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

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-11-2024, 04:42 AM

2002 in CABA

Three-time reigning Mexican League champion Ecatepec remained the king of the South Division at 112-50, earning a seventh straight division title. The Explosion narrowly bested their own ML record for team OBP at .342. This still holds as the top mark as of 2037. There was a 30 game gap between Ecatepec and second place Queretaro.

Meanwhile, the North Division was top heavy as Juarez and Monterrey tied for first at 105-57. They both earned playoff spots and were guaranteed to meet again in the wild card round, but a tiebreaker game decided which was the division champ. That distinction went to the Jesters for their second division title in three years. The Matadors extended their CABA-record playoff streak to 15 seasons. Last year’s MLCS runner-up Torreon took third in the division at 97-65, missing the playoff field despite a fine effort.

Chihuahua was a non-factor at 87-75, but they had an impressive Mexican League MVP season from 1B Donald Gonzalez. The 23-year old Puerto Rican had the first Triple Crown hitting season since 1995 in CABA with 54 home runs, 123 RBI, and a .380 average. Gonzalez also led in runs (137), total bases (441), OBP (.442), slugging (.737), OPS (1.179), wRC+ (237), and WAR (12.4). The Warriors certainly saw Gonzalez as the future, giving him an eight-year, $55,380,000 extension in the offseason.

Juarez had the Pitcher of the Year in Aitor Moran. The 26-year old Panamanian lefty was the WARlord at 8.8. He added a 20-4 record and 2.25 ERA over 260 innings with 317 strikeouts. The Jesters had already locked Moran up two years prior with a six-year, $26,480,000 extension.

In the wild card round, Juarez and Monterrey had an intense battle with the Jesters taking the series 3-2. This set up a rematch of the 2000 Mexican League Championship Series. For the Matadors, they missed the MLCS for the third straight year, something that hadn’t happened since the early 1980s. Juarez took reigning champ Ecatepec to the limit, but the Explosion didn’t relinquish the crown. Ecatepec won a seven-game thriller for a fourth consecutive Mexican League pennant. They became the fifth ML team to four-peat, joining Monterrey (1990-93 and 1955-58), Mexico City (seven straight from 1967-73), Mexicali (five straight from 1950-54), and Tijuana (1916-19).

Defending CABA champ Haiti improved to a new franchise record at 114-48. The Herons set a still-standing Caribbean League record as a pitching staff with only 191 walks allowed and 1.17 BB/9. Haiti won a sixth consecutive Island Division as well. In the Continental Division, Honduras was first at 94-68 to extend their playoff streak to five years. Havana (91-71) won the wild card race over Nicaragua (88-74), Guatemala (85-77), Salvador (85-77), and Jamaica (84-78). This ended a five-year playoff drought for the Hurricanes. The Stallions saw their own eight-year postseason streak come to an end.

Haiti swept the top awards as 1B Alphanso Keyes repeated as Caribbean League MVP. The 28-year old Bahaman lefty led in the triple slash at .398/.440/.691 for a 1.130 OPS and 195 wRC+. That batting average was the fifth-best single season in CABA history. Keyes added 8.2 WAR, 40 home runs, and 130 RBI. He also hit for the cycle in August against Puerto Rico. Notably as well, his teammate Jocelyn Alassane had 156 RBI, the third-most in a season for CABA to that point.

Sal Meza repeated as Pitcher of the Year in his third season with the Herons. The 30-year old Mexican lefty had the best FIP- at 58. Meza posted 8.2 WAR and a 2.26 ERA over 231.1 innings with a 19-6 record and 270 strikeouts. Haiti also had the Reliever of the Year in Alejandro Valadez, his first of what would be five straight.

Wild card Havana ousted Honduras 3-1 despite the Horsemen having the one-game handicap. This kept Honduras out of the Caribbean League Championship Series for the first time in four years, while the Hurricanes got their for the first time since 1986. Powerhouse Haiti was too much for Havana, taking the series 4-1 and three-peating as Caribbean champ. This was the sixth title for the Herons, who became the fifth CL franchise to win three pennants in a row.

The 92^nd Central American Baseball Association Championship was a highly anticipated rubber match between Haiti and Ecatepec. The Explosion won a seven game classic in 2000, while the Herons got revenge in six games in 2001. The third meeting didn’t live up to the hype as Haiti hammered Ecatepec for a sweep. It was the first finals sweep since Santo Domingo over Juarez in 1984. LF Israel Dimas was finals MVP as the 33-year old Cuban had 16 hits, 6 runs, 3 home runs, and 5 RBI in nine games.

The 2002 Herons have a solid case as the Caribbean League’s all-time top team. The only season that saw more wins plus a CABA title was Jamaica’s 118-44 run in 1933. Haiti’s postseason run was more dominant than the Jazz, as the Herons were 8-1, joining a very short list to do that. The only team in CABA to go unbeaten in the playoffs was 1920 Guadalajara at 8-0. This win ended the finals rivalry for now between Haiti and Ecatepec, but they would face off yet again in 2010 and in 2031.

Other notes: Guadalajara pitcher Nelson Poore set a bad all-time CABA record with 26 losses. The previous worst was 24, while Poore was 5-26 with a 4.14 ERA and 87 ERA+. He wasn’t great, but definitely was hurt by lousy run support.

Enrique Mendoza of Queretaro had a 34-game hit streak, the fourth longest in CABA to date. The record was Ivan Iniguez’s 38 in 1911. Sanson Delgado became the 20^th slugger to 1500 RBI. SS Rafino Piloto won his seventh Gold Glove. Jacky Castillo won his 11^th Silver Slugger, although this was his first as a second baseman. His other 10 came at third base. SS David Davila and CF Hugh Boerboom both won their eighth Silver Sluggers.

Boerboom finished the season with 772 home runs, tying himself with Solomon Aragon as CABA’s home run king. The 39-year old Aruban would play four more seasons and finish at 866, which held as the top spot in CABA until the late 2020s.

2002 also marked the end of CABA’s current alignment, as it would expand by two teams in each league starting in 2003. CABA would also add a second wild card team for the postseason, giving them a more standard bracket of eight total playoff teams with division champions hosting wild cards in the first round.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-11-2024, 10:55 AM

2002 in MLB

The National Association again was very competitive in 2002 as only six games separated the #1 overall seed from the weakest division winner. Fresh off having snapped their 41-year playoff drought last year with a NACS appearance, Milwaukee earned the #1 seed. The Mustangs took the Upper Midwest Division at 98-64. Cincinnati won the Lower Midwest at 97-65 for the #2 seed, snapping a playoff drought back to 1989. The Reds edged Indianapolis by only one game for the title. The Racers easily were the first wild card, bouncing back from a 70-win 2001. This gave Indy its sixth playoff berth in seven years.

Ottawa repeated as Northeast Division champ at 94-68. The Elks finished three games ahead of Hartford. The Huskies at 91-71 took the second wild card for their first playoff spot since winning the 1992 World Series. New York picked up the East Division at 92-70 for their third division title in five years. Defending National Association champ Philadelphia was 90-72, finishing two games short in the division and one game behind Hartford for the second wild card. Two notable swings came from Boston and Virginia Beach, who narrowly missed the playoffs the prior season with 90 and 89 wins, respectively. Both plummeted to below 70 wins in 2002.

Leading Milwaukee to the top seed was National Association MVP Ulysses Aweau. The 26-year old center fielder was the WARlord at 10.1, adding 36 home runs, 122 RBI, a .302/.361/.571 slash, and 189 wRC+. The Mustangs gave Aweau an eight-year, $69,500,000 extension prior to the 2002 season. He’d shock them by opting out after the 2003 season, then inking a seven-year, $72,500,000 deal with Philadelphia.

Despite Boston’s collapse, they had Pitcher of the Year Jeremiah Murray. Murray had twice suffered major injuries and had spent 2001 in the minor leagues for Montreal. He was the minors’ POTY, which inspired the Red Sox to trade for him in February 2002. The 27-year old Canadian led in strikeouts (277), WAR (9.5), FIP- (64), and innings pitched (290.2). He added a 2.63 ERA and 18-14 record. Murray would go onto be a fine starter for the next few years in Boston.

Wild card Indianapolis upset New York 2-1 in the first round and Ottawa outlasted divisional foe Hartford 2-1. The Elks continued to roll, shocking Cincinnati with a round two sweep. Ottawa hadn’t been in the National Association Championship Series since 1986. Meanwhile, Milwaukee earned a repeat NACS berth, although they had to survive a spirited five games against the Racers. In the NACS, Milwaukee prevailed 4-2 over Ottawa for their fifth pennant. It had been a long while though, with the previous NA wins in 1904, 34, 35, and 60.

Seattle had the American Association and MLB’s best record for the third consecutive season. The Grizzlies were 104-58, giving them the Northwest Division title and a fifth straight playoff berth. Phoenix nabbed the #2 seed at 100-62. Although it was the third consecutive playoff berth for the Firebirds, they hadn’t won the Southwest Division since 1989. Defending division champ Albuquerque was close behind at 98-64, easily securing the first wild card slot. Defending World Series champion Nashville repeated as Southeast Division champs at 95-67. The Knights were 12 games better than Tampa.

In the South Central Division, Houston ended a two-year drought with a 94-68 mark. The Hornets were 11 games ahead of Memphis, while defending division champ Austin dropped to 78-84. For the second wild card, the Northwest Division’s Salt Lake City prevailed at 91-71. It was the second berth in three years for the Loons, but an impressive rebound from an abysmal 67-win 2001. SLC narrowly beat out Las Vegas (90-72) as well as divisional rivals Edmonton (88-74) and Portland (87-75) for the spot.

Worth noting that leading Salt Lake City’s bounce-back was Rookie of the Year Morgan Short. Nicknamed “the Machine,” the 10^th overall pick debuted with a 6.0 WAR season and AA-best .417 OBP. While that debut certainly showed he had greatness incoming, few may have realized at the time that Short would ultimately become MLB’s all-time WARlord once his 21-year career was over.

American Association MVP honors went to Albuquerque veteran LF Lukas Warrell. The 30-year old lefty from Tucson, Arizona led in runs (124), walks (109), OBP (1.044), and WAR (9.6). Warrell added 46 home runs, 125 RBI, and a .293 average.

Austin’s Zigmund Spampinato repeated as Pitcher of the Year in his third season. He again led in ERA (2.21) and had the most quality starts at 28. The 23-year old lefty added a 19-11 record over 293.1 innings, 292 strikeouts, and 10.2 WAR. He again edged out Calgary’s Daniel Grondin despite Grondin’s 12.5 WAR and AA-best 335 strikeouts At this point, there had only been four 12+ WAR seasons by a MLB pitcher and Grondin had three of them. Calgary would re-sign their ace after the 2003 campaign for five years and $49,600,000.

Albuquerque won on the road 2-1 over Houston, while Nashville edged Salt Lake City 2-1 in the first round. Both the Isotopes and Knights rolled to round two upsets. Albuquerque shocked #1 seed Seattle with a road sweep, while Nashville popped Phoenix 3-1. The Isotopes hadn’t been in the American Association Championship Series since their 1975 World Series win, while the Knights were looking to repeat.

It would go all seven games in the AACS for the first time since 1994. It seemed like a sweep was in order as Albuquerque started ahead 3-0. Nashville won the next three, but the Isotopes claimed game seven to avoid the collapse. This was Albuquerque’s fifth pennant (1926, 34, 48, 75, 02).

In the 102^nd World Series, Milwaukee defeated Albuquerque 4-2 to win their second-ever MLB title. They set a record for longest gap between rings at nearly a century as their lone championship was back in 1904. This was a huge turnaround for the Mustangs, who only the prior year had snapped a four-decade playoff drought. RF Alfredo “The Sheriff” Ontiveros won finals MVP in only his second season as a full-time starter. In 17 playoff starts, the 25-year old from Mexico had 21 hits, 13 runs, 2 doubles, 4 home runs, and 8 RBI.

Other notes: Francis Saidi became the 22^nd MLB pitcher to 3500 career strikeouts. SS Tanner Lipp won his seventh Gold Glove. SS Matteo Canetti won his ninth Silver Slugger.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-11-2024, 04:37 PM

2003 MLB Hall of Fame (Part 1)

Three players earned additions into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003. Catcher Mason Wilkinson was the headliner with 82.1% and a first-ballot nod. 2B Austin Shaw also was a first ballot pick, although his 71.8% was only narrowly above the 66% requirement. Closer Josiah Denson was the other addition at 67.0% on his second ballot. Fellow reliever Alex Cantos barely missed out with 65.6% in his fifth try. Also above 60% was 2B Rodrigo Badillo at 61.2% for his fifth go. Three others were above 50% with SP Ollie Husband at 53.1% for his fifth try, RF Mike Castaneda at 51.3% on his second, and SP Aiya Kodama at 50.5% in his second. No players were dropped after ten ballots.

Editor’s note: Kodama shows as “Elected” as he earned a spot in EAB’s 2003 class. OOTP removes multi-league guys from other ballots once they have been inducted or dropped, as they are put in the game’s global HOF list. He’s on a short list of guys who may have been good enough to get in two HOFs if given the chance, but we’ll discuss that in his EAB induction post.

Mason Wilkinson – Catcher – Oklahoma City Outlaws – 82.1% First Ballot

Mason Wilkinson was a 6’2’, 190 pound right-handed catcher from The Woodlands, Texas; a township of around 114,000 people within metropolitan Houston. Wilkinson was a fantastic contact hitter with a tremendous eye for drawing walks and avoiding strikeouts. He would lead in on-base percentage six times in his career and batting average twice. Wilkinson had good gap power and averaged around 30 doubles per 162 game average. His home run power was okay with 18 over his 162 game average. Wilkinson was abysmally slow and sluggish on the basepaths, which lessened his ability to score despite his great on-base percentage.

Wilkinson was a career catcher and renowned for tremendous durability at an incredibly demanding position, starting 120+ games every year for 19 years. Defensively, Wilkinson graded out as solidly above average. He became a popular player with fans, but Wilkinson would clash with teammates as times. He was considered to be a selfish loner that didn’t always give his all. Still, Wilkinson’s many talents put him in the conversation for MLB’s all-time top catcher.

Catchers with his skillset weren’t easy to find, as teams often had to sacrifice either batting or defense when filling the spot. Wilkinson showed he could do both in college with Memphis, winning a Silver Slugger his junior year. In the 1975 MLB Draft, San Antonio drafted Wilkinson with the #1 overall pick. However, he was unimpressed with their financial offering, refusing to sign with the Oilers. Wilkinson returned to college and won a second Silver Slugger as a senior. In four seasons with the Tigers, he had 184 games and 168 starts, 220 hits, 114 runs, 37 doubles, 44 home runs, 140 RBI, 114 walks, a .344/.436/.597 slash, 194 wRC, and 10.9 WAR.

