then shocked reigning SAB champ Yangon 3-2 in the divisional series. The Bobcats earned their fourth Southeast Asia League Championship trip of the decade, but were still searching for their first-ever pennant. On the other side, Mandalay defeated Ho Chi Minh City 3-1.

For the Mammoths, it was their sixth LCS trip in seven years. They quickly stomped out Bangkok’s Cinderella dreams with a 4-0 sweep, becoming six-time SEAL champs (2018, 26, 27, 28, 29, 32). This did also continue the run of SEAL champs from Myanmar, now at seven seasons between Mandalay and Yangon.

In the last decade, all but the 2030 South Asia Baseball Championship featured Visakhapatnam or Mandalay. Despite that, the 53^rd finale was their first time meeting each other. The Volts won the series in a seven-game thriller to become four-time SAB champs (2023, 24, 25, 32). CF Aryan Rai was finals MVP, as the part-time starter had 15 hits, 8 runs, 2 doubles, 5 triples, 1 homer, and 6 RBI over 12 playoff games.

Other notes: Arav Walif became the 6^th member of the 3000 hit club. He played two more years and got to 3391, which ranks 6^th as of 2037. Walif also became the 19^th to reach 1500 runs scored. Sumant Amatya, Vij Kumaragupta, and Abhiji Srivas each got to 2500 hits, a club of 37 in SAB.

Kumaragupta and Can An Ngo became the 22^nd and 23^rd to reach 1500 RBI. Randall Batin became the 32^nd to 500 home runs. Mazharul Begum was the 46^th pitcher to 3000 strikeouts. 2B Aginiska Dhavita won his 10^th and final Silver Slugger. He won his last five at second base and his first five as a shortstop.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-24-2025, 07:08 AM

Three teams fought closely for the two playoff spots in the Western League’s North Division. Dakar took first at 99-63 and the #1 overall seed, extending their playoff streak to nine seasons. It was their fifth time finishing first during the streak and guaranteed their seventh WLCS appearance in nine years. The Dukes won several close games and recorded 65 saves as a team, tying the West African Baseball record set by Ouagadougou in 2009.

Nouakchott at 95-67 just edged out Bamako (94-68) for the other spot from the North. Conakry was also in the mix for a bit at 88-74, but fell short. The Night Riders picked up their third consecutive playoff berth and was tied with the Dukes for the most runs in all of WAB at 908.

In the South Division, Monrovia at 94-68 beat out defending WAB champ Freetown (92-70) for first. Both advanced easily with the next nearest competitor Bouake at ten back. The Diplomats got their second playoff trip in three years, although it was their first time atop the standings since 2009. The Foresters grew their playoff streak to six seasons and got their tenth playoff berth in eleven years. Abidjan, who won 101 games in 2031, fell to 80-82 in 2032.

Big power pushed Accra’s Emmanuel Marshall to Western League MVP honors despite a terrible 67-95 season for the Alligators. The 26-year old Nigerian lefty led in home runs (69), RBI (153), walks (105), and slugging (.725). Marshall had 164 hits, 136 runs, 1.135 OPS, 179 wRC+, and 7.3 WAR. It was the eighth time in WAB history that a player had 69+ homers…nice.

Marshall beat out Dakar’s Cedric St-Pierre for the honor, who finished third in voting despite playing 125 games. The 32-year old Canadian DH set a new WAB single-season record for batting average at .4196, beating Fares Belaid’s .416 from 2018. This was tied for the second-best qualifying batting average (502+ plate appearances) in all of world history. Only Francisco Magellan’s .4202 in the 2010 Beisbol Sudamerica season was better. St-Pierre also led in doubles (56), OBP (.422), and OPS (1.144) and added 28 homers and 6.3 WAR.

Monrovia’s Ayo Ubi won Pitcher of the Year, bouncing back after missing most of 2031 to a torn triceps. The 25-year old Nigerian led in WHIP (0.97), FIP- (67), and WAR (6.8). Ubi had a 14-7 record, 2.86 ERA, 223.1 innings, and 263 strikeouts. This effort earned him a four-year, $36,340,000 extension in the offseason.

Nouakchott swept defending champ Freetown 2-0 in the first round, marking only the second time since 2024 that the Foresters didn’t get to the Western League Championship Series. The Night Riders were promptly swept 2-0 by Monrovia, who last made the WLCS in 2009. The Diplomats gave top seed Dakar a challenge, but the Dukes took the series 3-2 for their third pennant in four years and sixth in eight years. Dakar became nine-time Western League champs (1988, 2012, 13, 16, 25, 27, 29, 30, 32).

Benin City had the best overall record in WAB at 104-58 atop the Eastern League’s Interior Division. It was their third playoff trip in four years, but only the second-time in franchise history that the Blue Devils took the #1 seed (1982). It was also their third-ever 100+ win season, which they did twice in the 1970s. Kano took second at 95-67, extending their playoff streak to three years. Ibadan (87-75) and defending EL champ Ouagadougou (86-76) were distant playoff threats.

Cotonou’s playoff streak grew to seven seasons at 93-69 atop the Coastal Division. There was a three-way tie for the second spot between Douala, Lome, and Port Harcourt; requiring tiebreaker games. The Lasers won the first game over the Hillcats, but were defeated by the Dingos. Douala earned its second-ever playoff trip (2021) and had its second-ever 90+ win season (1978). Lagos, a wild card last year, fell to 71-91. The Dingos led the EL in scoring with 897, while the Osprey allowed the fewest runs at 673.

Joao Sebastiao da Silva won his third consecutive Eastern League MVP with Benin City. The 29-year old Angolan third baseman led in runs (132) and WAR (8.5). He had 208 hits, 29 doubles, 11 triples, 54 homers, 126 RBI, and a .340/.401/.688 slash. The Blue Devils gave da Silva a mammoth seven-year, $274,500,000 extension the prior winter.

Kano’s Dirk Vermeersch won Pitcher of the Year in his third season with the Condors. The 31-year old Belgian righty had pitched his first eight seasons in Europe with Naples, posting middling results. In 2032, Vermeersch led in wins (18-10), innings (256.2), complete games (10), shutouts (4), and FIP- (71). He had a 3.47 ERA and 266 strikeouts, taking second in both stats. He was one strikeout from Port Harcourt’s Fuwad Mohammed, but Ouagadougou’s Amadu Ibrahim had him well beat at a 2.71 ERA.

Douala edged Kano 2-1 in the first round, then upset Cotonou 2-1 in round two. This guaranteed a first-time pennant winner, as the Dingos and Benin City were the only original WAB teams that hadn’t done it yet. Douala had never even been to the Eastern League Championship Series before, while the Blue Devils did it two years prior and twice in the early 1980s. The top seed held firm as Benin City came away with the 3-0 sweep. Despite the EL having seven Nigerian teams, the Blue Devils were the first pennant winner since Ibadan in 2025.

In the 58^th West African Championship, Dakar bested Benin City in a 4-3 classic for their third title in eight years and fourth overall (2016, 2025, 2029, 2032). Finals MVP was DH Cedric St-Pierre with 16 hits, 8 runs, 6 doubles, 3 homers, and 11 RBI in 12 playoff starts. The 32-year old from Longueil, Quebec had become an unexpected superstar in Africa, having signed with Kumasi in 2027 after flaming out of MLB. Dakar grabbed him in 2030 and was rewarded.

Other notes: Abidjan’s Abdel Aziz Ashraf hit 61 homers in 2032 at age 37, becoming WAB’s new home run king. He finished the season at 867, dethroning Desmond Jaiyeola’s 829 after only one year. Jaiyeola had passed Darwin Morris’s long standing record of 806 in 2031 for his final season. 2032 was Shafiu Hassan’s final year, smacking 37 homers to pass Morris for 3^rd at 812 homers. Hassan also became the 9^th member of the 3000 hit club, retiring with 3080.

Ashraf and Youssoupha Diop in 2032 joined Hassan, Morris, Fares Belaid, and Lawrence Nassif as WAB’s sluggers with 2000+ RBI. Nassif had the #1 spot still at 2338. Diop also became the 7^th to 700 home runs. On the downside for Ashraf, he became WAB’s all-time leader in strikeouts at 3366 and counting after leading his league in whiffs for the 7^th time.

El Hadj Sghair, Rio Ogbonna, and Jonah Moiseiwitsch became the 11^th, 12^th, and 13^th sluggers to the 600 home run club. Sghair also became the 42^nd with 1500 RBI. Ashraf, Tigui Ekanga, and Mohamed Said Diallo all got to 2500 hits, a mark met by 41 WAB batters. In pitching milestones, Rene Zossou became the 10^th to 200 career wins, finishing his final season at 202. Ngalle Eto’o and Koku Omouroun became the 27^th and 28^th pitchers to 3000 strikeouts. 3B Junior Jose won his 8^th Silver Slugger.

2032 was the 25^th and final season for world hits king Fares Belaid, who only saw 65 games and 32 starts at age 43 with Abidjan. The Tunisian DH/3B retired as the world leader in hits (5083), singles (3266), doubles (939), and triples (472). Belaid scored 2633 runs, 2^nd-all time behind only world home run king Majed Darwish’s 2664 from South Asia Baseball.

Belaid’s 1650 steals ranks 8^th on the world list as of 2037 and his 3441 games played ranks 13^th. His 3266 singles are also second behind only EBF’s Jiri Lebr’s 3309. Belaid had 8184 total bases, one of only three in world history above 8000 along with Darwish (8405) and former hit king Prometheo Garcia (8515 between CABA/MLB).

As of 2037, Belaid is WAB’s leader in games, at-bats (14,089), runs, hits, total bases (8184), doubles, triples, and steals. He also had 406 home runs, 2210 RBI, a .361/.380/.581 average, 147 wRC+, and 129.7 WAR. Belaid is 2^nd in WAR in WAB behind Darwin Morris and is 5^th in batting average among those with 3000+ plate appearances. Once he’s inevitably inducted, Belaid would have the 3^rd-best batting average of any world Hall of Famer. He was one of baseball’s true immortals and 5000+ hits seem unlikely to be achieved by anyone else.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-24-2025, 06:21 PM

For the fourth consecutive season, Harbin had the Northern League’s top record at 103-59 atop the Northeast Division. It is only the second time in Chinese League Baseball history that a team posted four or more consecutive 100+ win seasons, as Tianjin had five straight from 1983-87. Unlike the Jackrabbits, the Hellcats still have nothing to show for it, having lost in the semifinal the prior two years and in the round robin in 2029.

Shijiazhuang had the #2 seed at 93-69 to repeat atop the East Central Division, fending off Tianjin (89-73) and Jinan (86-76). The Serpents set a new CLB team record with a .454 slugging percentage and tied their league home run record of 235 from the prior year. Shijiazhuang scored 737 runs, second-most in CLB history behind Harbin’s 758 from the prior year.

Reigning CLB champ Urumqi took the West Division again at 92-70, finishing two games better than Zhengzhou. The Unicorns had a .446 team slugging percentage, which was the third-best season in CLB history. Although they missed the playoffs, the Zips allowed the fewest runs in the NL at 521. Lastly in the Southeast, Shanghai (88-74) took first with Hangzhou (83-79) as their nearest foe. The Seawolves secured their second division title in three years. Last year’s Southeast champ Qingdao fell from 101 wins in 2031 to only 75 in 2032.

Northern League MVP went to Urumqi right fielder Kerui Wang in his fifth season. The 27-year old lefty led in hits (201) and total bases (365). Wang scored 101 runs with 27 doubles, 13 triples, 37 home runs, 110 RBI, .963 OPS, 181 wRC+, and 9.1 WAR. The Unicorns gave Wang an eight-year, $94,840,000 extension in the offseason. He had to fend off Xi’an’s Liren Poh among others for the top award. Poh was the leader in homers (59), and RBI (135), but the Attack had the league’s worst record at 55-107.