Wilkinson was still a very hot commodity for the 1976 MLB Draft and was again picked #1 overall, this time by Oklahoma City. The Outlaws gave him a four-year, $2,160,000 major league contract right out of the gate. Wilkinson lived up to the billing with an outstanding rookie season, posting an American Association and career-best .364 batting average. He also led in OBP (.434) and posted 8.0 WAR. Wilkinson won Silver Slugger honors easily, but just missed out on Rookie of the Year to Atlanta’s Rodrigo Badillo; himself also a future Hall of Famer.

The next season, Wilkinson had a career-best 8.4 WAR and led again in OBP with a career best .438. He would win ten Silver Sluggers total with six coming for the Outlaws (1977, 78, 90, 82, 83, 87,). Wilkinson would trade the honor in the American Association with HOF Class of 2001 Mike Bastiani. He also took third in 1983’s MVP voting, winning his second batting title that year at .342. Wilkinson led in OBP for a third time in 1984 at .413 and had nine seasons worth 5+ WAR for OKC.

Oklahoma City was able to reverse their fortunes, having won an atrocious 50 games the year Wilkinson was drafted. They made four playoff appearances from 1979-83 with one division title, but never got deeper than the second round. Wilkinson’s playoff numbers were pedestrian with the Outlaws with a 101 wRC+ and .235/.329/.368 slash in 19 starts. Still, OKC committed to Wilkinson long-term after the 1980 season with an eight-year, $10,640,000 contract extension.

For the rest of the 1980s after their brief run of playoff berths, Oklahoma City fell into the middle tier. Wilkinson still played at a very steady pace as a good starter, although he was less impressive as he entered his 30s. He posted four seasons below a .300 batting average to end his Outlaws run. In total for OKC, Wilkinson had 1755 hits, 836 runs, 317 doubles, 186 home runs, 730 RBI, a .306/.389/.463 slash, 137 wRC+, and 68.8 WAR. The franchise would retire his #27 uniform at the end of his career.

Wilkinson decided to leave for free agency after the 1988 season, testing the waters entering his age 34 season. His durability and reliability meant he still had plenty of options. Wilkinson would sign a five-year, $8,700,000 contract with Hartford. He’d see a career resurgence for the Huskies, leading the National Association thrice in OBP. Wilkinson had four seasons worth 6.5+ WAR and won three more Silver Sluggers (1990, 91, 92).

Wilkinson stepped up big in the playoffs for Hartford, who won National Association pennants in 1989 and 1992. Although the Huskies lost the 1989 World Series to Denver, Wilkinson earned series MVP honors. In 1992, Hartford took the title against Calgary. In the playoffs for the Huskies, Wilkinson had 43 starts with 49 hits, 16 runs, 9 doubles, 6 home runs, 26 RBI, a .297/.370/.461 slash, 149 wRC+, and 1.7 WAR.

In his later years, Wilkinson also played for the United States in the World Baseball Championship. He played for the American team from 1989-95, starting in the first four editions of that run. In 63 games and 53 starts, Wilkinson had 56 hits, 32 runs, 12 doubles, 8 home runs, 28 RBI, a .296/.398/.508 slash, 162 wRC+, and 2.5 WAR. He was part of the 1992 world champion team.

For his Hartford run, Wilkinson saw 798 hits, 368 runs, 138 doubles, 64 home runs, 340 RBI, a .313/.393/.448 slash, 156 wRC+, and 33.6 WAR. Although the tenure was brief, he’d remain a popular figure with Huskies fans. His contract ran out after the 1993 campaign and he was a free agent again at age 39. Wilkinson was amazingly coming off some of his best work in his late 30s and physically was in great condition. Still, many MLB teams didn’t want to sign someone of his age, especially at catcher and for the money Wilkinson commanded.

He ended up moving to England as EBF’s Birmingham Bees signed Wilkinson to a two-ear, $5,520,000 deal. He had a great 6.7 WAR campaign and won the tenth Silver Slugger of his career. Wilkinson also started during the playoff run as Birmingham won the European Championship against Barcelona. They fell in the conference final the next year, but Wilkinson was still great. In his two seasons in England, he had 12.4 WAR, a .327/.402/.471 slash, 145 wRC+, 307 hits, 135 runs, and 26 home runs.

Wilkinson came back to MLB for 1996 as Austin gave him a two-year, $6,480,000 deal. He was only used as a part-time starter though and posted very average numbers. Wilkinson didn’t meet the vesting criteria and was a free agent again for 1997. Kansas City signed him for one year and $2,520,000, but he only had 51 games and 32 starts for the Cougars. Wilkinson retired that winter at age 42.

For his entire pro career, Wilkinson had 2944 hits, 1365 runs, 515 doubles, 279 home runs, 1254 RBI, 1264 walks, a .308/.389/.455 slash, 141 wRC+, and 116.2 WAR. His WAR total is the most by any catcher in any pro league and would only finally be passed by future Beisbol Sudamerica legend Cicero Lugo.

For his MLB career, Wilkinson had 2637 hits, 1230 runs, 474 doubles, 253 home runs, 1098 RBI, 1144 walks, a .305/.388/.453 slash, 140 wRC+, and 103.8 WAR. Wilkinson leads all MLB catchers in WAR and OBP as of 2037, although Mike Bastiani has him just beat in hits and runs. Wilkinson deserves a look when discussing MLB’s all-time best catcher though as an ironman with a multi-faceted game. He led the 2003 Hall of Fame class with a first ballot nod, although the anti-catcher bias of voters meant that even he only got 82.1%.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-12-2024, 04:54 AM

2003 MLB Hall of Fame (Part 2)

Austin “Fertile” Shaw – Second Base – St. Louis Cardinals – 71.8% First Ballot

Austin Shaw was a 6’2’’, 200 pound left-handed hitting second baseman from Berea, Ohio; a western Cleveland suburb with 18,000 inhabitants. Shaw was a very good contact hitter who was solid at drawing walks and excellent at avoiding strikeouts. He still had a quite good pop in his bat, averaging 32 home runs, 22 doubles, and 11 triples per 162 game average. Shaw’s speed was just above average, but he provided solid value as a very intelligent and crafty baserunner

Defensively, Shaw played primarily at second base, although he did see some time at shortstop early in his career. He was just below average, but perfectly serviceable at 2B. Shaw stunk at SS though and didn’t work in his few stints elsewhere. He was extremely popular as a team captain, well respected by all for his leadership and work ethic. Most would agree that Shaw was one of the best men involved with the game.

Shaw had an excellent college career at Ole Miss, winning national MVP honors in his freshman year. He also had Silver Sluggers as a freshman and sophomore. In three seasons with the Rebels, Shaw had 149 games and 141 starts, 178 hits, 130 runs, 18 doubles, 52 home runs, 132 RBI, a .330/.427/.659 slash, 216 wRC+, and 12.3 WAR. St. Louis had the #1 overall pick for the 1979 MLB Draft and had Shaw as the top man on the board, He’d spend the next 14 years as a full-time starter for the Cardinals, only missing time to sporadic injuries.

Shaw had a terrific debut season, leading the National Association in OBP (.409), OPS (1.004), and wRC+ (194). This would be the only time he led in those stats in his career. Shaw’s 6.7 WAR also landed him Rookie of the Year and a Silver Slugger. A strained PCL cost and torn thumb ligament cost him two months of 1981, but Shaw had a full run in 1982 with 9.0 WAR and a 1.005 OPS. He won his second Silver Slugger and took second in MVP voting.

This also was a stunning World Series run for the Cardinals from the second wild card spot. They had won only 57 games back in 1979, thus getting the #1 pick for Shaw. In the postseason run, he made 16 starts with 19 hits, 12 runs, 8 doubles, 3 home runs, 14 RBI, a .333/.414/.632 slash, 192 wRC+, and 0.9 WAR. Cardinals fans hoped this would mark the start of a new era of success, although it was ultimately a one-off. St. Louis was a wild card again in 1984, but fell in the second round. They’d then go on a seven-year playoff drought.

Shaw was still outstanding regardless, winning MVP honors in 1983 and his third Silver Slugger. That year, he was the National Association WARlord (8.7) and runs leader (114) while posting a career-best 190 wRC+. Shaw won his third Silver Slugger in 1983 and fourth in 1984. In April 1985, St. Louis locked up their captain for the long haul with an eight-year, $13,600,000 extension.

From 1984-96, Shaw was also a regular and a leader for the United States in the World Baseball Championship. He had 176 games and 160 starts with 149 hits, 106 runs, 25 doubles, 33 home runs, 106 RBI, 91 walks, 47 stolen bases, a .260/.372/.493 slash, 147 wRC+, and 7.0 WAR. Shaw won world titles with the American team in 1984, 85, 88, 92, and 96. He was also third in WBC MVP voting in 1985.

Shaw was still very good when healthy after signing his big extension, but he’d miss sizeable chunks of a few seasons. A concussion cost him three months in 1986, an oblique strain cost a month in 1987, various injuries erased six weeks in 1988, a strained hamstring spent six weeks in 1989, and a hip strain ruined five weeks in 1991. It wouldn’t be until 1992 that Shaw finally had a truly full load.

That 1992 campaign reminded the baseball world how good Shaw was when healthy. At age 33, he led the NA in runs (114) , total bases (347), and WAR (9.4); each career highs. He also had a career-best 35 home runs, winning his second MVP a decade after his first. This also was Shaw’s fifth and final MLB Silver Slugger. St. Louis ended their playoff drought with a division title and 100-win season, although they fell in the second round of the playoffs.

A strained MCL cost him a month in early 1993, then a strained hamstring knocked Shaw out for the final month of the season and the playoffs, although they were one-and-done anyway. This marked the end of his contract and ultimately the end of his time with St. Louis. Shaw remained beloved years later and his #33 uniform would get retired. However, management was leery about giving big money to a soon-to-be 35 year old second baseman with injury concerns, even if he still played very well when healthy.

Shaw ended up moving to South America to continue his baseball career after he couldn’t find a suitable MLB role. He ended up in Colombia on a three-year, $7,800,000 deal with Medellin. Shaw stayed relatively healthy with a good 1994, then had an outstanding 1995. He led the Bolivar League with 8.0 WAR and had 36 home runs, winning a Silver Slugger and taking third in MVP voting.

His good luck with injuries went away in 1996 with a torn meniscus and strained hamstring knocking him out almost all year. Shaw made it back for the playoffs as Medellin lost in the BLCS. For his Mutiny run though, Shaw had 343 hits, 196 runs, 60 doubles, 58 home runs, 205 RBI, a .296/.353/.560 slash, 155 wRC+, and 13.6 WAR. Very good production for just over two years from an aging infielder. Like in his prior stops, Shaw was also well liked and respected for his leadership.

He was a free agent again for 1997 at age 38 and still wanted to play back in the States. Nashville gave him a chance on a one-year, $2,760,000 deal. Shaw stayed healthy, but merely looked average offensively over 115 games with 0.8 WAR and a 100 wRC+. With that, he decided to retire that winter at age 39.

For his full pro career, Shaw had 2520 hits, 1436 runs, 314 doubles, 172 triples, 426 home runs, 1399 RBI, 385 stolen bases, a .299/.369/.529 slash, 165 wRC+, and 107.7 WAR. In just MLB, he had 2177 hits, 1240 runs, 254 doubles, 136 triples, 368 home runs, 1194 RBI, 825 walks, 300 stolen bases, a .299/.371/.524 slash, 166 wRC+, and 94.1 WAR.

Shaw’s rate stats were certainly excellent, although the accumulations were lower than many voters preferred largely due to the injuries. At induction, he had the fifth most WAR at second base in MLB history and is still sixth as of 2037. Shaw definitely goes down as one of the best at the position, although 2B can sometimes rival catchers for difficulty in getting the HOF nod. Shaw’s great leadership and long tenure with St. Louis were both big plusses. That allowed enough voters to overlook the lower counting stats for a first ballot nod in 2003, albeit narrowly crossing the 66% requirement at 71.8%.

Josiah “Pizza” Denson – Relief Pitcher – Tampa Thunderbirds – 67.0% Second Ballot

Josiah Denson was a 5’11’’, 200 pound right-handed relief pitcher from Brent, Florida; a town of around 21,000 people in the far western panhandle. Denson earned the nickname “Pizza” because he always had a pie ready in the clubhouse after any outing.

Denson’s curveball was legendary and graded out as a 11/10. He also had a 99-101 mph fastball, making his stuff electric. On the 1/10 scale, scouts rated his stuff as high as 14 in his prime. Denson’s control and movement were both graded as above average. He was also considered a durable reliever that was always ready to go.

Denson attended Boston College and was a starter in his three years there. In 37 college stats, he had a 19-7 record, 1.49 ERA, 248.1 innings, 308 strikeouts, 238 ERA+, and 12.4 WAR. Denson’s stuff was certainly dominant, but most scouts felt his stamina was way too weak for a starting role in the majors. Plus, he only had two pitches, even if both were fantastic. Denson would end up selected early in the second round of the 1979 MLB Draft by Tampa, going 61^st overall. The Thunderbirds used him as mid relief as a rookie, but he’d earn the closer role in year two.

Denson’s best year arguably was 1986 with an American Association best 40 saves and career-best 0.97 ERA. He won Reliever of the Year this season as well. It was his only time as a finalist for the award, although he led again in saves in 1988. Tampa was happy with the results though and kept giving Denson small extensions once he had reached the service time requirements.

The Thunderbirds were a sporadic playoff team in his run and almost always above .500. They had six berths and four Southeast Division titles while Denson was there, but they never went deeper than the second round. His playoff sample size was very limited with a 4.91 ERA over 11 innings. Still, Denson was well known by the Tampa community and his #4 uniform would eventually get retired by the organization.

Denson signed a three-year, $5,040,000 extension in April 1991. However, his time in Tampa ended in the final year of that run, as he was traded before the 1994 season to Oakland for prospects. The Owls gave him limited usage with only 18.1 innings. Denson then entered free agency for the first time at age 35.

Denson started 1995 with New York, but they cut him in late July. Atlanta signed him to finish the season, but he never saw the field for the Aces. By this point, his fastball velocity had dropped noticeably. Jacksonville inked Denson for 1996, but traded him at the deadline to St. Louis. He was merely a back-end reliever in these later years with unremarkable results. Denson decided to retire after the 1996 season at age 37.

Denson’s final stats saw a 2.31 ERA, 317 saves and 376 shutdowns, 887.1 innings, 1256 strikeouts, 291 walks, 170 ERA+, 54 FIP-, and 38.2 WAR. His rate stats were comparable to some others that had gotten into the MLB Hall of Fame with an excellent strikeout rate. He also had the 300 save milestone. As of 2037, Denson sits 36^th all-time in saves.

However, his stats were borderline and he had only one Reliever of the Year in his career. Still, MLB’s voters were often quite lax and forgiving to relievers for whatever reason. Denson missed the cut at 58.4% in his debut but just crossed the line at 67.0% for a second ballot addition in 2003.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-12-2024, 10:53 AM

2003 CABA Hall of Fame (Part 1)

The 2003 Central American Baseball Association Hall of Fame class featured three inductees. The star was easily 1B/DH Romeo Verguet, the lone first ballot pick at 87.7%. 3B Pedro Pizarro joined him, finally making the cut after eight tries with 73.4%. SP Gabe de Kroon was the third guy, just crossing the 66% requirement with 68.8% on his fifth go. The only other player above 50% was 3B Bienvenido Ramon at 56.8% for his third ballot. The CABA ballot didn’t have any players dropped after ten tries and apart from Pizarro, the most tenured players were on their sixth ballots.

Romeo Verguet – First Base/Designated Hitter – Bahamas Buccaneers – 87.7% First Ballot

Romeo Verguet was a 6’0’’, 205 pound right-handed hitting first baseman from Saint-Pierre, Martinique. In modern times it is a small town with only 4,000. In the late 1800s, it was called the “Paris of the Caribbean” and was the cultural capital of Martinque, but sadly the town was destroyed in a 1902 volcanic eruption. Verguet would be the first and as of 2037 only CABA Hall of Famer from the island. He’d also be only the second player inducted with the Bahamas Buccaneers as his primary team.

Verguet was a solid contract hitter that had strong power, averaging around 30-40 home runs and around 25-35 doubles per season. He was above average at drawing walks, but his strikeout rate was subpar. Verguet was also slow and sluggish on the basepaths. He made around 3/5s of his career starts at first base, where he graded out as a poor defender. Logically, the rest of his starts were as a designated hitter.

Verguet’s strong bat certainly was deserving of a prominent spot in the lineup. He became a popular player both for his bat and for his fan favorite personality. Verguet was an affable fellow who worked hard and showed strong leadership and loyalty. He also was viewed as an ironman, playing 140+ games in all but his final pro season.

Although Martinique’s baseball scene was underdeveloped compared to most of its Caribbean neighbors, scouts still took notice of Verguet as he dominated the amateur ranks. When the 1981 CABA Draft came around, Verguet was selected seventh overall by Bahamas. At that point, the Buccaneers had been around two decades since expansion and largely stunk with no playoff appearances and only two winning seasons. They hoped that Verguet might be the guy to help turn things around.

The team’s fortunes didn’t flip at all in the early 1980s, but that was hardly Verguet’s fault. He was a full-time starter immediately and took second in Rookie of the Year voting. Verguet was solid in his first few seasons, but wasn’t truly elite level until his fifth year. That season, he led the Caribbean League in runs, hits, RBI, total bases, average, and OBP. He smacked 40 home runs with 6.6 WAR, posting career bests in hits, total bases and average. Verguet earned his lone MVP and his lone Silver Slugger with this effort.

That also earned Bahamas a new franchise best 90-72 season, their first winning year since 1973. The Buccaneers still missed the playoffs, but they would finally get their first-ever playoff berth and division title in 1987. However, Havana upset them in the wild card round. Verguet again led in RBI and hit 41 home runs with a career high 6.7 WAR. Early in 1988, Bahamas would commit to their fan favorite with an eight-year, $11,240,000 extension.

Verguet would also earn some popularity in the World Baseball Championship. He played for France from 1983-93, as Martinique is part of the French Republic. In 113 games and 108 starts, Verguet had 92 hits, 52 runs, 16 doubles, 29 home runs, 5 9 RBI, a .229/.300/.490 slash, 127 wRC+, and 3.2 WAR.

Verguet remained largely solid over his big contract, although he didn’t win any additional awards with tough competition at DH and 1B. He would lead in doubles with 43 in 1991. In total he had seven seasons with 100+ RBI, nine seasons with 30+ homers, and four seasons worth 5+ WAR with the Buccaneers. Despite his efforts, Bahamas peaked with their playoff berth in 1987, dropping back to the mid-tier for the remainder of his run.

After the 1993 season, Verguet was coming up on age 35 and entering the last year of his deal. To the chagrin of many Bahamas fans, the franchise traded him and young OF Fernando Raya to Santo Doingo for pitchers Cecil Estrada and Cesar Uribe. Verguet’s #7 uniform would later be retired by the Buccaneers and he’d serve as a franchise icon after retiring. In total with Bahamas, Verguet had 2076 hits, 1027 runs, 356 doubles, 412 home runs, 1280 RBI, a .291/.342/.522 slash, 139 wRC+, and 50.4 WAR.

Santo Domingo was hoping to bounce back after seeing a four-year playoff streak snapped in 1993. It worked, as they won the Island Division, but fell in the CLCS to Salvador. Verguet had a career-best 108 runs and matched his career-best with 41 home runs. The Dolphins were happy with the results and signed Verguet to a three-year contract worth $5,700,000. He would ultimately finish his career in the Dominican capital.

Verguet again hit 41 homers in 1995. He dropped a bit in 1996, then was merely average in 1997 and missed five weeks to a sprained thumb. Santo Domingo only made the playoffs once more in 1997 with Verguet, falling in the wild card round. He decided to retire after the 1997 campaign at age 38. With Santo Domingo, Verguet had 557 hits, 330 runs, 87 doubles, 145 home runs, 350 RBI, a .269/.324/.535 slash, 130 wRC+, and 12.3 WAR.

The final stats for Verguet saw 2633 hits, 1357 runs, 443 doubles, 557 home runs, 1630 RBI, a .286/.338/.525 slash, 137 wRC+, and 62.7 WAR. His poor defense and baserunning hurt him in some metrics, but Verguet had important counting stats like 500+ dingers, 1500+ RBI, and 2500+ hits. He was well liked and was the reliable face of a franchise, making the struggling Bahamas team more competitive than they usually were. These facts earned Verguet a first ballot nod at 87.7% to headline the 2003 CABA class.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-12-2024, 04:58 PM

2003 CABA Hall of Fame (Part 2)

Pedro “Bronco” Pizarro – Third Base – Chihuahua Warriors – 73.4% Eighth Ballot

Pedro Pizarro was a 6’0’’, 205 pound right-handed third baseman from Motozintla, Mexico, a city of around 76,000 people on the southern border with Guatemala. Pizarro earned the nickname “Bronco” for his horse-like quick speed. He led the Mexican League in stolen bases five times and knew how to perfectly time his jumps. Pizarro was a great leadoff man his era with solid contact skills and a great eye. He was good at drawing walks, but was outstanding at putting the ball in play and avoiding strikeouts.

Pizarro wasn’t just a singles hitter, as he’d usually get around 25-35 doubles and 10-20 triples per season. He didn’t have home run power though, only once hitting double-digits in a season. Pizarro was a career third basemen and was well below average defensively. Still, he was very well respected for his intelligence and work ethic. Pizarro also had excellent durability in his prime, playing 150+ games each year from 1981-89.

Even without home run power, Pizarro skillset drew plenty of attention after a great amateur career. In the 1977 CABA Draft, Chihuahua selected Pizarro with the fourth overall pick. He was used only as a part-time starter in his first three seasons, starting only 171 games over those years. 1981 saw Pizarro’s first year as the full-time guy at third, a spot he’d hold for the next decade. Chihuahua remained a mediocre team in his run with only one winning season in the entire 1980s. However, Pizarro would hold his own.

From 1981-89, Pizarro had 6+ WAR each season. He led in stolen bases with 99 and OBP with .412 in 1982. Pizarro then led in steals four straight years from 1986-89 and won a batting title with .321 average in 1989. He won two Silver Sluggers (1986, 1988) but was never an MVP finalist with the lack of home run power and being on bad teams. Pizarro committed long term after the 1982 season with an eight-year, $5,482,000 extension.

Pizarro was well known in Mexico even with Chihuahua being a non-factor. He would play in eight editions of the World Baseball Championship, but almost exclusively as a backup and pinch runner. Pizarro had 23 games and 8 starts with 9 hits, 4 runs, and 8 steals.

By WAR, 1989 was his finest season with 9.0 WAR at age 34. He still played at a high level in 1990, but the Warriors moved him to a part-time starter role in his final season. Pizarro decided to leave for free agent, in part dissatisfied with being a backup. He’d remain popular with fans, but the awkward ending played a role in Pizarro’s jersey number never being retired. Even at age 36, he seemed to still have plenty to offer. MLB’s Tampa Thunderbirds would bring in Pizarro on a three-year, $5,980,000 deal.

Pizarro started much of the 1991 season, but posted very pedestrian numbers. Tampa made him a part-time starter in 1992 as he posted negative WAR. Over 217 games in MLB, he had -0.3 WAR and 86 wRC+. Pizarro was let go and couldn’t find a home for 1993. He would retire that winter at age 39.

For his CABA and Chihuahua run, Pizarro had 2002 hits, 909 runs, 325 doubles, 167 triples, 63 home runs, 631 RBI, 931 stolen bases, a .316/.370/.451 slash, 149 wRC+, and 72.4 WAR. Pizarro was 14^th in steals at induction and sits 21^st as of 2037. His WAR was sixth-best in CABA history at third base as of retirement. However, voters were very averse on guys who didn’t have home runs or RBI.

Thus, Pizarro debuted on the ballot in 1996 at 44.7%. He slowly grew into the 50s and then got as high as 63.5% in 2001. Pizarro dropped back down to 59.1% in 2002. In 2003, the eighth ballot was finally the one for him with 73.4%. His unique skillset and run even with a poor team was deemed worthy for the 2003 CABA class.

Gabe de Kroon – Starting Pitcher – Puebla Pumas – 68.8% Fifth Ballot

Gabe de Kroon was a 5’9’’, 195 pound right-handed pitcher from Willemstad, the capital and largest city of Curacao. The stocky de Kroon was known for having outstanding pinpoint control. He would have strong stuff in his prime, although his movement was subpar, leading to a higher number of home runs allowed than you’d like. His fastball was in the 96-98 mph range and was evenly mixed with a slider, curveball, sinker, and splitter. No one pitch was dominant, but de Kroon was great at mixing them up and spotting them. He had excellent stamina, although he’d run into injury troubles at various points.

In summer 1973, a scout from Puebla spotted a teenaged de Kroon in Curacao. He was signed as a 16-year old amateur and spent parts of the next four years in their developmental system. De Kroon made his official debut in 1978 at age 21, although he’d be only an occasional starter in his first three seasons. His results were promising and he was promoted to a full-time starter role in 1981.

That season, de Kroon led the Mexican League in wins at 18-11, innings pitched at 273.0, and complete games at 16. He regressed a bit in 1982 and was only a part-time starter. The Pumas ended a 15-year playoff drought, but de Kroon struggled in two playoff starts with a 5.62 ERA as they lost in the Mexican League Championship Series to Juarez. 1983 saw 200+ innings although he only had 26 appearances. In his limited time, de Kroon had a very good 6.1 WAR, earning a full-time rotation spot from then on with Puebla.

In 1984, de Kroon had a career-best 7.3 WAR and led in both wins and complete games for the second time. Puebla had the best record in Mexico at 105-57, but again fell to Juarez in the MLCS. De Kroon again struggled in two playoff starts with a 4.50 ERA. He would go onto pitch a few more good years, although de Kroon wasn’t a league leader. He was never a Pitcher of the Year finalist in his career a well.

Puebla signed de Kroon to a six-year, $5,400,000 extension in March 1986. The Pumas again made the playoffs in 1987, but yet again lost in the MLCS, this time to Torreon. The team regressed in the following years while de Kroon carried on. Injuries started to cost him time towards the end of his deal, including a herniated disc and strained abdominal in 1989, then an arthritic elbow in 1990.

Just before the 1991 season, de Kroon was traded to Guadalajara for three prospects. In total with Puebla, de Kroon had a 147-115 record, 3.06 ERA, 2473.1 innings, 2816 strikeouts, 311 walks, 194/298 quality starts, 158 complete games, 104 ERA+, 90 FIP-, and 43.7 WAR. The Hellhounds used him more out of the bullpen, although he struggled with a 4.83 ERA. He was back more to the rotation in 1992 and pitched better, but was still very middling.

In his two seasons for Guadalajara, de Kroon had a 4.18 ERA over 340 innings, 405 strikeouts, 83 ERA+ and -1.2 WAR. Now a free agent at age 36, Santo Domingo gave de Kroon a one-year deal. He was able to eat some innings with average results and earned 1.6 WAR. This would be the final season for de Kroon in CABA, but he wasn’t quite done yet.

For 1994, de Kroon found a spot in Italy with EBF’s Rome. He was a back-end starter for the Red Wolves, then joined Zurich for 1995. He fared no better in Switzerland, giving him -0.4 WAR and a 4.55 ERA in his two EBF seasons. De Kroon was unsigned in 1996 and retired that winter at age 39.

For his CABA run, de Kroon had a 174-156 record, 3.25 ERA, 3000.1 innings, 3411 strikeouts, 376 walks, 218/354 quality starts, 180 complete games, 101 ERA+, 96 FIP-, and 44.2 WAR. His walk rate was among the lowest for guys with 3000 innings, but other advanced stats had him as delightfully average. Additionally, de Kroon was never a Pitcher of the Year finalist. Most initial indications suggested a Hall of Pretty Good level guy. His WAR would be the lowest of any starting pitcher in the CABA Hall of Fame.

In 1999, de Kroon debuted at 38.9% and dropped to 36.4% the next year. He managed to get a bump to 52.8% on his third ballot, but then dropped back to 42.2% in 2002. Many were surprised when de Kroon received a big jump on his fifth ballot, earning a narrow induction at 68.8%. Scholars suggest de Kroon as one of the weakest CABA Hall of Fame members, but regardless, he secured a spot to close out the 2003 class.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-13-2024, 02:45 AM

2003 EAB Hall of Fame (Part 1)

The East Asia Baseball Hall of Fame inducted three outstanding starting pitchers with the 2003 class. All three were first ballot picks with above 98% with Aiya Kodama (98.6%), Seong-Jun Myong (98.3%), and Rikiya Fujiwara (98.3%). 2B Seong-Jae Kang came close on his eighth ballot, but was short at 59.5%. The only other player above 50% was LF Jin-Uk Song at 57.8% on his debut.

One player fell off after ten ballots in the 2003 EAB voting. 1B Kenta Goto had a 15-year career mostly with Saitama, winning two Silver Sluggers. He had 2181 hits, 1212 runs, 298 doubles, 534 home runs, 1403 RBI, a .273/.342/.521 slash, 151 wRC+, and 72.3 WAR. His tallies were pretty solid, but he was overlooked in an era of other stronger sluggers at the position. Goto also never made the playoffs despite a good career. He had a nice 51.4% debut ballot in 1994, but only went downward and ended at 4.7%. Goto at least did get his #32 uniform retired by Saitama, but he missed the cut for the Hall of Fame.