Jinan’s Boyu Chen earned Pitcher of the Year honors, leading in wins (18-3), ERA (1.75), WHIP (0.77), and K/BB (14.4). The 28-year old lefty struck out 259 over 221.1 innings with 193 ERA+ and 6.7 WAR. The Jumbos gave him a four-year, $79,700,000 extension in August. Chen was seemingly back to full strength after dealing with a torn UCL and torn rotator cuff between 2029-30.

Urumqi dominated the triple round robin at 8-1 to keep their repeat hope alive. Shijiazhuang also advanced at 4-5, while both top seed Harbin and Shanghai were 3-6. It was yet another early exit for the Hellcats despite their regular season successes. For the Serpents, this was their first-ever semifinal trip since joining in the 2009 expansion. Shijiazhuang would add their first-ever China Series trip by ousting the defending champ Unicorns 4-1 in the semifinal. The Serpents had been the only of those six expansion teams without a pennant entering the season.

Guangzhou won the Southwest Division for the third straight year at 103-59 and earned the Southern League’s top seed for the first time since their 2000 CLB title. The Gamecocks scored 721 runs, setting a new SL record. The next two top teams fought over one spot in the Central Division with Changsha (99-63) outlasting Chengdu (98-64). The Cannons earned their third playoff trip in five years and allowed the fewest runs in CLB at 458. Although the Clowns missed the playoffs, it was notably their first winning season since 2017. Chongqing, who had a three-year playoff streak, fell to 80-82 for their first losing season since 2022.

Defending SL champ Hong Kong won a third straight Southeast Division title at 91-71, nine games ahead of Shenzhen. Lastly in a weak East Division, Dongguan (82-80) got the spot narrowly over Wenzhou (81-81). The Donkeys repeated as division champ and picked up a fourth postseason berth in five years.

Chengdu’s Hao Tian earned Southern League MVP at only age 22. Nicknamed “Big Dog,” Tian was already in his fourth season with the Clowns, having won Rookie of the Year in 2029 at age 19 with 42 homers and 6.0 WAR. In 2032, Tian led in homers (56), RBI (131), total bases (393), slugging (.664), and OPS (1.053). He had 185 hits, 104 runs, 32 doubles, .312 average, 213 wRC+, and 9.1 WAR.

Another up-and-comer won Pitcher of the Year with Guangzhou’s Bucky Hein. The 23-year old was in his second season and first in the rotation full-time. Hein led with five shutouts and had a 16-9 record, 2.33 ERA, 251.1 innings, 251 strikeouts, and 6.8 WAR. He had been the #2 overall pick by Shantou in the 2030 CLB Draft, but refused to sign with the Scorpions. Hein was granted free agency and was snagged by the Gamecocks.

Guangzhou took the top billing in the Triple Round Robin at 6-3 to guarantee a third straight semifinal trip. Dongguan and Changsha were both 5-4, while defending SL champ Hong Kong was ousted at 2-7. The Donkeys advanced over the Cannons via the tiebreaker for their second semifinal berth in four years. Dongguan was hoping to end a lengthy drought, their only finals trips came in 1972-73.

21 wins separated the teams in the regular season, but the semifinal matchup needed all seven games and extra innings in game seven. The top-seeded Guangzhou managed to escape the winner with a 4-3 game seven victory after 13 innings. The Gamecocks earned their eighth trip to the China Series (1971, 74, 87, 99, 2000, 2012, 23, 32).

The 63^rd China Series saw Shijiazhuang defeat Guangzhou 4-1, becoming the 24^th of 32 teams to have won the CLB title. It continues a run of parity for the top spot with nine different champions in as many years. LF Guobao Zhuang was finals and semifinal MVP for the Serpents. The 30-year old in 19 playoff starts had 24 hits, 15 runs, 5 doubles, 7 homers, 15 RBI, and 1.094 OPS.

Teammates Chao Song and Shen Hun both notably had 31 hits apiece, tying the CLB playoff record. Hun and fellow Serpent Francis Tai both scored 17 runs, one shy of the playoff record. Additionally, Hun set the new record for stolen bases at 17. In bad playoff records, Guangzhou’s Pellin Deng gave up 12 home runs and went 0-5, posting a 3.75 ERA over 48 innings.

Other notes: Changsha legend Tao Cai became CLB’s new career home run king in 2032. He smacked 34 dingers with 77 RBI to get to 560 homers and 1345 RBI, passing Cheng Kang’s 552 homers. Cai had topped Kang’s record 1272 RBI the prior season.

Additionally, Cai passed Zhen Zhang’s 4468 to become CLB’s total bases leader with 4491. The 36-year old righty also had 1187 runs, putting him in striking distance of Hongchen Wang’s record of 1215. In other milestones, Liren Poh became the 16^th member of the 400 home run club. 3B Qinghong Duan, 2B Faqing Zhang, and CF Ming Li each won their 7^th Silver Sluggers.

Both Xi’an and Dalian had all-time bad pitching staffs. The Attack set new Northern League worsts for ERA (4.27), runs allowed (755), earned runs (682), and H/9 (9.58). The Gold Dragons had the second-worst ERA (4.18), runs (739), and earned runs (674). The only thing keeping them from CLB’s all-time worst was 1970 Changsha, who gave up 955 runs, 837 ER, and had a 5.29 ERA in a putrid effort for CLB’s inaugural season.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-25-2025, 05:17 AM

Quezon surprised many by taking the Taiwan-Philippine Association’s top seed in 2032 at 98-64. It was their second Philippine League title in four years. Defending TPA champ Cebu was a very distant second place at 86-76, but extended their playoff streak to eight seasons. Zamboanga was the next closest foe in the PL at 80-82.

The Taiwan League was very tight with four teams within five games of the top spot. Taipei finished first at 96-66 for their second playoff berth in three years, although it was their first TL crown since 2020. Last year’s Taiwan League winner Tainan took the second place spot at 93-69, fending off 91-71 efforts by both Taichung and Hsinchu. The Titans allowed the fewest runs in the TPA at 467 and set new TPA records for strikeouts (1901) and K/9 (11.41).

The Sweathogs missed out despite setting new Austronesia Professional Baseball records for batting average (.268) and hits (1500). Hsinchu also had the second-best OBP in APB history at .305 and was the top scoring team in 2032 at 700 runs. Leading the way yet again was “The King” Binh Tang, winning a historic 12^th Taiwan-Philippine League MVP. The only player in world history previously with 12 MVPs was Jimmy Caliw, who did it between OBA and MLB from 1969-83.

Tang won his sixth consecutive MVP, which he also accomplished from 2020-25. The 32-year old Vietnamese lefty bat won his 12^th Silver Slugger, although it was his first placing second base. Tang had won the honor eight times at first and thrice as a designated hitter. He earned his fifth hitting Triple Crown, which had only been done previously in world history by CABA legend Prometheo Garcia.

For 2032, Tang led in runs (115), hits (210), homers (44), RBI (125), total bases (383), triple slash (.363/.416/.663), OPS (1.079), wRC+ (206), and WAR (11.6). The .416 OBP was a new APB single-season record, breaking his own .415 from the prior year. Tang also had a 35-game hitting streak carrying over from the end of the prior year, breaking Beau Cabral’s APB record 34 that had held since 2008.

It was Tang’s 10^th time leading in runs, 5^th in hits, 7^th in homers, 8^th in RBI, 8^th in total bases, 8^th in average, 10^th in OBP, 11^th in slugging, 12^th in OPS, 12^th in wRC+, and 10^th in WAR. Tang became the 11^th APB batter with 2500 career hits and moved to 144.7 career WAR; second-best among all APB players. Only legendary ace Ching-Chen Yao is ahead of him at 163.5.

Tang also finished the year at 1421 runs scored, close behind Junior Sanchez’s 1446 for the top spot. He’s at 4859 total bases, 329 away from Iqbal Safari’s top mark of 5188. Both marks are reachable in 2033 with another solid year. As for other top spots, Tang is 212 RBI away, 183 homers away, 90 doubles away, and 977 hits away. Worth remembering, Tang turns 33 in May 2033

Cebu’s Hakimi Aziz won Pitcher of the Year in his tenth season for the Crows. The 28-year old Malaysian righty led in WHIP (0.66), K/BB (22.2), quality starts (27), FIP- (49), and WAR (9.4). Aziz added an 18-7 record, 378 strikeouts, 1.76 ERA, and 179 ERA+ in 230 innings. Also worth a mention, Batanagas’ Craig Chia won his third Reliever of the Year.

Top seeds held in the divisional round with Quezon over Tainan 3-1 and Taipei over defending champ Cebu 3-0. The Tigercats were shooting for their second Taiwan-Philippine Association Championship win in three years. The Zombies had made it there in 2029, but their last pennant was 2022. Quezon ultimately clobbered Taipei with a 4-0 sweep to win only their fourth pennant (1984, 1998, 2022, 2032).

The Sundaland Association’s top seed narrowly went to Batam at 99-63 atop the Malacca League, finishing one game better than Java Sea League champ Bandung. The Blue Raiders got their second ML crown in four years and set a new association record for team on-base percentage at .294. Medan was second at 93-69 for a third straight wild card. Reigning APB champ Kuala Lumpur fell to 80-82 despite setting a new SA record for K/9 (11.5) and posting the second-best strikeout tally at 1870.

The Blackhawks ended a seven-year playoff drought with their Java Sea League crown, while second place Depok (94-68) ended the longest active drought in APB at 31 years. The Demons were one game ahead of Semarang and seven better than Surabaya, leading the SA with 612 runs. Bandung’s .254 team batting average was a new association record. Jakarta’s seven-year playoff streak ended with a thud as the Jaguars finished 73-89.

Depok 2B Min-Hsun Chiu won Sundaland Association MVP, leading in runs (100), hits (202), doubles (35), batting average (.331), and WAR (10.1). The 28-year old Taiwanese righty had 16 triples, 24 homers, 80 RBI, .921 OPS, and 215 wRC+. The Demons extended Chiu at a bargain after the 2030 campaign at eight years and only $38,320,000. He fended off teammate Jackson Costa for MVP despite the latter leading with 50 home runs and 111 RBI.

Bandung’s Philip Simpson won Pitcher of the Year, leading in wins at 21-7. The 28-year old Malaysian righty had a 1.81 ERA over 243.2 innings, 315 strikeouts, 150 ERA+, and 6.9 WAR. Simpson had been drafted by the Blackhawks 13^th overall back in 2025.

Depok upset Batam 3-1 in the divisional round while Bandung survived in five over Medan. The Blackhawks had their first Sundaland Association Championship appearance since winning the APB crown in 2024. The Demons’ last appearance was 2000 and they were the only original APB team without at least one pennant yet. Unfortunately for Depok, that distinction remained as Bandung won the series 4-2. The Blackhawks became eight–time pennant winners (1967, 94, 95, 2003, 13, 15, 24, 32).

In the 68^th Austronesia Championship, Bandung bested Quezon 4-2 to become six-time APB champs (1967, 1994, 2003, 2015, 2024, 2032). 1B Peter Luque had a huge postseason, winning MVP of the APB finals and association finals. In 16 starts, the 25-year old Filipino had 24 hits, 10 runs, 6 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homers, and 7 RBI. This set the new APB playoff record for hits. Teammate Halim Singal notably set a playoff record with nine doubles. The Blackhawks’ Lanny Kai also set a playoff record, although a bad one as he was caught stealing nine times.

Other notes: Ronaldo Sahri threw his fourth no-hitter on May 8, becoming the 6^th in APB history with 4+ no-nos. Sahri, Kuan-Yang Kang, and Shih-Hao Chuang made it 80 APB aces with 3000 career strikeouts. Roland Arias became the 32^nd to 1000 runs scored and won his 7^th Silver Slugger in LF. Wei-Yin Wwang and James Yuwono were the 40^th and 41^st to 1000 RBI. 1B Robert Corrado won his 11^th Gold Glove. Pitchers Kuan-Yang Kang and Zulfadhmi Suhaimi won their 9^th and 7^th Gold Gloves, respectively.

Manila allowed 1468 hits, 716 runs, and 643 earned runs with an 8.82 H/9; each new APB all-time worsts. Taoyuan allowed 1426 hits, which was the second-worst in APB history. Penang’s 1401 hits allowed and 8.64 H/9 were new worsts for the Sundaland Association. The Possums’ 3.53 ERA and 1.222 WHIP ranked as the third worst in SA history.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-25-2025, 07:31 PM

Brisbane claimed the Australasia League title for the second time in three years. The Black Bears took it at 95-67, beating Adelaide by two games and reigning Oceania Baseball Association champ Perth by five. Brisbane became five-time AL champs (1991, 2002, 2017, 2030, 2032). The Black Bears allowed the fewest runs in OBA at 563, while the Penguins were the AL’s top scoring team at 706 runs.

Perth 1B Jody Riley repeated as Australasia League MVP, leading in runs (112), home runs (50), RBI (114), walks (63), total bases (353), OBP (.386), slugging (.642), OPS (1.028), wRC+ (187), and WAR (8.0). The 26-year old Australian lefty had a .316 batting average, ranked fourth with Canberra’s John Skeffington well ahead at.348.

Sydney’s Danny Budd won Pitcher of the Year in his OBA debut, leading in WAR (9.5), K/BB (11.5), complete games (16), shutouts (5), and FIP- (68). The 34-year old Englishman had a 21-13 record, 2.88 ERA, 315.2 innings, and 346 strikeouts. Budd had spent almost all of his career in the European Second League with Cardiff, apart from his 2031 in the EBF Elite with Rotterdam.

Guadalcanal repeated as Pacific League champ at 100-62, fending off 97-65 Guam, 95-67 Samoa, and 90-72 Honolulu. The Green Jackets became ten-time PL champs (1961, 64, 66, 68, 77, 2010, 12, 13, 31, 32). The second place Golden Eagles were the leader in runs scored (773) and fewest allowed (580), although Guadalcanal was a close second in both (747-582).

It was notably Guam’s first winning season since 2023 and Samoa’s first winning season since 2025. The Sun Sox turnaround was especially notable, since they had sub-70 wins in the prior four years. Fiji also had a notably drop to 72-90 after taking second place with 96 wins in 2030.

Veteran CF Ruben De Groot was a surprise MVP winner at age 38 in his OBA debut with Guadalcanal. The Concord, California native had spent 16 seasons as a respectable starter for MLB’s Calgary Cheetahs and was with Indianapolis in 2031. In his Green Jackets debut, De Groot led in OPS at .931. He had 167 hits, 108 runs, 43 home runs, 107 RBI, 162 wRC+, and 5.7 WAR. De Groot held off Guam’s Timmy Ellis for the top honor despite Ellis’s 64 home runs and 127 RBI.

Another debuting outsider won Pitcher of the Year with 33-year old Dinh Nghiem Dinh with Guam. The Vietnamese righty had spent his entire career to that point in APB with Pekanbaru, winning an ERA title back in 2026. Dinh led in wins (21-13), shutouts (5), and WAR (9.7) in 2032 for the Golden Eagles. He had a 2.81 ERA over 301 innings, 313 strikeouts, and 129 ERA+. Dinh had joined Guam on a five-year, $132 million deal.

In the 73^rd Oceania Championship, Guadalcanal beat Brisbane 4-2 to end a 19-year drought for the top prize. The Green Jackets earned their fifth OBA title (1961, 66, 68, 2012, 32). LF John McCoy was finals MVP, having come to Guadalcanal in a January trade with Perth. The 25-year old Australian went 12-23 with 6 runs, 2 doubles, 3 triples, and 1 RBI.

Other notes: Trey Cruz became OBA’s 6^th member of the 3000 hit club. The prior year, he had passed Ashton Hughes to become OBA’s leader in stolen bases, finishing 2032 at 1449. Cruz also won his 14^th Silver Slugger at 2B, becoming the 20^th in world history to win 14+ Sluggers. He’s the only one to win all of his at second base and joined Roe Kaupa as the only 14+ winners specifically in OBA. Hunter Dobbie, Timmy Ellis, and Liam Winmar became the 47^th, 48^th, and 49^th to 400 home runs.

Sydney’s pitching staff set new Australasia League bests for walks allowed (238) and BB/9 (1.46). New Caledonia set a new Pacific League worst with 742 earned runs allowed and tied for the worst ERA at 4.60. Quinn Burry became the 25^th pitcher with 3500 strikeouts. 1B David Odom and 3B Natan Chrostek won their 9^th Gold Gloves and C Kristian Duenas won his 8^th.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-26-2025, 05:53 AM

Two-time defending European League champ Moscow had the top seed at 98-64 in 2032, repeating as North Division champs. The Mules earned their fourth straight playoff streak and became the first team in Eurasian Professional Baseball history with a season attendance above two million, selling 2,005,017 tickets. Moscow allowed the fewest runs in the EL at 557 and won the division by ten games.

Volgograd was South Division champ by eight games at 96-66, bouncing back after a surprising 76-86 in 2031. Since 2020, the Voyagers have only missed the playoffs twice and have ten division titles. They led the EL with 753 runs and set new EL team records for batting average (.286) and on-base percentage (.337). The OBP mark tied the all-time EPB mark set by Krasnoyarsk in 1957 and the batting average was only behind the Cossacks’ .289 in 2023.

The wild card spots went to Nizhny Novgorod and Voronezh, who both finished second in their respective divisions at 88-74. Gomel just missed the cut at 87-75, while Samara was the next team in the mix at 81-81, ending the Steelers’ playoff streak at five years. The Ninjas ended a five-year playoff drought and the Zephyrs snapped an eight-year skid.

Last year’s ELCS runner-up Krasnodar fell to 77-95, while Kazan went from a wild card to 78-84. Also of note was Minsk down at 57-103, the first-ever 100+ loss season for the historically dominant Miners. It was their fourth consecutive losing season, but they had won it all as recently as 2027.

Repeating as European League MVP was Nizhny Novgorod LF Maksim Krutov. The 26-year old Russian lefty led in OBP (.420), OPS (1.073), and wRC+ (197). Krutov won his second Gold Glove and posted 196 hits, 108 runs, 45 homers, 107 RBI, and .344 average, and 9.8 WAR.

The Ninjas also had the Pitcher of the Year Jure Babic in his fourth season. The 24-year old Slovene righty led in ERA (2.36), shutouts (5), FIP- (62), and WAR (8.7). Babic had a 20-10 record, 155 ERA+, and 295 strikeouts in 259.1 innings. Babic would see a setback the following year with a ruptured UCL in September 2033.

Voronezh shocked the defending champ Moscow 3-1 in the first round and Nizhny Novgorod got the 3-2 road upset of Volgograd. The Ninjas had last made the European League Championship Series in 2026 with their lone pennant in 2024. The Zephyrs had yet to win a pennant and had three ELCS trips from 2017-20. Despite both teams winning 88 games, Voronezh cruised to an 8-0 sweep of Nizhny Novgorod for their first pennant. This left Samara as the only remaining EPB team without a pennant, apart from three of the 2020 expansion squads.

Reigning EPB champ Ufa took the Asian League’s top seed at 101-61, repeating as West Division champs. It was the Fiends’ first 100+ win season since 2016. Novosibirsk won a third straight East Division crown and extended their playoff streak to four years with a 98-64 finish. The Nitros led EPB with 760 runs and notably had a .282 batting average and 1590 team hits; both marks the third-best in AL history.

Vladivostok was six back on Novosibirsk and got the first wild card at 92-70. This grew the Shibas’ playoff streak to five seasons. Nur-Sultan and Irkutsk tied for the second wild card at 89-73 with Khabarovsk one back at 88-74. The Setters took the tiebreaker game over the Ice Cats for their fifth playoff berth in six years. Nur-Sultan had the fewest runs allowed in EPB at 529.

Ufa DH Konstantin Antonov won Asian League MVP in his first full season as a starter. The 24-year old Belarusian lefty led in runs (119), hits (207), homers (51), RBI (132), total bases (396), OBP (.394), slugging (.640), OPS (1.034), wRC+ (188), and WAR (8.2). Antonov’s .334 batting average was 15 points shy of Vladivostok’s Filip Apostel (.349) for the Triple Crown. Antonov had debuted in 2028 with the Fiends, but had only been an occasional starter until now.

Repeating as Pitcher of the Year was Vladivostok ace Airat Mamedov, who won his first ERA title at 2.06. The 31-year old Uzbek lefty also led with 24 quality starts and posted a 13-11 record, 248.2 innings, 265 strikeouts, 175 ERA+, and 8.3 WAR. Mamedov had been a full-time starter for the Shibas since 2022. He would miss most of 2033 to a torn UCL, but did bounce back for two more decent seasons before retiring after the 2036 campaign.

Both first round playoff matchups needed all five games. The defending champ Ufa survived against Nur-Sultan, while Vladivostok upset Novosibirsk on the road. The Shibas went onto surprise the Fiends with a road 4-0 sweep in the Asian League Championship Series, earning their fourth pennant in five years. They’re the first AL team to win four in five years since Yekaterinburg’s five from 2003-08.

In the 78^th EPB Championship, it was two squads from the 2008 expansion facing off. Voronezh won their first-ever title with the 4-2 victory over Vladivostok, becoming the 25^th different franchise to win EPB’s top prize. Finals MVP and ELCS MVP was C Sheriff Akpokona. The 28-year old Nigerian had come to Russia in 2029 after flaming out of West African Baseball, then got traded from Moscow to the Zephyrs in 2030. In 14 playoff starts, Akpokona had 23 hits, 6 runs, 1 double, 2 homers, and 6 RBI.

Other notes: Timofei Averkin became the 4^th member of the 3000 hit club and EPB’s new hits leader. He finished the season at 3088, passing Igor Urban (3044), Evgeny Kiselev (3013), and Tayyar Abdulaiyev (3002). Urban’s mark has held since 2002. Averkin also became the 5^th to 1500 runs scored and the 11^th to 1500 RBI. The 38-year old RF was 135 runs, 169 RBI, and 138 total bases away from taking over those top spots on the EPB leaderboard. Averkin spent 2032 with Volgograd and was set to return for 2033.

In other hitting milestones, Timofei Kalinin became the 24^th to 500 home runs and Svilen Dobrev was the 35^th to 2500 hits. Voronezh’s Vasil Mulder threw his second no-hitter on May 30 with 16 Ks and one walk against Samara. He had a previous no-no in 2027 versus Krasnodar. Nehor Pomerantz and Evhen Kononenko were the 61^st and 62^nd pitchers to 3500 strikeouts. CF Robert Albrecht won his 11^th consecutive Gold Glove, taking the position record outright. LF Khazbulat Dukhu won his 7^th Silver Slugger.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-26-2025, 05:21 PM

Defending Northern Conference champ Hanover followed up their historic 119-win 2031 season with an excellent 112-50 campaign, repeating as East Division champ and the top seed. The Hitmen extended their playoff streak to a decade and had their fourth 100+ win season in five years. Hanover had a .517 team slugging percentage and 284 home runs, which both ranked as the third-best in conference history. They also scored 906 runs, leading the entire European Baseball Federation Elite Tier for 2032.