Aiya Kodama – Starting Pitcher – Hiroshima Hammerheads – 98.6% First Ballot

Aiya Kodama was a 6’2’’, 200 pound left-handed pitcher from Odate, a small city of 67,000 inhabitants in northern Japan’s Akita Prefecture. Kodama was known for having incredible stuff with excellent control and good movement. He had three pitches with a 97-99 mph fastball, a stellar slider, and good changeup. Kodama boasted outstanding stamina and was incredibly durable as well. Additionally, he was quite good at holding runners.

Kodama became absolutely beloved everywhere he played, becoming one of Japan’s favorite players. He was a team captain, renowned for his great leadership, work ethic, and adaptability. By the time his remarkable career ended, Kodama was considered by some to be the greatest pitcher ever to come out of Japan.

Kodama was a rare pitcher to be drafted out of high school, as he tore through the competition at Hachiohe Gakuin Kosei High School. In the 1976 EAB Draft, Kodama was picked tenth overall by Hiroshima. The Hammerheads kept him in the developmental system for his first two years under contact. Kodama officially debuted in 1979 at age 20 and was a full-time starter immediately. In all but his final two seasons of his career, Kodama tossed 240+ innings each season.

Kodama showed promise, but had very average production in his first two seasons. He led the Japan League in losses as a rookie and innings in his second year. By his junior campaign, Kodama emerged as a legitimate ac, leading in wins and posting 7.1 WAR. It would be his fourth year that Kodama went from great to historic.

From 1982-87, Kodama won six straight Pitcher of the Year awards. He was the first-ever six-time winner in Japan League history and joined the Korea League’s Yu-Geon Moon as the only East Asia Baseball pitchers to do it to that point. Each year, Kodama was the WARlord with 9+ or better, including four seasons worth 11+. He led in strikeouts each of these seasons with 335+ each year and won five ERA titles. Kodama also led in wins four times, innings once, WHIP four times, complete games five times, shutouts four times, and FIP- all six seasons.

Kodama earned three Triple Crowns, the first in 1982 with a 24-3 record, 1.68 ERA, and 374 strikeouts. This season would see career bests in Ks, WAR (11.8), and wins (24). He also took second in MVP voting. The second Triple Crown was 22-6, 1.84 ERA, and 371 strikeouts in 1984 with 11.5 WAR. The third Triple Crown in 1986 had a career-best 1.41 ERA, 22-4 record, 370 strikeouts, and 11.5 WAR. That ERA mark was the fifth lowest in EAB history at that point. This also earned Kodama the Japan League MVP.

Kodama helped get Hiroshima to three straight division titles in this stretch from 1985-87. The Hammerheads had signed him to a seven-year, $4,860,000 extension in May 1984. They made it to the Japan League Championship Series in both 1986 and 1987, but lost both times. Kodama wasn’t to blame, as he had a 1.81 ERA over 59.2 playoff innings with 94 strikeouts.

In 1988, Kodama’s production fell off from his historic highs, although he still posted 6.5 WAR, a 2.76 ERA, and 302 strikeouts. Hiroshima dropped to 75-89 and Kodama considered his future. He still had a few years on his deal, but had an opt-out clause. Kodama stunned many by exercising that opt out, becoming a free agent at age 30. He very quickly was the hottest free agent pitcher in the entire world.

Kodama would leave Japan and Hiroshima, although he’d still remain extremely popular with both. The Hammerheads would eventually retire his #10 uniform as an all-time legend. After leaving for MLB, he would return home and pitch for Japan in the World Baseball Championship from 1990-96. In 112.1 WBC innings, Kodama had a 10-4 record, 2.16 ERA, 158 strikeouts, 168 ERA+, and 3.5 WAR.

MLB’s Denver Dragons would win the sweepstakes for Kodama at five years and $7,800,000, more than doubling his yearly best with Hiroshima. Kodama had a remarkable debut for Denver, setting a still-standing MLB record with 318.2 innings pitched. He also led in wins (24), WHIP (0.93), and quality starts (29) while adding 10.5 WAR. Kodama won American Association Pitcher of the Year, his seventh POTY in total making him one of a select few to win it in multiple leagues. Kodama also had a no-hitter with six strikeouts and one walk in September against Miami.

In the 1989 postseason, Kodama tossed 37.2 innings with a 3.11 ERA, 30 strikeouts, and 126 ERA+. This helped Denver won the World Series over Hartford. The Dragons made the playoffs three more times during Kodama’s run, winning another pennant in 1991. They would get upset in the World Series by Kansas City. For his playoff career, Kodama had a 3.43 ERA over 107.2 innings, 83 strikeouts, 115 ERA+, and 1.9 WAR.

Kodama would lead twice more in innings pitched and twice more in WHIP with Denver. All five seasons with the Dragons were worth 7+ WAR. He took second in Pitcher of the Year voting in both 1991 and 1993. In total with Denver, Kodama had a 108-56 record, 2.93 ERA, 1522.1 innings, 1291 strikeouts, 108 complete games, 135 ERA+, 71 FIP-, and 44.7 WAR.

His contract was up after the 1993 season, making Kodama a free agent entering his age 35 season. He certainly proved himself in the MLB ranks and earned a four-year, $12,320,000 deal with Washington. Kodama still ate innings with the Admirals, but his dominance waned in this stretch. He would step up in the 1995 playoff run as Washington lost to Boston in the NACS. Kodama had a 0.36 ERA in 25 playoff innings.

For his Washington run, he pitched three seasons with a 42-34 record, 3.01 ERA, 726.2 innings, 515 strikeouts, 113 ERA+, and 12.8 WAR. Kodama’s velocity dropped significantly late in his run and the Admirals cut him during spring training 1997. For his MLB career, Kodama had a 150-90 record, 2.96 ERA, 2249 innings, 1806 strikeouts, 364 walks, 181/282 quality starts, 130 complete games, 127 ERA+, 78 FIP-, and 57.5 WAR.

It was a remarkable run considering it was only eight seasons in his 30s. One could argue he could’ve been an MLB Hall of Famer and in two years on the ballot, he earned a respectable 54.3% and 50.5%. Kodama was officially removed from the global ballot when EAB inducted him. He may not have had the tenure or accumulations to make the MLB HOF had he gotten ten ballots, but Kodama is one of very few in baseball history to have a legitimate case to be a two-time Hall of Famer.

At age 38, he would return home to Japan for one final season. Sendai gave him a one-year, $1,900,000 deal as a reliever. Kodama’s good control meant he was still usable even though his fastball now could barely top 90 mph. Kodama would retire after the 1997 season at age 38.

For his EAB career (which was mostly Hiroshima), Kodama had a 186-86 record, 2.30 ERA, 2676 innings, 3206 strikeouts, 390 walks, 237/305 quality starts, 137 complete games, 31 shutouts, 149 ERA+, 65 FIP-, and 83.5 WAR. Few starters in the EAB Hall of Fame had a lower ERA and his totals were impressive for a relatively brief run. Had he remained in Japan for his entire career, Kodama might have had a chance at being at the very top of the leaderboards. Regardless, winning six Pitcher of the Year awards and three Triple Crowns made him a lock for the 2003 ballot at 98.6%.

Worth noting for his full career, Kodama had a 336-176 record, 2.60 ERA, 4925 innings, 5012 strikeouts, 754 walks, 418/587 quality starts, 267 complete games, 138 ERA+, 71 FIP-, and 141.0 WAR. That career WAR was higher even than EAB’s top pitcher Jae-Hoon Seon at 132.4. Few pitchers in baseball history had a better resume, making it a fair question to ask; was Aiya Kodama the best-ever pitcher to come out of Japan?

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-13-2024, 12:21 PM

2003 EAB Hall of Fame (Part 2)

Seong-Jun Myong – Starting Pitcher – Sapporo Swordfish – 98.3% First Ballot

Seong-Jun Myong was a 6’3’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Busan, South Korea’s second most populous city. Myong had great control with very good movement and solid stuff. His velocity peaked in the 95-97 mph range with a four pitch arsenal of slider, splitter, cutter, curveball. Myong had very strong stamina with pretty good durability for most of his run, tossing 220+ innings in 15 consecutive seasons.

Myong earned a lot of respect in the game for an impressive work ethic. He was loyal and adaptable, generally viewed as a great clubhouse presence. As far as pitchers go, he was a good batter too, winning Silver Sluggers in 1986 and 1987. Myong had a .201 batting average for his career with 177 hits, 56 runs, and 77 RBI over his career.

Ahead of the 1979 EAB Draft, Myong was a highly touted prospect for the Korea League. So much so that Bucheon picked him with the #1 overall pick and immediately made him a full-time starter. The Bolts were an 1978 expansion team and hoped Myong could be their future. Myong wasn’t quite ready as a rookie, leading in 1980 in losses with a lousy 4.97 ERA. He showed much improvement in his sophomore season, although his stats were merely average.

Myong emerged as a legitimate ace with 6+ WAR in his third and fourth seasons with the Bolts. Still, the expansion Bucheon franchise stunk and wouldn’t post their first winning season until 1989. Myong saw notable regression in 1984 with a 4.37 ERA. He didn’t look much better to start 1985 and Bucheon was worried this was going to be his peak. In June 1985, the Bolts traded Myong to Sapporo for SS Eiya Nakao and C Yaturo Ueda. Neither would be all-stars, but Bucheon did get roughly a decade’s worth of starts out of them.

For Myong, his Bucheon stats saw a 73-95 record, 3.90 ERA, 1666.2 innings, 1263 strikeouts, 282 walks, 100 ERA+, 92 FIP-, and 24.5 WAR. While by no means a bad pitcher, higher expectations came with the #1 overall pick. Sapporo hoped they could unlock Myong’s potential and ultimately they did, as he was a key piece for them for the next decade.

Myong looked good in 1986, tossing the most innings in the Japan League and earning a third place in Pitcher of the Year voting. After his turnaround in 1986, Sapporo gave Myong a seven-year, $7,640,000 extension. He’d look great the next three seasons with 8.6, 8.0, and 7.9 WAR. Myong was second in 1987 Pitcher of the Year voting, then won the top honor in 1988. That year had career highs in strikeouts (298), innings (278.2), and quality starts (28), He took second again in POTY voting in 1989.

Sapporo had control of the North Division from 1985-89, but couldn’t win a playoff series in any of their five playoff berths. Myong mostly looked strong in the postseason despite the Swordfish failures. He also pitched for South Korea in the World Baseball Championship from 1981-89, posting a 3.86 ERA over 116.2 innings, 126 strikeouts, 97 ERA+, and 2.1 WAR.

The early 1990s was a downswing for Sapporo, who had four straight losing seasons from 1990-93. Myong kept on trucking, keeping his ERA at or below 2.50. At age 35 in 1993, he regressed to a 3.40 ERA, although advanced stats suggested he got some bad bounces. 1994 was the last year of his deal and Myong had a great resurgence with a 2.17 ERA, the second lowest of his career. He earned third in Pitcher of the Year voting.

Sapporo made it back to the playoffs in 1994, but Myong missed the postseason to biceps tendinitis. He looked good enough though that the Swordfish gave him another three years and $6,560,000. Myong looked good in the front end of 1995, but a torn labrum that summer put his future in serious doubt. He worked his way back in 1996 at age 38 and still put up respectable numbers, reaching 4000 career strikeouts. Myong had a 2.62 ERA in the playoffs as Sapporo lost to Hiroshima in the JLCS.

In 1997, Myong was the 11^th EAB pitcher to 250 career wins. He was only a part-time starter with 158 innings, although he had a role to play. Myong had a 1.50 ERA over 18 playoff innings as Sapporo won their first Japan League of Myong’s tenure. They lost to Yongin in the EAB final.

For his playoff career, Myong had a 2.44 ERA over 96 innings, 79 strikeouts, 136 ERA+, and 2.6 WAR. He decided to retire that winter at age 40 and Sapporo retired his #46 uniform. The Swordfish would go onto win the 1998 EAB Championship and ownership gave Myong a commemorative ring for his long service with the team.

Myong finished with a 254-216 record, 3.02 ERA, 4388.1 innings, 4147 strikeouts, 662 walks, 369/550 quality starts, 192 complete games, 117 ERA+, 82 FIP-, and 94.9 WAR. At induction, he was 11^th in wins, 12^th in strikeouts, and 12^th in pitching WAR. Myong remains in the top 20 in each as of 2037. He’s also sixth all-time in complete games. It was an impressive career for a guy who some though was a #1 pick bust after his first few seasons. Myong got 98.3% for a first ballot induction, standing beside two other stellar pitchers in the 2003 class.

Rikiya Fujiwara – Starting Pitcher – Osaka Orange Sox – 98.3% First Ballot

Rikiya Fujiwara was a 6’3’’, 190 pound left-handed pitcher from Kakogawa, a city with roughly 250,000 people not far from Kobe in Japan’s Hyogo Prefecture. Fujiwara was a well-rounded pitcher with above average to good stuff, movement, and control. His velocity only peaked at 94-96 mph on his fastball, but he had a filthy slider, plus a good cutter and okay changeup. Fujiwara’s stamina was on the lower end among contemporary aces. He maximized his innings though as he was excellent at holding runners and good defensively.

Fujiwara was a hot prospect out of Itami Kita High School with many Japanese teams looking at getting him. His Hall of Fame classmate Seong-Jun Myong was the #1 overall pick in EAB’s 1979 Draft and the first Korea League pick. Fujiwara would be the #2 overall pick and the first in the Japan League, selected by Osaka. He ultimately played all 16 years of his pro career with the Orange Sox. Fujiwara would spend 1980 and 1981 in developmental before debuting in 1982 at age 21.

Fujiwara was a part-time starter in his rookie season, then a full-time after that. He looked merely average in his first three years, but he started to rise alongside Osaka. From 1986-1993, Fujiwara had eight consecutive seasons worth 6+ WAR. He first started getting award consideration during this run, taking second in 1986 Pitcher of the Year voting, third in 1987, and second in 1988.

Osaka completed its rebuild in 1985, ending a 27-year playoff drought and starting a six-year division title streak. The Orange Sox won the EAB championship in 1985 and 1989, but fell in the first round the other years. Fujiwara was especially big in the 1989 run with a 0.78 ERA over 34.2 innings. For his playoff career, Fujiwara had a 1.78 ERA in 86 innings, 72 strikeouts, and 2.0 WAR. Early 1988 saw his first contract extension, albeit a short one at three years and $3,700,000.

Fujiwara led in ERA in 1988, then led with a career and league-best 318 strikeouts and 8.8 WAR in 1989. That earned him his first Pitcher of the Year award. Fujiwara followed it up with a JL best 1.72 ERA and 0.75 WHIP to repeat as Pitcher of the Year. This season also had a 12 strikeout, one walk no-hitter on April 21 against Nagoya. In May 1991, Fujiwara finally got the long-term extension for six years and $8,400,000,

Fujiwara was still very good in the early years of this deal, but not a league leader. Osaka retreated towards the middle of the standings with a five-year playoff drought. As his stamina started to wane, Fujiwara began seeing more split use between the bullpen and rotation. In 1995, elbow inflammation would cost him four months. His career was starting to look like it was approaching its end.