Cologne won the West Division at 101-61 to end a four-year playoff drought. The Copperheads hadn’t been a division champ since 2017. Last year’s division champ Rotterdam was a close second at 98-64, earning a wild card. The Ravens have 11 playoff berths in the last 12 seasons and have posted 16 consecutive winning seasons.

Helsinki was second in the East at 98-64 for a wild card an in impressive return to the top tier. The Honkers had spent seven of the last eight years in the European Second League and had never been a playoff team since joining EBF in 2000. Helsinki’s only previous playoff berth in a major league was as a wild card in the 1968 Eurasian Professional Baseball season.

The remaining two wild cards went to Frankfurt at 95-67 and Cardiff at 92-70. Kharkiv, Tallinn, and Warsaw were each one back at 91-71, while Berlin and Manchester both finished 88-74. The Falcons got their second berth in three years, while it was the first-ever in the top tier for the Crew. Cardiff just had gotten promoted to the EBF Elite with their only prior stint coming in 2015-17 with three losing seasons. For the Killer Bees, their near miss ended an eight-year playoff streak. The Wildcats had allowed the fewest runs in the NC at 550.

The worst three records in the NC came in the West, but only last place Glasgow at 55-107 was doomed while Copenhagen (58-104) and Reykjavik (60-102) survived another year. It is the second-ever demotion for the Highlanders, who spent 2017-19 in E2L. Only five years prior, Glasgow had been a conference finalist. Hamburg and Kyiv finished even at 65-97 at the bottom of the East Division, but the tiebreaker relegated the Hammers and saved the Kings. Stockholm was also close at 69-93, but pulled away late.

Hamburg was one of the teams to never get relegated previously, although 2032 was their sixth straight season below 70 wins. The Hammers had been a powerhouse in the early 2020s and were generally one of Europe’s more successful franchises until recently. Through 2032, the EBF Elite teams to avoid relegation at any point were Birmingham, Dublin, Rotterdam, Cologne, Warsaw, Milan, Madrid, Zurich, Munich, Zagreb, and Budapest.

Hanover’s Felix Timm repeated as Northern Conference MVP and became a three-time winner, having also won in 2024. The 32-year old Austrian LF led in runs (138), home runs (66), RBI (155), total bases (461), slugging (.765), OPS (1.135), wRC+ (209), and WAR (10.5). Timm added 209 hits, 28 doubles, 13 triples, 74 stolen bases, and a .347 average.

He became only the 10^th in EBF history with 66+ homers, the 11^th with 155+ RBI, and the 14^th with 138+ runs. The 461 total bases also ranked as the 6^th-best in EBF history. Timm also became the 43^rd member of the 500 home run club. He opted out of his contract in the winter, but quickly signed a new five-year, $133,600,000 deal to remain with the Hitmen. Timm had been a key starter for Hanover since getting picked 30^th in the 2021 EBF Draft.

The Hitmen also had the Pitcher of the Year in veteran Lukasz Heneski. The 31-year old Polish lefty was in his fifth season for Hanover after starting with Thessaloniki and Bratislava. In 2032, Heneski had an 18-6 record, 2.84 ERA, 247.1 innings, 249 strikeouts, 136 ERA+, and 6.3 WAR.

In the first round of the playoffs, Rotterdam swept Frankfurt 2-0 and Cardiff got their first ever playoff series win 2-1 against Helsinki. Both top seeds held in round two with Hanover surviving 3-2 over the Crew and Cologne over Rotterdam 3-1. For the Copperheads, this was their first trip to the Northern Conference Championship since 2017. Cologne upset the defending champ Hitmen 4-1 for their second-ever pennant (2012).

Ljubljana was the Southern Conference’s top seed in 113-49, although they had a disappointing one-and-done in the playoffs. The Juggernauts again were the top seed and East Division champ in 2032 at 108-54, growing their playoff streak to five seasons. Ljubljana was second in the conference in both runs scored (768) and fewest allowed (543).

Zurich ran away with the West Division at 105-57 and allowed the fewest runs at 531. The Mountaineers’ pitching staff set conference records for fewest walks (230) and best BB/9 (1.41). Although it was their seventh playoff trip in a decade, it was their first division title or 100+ win season since 2024. The next best teams came from the West with Lyon (94-68) and Barcelona (93-69) as the first wild cards. The Bengals grew their playoff streak to six seasons, while it was the first-ever postseason berth for the Lords. Lyon was in only their sixth overall season in the EBF Elite Tier and fourth consecutive.

Defending European Champion Munich at 90-72 got the third wild card, extending their playoff streak to 13 seasons. However, this was their weakest win total of the streak and ended an 11-year run as a division champ, although they did still lead in scoring at 824 runs. For the final wild card, Thessaloniki and Milan finished even at 89-73. Madrid and Nantes were both one back ta 88-74. The 2031 E2L champion Tritons won the tiebreaker game for their first top tier playoff trip since 2019.

The worst two teams by far were in the East Division, but it was just Skopje (52-110) relegated in last place while Sofia (54-108) managed to survive. Rome was the worst in the West at 67-95 and got das boot, although Paris was close at 70-92. The Red Wolves were demoted for the third time, having spent 2008 and 2010-13 previously in the European Second League. The Stags had been in the top tier since 2021, but had been mostly mediocre and will begin a third stint in E2L.

Despite the Poodles struggles, they had the Southern Conference MVP in RF Jeremy Kok. The 28-year old Belgian lefty led in runs (124), hits (212), home runs (51), RBI (132), total bases (410), and slugging (.690). His .357 average fell nine points short of a Triple Crown. Kok also had 35 doubles. 1.088 OPS, 211 wRC+, and 9.8 WAR.

In his Barcelona debut, Todd McBride became a three-time Pitcher of the Year winner. The 32-year old English lefty had won it in 2025 and 2030 with Glasgow. After getting traded and spending 2031 in Helsinki, McBride signed with the Bengals for 2032 at six years and $157,000,000. He won the ERA title (2.08) and led in strikeouts (291), WHIP (0.83), shutouts (4), and WAR (8.4).

His 18-5 record was five wins for a Triple Crown. McBride also had a 20 strikeout game in April against Thessaloniki, the first 20+ K game for an EBF pitcher since 2001. Also worth a mention, Ljubljana’s Dominic Voicu became a three-time Reliever of the Year winner.

Barcelona swept defending champ Munich 2-0 in the first round, making it only the third time since 2018 that the Mavericks didn’t make it to the Southern Conference Championship. Munich had made it seven consecutive seasons. Lyon also edged Thessaloniki 2-1 for their first playoff series win. The Lords gave Zurich a tough fight in round two, but the Mountaineers survived 3-2 for repeat conference finals trips.

For back-to-back years, Ljubljana had the top seed and went one-and-done, this time losing 3-2 to Barcelona. The Bengals hadn’t made it this far since winning the pennant in 2015. The Southern Conference Championship was a seven-game classic that needed ten innings in the finale. CF Rabiola Lierta ended it with a solo walk-off home run for a 5-4 Zurich win, their first pennant since 2025. The Mountaineers won their 13^th conference crown, tied for the most with Munich.

The 83^rd European Championship went all seven games with Zurich outlasting Cologne for their fourth EBF title (1965, 1993, 2016, 2032). The Mountaineers were the sixth different EBF champ in as many years. The conference finals hero Rabiola Lierta also was MVP of the European Championship. The 30-year old from Portugal had 24 hits, 11 runs, 4 doubles, 5 homers, and 13 RBI in 19 playoff starts.

Other notes: EBF’s 45^th perfect game came on April 21 from Paris’ Svenn Madsen with 12 strikeouts against Sarajevo. The 46^th then came on June 5 by Birmingham’s Harvey Bolton with 10 Ks against Tallinn. Bolton had thrown a perfect game the prior year against Berlin, joining Enrico Gini (2000, 2002) as the only EBF aces with two perfectos. In other pitching notables, Nejc Novak became the 6^th pitcher to 250 wins and Griffin Arnall became the 43^rd to 200 wins.

Hanover’s Eduard Yurkov stole 124 bases, tied for the 7^th-best in EBF history. Kyiv’s offense drew only 227 walks all season, the worst in Northern Conference history. Mark Schroder, Nikol Baxevanidis, Daniel Dumoulin, and Micha van Vugt all reached 500 career home runs in 2032, bringing the club to 47 members. Dumoulin and van Vugt became the 33^rd and 34^th to 1500 RBI. CF Kamil Bufka won his 7^th Gold Glove.

2032 was the final season for Theofilos Psarras with 102 games and only 12 starts at age 39 with Barcelona. He was a huge part of Dublin’s dynasty and retired 4^th in runs scored at 1975 and 10^th in WAR among position players at 130.9. Psarras also had 3384 hits, 453 doubles, 412 triples, 531 home runs, 1745 RBI, 1475 steals, a .344/.401/.636 slash, 1.036 OPS, and 184 wRC+. As of 2037, he’s 8^th in world history for triples and 20^th in stolen bases.

Promotion/Relegation: Relegated from the European Baseball Federation’s Elite Tier were Glasgow, Hamburg, Rome, and Skopje. Promoted from the European Second League were Liverpool, Brussels, Krakow, and Belgrade. Both the Beavers and Phantoms were moved into the Northern Conference’s West Division and Copenhagen was shifted into the East for balance. The Bruisers and Canines were both added into the Southern Conference’s East Division and Brno was shifted from East to West.

Skopje was moved into the E2L Eastern Conference with Rome, Hamburg, and Glasgow all placed in the West. Bordeaux and Vilnius were relegated to European Tier Three, while Montenegro and Athens were promoted to E2L and added to the East.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-27-2025, 05:46 AM

Arequipa had the Bolivar League’s best record at 103-59 atop the Peru-Bolivia Division, finishing one ahead of Venezuela Division champ Barquisimeto (102-60) for the #1 spot. The Arrows earned their fourth consecutive playoff berth and their third straight 100+ win season, while the Black Cats got repeat division titles. This was Barquisimeto’s first 100+ win season since 2011. In the Colombia-Ecuador Division, Barranquilla grabbed first at 94-68, three games ahead of Quito. For the Blues, they got their tenth playoff trip in 11 years.

Reigning Copa Sudamerica winner Lima got the first wild card at 94-68 to extend their playoff streak to six seasons. Caracas was one back at 93-69 for the second spot. The Colts have posted 17 consecutive winning seasons with 13 playoff trips in that stretch. The next closest teams in the wild card race were Quito (91-71), Maturin (88-74), Medellin (86-76), Cali (85-77), and La Paz (85-77). The Lobos led in scoring with 910 runs and had a .519 team slugging percentage; the third-best in Beisbol Sudamerica history. Caracas allowed the fewest runs at 611 and allowed only 200 walks all season, the third-lowest in BSA history.

Arequipa 1B Paco Amorim repeated as Bolivar League MVP and became a four-time winner, having also earned the honor in 2025 and 2027. The 32-year old Brazilian lefty led in RBI (142), walks (104), OBP (.461), OPS (1.190), and WAR (9.3). Amorim also had 202 hits, 130 runs, 55 homes, 31 doubles, .361 average, and 194 wRC+. It was his tenth season leading in on-base percentage and eighth time in walks. Amorim has four seasons with 100 walks, a mark only reached 12 times total in BSA history.

Amorim wasn’t a lock for the MVP thanks to big power by Cali’s Mario Salazar. In his first full season as a starter, the 25-year old Colombian smacked 71 homers with 142 RBI, 466 total bases, 1.166 OPS, 198 wRC+, and 8.6 WAR. It was only the sixth time in BSA history that a slugger smacked 70+ homers, a feat which last happened in 2015. The league record remains 76, hit by Valor Melo in both 1977 and 1979.