Fujiwara had one last great season in him with a career best 1.44 ERA in 1996, along with a 0.75 WHIP, 6.5 WAR, and 232 ERA+. This was the ninth lowest ERA by a starter in a season to that point in EAB. Sadly, he fractured his elbow in September and couldn’t play for Osaka as they snapped their playoff drought. However, his effort landed Fujiwara his third Pitcher of the Year six years removed from his most recent one.

The Orange Sox bought out the last year of Fujiwara’s contract, but signed him to another three-year, $6,360,000. He had a setback to the elbow injury in spring training, not making his 1997 debut until May. In his fourth start, Fujiwara fractured the elbow once more. This effectively ended his career, as he retired in the winter at age 36. Osaka immediately honored Fujiwara by retiring his #32 uniform.

The career line for Fujiwara was a 204-128 record, 2.49 ERA, 3202.1 innings, 3049 strikeouts, 490 walks, 309/421 quality starts, 78 complete games, 134 ERA+, 75 FIP-, and 82.2 WAR. His rate stats sit quite well on the leaderboards, although his comparatively low innings per year kept him from popping when it came to counting stats. Still, Fujiwara did more than enough to earn his spot in the 2003 Hall of Fame class at 98.3%. You would be hard pressed to find many 1-2-3 HOF lineups better than EAB’s 2003 group.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-13-2024, 05:00 PM

2003 BSA Hall of Fame

1B/3B Bastian Martin was the only addition into Beisbol Sudamerica’s Hall of Fame in 2003. With a quiet group of debuts, Martin was able to get the bump to 72.6% on his fourth ballot. The only other guys above 50% were returners as well with RF Jairo Vicente at 54.4% for his fourth ballot and RF Dani Manzanares getting 52.6% on his eighth go. The best debut was SP Pablo Baia at 49.8%, closely followed by fellow pitcher Harvey Rizo at 49.5% No players were dropped from the ballot after ten failed tries.

Bastian “Little Bull” Martin – First/Third Base – Bogota Bats – 72.6% Fourth Ballot

Bastian Martin was a 5’11’’, 200 pound right-handed corner infielder from Rio Branco, Uruguay, a city of around 37,000 people on the border of Brazil. The nickname “Little Bull” came from Martin’s stocky build and for his stubbornness. Despite his talents, he would catch criticism for a lack of hustle and intelligence. What couldn’t be denied was Martin’s outstanding eye and ability to work the count. Few players were better at drawing walks and avoiding strikeouts. Martin was also a very good contact hitter, making him a frustratingly tough out for pitchers.

At his peak, he also could get you more than 30 home runs in a season, although he most commonly hovered in the 20s. Martin also got around 20-25 doubles most years, but he was hampered by cartoonishly sluggish and slow baserunning.

Martin had outstanding durability, playing 140+ games in all but one season from 1975-95. He made around 40% of his starts at third base, around 30% at first base, and the rest as a designated hitter. Martin was an abysmal defensive 3B despite it being his most tenured spot. He graded out as just below average but perfectly serviceable at 1B.

There weren’t often teenage amateur signings out of Uruguay, but Martin was an exception. A visiting scout from Bogota locked him up in the fall of 1070, bringing the Little Bull to Colombia. The Bats kept him largely in their academy for his first four seasons, although he did see 3 at-bats in 1973 and 11 in 1974. Martin also had two plate appearances for Bogota in the 1973 playoffs as the Bats won the Bolivar League title.

Martin was a full-time starter with decent results in 1975, taking third in Rookie of the Year voting. He fell back to a part-time role in 1976, but then secured a permanent starting spot for the rest of his Bogota run. In 1977, he led the BL in this at 218. That effort convinced Bogota to give Martin an eight-year, $3,132,000 contract extension. 1978 would begin a streak of five consecutive seasons leading in on-base percentage. He won Silver Sluggers each year with three as a third baseman and two as a DH.

Martin also would lead three straight years in batting average (1979-81) and three straight years in both WAR and wRC+ (1980-82). He led thrice in walks drawn and twice in runs scored. The 1981 season saw multiple career bests, as led topped the BL in runs (115), hits (226), and RBI (129). He also had a career best 42 home runs, .367 average, and league high 1.053 OPS. In 1979, Martin was third in MVP voting. He couldn’t be denied after that, winning three straight from 1980-82.

Bogota was good in this prime run, winning 90+ games six times in seven years. However, 1981 was their only playoff berth and ended in a disappointing BLCS upset defeat to Quito. Martin became increasingly annoyed by their lack of playoff chances and opted out of his contact after the 1982 campaign at age 29. Apart from a brief return in his 40s, this ended his career in South America. Bogota eventually would retire his #2 uniform, but there was still disappointment with some Bats fans over his departure.

Martin would still return home to Uruguay though as a 20-year fixture in the World Baseball Championship. He played 173 games with 170 starts, posting 181 hits, 101 runs, 32 doubles, 42 home runs, 120 RBI, 106 walks, a .310/.430/.580 slash, 189 wRC+, and 10.1 WAR. As of 2037, he’s Uruguay’s all-time leader by a large margin in the WBC in WAR, games, hits, runs, total bases, doubles, home runs, RBI, and walks. Martin also has the 12^th-best OBP of any qualifying player as of 2037.

Now 30-years old, Martin would come stateside as he signed a five-year, $4,900,000 deal with MLB’s Hartford. He ultimately played only three seasons with the Huskies and although he didn’t win awards, he did lead in OBP in 1984. Martin had 15.2 WAR with 440 hits, 246 runs, 67 home runs, 237 RBI, and a .304/.390/.494 slash. Hartford notably won 113 games in 1984, but suffered an upset loss to Chicago in the National Association Championship Series. Martin had a great postseason with a .477/.471/.818 slash, 21 hits, 13 runs, 4 home runs, and 18 RBI in 12 starts.

Martin again decided to use his opt out clause, leaving Hartford after the 1985 season at age 33. He signed a five-year, $7,300,000 deal with Tampa and played all five seasons of the deal. Martin again didn’t win awards, but he was a very solid starter and averaged 4 WAR per season. Tampa had two playoff appearances, but flamed out. With the Thunderbirds, Martin had 20.4 WAR, a .295/.384/.476 slash, 783 hits, 392 runs, 100 doubles, 123 home runs, and 403 RBI.

Martin was now 38 entering the 1991 season and signed a one-year, $1,480,000 deal with Wichita. He delivered 5.2 WAR in his one year with the Wasps. Milwaukee gave Martin a one-year, $2,280,000 contract for 1992, although he regressed with a career-worst 2.2 WAR. Still, Las Vegas inked him for 1993 for $2,360,000. Martin finally looked cooked at this point with barely average batting and no value defensively.

For his MLB tenure, Martin had 1641 hits, 857 runs, 211 doubles, 253 home runs, 872 RBI, 757 walks, a .286/.377/.460 slash, 137 wRC+, and 43.9 WAR. This wouldn’t be MLB Hall worthy, but it was a very fine decade for a guy who joined MLB in his 30s. He wasn’t done quite yet, as he did return to Beisbol Sudamerica for a one-year, $1,260,000 deal with Rosario.

The 41-year old Martin still provided value with 2.9 WAR, but his strikeout rate was starting to soar. His BSA return lasted just this one season. Martin wasn’t ready to retire and managed to find a home in the just-formed African Association of Baseball with Lilongwe. Martin started all 162 games but was mediocre at best, finally retiring in the winter at age 43.

For his entire pro career, Martin had 3354 hits, 1663 runs, 436 doubles, 475 home runs, 1653 RBI, 1461 walks, a .307/.394/.482 slash, 145 wRC+, and 100.2 WAR. If all of that was in one league, he’d be a surefire lock. But Martin was to be judged on his BSA tenure, which amounted to roughly nine full seasons between Bogota and his one year with Rosario. He had 1602 hits, 751 runs, 211 doubles, 213 home runs, 733 RBI, 598 walks, a .343/.420/.532 slash, 162 wRC+, and 56.3 WAR.

Working in Martin’s favor, his OBP was the second-best in BSA history (and is still third as of 2037). His batting average was also top ten as of induction and he had three MVPs. Against him were very low accumulations due to his short tenure. Guys with fewer than 2000 hits, 1000 runs, 1000 RBI, and 250 home runs weren’t generally Hall of Famers. Plus, Martin had negative baserunning and defensive value and he was disliked by some in the game for his poor work ethic.

Martin debuted at 56.2% on the 2000 ballot. He came very close in 2001 at 62.7% and even closer in 2002 at 65.0%. His short burst of dominance was enough to wow voters who also gave him some credit for his MLB accumulations, assuming he would’ve gotten plenty of counting stats in BSA had he stayed. With no strong debuts in 2003, Martin made it across the line at 72.6% as BSA’s lone inductee for the year.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-14-2024, 03:36 AM

2003 EBF Hall of Fame

The European Baseball Federation added two into its Hall of Fame in 2003, although they entered with very different paths. RF Sean Houston was an absolute slam dunk with 99.3% and a first ballot nod. He was joined by SP Cornelius Danner, who finally crossed the 66% requirement with 68.2% on his tenth and final chance. Danner was the first-ever EBF inductee to make it on the final try.

Two others were just above 50% with LF Josip Stojanovic at 53.4% on his third ballot and LF Husnija Kojic at 52.4% on his seventh go. No players were dropped after ten failed attempts.

Sean Houston – Right Field – Birmingham Bees – 99.3% First Ballot

Sean Houston was a 5’10’’, 185 pound switch-hitting right fielder from Kirkcaldy, a town of 49,000 on Scotland’s east coast. Houston was THE slugger of the Northern Conference in the 1980s and 1990s, hitting 50+ home runs eight times in his career. He was an excellent contact hitter as well with great gap power, averaging 30 doubles and 13 triples per 162 game average. Houston also had an above average strikeout rate, although he drew far fewer walks than you’d expect with his power profile.

Despite his power, Houston had average to sometimes above average speed and could leg out extra bags. His only major flaw was defense. Houston played pretty much exclusively in right field and was an abysmal defender. Regardless, his bat was tremendous and he was an ironman, playing 149+ games in all but his rookie season. Houston was also a team captain and an excellent leader, becoming one of the most adored baseball figures of the United Kingdom.

Houston’s potential was spotted even out of high school in Scotland. You didn’t too often have high school draft picks in the EBF Draft, but Birmingham felt Houston was worth bucking that trend. With the 25^th pick in the 1978 EBF Draft, the Bees brought him in. It would be one of their finest-ever decisions, as he’d give them 17 excellent years. Houston trained in the academy in 1979 and 1980, officially debuting in 1981 at age 22.

Houston was primarily a pinch hitter in his rookie season, then was a full-time starter from year two onward. In his sophomore campaign, Houston posted 7.6 WAR, earning his first of 11 consecutive Silver Sluggers. As of 2037, he’s one of only four outfielders with 11 or more Sluggers and is the only one to win his consecutively. In his third season, Houston was third in MVP voting.

Houston went on an epic tear from 1984-87 with four straight Northern Conference MVPs, posting 8+ WAR in each season. In 1984, he crushed 72 home runs with 167 RBI and 144 runs scored, setting EBF records for each stat. He’d lose both the HR and RBI records to Mattias Stole in 1994 and lose the runs record by one in 2019 to Jean-Paul Lafontaine. However, his 522 total bases in 1984 is still EBF’s top mark as of 2037. Houston is one of only seven EBF sluggers with a 70+ dinger season and his 167 RBI in 1984 is still second all-time behind Stole’s 183.

Wisely after the remarkable 1984, Birmingham extended Houston for eight years and $6,530,000, During this four year stretch, Houston led in RBI, total bases, slugging, OPS, and wRC+ each season. He also led in homers thrice, hits twice, runs twice, WAR once, and batting average once. The Bees would win five British Isles Division titles from 1983-88, but they would go one-and-done four times. In 1985, they lost to Copenhagen in the conference final.

Houston was beloved at this point in Birmingham and back home in Scotland. He played in the World Baseball Championship for the Scottish team from 1982-94, playing 112 games with 109 starts. He posted 130 hits, 65 runs, 23 doubles, 32 home runs, 70 RBI, a .296/.342/.572 slash, 161 wRC+, and 5.2 WAR.

Houston had merely a good season in 1988, then got back into the MVP picture. He won the top honor in 1989, 90, and 91, becoming EBF’s first-ever seven time winner. Houston would be the only one until the eventual GOAT Harvey Coyle won nine in the 2010s and 2020s. Houston led in slugging, total bases, and home runs in all three MVP seasons, while also leading in RBI once, OPS twice, wRC+ once, and WAR once.

Birmingham fell towards the mid-tier in 1989 and 1990, but Houston brought them back to prominence in 1991. That started a stretch of seven straight playoff berths with six division titles. The Bees won their first-ever European Championship in 1991, defeating Munich in the final. Houston was finals MVP with 29 hits, 19 runs, 5 doubles, 3 triples, 9 home runs, 23 RBI, a .475/.529/1.098 slash, 342 wRC+, and 2.1 WAR in the playoff run. As of 2037, he still holds the playoff records for total bases (67), and RBI (23).

Before the 1992 season, the Bees gave Houston another five years and $7,400,000. Houston led in homes and RBI once more in 1992, taking second in MVP voting. It was his last time as a league leader, but he had a remarkable seven times leading in homers, six in RBI, eight in total bases, seven in slugging, six in OPS, and five in wRC+.

Into his mid 30s, Houston was still great even if his power started to fade some. Birmingham won the conference title in 1993, losing the EBF final to Zurich. In 1994, the Bees won it all over Barcelona with a franchise-best 110-52 season. Houston had another mammoth postseason with 34 hits, 13 runs, 6 gome runs, 12 RBI, and a .466/.387/.808 slash, winning conference finals and European Championship MVP. His 34 hits were a playoff record that held until 2015.

Birmingham lost in the 1995 conference final, but won a fourth pennant in six years in 1996. They lost the European Championship in a rematch with Barcelona, marking the end of an impressive dynasty run. Houston’s leadership and incredible bat were critical to this success, as he went down as one of the all-time clutch performers.

In 109 playoff games, Houston had 163 hits, 85 runs, 14 doubles, 14 triples, 43 home runs, 97 RBI, a .384/.419/.788 slash, 235 wRC+, and 8.9 WAR. As of 2037, he’s the EBF career postseason leader in homers and total bases (334). Houston retired as the leader in hits, runs, and RBI. As of 2037, he’s still third, fourth, and second in those stats. The rate stats show that Houston managed to get even better in the playoffs despite already having a very high bar for regular season performance.

In 1996, Houston became the fifth to reach 700 career home runs and the fifth to 3000 hits. 1997 would be the last year of his deal as his power had declined. Houston hit 30 home runs and 86 RBI, the lowest since his first full season. It ended a streak of 14 consecutive seasons with 100 RBI. Houston ended the season at 1991 RBI, falling just short of joining Jacob Ronnberg and Jack Kennedy in the 2000 club. The Bees had the last playoff berth of their streak, a wild card and a one-and-done.

Houston’s contract expired and he became a free agent for the first time at age 39. He wanted to still play somewhere, but couldn’t find a home in 1998, eventually retiring that winter. Birmingham immediately retired his #16 uniform and he would remain a beloved franchise icon for decades to come.

Houston finished with 3269 hits, 1760 runs, 500 doubles, 208 triples, 752 home runs, 1991 RBI, 374 stolen bases, a .328/.361/.646 slash, 181 wRC+, and 114.4 WAR. At induction, Houston was third all-time in hits, fourth in runs, third in doubles, fourth in home runs, third in RBI, and eighth in offensive WAR.

As of 2037, he’s still 11^th in hits, 13^th in runs, 8^th in doubles, 7^th in homers, 7^th in RBI, and 20^th in WAR. Houston’s atrocious defense hurts him compared to his contemporaries like Ronnberg and Kennedy, but he’s easily one of the finest pure hitters in EBF history. Houston has a case as the most clutch playoff hitter of all-time and led Birmingham in their 1990s dynasty run. Houston was a surefire lock at 99.3% and an impressive headliner for the 2003 EBF Hall of Fame class.

Cornelius Danner – Starting Pitcher – Athens Anchors – 68.2% Tenth Ballot

Cornelius Danner was a 6’2’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Klosterneuburg, a town of 27,500 people in northeastern Austria. Danner was a fireballer in his prime with excellent stuff and a fastball that peaked in the 99-101 mph range. He also had a terrific forkball, plus a good splitter, okay slider, and rarely seen changeup. Danner had average to above average control and movement. Prior to his later injury issues, Danner also was known for great stamina and the ability to go deep in games.

Danner was spotted as a teenage amateur by a scout from Athens, who brought him to Greece in the summer of 1968. He spent four years and change in their academy, debuting at age 20 in 1973. Danner definitely wasn’t ready though, posting a 5.09 ERA and conference-worst 20 losses. He bounced back with a very solid sophomore campaign with 2.47 ERA, 298 strikeouts, and 5.6 WAR.

1975 was decent, but saw a lost six weeks to a biceps strain. Danner bounced back for a very good 1976, but he looked pedestrian in early 1977. His first major injury occurred in late June with a torn labrum knocking him out five months. Danner bounced back impressively in 1978, winning his lone Pitcher of the Year. He led in wins at 23-9 and had a career best 2.13 ERA.

Athens made the playoffs for the second straight year in 1978 and won the Southern Conference Championship, dropping the European Championship to Brussels. Danner had mixed results in the playoff run with a 3.23 ERA over 30.2 innings and 106 ERA+. The Anchors were still somewhat worried about injuries, so when Danner was extended, it was only for three years at $1,668,000.

His 1979 was arguably better with career highs in WAR (9.6) and strikeouts (396), although Danner was third in voting. He followed it up with a good 1980 with career highs in innings (289) and complete games (24). The Anchors won division titles both years, but both times went one-and-done. Danner wasn’t to blame with two quality starts in those efforts, finishing with a 2.47 ERA in 47.1 playoff innings for Athens.

1981 was a contact year and Danner had a great first month. Disaster struck again though on May 11 with another torn labrum, this time putting him on the shelf for 11 months. It was too much of a liability for Athens, who didn’t re-sign him. For his nine seasons with the Anchors, Danner had a 123-90 record, 2.92 ERA, 2050 innings, 2409 strikeouts, 528 walks, 117 ERA+, 79 FIP-, and 47.8 WAR. The franchise would opt to retire his #6 uniform later as well.

Although he had been in Greece for a decade, Danner still had love for his native Austria. He pitched for his country in the World Baseball Championship from 1974-88, posting a 4.18 ERA over 153 innings, 214 strikeouts, 90 ERA+, and 2.2 WAR. When he became a free agent at age 29, Danner really hoped he’d have a chance to come home. Fortunately for him, Vienna was also interested in giving him a look.

Danner signed a seven-year, $4,420,000 deal with the Vultures. He was never the same after the second labrum tear though with below average results. In his fourth season, Danner had an abysmal 5.59 ERA in 83.2 innings and was flat out benched. Vienna was still on the hook though for three more seasons.

He seemed to refine things in 1986 and looked solid again for a bit, but he partially tore his labrum again. Danner was back to mediocrity in 1987 and Vienna bought out the final year of his contract. They would bring him back in 1988 anyway with lousy results yet again. For his Vienna tenure, Danner had a 60-63 record, 4.31 ERA, 1083.2 innings, 1064 strikeouts, 435 walks, 87 ERA+, and 6.5 WAR. It went down as one of the worst free agent deals of that era. Danner wanted to still play somewhere in 1989, but went unsigned and had to retire at age 37.

Danner’s career stats had a 183-153 record, 3.40 ERA, 3133.2 innings, 3473 strikeouts, 963 walks, 231/393 quality starts, 135 complete games, 104 ERA+, 91 FIP-, and 54.4 WAR. The Vienna run got him to less borderline accumulations, but it absolutely tanked his rare stats. When inducted, he had the worst ERA of any inductee. Even his tallies though weren’t eye-popping, leading many to assume Danner was a mere Hall of Pretty Good guy.

Danner debuted at 49.0% and hovered roughly around there in his first five ballots. He jumped to a high of 60.9% in 1999, then a low of 28.2%. Danner was back to 50.9% in 2001, but plummeted to 26.4% in his ninth ballot. Most assumed that was it for him, but Danner had one of the most remarkable ballot comebacks. There were those sympathetic to injuries derailing his back end of his career. Danner managed to win just enough over in his final try to get across the line at 68.2%. He’s definitely among the weakest entries, but Danner has the ring regardless.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-14-2024, 11:17 AM

2003 EPB Hall of Fame

Two players received a first ballot addition with the Eurasian Professional Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003. SP Haxhi Maho was a no-doubter at 99.3%, while 1B Aleksei Sakalauskas was less of a lock. Still, he managed 75.9% to earn his spot alongside Maho. The best returner was SP Petr Bidzinashvili, missing the 66% requirement at 59.3% in his sixth try. Two other debuting players were above 50% with pitchers Dana Bancu at 57.0% and Giorgi Mikadze at 54.1%.

Closer Pavel Artamov was dropped after ten ballots. He had ten seasons with Omsk and seven years in MLB. With the Otters, Artamov had one Reliever of the Year, 301 saves, 2.05 ERA, 784.2 innings, 1087 strikeouts, 142 ERA+, and 29.6 WAR. He wasn’t quite as dominant as the other relievers that had gotten into EPB’s Hall and he lost some counting stat chances by leaving for MLB. Artamov peaked at 36.2% on his second try and ended at 11.5%.

SP Anatolie Burlacu also fell off the ballot after ten tries, debuting at 32.5% but ending at 7.0%. He had a 13-year career between Kazan, Kharkiv, and Almaty and posted a 167-173 record, 2.69 ERA, 3100.1 innings, 3329 strikeouts, 108 ERA+, and 47.9 WAR. Burlacu had one outstanding effort in 1984, leading in strikeouts (377) and posting a 1.60 ERA and 10.0 WAR for second in Pitcher of the Year voting. Outside of that though, he was considered firmly a “Hall of Pretty Good” level guy.

Haxhi Maho – Starting Pitcher – Bucharest Broncos – 99.3% First Ballot

Haxhi Maho was a 6’3’’, 200 pound left-handed pitcher from Durres, Albania’s second largest city with around 175,000 along the Adriatic Sea. Maho was best known for having outstanding movement on his pitches, solid stamina, and terrific durability. His control and stuff only graded out as average to above average, but Maho made it work. A 96-98 mph cutter was his primary out pitch and was mixed with a slider, screwball, and changeup. Maho was a fan favorite known for his loyalty and longevity, becoming one of the most popular players of his era.

Maho was picked seventh overall by Bucharest in the 1979 EPB Draft. He was a full-time starter immediately and tossed 245+ innings every year for the next 17 years for the Broncos. He was solid from the beginning, taking second in Rookie of the Year voting in 1980. One year later, he was Pitcher of the Year, leading the European League in wins at 23-4 and ERA at 1.72. This was his first of ten seasons worth 8+ WAR and 15 seasons worth 6+ WAR.

That also marked the start of regular contention for Bucharest, who hadn’t made the playoffs in two decades. They would have regular wars in the South Division with Kyiv and Kharkiv for the top spot over the next decade. From 1981-91, the Broncos earned nine playoff berths, seven division titles., and six seasons with triple-digit wins. Maho was the reliable ace for this impressive run.

Bucharest would see some disappointment in their postseason efforts, going one-and-done in seven of their nine berths. In 1984, the Broncos broke through to win the EPB title over Bishkek. Bucharest made the ELCS in 1990, but fell to Minsk. Although the team’s playoff stats were underwhelming, you couldn’t blame Maho for their failings. In 122.1 playoff innings, he had a 7-3 record, 1.84 ERA, 133 strikeouts, 156 ERA+, and 2.9 WAR.

Maho posted a league and career-best 11.3 WAR in 1984, but only took third in Pitcher of the Year voting in a loaded field. He never led the league in strikeouts, but had a career-best 336 this season. Maho would fan 250+ batters though each year of his career except for his first and last. He would take Pitcher of for the second time in 1985 with a league-best 24-8 record, 1.68 ERA, and 10.7 WAR. Not only that, but Maho won EL MVP as Bucharest had the EPB’s best record at 110-52.

In May 1986, Maho signed a five-year, $3,470,000 contract extension with Bucharest. He wasn’t an awards finalist for a few seasons, but still led in WAR again in 1988. In 1990, Maho won his third Pitcher of the Year and his second MVP. He set the EPB record for wins at 29-3, a mark that still hasn’t been topped. It was also one win shy of the world record of 30 set in OBA. Maho also had a career-best 1.46 ERA.

Maho was second in POTY voting in 1991, his final time as a finalist. He continued his same steady production for his final five years with Bucharest posting 6+ WAR each time. He also managed a third ERA title in 1995 at age 37. The Broncos still won 90+ games each year from 1992-95, but couldn’t crack the postseason lineup. In 1996, they fell just below .500 and fell towards mediocrity for their final seasons in EPB.

Maho reached notable milestones in these final years. In 1992, he became EPB’s fourth pitcher to 250 wins. In 1995, he was the second to 300 wins and the 11^th to 4500 career strikeouts. With his contract up after the 1996 season and Bucharest no longer a contender, both sides knew the run had ended. Maho still remained beloved by Broncos fans and his #13 uniform would be shortly retired.

Maho still wanted to pitch and thought he might have a shot at catching Alvi Tahiri’s wins record of 349. His velocity had dipped notably though, limiting the interested teams. Just before the start of the season, St. Petersburg gave Maho a one-year deal. He was now only hitting the 88-90 mph range for max velocity and posted firmly below average numbers for the Polar Bears, although he did eat innings. Maho decided to retire after this effort at age 40.

The final stats for Maho was a 335-188 record, 2.17 ERA, 4915 innings, 4968 strikeouts, 926 walks, 460/589 quality starts, 230 complete games, 75 shutdowns, 133 ERA+, 68 FIP-, and 142.0 WAR. At induction, he was second all-time in wins, third in pitching WAR, fifth in strikeouts, third in innings, and tied for first in shutouts.

As of 2037, he’s still second in wins, second in shutouts, third in innings, seventh in strikeouts, and fourth in WAR. Most all-time pitcher lists for EPB have Maho in the top five for good reason. He was well deserving of the headline honor atop the 2003 EPB Hall of Fame class at 99.3%.

Aleksei Sakalauskas – First Base – Yekaterinburg Yaks – 75.9% First Ballot

Aleksei Sakalauskas was a 6’1’’, 200 pound right-handed first baseman from Novokuznetsk, Russia; a city of more than 500,000 people in southwestern Siberia. Sakalauskas was known for having an outstanding eye for drawing walks and very solid home run power. He was a good contact hitter also, but his strikeout rate was below average. Sakalauskas was great at finding the gap, averaging around 30 doubles per year. He was a fairly intelligent baserunner, but only had below average speed.

Sakalauskas played almost exclusively at first base, although he did have a couple weak starts at third. He graded out as a strong defender at first, winning four Gold Gloves. Sakalauskas was an iron man, playing in 150+ games every year from 1983-2001. He was scrappy and worked hard, making him one of Russia’s most beloved baseball figures of the era.

Sakalauskas’s skillset was undeniable even as a teenager with Russian teams salivating at him as a prospect. With the #1 overall pick in the 1978 EPB Draft, Sakalauskas was picked by Yekaterinburg. His entire EPB career came with the Yaks, although he wasn’t immediately used. Sakalauskas stayed in developmental in 1979, then saw 20 games and one start between 1980 and 1981. He was a part-timer in 1982, then a full-time from 1983 onward.

Once in the lineup for good, Sakalauskas excelled with his first Silver Slugger in 1983; his only one as a third baseman. He led the Asian League with a career best (42) in doubles that year and posted his first of 11 seasons worth 6+ WAR. In 1985, Sakalauskas had a banner year with league bests in runs (103), homers (54), RBI (116), total bases (362), OBP (.374), slugging (.623), OPS (.997), wRC+ (223), and WAR (10.8). He earned his second Silver Slugger and lone MVP. This year had career bests in runs, hits, homers, total bases, average (.305), slugging, OPS, wRC+, and WAR.

This season snapped a 12-year playoff drought for Yekaterinburg, although they went one-and-done. Still, Sakalauskas had brought them back to respectability and the Yaks were delighted to lock him up with an eight-year, $4,604,000 extension after the 1985 season. They would earn five playoff berths from 1985-90 and make it to the ALCS thrice. In 1989 as a wild card, Yekaterinburg went on a surprise playoff run, defeating Minsk in the EPB Championship.

In the playoffs for Yekaterinburg, Sakalauskas had 46 starts, 43 hits, 29 runs, 5 doubles, 16 home runs, 29 RBI, a .249/.311/.566 slash, 161 wRC+, and 2.4 WAR. He was also a regular for Russia in the World Baseball Championship. From 1983-2000, Sakalauskas played 178 games and started 170, posting 142 hits, 123 runs, 20 doubles, 63 home runs, 132 RBI, 120 walks, a .242/.382/.601 slash, 181 wRC+, and 10.2 WAR.

As of 2037, he has the 34^th most WAR of any position player in the WBC. He’s also Russia’s all-time leader in WAR, runs, home runs, RBI, and walks drawn. Sakalauskas also went on a tear in the 1990 WBC, which saw the Russians fall in the championship to Brazil. In 26 games, he had 23 hits, 25 runs, 13 home runs, 29 RBI, and 22 walks for 2.3 WAR. This kept Sakalauskas as a beloved national figure even after he later left for MLB.