Caracas righty Bartolo Flores became the eighth in BSA history to win Pitcher of the Year five or more times. He was in his fourth year with the Colts and won the honor for them in 2030 and with Santa Cruz in 2021, 24, and 25. The 34-year old Ecuadoran righty led in strikeouts (346) for a remarkable 12^th consecutive season. Flores also led in K/BB (20.4), WIHP (0.91), and WAR (8.1). He had a 2.95 ERA over 250 innings, 138 ERA+, and 19-11 record. Also notable was Barranquilla’s Ivan Marin winning his fourth Reliever of the Year.

Caracas ousted the defending champ Lima 2-0 in the first round, then upset top seed Arequipa 3-1 in the divisional series. Despite being a playoff regular, this was the Colts first trip to the Bolivar League Championship Series since their 2022-23 Copa Sudamerica repeat. Caracas had lost in either the first or second round in their last five playoff trips. For the Lobos, it was only the second time in six years that they didn’t get to the BLCS. It was also the second time in three years that the Arrows had the top seed, but went one-and-done.

On the other side of the bracket, Barranquilla won a 3-2 battle over Barquisimeto. The Blues made the BLCS five times from 2024-29 and were shooting for their fourth pennant. Caracas clobbered them though with a 4-0 sweep, earning the pennant from the #5 seed. The Colts won their 16^th Bolivar League title, leading all teams (1932, 33, 38, 56, 59, 60, 61, 62, 72, 87, 96, 2003, 06, 22, 23, 32).

The Southern Cone League was incredibly competitive with the five playoff qualifiers separated by only six wins. The best two records came out of the Southeast Division with Sao Paulo first at 100-62 and Montevideo second at 97-65. The Padres earned repeated division titles and their ninth playoff trip since 2022. The Venom ended a decade-long playoff drought. Sao Paulo led the league with 805 runs and hit 277 home runs, two short of the all-time league record.

Santiago won a 13^th straight South Central Division title with a 96-66 record, putting them one season short of the BSA playoff record. The Saints have only missed the playoffs once since 2015 and haven’t had a losing season since 2008. Salta finished four back at 92-70 and ended up two games short of the second wild card. Santiago allowed the fewest runs in BSA at 576.

Belo Horizonte claimed the North Division at 95-67, their first division title since 2024 and second playoff trip in four years. Manaus was one back at 94-68 for the final playoff spot, their third consecutive wild card. Salta (92-70) and defending Southern Cone champ Recife (88-74) were the first teams out. Brasilia at 85-77 saw their playoff streak ended at four years. Mendoza was also notable at 83-79, as that was their first winning season since 2009.

Santiago two-way star Will Arocha repeated as MVP and won Pitcher of the Year, giving him five MVPs and three POTY wins for his impressive career. He was the third in Beisbol Sudamerica history with 5+ MVPs and also won his ninth Silver Slugger. On the mound, the 31-year old Chilean led in complete games with 16. Arocha had a 17-4 record in 217 innings, 2.49 ERA, 149 ERA+, 236 strikeouts, and 6.9 WAR.

Along with his play at second base, Arocha had 94 games at the plate with 117 hits, 61 runs, 18 doubles, 10 triples, 23 homers, 69 RBI, .366/.406/.700 slash, 1.106 OPS, 220 wRC+, and 5.8 WAR. It was his fifth season with 10+ combined WAR. This was also Arocha’s final of nine seasons with the Saints as he opted for free agency. He left for Major League Baseball and a five-year, $110,400,000 deal with Kansas City. Santiago still had optimism for the future with LF Lorenzo Mena winning Rookie of the Year on a 49 home run, 113 RBI, 7.4 WAR debut campaign.

Belo Horizonte beat Manaus 2-0 in the first round, but was dispatched 3-1 by Sao Paulo in the divisional series. Santiago outlasted Montevideo 3-2, sending them to the Southern Cone League Championship for the seventh time in their playoff streak. For the Padres, it was their sixth trip since 2024. Despite both teams successes, both only had one pennant apiece in recent memory. Sao Paulo won in 2024, but had lost the next four trips. The Saints won in 2020, but had lost the next four trips and failed to get back seven times.

Both were hungry and it showed in a seven-game classic that needed extra innings in the final. A classic pitcher’s duel stayed scoreless through 11 innings, but Sao Paulo finally broke through for a 1-0 win in the 12^th. The Padres became 16-time Southern Cone champs (1943, 44, 54, 57, 58, 59, 60, 69, 76, 77, 83, 86, 93, 2024, 32), leading all teams.

No other teams had been in Copa Sudamerica than Caracas and Sao Paulo, who both entered the 102^nd edition at 6-9 in their prior appearances. The winner would sit alone with the second-most Cup wins behind only Buenos Aires at eight. The Colts and Padres did meet twice previously in the final with Caracas winning 4-3 back-to-back in 1959-60.

Caracas became seven-time champs (1933, 1959, 1960, 1962, 2022, 2023, 2032) with a 4-2 series victory over Sao Paulo. This brought the Cup back to Venezuela for the first time since the Colts’ 2022-23 repeat. Ernest Van Acker was the playoff hero, winning MVP of the divisional round, LCS, and Copa Sudamerica. The 32-year old Belgian had come to South America in 2029 with Buenos Aires, then joined the Colts in 2032. In 16 playoff starts, Van Acker had 28 hits, 18 runs, 2 doubles, 3 triples, 10 homers, 25 RBI, 1.382 OPS, and 1.7 WAR. His runs, HRs, and RBI were all the second-best in BSA playoff history.

Other notes: Manaus’ Ismael Pimentel set a bad single-season record getting caught stealing 90 times. This tied the world record reached twice in Austronesia Professional Baseball. Pimentel still had a good year with 5.5 WAR and 1.033 OPS, but his steals rate was lousy with only 49 successes to his 90 failures. It was the sixth season where the 27-year old Bolivian was caught 80+ times.

Ciudad Guayana’s pitching staff also set bad records by allowing 1831 hits with an 11.52 H/9. In positive milestones, Paco Amorim and Jorge Valdez became the 66^th and 67^th members of the 500 home run club. Three others reached 400 homers, bringing that group to 135 sluggers.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-27-2025, 08:14 PM

Three of the four division champs in the Japan League were within only two games of each other while fighting for the top seed. Central Division winner Kobe ended up first at 101-61, growing their JL-record playoff streak to ten years. Last year’s #1 seed Niigata was next at 100-62 atop the North Division, extending their own streak to six seasons. Chiba meanwhile took the Capital Division at 99-63 to end a four-year postseason drought.

The weakest division winner was Kitakyushu at 95-67 in the West, who earned their second playoff trip in three years. They had the smallest margin of victory with Hiroshima two back at 93-69. That was enough to give the Hammerheads the first wild card for a seventh straight playoff berth. Hiroshima led the league in scoring at 726 runs while the Kodiaks and Green Dragons allowed the fewest with both at 493.

Kawasaki at 92-70 ended up the second wild card, fending off Tokyo (91-71) and defending Japan League champ Sendai (91-71). The Killer Whales picked up repeat wild cards, while the Tides had their playoff streak ended at three seasons. Also in the mix were Utsunomiya (89-73), Nagoya (86-76), Hamamatsu (85-77), and Osaka (85-77). Although they fell short, the Nightowls notably had their 11^th straight losing season. Also notable was Saitama’s collapse to 53-109, as they had won 80+ games all but once between 2017-31.

The Undertakers and Chickenhawks were the first of the 2025 expansion teams to post a winning record. Leading Utsunomiya’s effort was Japan League MVP Takefumi Hayashi, the #1 overall pick from the 2028 EAB Draft. The 24-year old first baseman led in runs (111), doubles (50), total bases (398), triple slash (.370/.443/.691), OPS (1.134), wRC+ (245), and WAR (12.1). Hayashi had 213 hits, 12 triples, 37 homers, and 96 RBI. He also notably had a four home run game on July 3 facing Sendai, the 18^th such game in East Asia Baseball history.

Kobe’s Jin-Yu Jun won his fourth Pitcher of the Year, having previously won in 2026, 2027, and 2029 in the Korea League with Ulsan. He was traded to Kobe for 2030 and won the ERA title in 2031 at 1.66, although he was second in voting. Jun won his third ERA title in 2032 at 1.54, which ranked as the 30^th-best qualifying season in EAB’s history.

Jun also led in WHIP (0.72), K/BB (13.2), FIP- (48), and WAR (8.5). He had a 19-5 record with 12 saves over 216.2 innings with 290 strikeouts. It was the seventh consecutive season that Jun led his league in pitching WAR. It was also one of only 15 seasons in EAB history with an WHIP of 0.72 or lower.

The wild card round saw a 3-1 Hiroshima win over Kitakyushu and 3-1 Chiba victory against Kawasaki. Both winners then earned surprising 3-2 upsets in the divisional round. The Hammerheads ousted the top seed Kobe while the Comets downed Niigata. The playoff failures continued to the Blaze, who haven’t won a pennant over their decade-long postseason streak.

Hiroshima had seen similar misfortune with no titles from 2026-31 despite a playoff streak. They had been Japan League Championship Series runner-up in 2026 and 2027, but hadn’t been back until now. For Chiba, this was their first JLCS since 2023. The Comets clobbered the Hammerheads 4-1 in the JLCS to end a 44-year pennant drought. Chiba became six-time Japan League kings (1952, 61, 62, 63, 87, 2032).

Three teams finished even at 103-59 for the top seed in the Korea League; Goyang, Suwon, and Busan. Those teams didn’t have easy roads in their divisions either with the Green Sox winning by only two games and the Blue Jays by four. The tiebreaker formula was critical, especially since only the top two earned byes. The seeding ended up with Busan #1, Goyang #2, and Suwon #3.

Busan extended their EAB-record playoff streak to 13 seasons with their ninth straight division title and fifth consecutive 100+ win season. Ulsan was a competitive second at 99-63, which landed the second wild card slot to end a three-year playoff drought.

Goyang’s playoff streak moved to six seasons with their fifth division crown in six years. Reigning EAB champ Pyongyang at 101-61 got the first wild card, extending their run of playoff trips and 100+ win seasons both to three. For Suwon, they got a fourth playoff trip in a row. Seongnam (95-67) and Incheon (92-70) were next in the Central Division and the first teams out in the wild card race. The Snappers were the KL’s top scoring team at 815 runs and the Inferno allowed the fewest at 561.

The Southwest Division was also competitive, but filled with mediocrity as all five teams had losing records. Cheongju’s 80-82 was the best of the bunch, holding off Jeonju (78-84), Gwangju (76-86), and Jeju (75-87). The Checkers notably were the first of the 2030 expansion teams to secure a playoff berth, a difficult feat for only your third season.

Suwon RF Su-Yeon Han repeated as Korea League MVP. The 23-year old lefty led in runs (121), OBP (.426), slugging (.728), OPS (1.154), and wRC+ (207). Han had 207 hits, 28 doubles, 55 home runs, 118 RBI, .371 average, and 10.0 WAR. In April, the Snappers made him one of the richest players in professional baseball on an eight-year, $332,500,000 extension.

Pitcher of the Year was Si-Won Joon in his third season with Incheon. The 29-year old lefty had spent his first six years with Saitama before joining the Inferno in 2030 on a seven-year, $153,200,000 free agent deal. Joon started the season strong with a no-hitter on March 21 with 18 strikeouts and two walks against Bucheon.

For the seventh time, Joon was the strikeout leader with 360. He also won his first ERA title (2.14) and led in WAR (9.7) and FIP- (52) for the first time. Joon had a 17-8 record over 252 innings with a 179 ERA+, missing the Triple Crown by three wins.

80-win Cheongju shocked defending EAB champ Pyongyang 3-2 in the wild card round, while Suwon topped Ulsan 3-1. The Checkers gave top seed Busan a fierce battle, but the Blue Jays escaped 3-2 in the divisional round. The Snappers outlasted Goyang 3-2 on the other side of the bracket.

Suwon earned their third Korea League Championship Series trip in four years, although their pennant drought dated back to 1992. Busan’s last trip was 2029, beating the Snappers that year for the title. The Blue Jays rolled again in the rematch 4-1 for their fourth pennant in a decade. Busan became 15-time Korean champs (1933, 34, 38, 39, 40, 42, 43, 44, 71, 80, 2009, 23, 24, 29, 32), second only to Daegu’s 16.

Despite three pennants in the 2020s, Busan had taken the ultimate prize since way back in 1971. The Blue Jays ended that 60-year drought by claiming the 112^th East Asian Championship 4-1 over Chiba. Busan became six-time EAB champs, having also won in 1933, 38, 42, and 44. 2B Seong-Jun Mho was finals MVP in his second year with the Blue Jays, signing after spending his first six seasons in Seoul. In 15 playoff starts, Mho had 14 hits, 7 runs, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 4 homers, and 11 RBI.

Although Suwon was defeated, league MVP Su-Yeon Han notably had a historic postseason that including MVP honors for the JLCS and the first two rounds. He had a 1.163 slugging percentage, breaking the playoff record in EAB (20+ plate appearances required). In 13 starts, Han had 19 hits, 14 runs, 9 homers, 2 doubles, 1 triple, and 11 RBI. He was one homer short of the playoff record set by Hyeog-Jun Wi in 1969.

Other notes: Kunihiko Ishiguro became only the 3^rd member of EAB’s 900 home run club and the 6^th EAB slugger with 2000 career RBI. The 39-year old Slugger joined Niigata for 2032 and hit 35 dingers, passing Hitoshi Kubota’s 905 for #2 on the EAB leaderboard. At 908, Ishiguro was now 13 away from Soo-Geun Yim’s 921. He became the 21^st in pro baseball history with 900+ homers. Ishiguro also was at 2006 RBI and still needed a few more seasons to catch Yim’s 2279.

Ishiguro was 33 runs from 2000 and only 43 away from Byung-Oh Tan’s EAB record of 2010 runs. In 2032, he also became the 26^th member of the 3000 hit club, although Tan’s 3871 was a long way away. Ishiguro was still solid in 2032 with .855 OPS and 4.7 WAR and was ready to return for 2033 with the Green Dragons at age 40.

In other milestones, Iemitsu Naiya became the 77^th member of the 500 home run club and the 101^st to reach 2500 hits. Tadami Nakano became the 33^rd reliever to reach 300 saves. Seong-Ho Lee was the 113rd pitcher with 3000 strikeouts. SS Jae-Won Park won his 13^th consecutive Gold Glove, becoming only the 26^th player in world history to win the award 13+ times. He’s the fourth EAB player to do so and tied Han-Gyeol Bu’s position record. RF Chae-Yun Choi won his 12^th and final Gold Glove.

Hyeon-Min Song of Daejeon had the 17^th four home run game in EAB history on May 16 facing Jeju. Maebashi struggled to 51-111 and set Japan League all-time pitching worsts for earned runs (741) and team WHIP (1.487). Their 14 saves also tied the EAB all-time low. No one wanted to see the young Bunnies squad stink it up, as their 765,988 season attendance was also a JL worst.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-28-2025, 09:28 AM

Leon led the way in the Mexican League at 113-49, breaking their franchise record of 112 wins from their 1959 championship season. The Lions had their sixth consecutive Central Division title and 100+ win season, as well as their eighth straight playoff trip. Leon led the entire Central American Baseball Association with only 537 runs allowed.

Torreon was an impressive 105-57 atop the North Division to earn repeat playoff trips. The Tomahawks broke the all-time CABA record for stolen bases with 487. They had set the ML record the prior season at 449, but the #1 overall mark had been 467 by Haiti in 1972. Torreon was Mexico’s top scoring team at 817 runs.

Puebla took the South Division at 104-58 for their third playoff trip in four years, although it was their first division title since 2019. The Pumas had a 2,775,170 season attendance, the second-best in ML history behind Tijuana’s 2,779,345 from the prior season. Defending ML champ Ecatepec was a strong second at 99-63, taking the first wild card to extend their playoff streak to four seasons. Culiacan at 91-71 in the Central got the second wild card for their third berth in four years.

The final spot had a tie at 89-73 between Toluca and Aguascalientes with the Tortugas taking it in a tiebreaker game. Toluca got a second wild card in three years, while the Cactus just missed out in only their third season since joining in the 2030 expansion. Tijuana also just missed out at 88-74, dropping sharply from their 115-win effort the prior year. It is only the second playoff miss for the Toros in seven years.

Ecatepec LF Castulo Castro won his second Mexican League MVP in three years. The 28-year old Guatemalan lefty led in runs (133), walks (91), steals (95), and on-base percentage (.426). Castro had 186 hits, 53 home runs, 120 RBI, 1.103 OPS, 204 wRC+, and 11.7 WAR. He was just behind Torreon’s Tomas Vasquez at 11.8 WAR.

Hermosillo’s Kian Baromeo won Pitcher of the Year in his fourth season, leading in ERA (2.17), strikeouts (300), WHIP (0.74), and FIP- (49). The 24-year old from Curacao had an 11-10 record and 19 saves in a split role with 20 starts and 41 relief appearances. Baromeo tossed 195.1 innings with 7.2 WAR. The Hyenas gave him a six-year, $126,300,000 extension in July.

Also of note, Leon’s Diamante Navarette became the 12^th in CABA history to win Reliever of the Year four times. His 0.69 ERA was the fourth-lowest ever by a CABA ROTY winner and he led in saves with 40. Navarette had 54 saves the prior year with Tijuana, tying B.J. Medina’s record that had held since 1924. In 2032, the 31-year old Guatemalan also had 142 strikeouts over 91.2 innings with 5.0 WAR.

Culiacan dethroned defending champ Ecatepec 2-1 in the first round and Toluca upset Puebla 2-1. The Cocks continued to shock with a 3-2 upset over Torreon in the second round. The Tortugas couldn’t keep their magic going as they were promptly swept by Leon.

It was the third trip to the Mexican League Championship Series in five years for the Lions, who won the pennant in 2028. Culiacan became only the second of the 2025 expansion teams to earn an LCS trip. They were unable to be the first of that group with a pennant with Leon taking the series 4-2. The Lions became 11-time Mexican League champs (1927, 39, 41, 42, 59, 60, 64, 86, 2018, 28, 32).

For the first time since 2020, the Caribbean League didn’t have any teams with 100+ wins. Defending CABA champ and two-time defending CL champ Haiti and Honduras had the top marks at 97-65. The tiebreaker gave the #1 seed to the Central Division champ Horsemen, who grew their playoff streak to a decade. The Herons won a third West Division in-a-row and grew their playoff streak to six seasons. In the East Division, Barbados finished 92-70 for their first-ever playoff berth or winning season.

In a tight wild card race, Jamaica (92-70), Santo Domingo (90-72), and Nicaragua (90-72) advanced. Curacao was the first team out at 89-73 and was only three back on the Baycats for the East Division. Also falling short in the wild card race were Suriname (85-77), Guatemala (85-77), and Trinidad (84-78). The Dolphins picked up a third straight wild card and the Navigators got back-to-back. The Jazz ended a 12-year playoff drought.

Although the Ghosts missed for back-to-back years, they grew their run of winning seasons to 13. Panama at 83-79 ended an eight-year run of losing seasons and allowed the fewest runs in the CL at 600. Santo Domingo was the top scoring team at 896. Bahamas also notably fell to 76-86, their first losing season since 2023. It was impressive to have that eight year run since they had only posted seven winning seasons total in the prior 62 years.

Barbados 1B Jose Angel Esqueda repeated as Caribbean League MVP, although he couldn’t match his bonkers 72 homers and 180 RBI from the prior year. Esqueda actually had a better WAR anyway in 2032, leading the league with 9.9. He also led in RBI (147), total bases (422), OBP (.430), OPS (1.146), and wRC+ (193). The 25-year old Dominican lefty smacked 55 homers with a .360 average, 212 hits, 129 runs, and 35 doubles.

Guatemala ace Israel Montague became only the sixth in world history to win Pitcher of the Year nine times. His contemporary Richard Wright (11) had also done it in CABA, while 1980s legend Junior Vergara had ten between CABA and MLB. Montague’s previous wins had come from 2021-25, 27-28, and 30. The 35-year old Panamanian lefty won his ninth ERA title at 2.72. Montague also led in WHIP (0.95), K/BB (13.2), and quality starts.

It was only the second time in a decade that Montague didn’t lead in strikeouts, although he was still good for 331. He had a 16-12 record over 251.1 innings with a 154 ERA+ and 8.8 WAR. Montague’s 2032 had already started with a bang, throwing a perfect game for Panama in the World Baseball Championship against Benin.

Jamaica swept Santo Domingo and Nicaragua edged Barbados 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs. The Jazz upset their divisional foe Haiti 3-2 in round two while Honduras cruised to a 3-0 sweep of the Navigators. The Horsemen earned their fifth trip to the Caribbean League Championship Series in seven years. No team in CABA had more LCS trips, as this was the 47^th for Honduras.

The last CLCS trip for Jamaica was 2014 and the Jazz hadn’t won the pennant since way back in 1980. They gave a nice effort, but the top-seeded Horsemen prevailed 4-2 for their third pennant in five years. Honduras now had 20 Caribbean League pennants (1919, 20, 22, 24, 26, 39, 40, 42, 53, 58, 59, 63, 91, 93, 2003, 04, 11, 28, 29, 32). The only team in all of pro baseball to win their sub-league more times was Eurasian Professional Baseball’s Minsk at 21.

The 122^nd Central American Baseball Association Championship was the first since need all seven games since Honduras and Leon’s battle four years prior. These squads weren’t finals strangers and many of the prior meetings were also classics. In 1939, the Lions won 4-3 for their first-ever title. The Horsemen got revenge in seven games in 1942. They met again in 1959, a 4-3 Leon victory. Honduras evened the series up 69 years later with the 2028 win.

The 2032 encounter was perhaps the most dramatic yet, as this time game seven needed extra innings. Honduras won the clincher 4-3 in 13 innings to become ten-time CABA champs (1926, 40, 42, 58, 63, 93, 2003, 11, 28, 32). Catcher Zacarias Delgado was finals MVP, starting 16 playoff games with 18 hits, 6 runs, 2 doubles, 1 homer, and 4 RBI.

Honduras was now 10-10 in their finals trips and Leon was 3-8. The Horsemen joined illustrious company as the only other teams in world history with 10+ overall titles in their league was fellow CABA squad Mexico City (11), MLB’s San Diego (12), EAB’s Pyongyang (10), EPB’s Minsk (14), WAB’s Kano (12), SAB’s Ahmedabad (13), and Kyiv (8 in EPB, 2 in EBF).

Other notes: Entering 2032, only 12 pitchers in CABA had 250+ career wins. Angel Brea, Richard Wright, and Israel Montague all joined that group in 2032. Wright also became the 5^th to 4500 strikeouts. Vicente Perez, Rigo Trujillo, and Raymon Santana each got to 3000 strikeouts, making that club 87 pitchers deep.