With Yekaterinburg, Sakalauskas won additional Silver Sluggers in 1986, 89, 91, and 92; giving him six total. He won three Gold Gloves in EPB (1988-90). Sakalauskas was second in MVP voting in 1987 and 1989, plus third in 1991. Sakalauskas had three seasons with double-digit WAR and was the AL’s WARlord four times. After his 1985 MVP, Sakalauskas led in RBI once more, total bases twice, OBP thrice, slugging four times, OPS thrice, and wRC+ thrice.

The Yaks narrowly missed the playoffs in 1991 and 1992. The team would ultimately go for a full rebuild after that, in part due to Sakalauskas declining the final year option in his contract. He was a free agent for the first time heading into his age 34 season. Sakalauskas would have worldwide offers and ended up leaving EPB much to the chagrin of Russian officials. The timing worked out for him, as the Soviet Union had only recently collapsed.

For his Yekaterinburg and EPB run, Sakalauskas had 1672 hits, 906 runs, 303 doubles, 389 home runs, 1004 RBI, 732 walks, a .285/.367/.543 slash, 182 wRC+, and 87.1 WAR. The franchise retired his #5 uniform and he’d be a celebrated Yak for many years.

Because he left, Sakalauskas’s accumulations weren’t at the top of the leaderboard, but as of 2037 he does notably have the third best OPS, seventh best slugging percentage among EPB Hall of Famers and the fourth best OBP. Sakalauskas was the OBP leader at induction as well. Still, there were voters that held his departure against him, but enough recognized his greatness to give Sakalauskas the first ballot induction at 75.9%.

Even though he came to MLB at age 34, Sakalauskas still had another decade of play in front of him. He signed a five-year, $11,600,000 deal with Calgary, who were fresh off a World Series defeat to Hartford. Sakalauskas helped them get back in 1993, winning the title against Toronto. He won American Association Championship Series MVP and had 22 hits, 15 runs, 8 home runs, and 17 RBI over 15 playoff starts.

Sakalauskas didn’t lead the AA or win awards with the Cheetahs, but he gave them five seasons of 4.9+ WAR or better. Calgary won 106 games in 1994, but suffered a disappointing second round exit. They fell into the mid-tier for the rest of his run. Sakalauskas posted 871 hits, 533 runs, 153 doubles, 165 home runs, 535 RBI, a .288/.373/.515 slash, 138 wRC+, and 27.0 WAR.

He was 39 years old and a free agent again entering the 1998 season. Having shown no signs of decline to that point, Ottawa gave Sakalauskas a three-year, $13,200,000 deal. His debut season with the Elks was his best MLB year with 7.0 WAR, earning a Silver Slugger. Sakalauskas gave Ottawa two more good seasons after that, getting 446 hits, 262 runs, 101 home runs, 281 RBI, a .255/.344/.485 slash, 154 wRC+, and 15.8 WAR.

At 42 years old, Sakalauskas was still looking great and New Orleans inked him at three years at $14,960,000. Age finally caught up to him as he posted very average hitting numbers in 2001. Sakalauskas struggled in limited use in 2002, getting cut in the summer by the Mudcats. After finishing the year unsigned, Sakalauskas retired at age 44. He had 0.5 WAR and a 93 wRC+ with New Orleans.

For his MLB tenure, Sakalauskas had 1454 hits, 870 runs, 256 doubles, 291 home runs, 887 RBI, 697 walks, a .270/.356/.489 slash, 138 wRC+, and 43.4 WAR. Those are remarkable stats having played only a decade and starting at age 34.

For his entire pro career, Sakalauskas had 3126 hits, 1776 runs, 559 doubles, 680 home runs, 1891 RBI, 1429 walks, a .278/.362/.517 slash, 161 wRC+, and 130.5 WAR. The combined numbers certainly put Sakalauskas in the conversation among the best-ever Russian-born sluggers.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-14-2024, 02:38 PM

2003 OBA Hall of Fame

Pitcher Jonah Lois made history as the first (and as of 2037, only) unanimous inductee into the Oceania Baseball Association Hall of Fame. He joined SAB’s Zainal bin Aziz and BSA’s Luca Alvares as the only unanimous selections in any league to that point. Two came close to joining Lois in the 2003 class, but fell just short of the 66% requirement. RF Eric Williams had a debut at 63.9%, while RF Ryan Whatley earned 61.2% in his seventh try.

Wayne Sledge was the only player to fall off the ballot after ten tries. An American who came to OBA and pitched 11 years between Fiji and Christchurch, Sledge had a 138-110 record, 2.95 ERA, 2289.1 innings, 2533 strikeouts, 109 ERA+, and 35.8 WAR. Firmly a “Hall of Pretty Good” guy, he managed to stay on the ballot despite peaking at 20.7% and only finishing in the double-digits four times.

Jonah “Boss” Lois – Pitcher – Christchurch Chinooks – 100% First Ballot

Jonah Lois was a 5’11’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Waitakere, New Zealand; located within greater Auckland. Lois was a hard thrower with outstanding movement, very good control, and solid stuff. He had a 98-100 mph cutter mixed with a devastating curveball and rarely seen changeup. Lois had strong stamina for much of his run and great durability. He was weak defensively and struggled holding runners. Lois worked very hard and earned the nickname “Boss” for his work ethic and longevity.

Because the vast majority of his career was with Christchurch, many fans don’t realize Lois started with Honolulu. A scout from Hawaii signed him as a teenager amateur in May 1975. He made his official debut with 18 relief appearances in 1980 at age 21. He saw a bit more use in 1981, still putting up unremarkable results in relief despite getting second in Rookie of the Year voting. Lois was viewed as only a two-pitch guy since his third pitch (the changeup) was so poor, meaning many dismissed him to the bullpen. In total with Honolulu, he had a 3.28 ERA over 57.2 innings.

The Honu weren’t high on him and threw him in a deal with two other prospects and a draft pick to Christchurch in the 1981 offseason in exchange for CF Dan Oleson. The Chinooks also used Lois as a reliever in his first two seasons back in his home country, although he looked solid in the role. Lois took third in Reliever of the Year voting in 1982, then won the award in 1983. He had 65 saves and 6.7 WAR in these two seasons as the closer.

Christchurch was an Australasia League contender, winning the 1983 pennant where they lost to the now established Honolulu dynasty. The Chinooks split Lois between relief and starting in 1984, then turned him into a full-time starter after that. He emerged as a true ace and led the AL in wins four times, ERA once, innings thrice, WHIP twice, complete games thrice, and WAR twice. From 1984-96, he added 5+ WAR each season. Lois was third in 1988 POTY voting, second in 1989, second in 1993, and second in 1994.

Christchurch gave Lois a six-year, $3,060,000 contract extension just before the 1986 season. The Chinooks won additional pennants in 1985, 88, 92, and 95; although they could never get over the hump in the OBA Championship. Lois had mixed results in the playoffs with a 3.21 ERA over 73 innings, 54 strikeouts, 101 ERA+, and 1.7 WAR.

Lois was also a regular for New Zealand in the World Baseball Championship from 1981-97 with 46 games and 25 starts. He tossed 211.2 innings with an 11-4 record, 12 saves, 2.85 ERA, 253 strikeouts, 126 ERA+, and 7.4 WAR. As of 2037, he leads all Kiwis in the WBC in pitching WAR and is tied for first in wins, second in innings pitched, and third in strikeouts.

Christchurch gave Lois another two years and $1,380,000 in mid 1992, then a three-year, $3,780,000 extension in September 1994. Lois’s game aged well, evidenced by his best season coming in 1995 at age 36. He led with a career-best 2.11 ERA, 0.83 WHIP, and 9.6 WAR, becoming one of the oldest-ever first-time winners of a major award. That was one of his better postseasons with a 1.93 ERA in 14 innings, although the Chinooks again fell short.

Lois had a good 1996 and led in wins with 5.9 WAR. However, his once upper 90s velocity had dipped into the mid 90s. By 1997, Lois had trouble hitting 90+ mph regularly. He posted very middling numbers in his final season in 1997 and retired that winter at age 39. Christchurch immediately retired his #1 uniform.

For his career, Lois had a 277-219 record, 2.88 ERA, 4466.1 innings, 3958 strikeouts, 641 walks, 360/515 quality starts, 207 complete games, 114 ERA+, 81 FIP-, and 98.6 WAR. As of 2037, Lois is eighth in pitching WAR, fifth in wins, 16^th in strikeouts, and first in losses. Certainly a Hall of Fame worthy career, although historians would be baffled why Lois of all people was unanimous. He certainly doesn’t come up in GOAT conversations and few would put him in OBA’s top five all-time pitchers. Regardless, Lois managed to earn a unique distinction as OBA’s lone 2003 inductee.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-15-2024, 05:41 AM

2003 APB Hall of Fame

Austronesia Professional Baseball had a two-player Hall of Fame class for 2003. Both were first ballot starting pitchers, although they got in with very different margins. Yao-Tsung Chang was a firm addition at 90.2%, while Chandra Igbonefo only barely crossed the 66% requirement at 68.4%. Closer Hong Quinonez barely missed joining them with 65.8% on his seventh try.

Dropped after ten ballots was reliever Ervin Tat, whose APB career was only eight years between Pekanbaru and Quezon. He had an unremarkable MLB tenure after that. Tat had 129 saves and 179 shutdowns, a 1.59 ERA, 842.2 innings, 1220 strikeouts, 151 ERA+, and 32.5 WAR, plus one Reliever of the Year. Tat had a lot of WAR for a short time, but lacked the important counting stats voters wanted. He still managed 33.1% as a ballot peak in 1995 before ending with 15.8%.

Yao-Tsung Chang – Starting Pitcher – Taipei Tigercats – 90.2% First Ballot

Yao-Tsung Chang was a 6’2’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Yungkang, Taiwan; a district of roughly 230,000 within Tainan. Chang had great movement on his pitches with good stuff, but below average control. His best pitch was a 94-96 mph cutter which he mixed with a strong curveball, nice sinker, and decent changeup. Chang had respectable stamina and was great at holding runners. He showed very sturdy durability and could be relied upon for a full slate of starts each year.

Chang was signed in April 1979 as a teenage amateur by Taipei. He’d spend nearly his entire career in the capital city. Chang officially debuted with one appearance in 1983 at age 21. 1984 was his first year as a full-time starter, a role he’d keep for the Tigercats for 13 years. In his earliest seasons, Chang was consistently good, but not viewed as the best of the best.

After around 15 years of mostly mediocrity, Taipei found success in the late 1980s. They won five Taiwan League titles from 1988-93 and took the Taiwan-Philippine Association title in 1988, 89, and 93. In 1988, The Tigercats were Austronesia Championships, winning the final against Semarang. In his playoff career for Taipei, Chang had a 10-3 record over 115.1 innings, 2.42 ERA, 96 strikeouts, 116 ERA+, and 2.2 WAR. Chang made history in the 1993 APB Championship. Although Taipei lost the series to Jakarta, Chang tossed a no-hitter in the finals, striking out five with one walk.

1990 would be his first time as a Pitcher of the Year finalist, taking third. Chang was third again in 1992 and 1993, but never got closer. He would lead the TPA in wins three times and quality starts once, although he otherwise didn’t have any black ink. His best season by WAR was 7.0 in 1991. Steady and reliable was the trick for Chang. Taipei was pleased with that, giving him a six-year, $6,360,000 extension in early 1991.

Chang regressed in his final two seasons with Taipei with a sub-100 ERA+. The Tigercats had fallen towards the middle of the standings by this point and were looking to rebuild. Just before the start of the 1997 season, Chang was moved to Manila for three prospects. He maintained a good relationship with Taipei officials and his #10 uniform would get retired shortly after.

Chang had a good season in Manila with 5.8 WAR, his best effort in a few years. The Manatees had the best record in the TPA, but lost the Association Championship to Taoyuan. Chang gave up three runs (two earned) over eight innings in his one playoff start. It seemed like Chang still had enough in the tank to keep going, but he was content to call it a career there at age 36.

Chang had a 228-143 record, 2.43 ERA, 3583.1 innings, 3510 strikeouts, 835 walks, 356/457 quality starts, 111 complete games, 114 ERA+, 88 FIP-, and 66.0 WAR. Slow and steady won the race for Chang, whose totals aren’t eye-popping much like his yearly results. But he was consistently quite solid for 14 years and helped Taipei earn three pennants. Chang received 90.2% to headline APB’s 2003 Hall of Fame class.

Chandra Igbonefo - Starting Pitcher – Depok Demons – 68.4% First Ballot

Chandra Igbonefo was a 6’0’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Tarub, Indonesia, a city of 75,000 people in the Central Java province. Igbonefo was a fireballer known for his overpowering stuff, which made up for his subpar movement and control. He had a 99-101 mph fastball and was excellent at confusing hitters with a good changeup and solid splitter. Igbonefo had excellent stamina and was great at holding the runners he did allow on base. He also had a reputation in the clubhouse as a prankster.

Despite being from relatively humble origins in Indonesia, Igbonefo was spotted by a Taiwanese scout in June 1977. He signed a deal with Taoyuan, although he never played an inning for the Tsunami. In the 1982 offseason, the 22-year old Igbonefo was traded to Depok straight up for catcher Prince Hunoz. The Demons gave Igbonefo a split load between starting and relief in 1983 with respectable results. He became a full-time starter after that.

Depok was a terrible team in this era with Igbonefo’s tenure in the middle of a nearly 20 year playoff drought. He pitched solidly, but didn’t get awards attention. Igbonefo had a career best 389 strikeouts and 7.6 WAR in 1987, posting 8 shutouts. Even in his best seasons though, Igbonefo wasn’t a league leader.

Disaster would strike in August 1990 with a torn rotator cuff, knocking Igbonefo out 15-16 months. Even with the injury, the Demons gave him a two-year, $1,660,000 extension in late 1990 with the hopes that he’d bounce back. Igbonefo did return in late 1991 and looked good in seven starts. In total with Depok,Igbonefo had a 97-121 record, 2.45 ERA, 2022 innings, 2582 strikeouts, 495 walks, 99 ERA+, 91 FIP-, and 34.4 WAR. The Demons would later retire his #4 uniform for his contributions.

However, Depok did buy out the final year of his deal, making Igbonefo a free agent for the 1992 season at age 31. Medan inked him to a two-year, $1,700,000 deal. Igbonefo had a quite solid first year with the Marlins, but was more average into 1993. Near the deadline, he was shipped to Jakarta for three prospects. With Medan, he had a 22-24 record, 2.46 ERA, 562 strikeouts, 9.0 WAR, and 101 ERA+.

Igbonefo was merely average with the Jaguars, but he helped them win the APB Championship. He allowed 3 earned runs in 8.2 innings in his one playoff start, a victory. A free agent again at age 33, Batam gave him a four-year, $6,400,000 contract. Igbonefo lived up to the deal with initially with a second place in Pitcher of the Year voting in 1994, his only time as a finalist. Igbonefo had a career-best 1.67 ERA that year with 32 quality starts, 371 strikeouts, and 7.4 WAR.