Also entering 2032, there had been only 37 perfect games in CABA, but three were added to the canon. On May 10, Aguascalientes’ Dunier Alfonso did it with nine strikeouts against Queretaro. On June 10, Leon’s Bokhari Allahrakha did it with five Ks facing Hermosillo. Then June 20, Renato Gomez for the Cactus was perfect with seven strikeouts against Monterrey.

Franklin Madrid became the 66^th to 500 home runs. Three joined the 400 club, bringing it to 127 members strong. Jamel Forsyth became the 40^th to 1500 RBI. Nicaragua’s Sajay Esparza had a four home run game versus Guatemala on September 7. It was only the 23^rd four-homer game in CABA.

Cancun set an all-time Mexican League low with a season attendance of 649,552. Guadalajara had only 66 stolen bases as a team, the second-lowest in MLB history. Guyana’s offense set a new Caribbean League worst with only 233 walks drawn. Santiago allowed 832 earned runs, the second-worst in CABA history with only Guyana’s 870 in 2003 as worse.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-28-2025, 04:48 PM

After winning the National Association pennant as a wild card in 2031, Toronto took the top seed in 2032 at 102-60. The Timberwolves earned their first Northeast division title since 2023. Toronto allowed 598 runs, the fewest in all of Major League Baseball. Ottawa had been a playoff regular out of the Northeast and the NACS runner-up in 2031, but their five-year playoff streak ended abruptly at 72-90.

The next two best records fought for the Lower Midwest Division crown with Columbus (98-64) beating out Tulsa (96-66). The Chargers ended a 10-year playoff drought with their first division title since 1998. The Tornado grabbed their third playoff berth in four years as the first wild card. Last year’s division champ Cincinnati fell to 72-90.

Omaha grabbed the #3 seed at 95-67 in the Upper Midwest Division, besting Cleveland by nine games. The Hawks ended an 18-year playoff drought, while last year’s division champ Milwaukee fell to 79-83. Grand Rapids went from a wild card in 2031 to 72-90 in 2032. Chicago at 84-78 missed the wild card cut, but notably had their 14^th consecutive winning season.

Philadelphia was the weakest division winner at 89-73 in the East, ending a three-year playoff drought. It was the Phillies first division title since 2024. Washington had won three straight division titles, but they fell three games short at 86-76 and New York was four back at 85-77. The Admirals were the NA’s top scoring team at 838 runs. Both DC and NYC fell just short as well in a crowded battle for the remaining two wild card spots.

Montreal got the second of three spots outright at 89-73 for their sixth playoff berth of the decade. The final spot had a three-way tie at 88-74 between Buffalo, Kansas City, and Indianapolis. Falling just short at 86-76 were Wichita, Cleveland, and Washington. New York was 85-77 and coming in at 84-78 was Winnipeg, Chicago, and Halifax. A pair of tiebreaker games was needed to decide the last spot. The first game saw Kansas City defeat Indianapolis, but Buffalo bested the Cougars to give the spot to the Blue Sox. It was Buffalo’s second playoff berth in three years.

National Association MVP went to Wichita LF Doogie Wright. The 29-year old Australian led in runs (123), total bases (386), slugging (.684), OPS (1.106), and wRC+ (214). Wright added 192 hits, 54 home runs, 119 RBI, .340 average, and 9.0 WAR. He had been picked #2 overall in the 2025 OBA Draft by Hobart, but refused to sign. After getting granted free agency, he came to America and has been a reliable starter for the Wasps with six seasons of 40+ homers and 100 RBI.

In his fifth season with Brooklyn, Tommy Nunn won Pitcher of the Year. The 25-year old righty from Detroit won the ERA title (1.86) and led in WHIP (0.88), shutouts (6), and WAR (8.5). Nunn’s ERA ranks as the 20^th-best qualifying season in MLB history, 162 innings required. He also had a 20-9 record over 256.2 innings with 216 strikeouts.

Also notable was the fifth Reliever of the Year win by Vic McCallister, joining Noah Pugliese from a century prior as the only five-time winners in MLB history. In his lone season for Halifax, the 34-year old McCallister had his best season yet with 37 saves, an 0.76 ERA, 132 strikeouts, 83 innings, and 6.4 WAR. He and J.J. Fuller both joined the 400 save club in 2032, which had only four members previously for MLB. Unfortunately, this was the last hurrah for McCallister as a torn labrum in 2033 tanked his productivity, retiring after the 2035 season.

Tulsa outlasted Philadelphia 3-2 in the first round while Omaha topped Montreal 3-1 and Columbus swept Buffalo 3-0. The Tornado then stunned top seed Toronto 3-1 in the second round, earning a second trip in four years to the National Association Championship Series for the 2021 expansion squad. On the other side, the Hawks edged out their divisional rival Chargers 3-2.

For Omaha, it was their first NACS trip since their last playoff berth in 2013. It was only the sixth time they had ever made it this far, as they were one of only four original MLB teams to never win a pennant. The Hawks finally escaped that unfortunate distinction in 2032, defeating Tulsa 4-1 for the National Association title. This left Buffalo, San Antonio, and Oakland as the only original teams without a pennant across MLB’s 132 seasons.

Nashville took the American Association’s top seed at 99-63 and allowed the fewest runs at 625. The Knights earned repeat playoff trips and their fourth Southeast Division title in eight years. It didn’t come easy with Tampa close behind at 95-67. With a wild card, the Thunderbirds ended a 16-year playoff drought. Charlotte was the top seed last year at 104-58, but their four-year playoff streak ended with an 83-79 finish in 2032. Miami at 77-85 saw their MLB record playoff drought grow to 60 seasons.

Oakland was the #2 seed atop the Southwest Division at 96-66, fending off San Diego by one game. Although the Owls earned their fifth playoff trip of the decade, it was only the fifth-ever division title with the last one way back in 1976. Oakland’s offense smacked 318 home runs, the second-most in MLB history behind only San Diego’s 341 from 2018. The Seals got a wild card and bounced back after a rare playoff miss in 2032, giving them eight berths in the last decade.

Defending World Series champ Houston at 91-71 won the South Central Division by three games over Oklahoma City and six over New Orleans. The Hornets won a fourth straight division title and grew their playoff streak to six seasons. Houston’s pitching staff also notably allowed only 269 walks with a 1.67 BB/9; those ranked as the second and third best in American Association history, respectively.

Seattle was the top scoring team at 894 runs, helping them take the Northwest Division again at 90-72. The Grizzlies finished two games ahead of Edmonton to extend their division title streak to ten seasons. It is the second-longest playoff and division title streak in MLB history. The longest run was Denver at 13 years, incidentally directly prior to Seattle’s run in the Northwest from 2010-22. Anchorage at 84-78 saw their wild card streak snapped at three years.

The third and final wild card went to Albuquerque at 89-73, one game ahead of both Oklahoma City and Edmonton’s 88-74. New Orleans was 85-77 while the Avalance, Birmingham, and Las Vegas each finished 84-78. This ended a 17-year postseason skid for the Isotopes. Also notable was San Francisco’s fall to 66-96, their worst record in 55 years. From 2014-31, the Gold Rush had won 80+ games in all but one season.

Vancouver was middling at 80-82, but had reason for optimism with second-year 1B Alair White winning American Association MVP. The Clarksdale, Mississippi native was drafted sixth out of Ole Miss in the 2030 MLB Draft. In 2032, White led in RBI (147), total bases (416), OPS (1.093), wRC+ (176), and WAR (9.0). He had 213 hits, 130 runs, 26 doubles, 57 homers, and a .349/.413/.681 slash.

Journeyman pitcher Shannon Munthali had a shocking Pitcher of the Year win for San Diego. He had been a reliever early in his career and only recently had become a starter with mixed results. The 31-year old Malawian lefty had posted 14.2 total WAR between four teams in his first ten years. Charlotte gave him a four-year, $31,600,000 deal for 2032, but were so underwhelmed by his spring training results that they cut him in March.

San Diego grabbed Munthali in April and he gave them an ERA title at 2.48 as well as an association-best 0.99 WHIP, 24 quality starts, 61 FIP-, and 8.7 WAR. Munthali had a 15-7 record, 243.1 innings, and 196 strikeouts. This surprise effort got him paid in the winter, signing a five-year, $177,500,000 deal with Toronto.

Reliever of the Year winner Anakin Van Antwerp with New Orleans was also notable as he allowed only one run over 44.2 innings with 22 saves and 46 strikeouts. The Australian was in his rookie year and only had 2.0 WAR because of the small sample size with a strained oblique costing him two months. However, Van Antwerp’s 0.20 ERA was the lowest-ever by a ROTY winner in MLB history.

In the first round of the playoffs, Seattle swept Tampa, San Diego topped Houston 3-1 on the road, and Oakland topped Albuquerque 3-1. The Seals then upset top seed Nashville 3-1 in round two, while the Grizzlies ousted the Owls 3-1. This returned San Diego and Seattle to the American Association Championship Series yet again. 2031 had been an aberration with neither making it, as each AACS from 2023-30 had one or both them participating.

The Seals’ dynasty had come at the expense of the Grizzlies often, defeating them in the 2023, 2026, 2027, and 2029 AACS. San Diego also had won in 2028 against Dallas as part of their historic four-peat. Seattle did have one title from their decade-long playoff streak, winning it all in 2030. For 2032, the Seals returned to the perch once more by defeating the Grizzlies 4-2. SD now stood alone among MLB teams with the most World Series trips at 15, having won pennants in 1936, 55, 56, 58, 66, 67, 2007, 08, 10, 23, 26, 27, 28, 29, and 32.

The 132^nd World Series had the team that had been there the most taking on a squad finally making their first appearance. The series was a seven-game thriller, but San Diego denied Omaha its first title and won a fifth championship in seven years.

Veteran RF Mark Johnston was World Series MVP in his second season with the Seals. He had likely built up a Hall of Fame resume in his first 13 years with Ottawa, but may have clinched it with his postseason run. In 20 starts, Johnston had 27 hits, 12 runs, 3 doubles, 5 home runs, and 22 RBI. Johnston also joined the 600 home run and 1500 RBI clubs in 2032. He was notably the 46^th to the 600 homer club and the 132^nd to 1500 RBI.

The Seals became 12-time MLB champs (1936, 55, 56, 58, 66, 2007, 10, 26, 27, 28, 29, 32). The only other franchises in world history to win their overall league title 12+ times were EPB’s Minsk (14), SAB’s Ahmedabad (13), and WAB’s Kano (12). Considering Major League Baseball is often viewed as the highest talent league, it speaks to the foundation built in San Diego.

Some mark this win as separate from the 2026-29 dynasty, while others include this and the 2023 runner-up finish as part of a grander dynasty. San Diego would make the playoffs only once in the next four years with a first round exit, making the 2032 title the capper of an incredible decade for the Seals.

They also won the Baseball Grand Championship twice, putting this SD run up there with the best in all of pro baseball history. Some would still argue it was the second-best sustained run in MLB, noting Philadelphia’s seven straight World Series appearances and five titles from 1941-47.

Other notes: Columbus ace Fabien Muller led in strikeouts for the seventh time and broke the MLB single-season records for strikeouts (392) and K/9 (14.62). Jamaal Coleman previously had the single-season best with 380 Ks in 1996. Muller already had the top two K/9 seasons before that with 14.26 in 2031 and 13.65 in 2030. He still had troubles allowing homers, but 6.0 WAR and 3.77 ERA was the best overall season for the explosive 29-year old Frenchman.

Dallas’ Silvio Menoud his 62 home runs, which was only the 14^th season in MLB history of 62+ dingers. Jan Rychtr was the 45^th to join the 600 home run club, doing it one day prior to Mark Jonhston. Steve Castro, Pat Eichelberger, Neil Hollinger, and Austin Grace all joined the 500 homer club, making that group 121 members strong. Mike Rojas became the 69^th to 3000 career hits. Mathis Vezina became the 134^th to 1500 RBI and Sam Harpster the 125^th to 1500 runs scored.

In pitching milestones, Riley Morales became the 52^nd to 250 career wins and Truman Bloodworth became the 104^th to 3000 strikeouts. RF Edhar Baranov and 2B Kieran de la Cruz both won their 8^th Gold Gloves. SS Jude Hoffer won his 8^th Silver Slugger.

SS Nizami Aghazade at age 44 played only 54 games for Houston, missing most of the season between a torn back muscle and knee sprain. Still, he was worth 2.3 WAR with a .974 OPS. This brought his MLB run to an end over five seasons between Montreal and Houston, but got him to 202.9 career WAR when adding in his nine-MVP dominance in the Asian Baseball Federation with Dushanbe.

This put the Kazakh as the fourth in world baseball history to cross 200 career WAR, behind fellow middle infielders Harvey Coyle (234.9) and Jimmy Caliw (214) as well as world strikeout king Mohamed Ramos (205.1). Aghazade wasn’t ready to call it quits though, but he’d have to go to Russia to find work. For 2033, he signed a three-year, $22,100,000 deal with Nizhny Novgorod of Eurasian Professional Baseball.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-29-2025, 06:38 AM

The 2032 Baseball Grand Championship was the 23^rd edition of the event and was hosted this time in Kolkata, India. Earning the auto-bids were MLB’s San Diego and Omaha, CABA’s Honduras and Leon, EAB’s Busan and Chiba, BSA’s Caracas and Sao Paulo, EBF’s Zurich and Cologne, EPB’s Voronezh, OBA’s Guadalcanal, APB’s Bandung, CLB’s Shijiazhuang, WAB’s Dakar, SAB’s Visakhapatnam, ABF’s Hyderabad, ALB’s Doha, and AAB’s Nairobi. The three at-large spots went to ABF’s Baku, WAB’s Benin City, and SAB’s Mandalay.

The defending Grand Champion was Hyderabad, who had a chance to be the second-ever repeat champ. The Horned Frogs had a nice showing at 13-8, but ended up in a three-way tie for fifth. Africa Series champ Nairobi surprised many observers by taking the top spot outright at 16-5. The Night Hawks were the third Grand Champion from the African Association of Baseball, joining 2015 Johannesburg and 2029 Cape Town.

World Series champ San Diego was a close second at 15-6, just missing out on becoming the first franchise to win Grand Champion honors thrice. The Seals had the best run differential at +51. Nairobi was the top scoring team with 116 runs and did it with a balanced effort. No one Night Hawk batter had big stats, but they all produced with solid stats. Mohammad Seid led the pitching staff, going 4-0 in his starts with a 1.05 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 34.1 innings.

Omaha and Zurich were next at 14-7 with the tiebreaker giving the Hawks third and the Mountaineers fourth. Zurich allowed the fewest runs of all teams at 58. Hyderabad, Benin City, and Baku each finished 13-8 with the tiebreaker placing the Horned Frogs fifth, Blue Devils sixth, and Blackbirds seventh. Dakar and Leon were next at 12-9, then rounding off the teams above .500 at 11-10 were Doha, Mandalay, and Shijiazhuang.

Bandung, Busan, and Honduras each finished at 10-11. Guadalcanal was alone in 16^th at 9-12 and Sao Paulo sat 17^th at 8-13. Visakhapatnam and Voronezh both went 7-14, Caracas was 6-15, and Cologne ended 5-16. Chiba had the unfortunate last place spot at 4-17.

Shijiazhuang had a solid 101 runs, but allowed the second most at 119. The offensive effort by 1B Francis Tai snagged him Tournament MVP, posting 25 hits, 20 runs, 15 home runs, 25 RBI, 2 doubles, 11 walks, 1.334 OPS, and 2.2 WAR. It ranked as the 9^th-best WAR by a position player, 4^th-most homers, and his 72 total bases was tied for the 5^th-best.

It was the 9^th and final season with the Serpents for the 30-year old from Macau, who was due free agency. This performance really impressed San Diego, who brought Tai to MLB on a six-year, $108,800,000 deal. Hyderabad’s Alexis Alvarez joined Tai in hitting 15 homers. Baku’s Artyom Masharipov notably scored 22 runs to tie the BGC record. San Diego’s Emilian Bohler had the 4^th-most hits (29) and set a new record for at-bats at 89.

Best Pitcher went to Hyderabad’s Tsagaanbaatar Davaanyam, who had a 1.34 ERA over four starts and 33.2 innings with a 2-1 record and 35 strikeouts. The 24-year old Mongolian had now posted back-to-back strong performances in the BGC despite having only nine appearances in ABF in his young career. Also notable was Bandung’s Fred Pasaya, whose 65 strikeouts were the 2^nd-best in event history. The 29-year old Filipino had a 2.81 ERA and 3-2 record in 41.2 innings.

Other notes: Hyderabad’s Vahid Farmaian tossed the 13^th no-hitter in Baseball Grand Championship history with 9 strikeouts and 4 walks against Voronezu on November 21. Busan’s Sung-Ho Lee had the 14^th no-hitter on November 25, striking out 13 with one walk facing Caracas. San Diego’s Jason Perazzo and Sao Paulo’s Manuel Dias both had four home run games. Voronezh’s Hovsep Avagyan hit for the cycle against Doha.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 07-29-2025, 06:47 PM

Three pitchers earned induction into Major League Baseball’s Hall of Fame with starter Thad Stoner the clear headliner at 92.2% for his debut. Reliever Etzel Urban was next with a big boost to 78.3% on his sixth ballot. SP Darel Freeland took the third spot, sneaking across the 66% requirement barely with a 66.3% debut. LF Lorenzen Campbell barely missed out on his fifth try at 65.5%, his best showing yet.

Four others were above 50%, but short of the induction threshold. 1B Thomas Lewis had 60.5% in his ninth ballot, his peak thus far. RP Heihachiro Okasawa saw 57.8% on his fourth try, RP Stevie Ray Thornton had 53.1% with his fourth ballot, and RP Sebastian Gomez got 52.7% on his tenth and final attempt. With so many relievers with similar resumes, it was hard for any one of them to gain the traction needed to cross the line.

For Gomez, he had a 23-year career between 13 teams and both MLB and Beisbol Sudamerica and won Reliever of the Year in 1999 for Oklahoma City. In MLB, he had 359 saves and 444 shutdowns, 108-99 record, 2.18 ERA, 1169.2 innings, 1280 strikeouts, 349 walks, 168 ERA+, 64 FIP-, and 37.2 WAR. As of 2037, Gomez is 17^th in saves for MLB, but he was viewed as more of a compiler. He never had the raw dominance or notoriety to stand out amongst a crowded field.

Also making it ten ballots before dropping was 1B Kelechi Ekezie, who peaked in 2025 at 37.9% and finished at 8.1%. He was notably the 2003 World Series MVP and AACS MVP, helping Phoenix repeat as champs from 2003-04. Ekezie had 15 seasons with the Firebirds, three with Brooklyn, then spent his final two seasons in the Arab League’s Muscat.

Ekezie was a very reliable contributor, but he was never a league leader or award winning in the regular season. He had 2537 games, 2707 hits, 1471 runs, 367 doubles, 481 home runs, 1432 RBI, 1129 walks, 1017 strikeouts, .300/.377/.507 slash, 146 wRC+, and 83.6 WAR. Ekezie ended up a firm Hall of Pretty Good type guy, needing more eye-popping stats to stand out, especially in a spot like first base which has no shortage of impressive bats.

Thad “Mounds” Stoner – Starting Pitcher – Oakland Owls – 92.2% First Ballot

Thad Stoner was a 6’1’’, 200 pound left-handed pitcher from Inglewood, California; a city of around 107,000 people within the Greater Los Angeles area. Stoner was known for having excellent stuff along with rock solid control and good movement. He didn’t have overwhelming power, but he was adept at changing speeds and disguising his pitchers. Stoner’s fastball peaked in the 95-97 mph range and was joined by a slider, curveball, and changeup. The changeup was generally viewed as his most dangerous offering, but all four choices were good quality.

Stoner’s stamina was better than most and his durability was outstanding, tossing 245+ innings with 30+ starts each year from 2013-26. He was above average at holding runners, but below average defensively otherwise. Stoner was considered a good leader and one of the smarter guys in the clubhouse. He almost quietly put together an impressive 16-year career.

He left California to attend Kansas State University from 2009-11, posting an 18-8 record and 1.75 ERA over 304 collegiate innings with 414 strikeouts, 64 walks, 185 ERA+, and 16.5 WAR. This shot Stoner up the boards for the 2011 MLB Draft and he returned to California, picked 16^th by Oakland. Almost his entire career came with the Owls, who eased him in with 98.2 innings as a rookie. Stoner would hold a full-time rotation spot for the following 14 years.

In 2014, Stoner led the American Association with 282.2 innings. In 2016, he had his career-best ERA of 2.68, finishing second in Pitcher of the Year voting. Oakland was aggressively mid most of his tenure, averaging 83.3 wins per season in Stoner’s run. They were rarely at the absolute bottom of the standings, but the Owls didn’t make the playoffs from 1997-2024.

Stoner provided reliable production through the run, although he didn’t get a ton of awards looks. He led in strikeouts with a career best 284 Ks in 2018. That year and 2019 had his career bests for WAR at 7.8. In 2021, he led the AA in WHIP (0.96) and complete games (23). Stoner was above 7 WAR in six seasons and above 6 WAR in eight years. Oakland gave him a three-year, $60,800,000 extension in May 2018. Then in March 2021, the Owls signed Stoner another five years at $121 million.

His production started to dip in his mid 30s with a 4.24 ERA, 188 Ks, and 3.7 WAR in 2025; the worst of his career to that point. Oakland finally made the playoffs that year as a wild card and went one-and-done. The Owls had a similar fate in 2026 with Stoner going eight innings with five runs (four earned) allowed in both of his playoff starts. He did bounce back though in 2026 with a 2.76 ERA and an AA-best 0.98 WHIP and 23 quality starts. At age 35, Stoner took second in Pitcher of the Year voting.

That was also a contract year and Oakland was unsure about giving Stoner another big, long-term deal. Stoner opted for free agency, finishing his Owls tenure with a 242-168 record, 3.26 ERA, 3842.1 innings, 3374 strikeouts, 764 walks, 121 ERA+, and 89.6 WAR. Oakland would soon retire his #2 uniform for his 15 seasons of steady service.

Montreal signed Stoner to a two-year, $51,200,000 deal. Unfortunately, the cliff came quickly and Stoner’s velocity dipped into the 91-93 mph range. He struggled to a 5.21 ERA and only 99 strikeouts over 181.1 innings in 2027 for the Maples. Stoner did post a 3.86 ERA over 18.2 playoff innings and three starts, as Montreal was the World Series runner-up to San Diego. Stoner decided to retire with that at age 37, skipping the Baseball Grand Championship.

Stoner finished with a 252-180 record, 3.34 ERA, 4023.2 innings, 3473 strikeouts, 800 walks, 290/496 quality starts, 261 complete games, 40 shutouts, 118 ERA+, 82 FIP-, and 91.4 WAR. As of 2037, Stoner ranks 45^th in wins, 88^th in innings, 76^th in shutouts, 38^th in strikeouts, and 52^nd in WAR among pitchers. Stoner was never considered the top arm in the game, but his durability and reliability got him the accumulations needed to win over most Hall of Fame voters. At 92.2%, he headlined the 2033 class for Major League Baseball.

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

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