Igbonefo was respectable in the next two years for Batam, who earned playoff berths in 1994, 95, and 97. Igbonefo had a 2.16 ERA in his four playoff starts as a Blue Raider with 37 strikeouts. He had 18 innings with a 1.00 ERA in 1997 as Batam won the Sundaland Association pennant, although they dropped the APB final to Taoyuan.

Despite his playoff success in 1997, Igbonefo had regressed in that final season of his deal. An elbow strain cost him seven weeks and his velocity dropped towards the mid 90s after previously being triple-digits. Igbonefo was the eighth APB pitcher to 4000 strikeouts though while with Batam. In total there, he had a 58-34 record, 2.21 ERA, 866 innings, 1073 strikeouts, 14.0 WAR, and 114 ERA+. Igbonefo went unsigned in 1998 and retired that winter at age 38.

For his career, Igbonefo finished with a 181-186 record, 2.41 ERA, 3433.1 innings, 4353 strikeouts, 770 walks, 326/427 quality starts, 168 complete game, 102 ERA+, 91 FIP-, and 58.9 WAR. He was ninth all-time in strikeouts at induction and still sits 15^th as of 2037. However, Igbonefo wasn’t a league leader or Pitcher of the Year type. Traditionalist voters also didn’t want to induct a guy with a losing record. The advanced stats were mixed with the ERA+ suggesting slightly above average and FIP- saying he was a victim of poor support at points.

Many voters like strikeouts though, which helped Igbonefo’s case that was otherwise borderline. When looking back with later inductees, Igbonefo stands out as one of the weaker additions from the mound. However, he managed to get 68.4% on his debut, forever earning a first ballot spot with the 2003 class.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-15-2024, 11:58 AM

2003 CLB Hall of Fame

Chinese League Baseball inducted two players for the 2003 Hall of Fame voting. The headliner was two-way star Wei Qin with a first ballot spot at 93.8%. Right fielder Shichao Zhang got a bump on his fourth try, joining Qin at 75.0%.

Four others were above 50%, but short of the needed 66%. RF Zhengyu Peng was the closest at 60.2% for his seventh try. Closer Junwei Zhu had 60.2% on his sixth ballot. SP Pengju Xue received 54.7% in his seventh go and SP Baoxian He had 51.2% on his sixth shot.

2B/SS Weiping Gao was dropped after ten ballots. He had a decorated career with 14 seasons between Kunming and Foshan, earning two MVPs, three Gold Gloves, and five Silver Sluggers. Gao had 1576 hits, 799 runs, 206 doubles, 101 triples, 343 home runs, 880 RBI, a .239/.276/.458 slash, 146 wRC+, and 82.1 WAR. He also won two titles with the Muscle and one with Honolulu as he left for OBA late in his career.

Despite that resume, the notoriously tough on hitters CLB voters never gave Gao much of a look. He debuted at 35.7%, which would be his peak. Gao finished at a mere 10.2%. He’s 50^th in WAR by a
positional player as of 2037.

Wei Qin – First Base/Pitcher – Macau Magicians – 93.8% First Ballot

Wei Qin was a 6’3’’, 205 pound right-handed pitcher and first baseman from China’s most populous city, Shanghai. As a batter, Qin had strong home run power with respectable contact skills. He was quite good at drawing walks, but had a poor strikeout rate. Qin’s gap power was decent and he was a very intelligent and crafty baserunner, although his speed was below average.

On the mound, Qin had above average stuff, movement, and control. He had an impressive mid 90s cutter in his pitching prime, mixed with a good changeup and forkball, plus a weak slider. Qin had nice stamina and was a good defensive pitcher. He’d start at first base when playing the field and was a firmly above average to good defender there as well. Qin managed to put together a lengthy career despite the physical wear-and-tear and injuries that typically came with two-way efforts.

In the 1984 CLB Draft, Qin was picked 5^th overall by Macau. His entire 13-year career in the Chinese League came with the Magicians, who intended to make him a full-time starter immediately. Qin’s first year was trying though with back spasms costing him two months, followed by a stretched elbow ligament in July. That would cost him the rest of 1985 and the first chunk of 1986, needing 11 months total to recover. There was some worry that this injury could limit his pitching usefulness, but Qin would overcome that.

In his initial years, Qin was a great batter and merely good pitcher. He would win 12 Silver Sluggers in his career, but impressively, not all were against the weak competition of normal pitchers. In 1988, he won two SSs, one as a pitcher and one as a first baseman. Qin did the same in 1991. His pitcher-only Silver Sluggers came in 1987, 89, 90, 92, 93, 94, 95, and 97. He didn’t play enough games in the field to lead the league offensively, but he had five seasons with 5+ WAR offensively and hit 20+ home runs seven times.

The combined efforts earned Qin MVP consideration for the first time in 1987, taking third. He won MVP four times (1988, 90, 92, 93) and took third in 1991, second in 1994, and third in 1995. Qin’s pitching skills improved as he’d lead in wins in both 1990-91, then in ERA in 1993 and 1994. Qin also won 1993 Pitcher of the Year honors and took second in 1990. He had three seasons of 6+ WAR on the mound.

By WAR, Qin’s best combined number was 1992 with 6.7 offensively and 7.1 pitching, a total of 13.8. He also breached double-digits in 1988 (10.9), 1990 (12.1), and 1993 (11.2). Qin was a superstar for Macau, who gave him an eight-year, $9,750,000 extension after the 1989 season. He was a big reason the Magicians became a playoff contender, making five berths from 1988-94.

Despite his efforts, Macau only once made it beyond the semifinal, dropping the 1989 China Series to Dalian. Qin’s playoff numbers at the plate were decent with 36 games and 31 starts, 24 hits, 10 runs, 5 doubles, 5 home runs, 10 RBI, a .214/.273/.411 slash, 146 wRC+, and 1.0 WAR. On the mound though, he had a 76 ERA+ with a 3.22 ERA in 67 innings, 64 strikeouts, and only 0.5 WAR.

Qin also made a few two-way appearances for China in the World Baseball Championship. He played in six WBCs from 1989-96 and at the plate was strong in 73 games and 59 starts. Qin had 57 hits, 35 runs, 8 doubles, 22 home runs, 47 RBI, a .249/.341/.581 slash, 163 wRC+, and 3.0 WAR. On the mound, he had a mere 4.75 ERA over 30.1 innings for a 77 ERA+. He would earn a world title ring with the 1993 squad.

The demands of the job started to catch up to Qin. He reputed a tendon in a finger to miss the end of 1993, then lost two months of 1994 to back troubles. 1996 had a forearm strain that cost about three months. Towards the end of the Macau run, his pitching stats began to look subpar. However, his offense numbers still held up quite well. The Magicians had fallen off with 1996 being their first losing season in a decade.

Macau opted not to re-sign Qin after the 1997 season, making him a 36-year old free agent. The franchise would later retire his #23 uniform. Qin earned attention worldwide and ended up moving to Canada and MLB, signing a two-year, $8,320,000 deal with Calgary. Qin struggled as a pitcher for the Cheetahs and gave them average offensive numbers in one season, missing some time to a sprained ankle. He didn’t meet the vesting criteria for the second year of the deal, becoming a free agent again for 1999. He stayed in MLB on a one year, $3,040,000 contract with Dallas.

The Dalmatians gave him another year after that and used him mostly as a hitter in 2000. He was merely okay as a hitter for Dallas with similar marks a pitcher. Still wanting to play in 2001 somewhere, the now 39-year old Qin ended up in Saudi Arabia with Jeddah. Qin had okay batting numbers for the Jackals and only saw one relief appearance on the mound. He made it back to MLB just as a batter in 2002 with Minneapolis, but had poor results. Qin finally retired that winter at age 41. Between MLB and ALB he had 2.1 WAR offensively and 1.3 WAR pitching.

For his CLB and Macau run as a hitter, Qin had 1005 hits, 585 runs, 141 doubles, 249 home runs, 604 RBI, 464 walks, a .239/.324/.460 slash, 168 wRC+, and 54.7 WAR. As a pitcher, Qin had a 169-88 record, 2.17 ERA, 2520 innings, 2502 strikeouts, 493 walks, 262/343 quality starts, 111 ERA+, and 45.1 WAR. Either by themselves probably weren’t HOF worthy, but a combined 99.8 WAR with four MVPs is hard to deny.

Counting his MLB/ALB stats, Qin had a career WAR of 103.2. When compared to other two-way guys as of 2037, that is 16^th best. He’s among the higher ones in batting WAR, as most of the other elites in history tended to be stellar pitchers and good batters. Qin had bursts as a great pitcher, but was more consistently good as a hitter. Qin earned 93.8% for a first ballot induction to headline the 2003 CLB class.

Shichao Zhang – Right Field/First Base – Chongqing Cavaliers – 75.0% Fourth Ballot

Shichao Zhang was a 6’0’’, 205 pound switch-hitting right fielder from Tanggu, a former district within Tianjin in Northern China. Zhang was an excellent home run hitter that could also quite effectively hit for contact. He was above average at drawing walks with an average strikeout rate. Zhang also had very good gap power, averaging 29 doubles and 38 home runs per 162 game average.

He was a decent baserunner, but could only do so much to makeup for mediocre speed. Zhang made around 3/4s of his starts in right field with the rest at first base. He was an absolutely abysmal defender in both spots, really stinking up the outfield with his awful range. Some criticized him for poor leadership and intelligent. However, strong man smacking dingers always finds a home somewhere. Zhang was a popular player and boasted very good durability.

His power potential was noted by Chongqing, who selected Zhang second overall in the 1979 CLB Draft. He wasn’t ready yet for the big time, making only five at bats in 1980. He saw some pinch hit spots in 1981 and a few starts in 1982. Zhang earned a full-time job in 1983 and held it for the next decade with the Cavaliers. He would hit 30+ homers in every season as a full-time starter for Chongqing.

Zhang had a remarkable streak of six straight seasons leading in wRC+ from 1984-89. He led in OPS and slugging five times in that stretch while leading in OBP thrice, batting average twice, total bases thrice, home runs thrice, doubles once, and RBI once.

1984 saw CLB’s first-ever offensive Triple Crown with 47 home runs, 101 RBI, and a .301 average, all career bests while in CLB. He also had 9.5 WAR that year, but managed to take second in MVP voting. Zhang never won the top honor, but also took second in 1985, 86, 88, and 92. He won eight Silver Sluggers with seven straight in RF from 1983-89, then one at 1B in 1992.

Chongqing had three straight playoff berths from 1983-85, earning China Series appearances in 1983 and 1985. They lost the former year to Tianjin and the latter to Beijing. In 25 playoff starts, Zhang had 29 hits, 11 runs, 5 doubles, 6 home runs, 16 RBI, a .284/.324/.510 slash, 179 wRC+, and 1.6 WAR. The Cavaliers committed to Zhang after the 1984 campaign on an eight-year, $3,502,000 extension. They wouldn’t make the playoffs after 1985 while Zhang was there, generally hovering just below .500.

Zhang’s stats fell off a bit in 1990 and 1991, but he bounced back with a strong 1992, leading in homers, RBI, total bases, OBP, slugging, OPS, and wRC+. It was also his fourth season worth 8+ WAR. He performed well in a contract year, earning the soon-to-be 33 year old attention as he entered free agency for 1993.

This marked the end of his time in the Chinese League. He would return home for the World Baseball Championship from 1993-97, posting 83 hits in 110 games with 81 runs, 19 doubles, 44 home runs, 91 RBI, a .213/.335/.607 slash, 169 wRC+, and 5.9 WAR.

China won the world title in 1993 against India and in 1994 against the United States. 1995 was a defeat to Canada in a seven-game thriller with game seven going 11 innings with a 1-0 final. Although they lost, Zhang was the 1995 WBC MVP, starting 27 games with 26 hits, 26 runs, 17 home runs, 37 RBI, 18 walks, a .283/.416/.870 slash, 259 wRC+, and 2.7 WAR. At the time, 37 RBI was the second-most in a single WBC. He has the fifth most homers of any Chinese player in the WBC despite only playing in five editions.

During those WBCs, Zhang made his money in America in Major League Baseball. For 1993, he signed a four-year, $9,280,000 deal with Cleveland. He had four strong seasons hitting for the Cobras, smacking 40+ homers and 100+ RBI thrice each. 1996 saw career bests with 49 homers and 129 RBI, along with an impressive 6.9 WAR at age 36.

Cleveland won their division from 1993-95 and in 1994, earned a trip to the World Series where they were defeated by San Francisco. In 19 playoff starts for the Cobras, Zhang had 20 hit, 11 runs, 6 home runs, 15 RBI, a .303/.418/.606 slash, 210 wRC+, and 1.2 WAR. In total for Cleveland, Zhang had 580 hits, 368 runs, 82 doubles, 164 home runs, 415 RBI, a .272/.348/.549 slash, 169 wRC+, and 20.2 WAR. He certainly showed that he could adjust well to MLB hitters.

Now 37 and a free agent again, Zhang signed for two years and $7,680,000 with Tampa. He looked merely average in a 1997 that was plagued by various injuries. Zhang was moved to a part-time role after terrible results in 1998 with negative WAR. He had zero WAR total and an 89 wRC+ with the Thunderbirds. Philadelphia gave Zhang a look in 1999, but he stunk in his 49 at-bats. He retired that winter at age 39.

For his entire pro career, Zhang had 2408 hits, 1265 runs, 413 doubles, 579 home runs, 1409 RBI, a .275/.343/.531 slash, 184 wRC+, and 94.5 WAR. The great years in Cleveland helped pad out his accumulations. In just CLB with Chongqing, Zhang had 1638 hits, 805 runs, 292 doubles, 387 home runs, 887 RBI, a .283/.357/.547 slash, 204 wRC+, and 74.8 WAR. The Cavaliers also retired his #45 uniform.

The accumulations aren’t super high, largely due to the very low offense environment of CLB. The notoriously harsh CLB voters kept him out for three years because of the accumulations and his truly abysmal defense. His rate stats are outstanding though. As of 2037 among CLB HOFers, he’s fourth in OBP, seventh in slugging, and fifth in OPS. Zhang got 61.0%, 65.9%, and 61.8% in his first three times on the ballot. Finally in 2003 on his fourth try, he got the bump to 75.0% to earn his spot in the Hall of Fame.

**MrNFL_FanIQ** · 05-15-2024, 05:04 PM

2003 WAB Hall of Fame

For back-to-back years, West African Baseball didn’t elect a single player into the Hall of Fame. SP Elodie Belem came painfully close to the 66% requirement in 2003, receiving 65.8% on his sixth ballot. The top debut was 1B Daouda Kadri at 54.9%. No one else was above 50% with only two other players above the 1/3 mark. No players were dropped following ten ballots.

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

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