[MrNFL_FanIQ]

Austronesia Professional Baseball’s 2020 Hall of Fame voting was a wide open field as the top newcomer got 45.3%. Three guys with tenure on the ballot came close to the 66% requirement, but it was CF/2B Fransisco Hartati as the only one getting in at 73.3% on his ninth try. RF Sutanto Mangkoepradja was next at 64.2% and 1B Gavin Loh saw 60.8%, both on their eighth ballots.



One other returner topped 60% with SP Putra Andriani getting 60.5% for his third ballot. SP Dwi Aditya Supandi had 56.4% on his second try and LF Beau Cabral received 54.7% on his second attempt. SP I Komang Ainaga was the best debutant at 45.3%.

SP Arfandi Bekti was the lone player dropped after ten failed ballots. He had a 19-year career between eight teams and won APB titles in 1998 with Batam and 2000 with Kaohsiung. Bekti had a 239-197 record, 2.46 ERA, 4146 innings, 3320 strikeouts, 105 ERA+, and 55.8 WAR. In the playoffs, he had a 2.45 ERA over 139.2 innings, 125 strikeouts, and 103 ERA+. APB voters are very pitcher-friendly, but Bekti lacked black ink and was never in awards conversations. He was purely a compiler, peaking at 33.6% in his debut and ending with 10.5%.



Fransisco “Wasp” Hartati – Center Field/Second Base – Surabaya Sunbirds – 73.3% Ninth Ballot

Fransisco Hartati was a 6’3’’, 205 pound right-handed center fielder and second baseman from Sumenep, Indonesia; a regency of the East Java province with 1.1 million people. He was nicknamed “Wasp” for his incredible ferocity, known as one of the hardest workers in the game. Hartati was a rock solid contact hitter with a reliable pop in his bat, getting 22 doubles, 9 triples, and 23 home runs per his 162 game average. He was graded as average in terms of drawing walks and avoiding strikeouts relative to other APB hitters.

Hartati was one of the more clever and savvy baserunners you’d find despite his speed being merely above average in his peak. He gutted out a 22-year career despite dealing with numerous recurring injuries into his 30s and 40s. The big downside was Hartati was absolutely atrocious defensively playing in leagues without a designated hitter.

For his career, his accumulated zone rating was an appalling -409.1. Hartati was primarily split between center field and second base with occasional stints at first base and left field. It was baffling to many how someone so abysmal defensively was placed between two of the more challenging and important defensive spots. Hartati’s can-do attitude and his strong bat still gave him positive value in the lineup even if he was complete booty defensively.

Hartati’s bat alone made him one of the highest graded Indonesian prospects ahead of the 1984 APB Draft. He was picked #2 overall by Surabaya, where he’d spend the next 19 years. Hartati was used primarily as a pinch hitter his first three years, in part because there wasn’t a logical spot for him in the field. He earned the starting gig in 1988 and played 150+ games each year from 1988-1994. Hartati’s first Silver Slugger as at CF came in 1988.

In 1989, Hartati led the Sundaland Association in RBI (86), total bases (296), OBP (.352), slugging (.536), OPS (.888), and wRC+ (237). He took second in MVP voting and won his second Silver Slugger. He had 5.9 WAR or better from 1989-1993 and topped 8+ twice. Hartati won Sluggers in CF in 1990 and 1992 with his first at second base in 1991. He was third in MVP voting in 1990 and signed an eight-year, $11,230,000 extension with Surabaya that winter.

The Sunbirds ended an 11-year playoff drought in 1991, but lost the Sundaland Association final to Batam. Surabaya was rarely bad during Hartati’s 20s, but they wouldn’t make the playoffs again until 1999 and were stick in the mid-tier. He had back-to-back batting titles in 1991 and 1992, leading in hits both years. Hartati also led in runs and total bases in 1992. 1991 had his career best WAR at 8.4.

Hartati won Silver Sluggers in CF in both 1993 and 1994, giving him eight total to that point. He ran into injury issues with a sprained ankle in 1995, then was reduced to a part-time starter in 1996. 1997 saw a strained abdominal muscle costing him six weeks, although Hartati still managed to win a Silver Slugger at second base. He finally had a full season in 1998 and won another Slugger at 2B. Hartati was now soon to be 37-years old, but Surabaya extended the popular player for another three years at $8,440,000.

Even with a fractured foot keeping him out more than a month, Hartati had a 5.3 WAR effort in 1999. Surabaya ended their playoff drought and upset defending champ Batam in the Sundaland Association Championship. The Sunbirds then won the Austronesia Championship over Manila with Hartati getting finals MVP. He more than made up for his weak 1991 playoff effort, starting 13 games with 19 hits, 10 runs, 3 doubles, 2 home runs, and 9 RBI. After a 15-year run, he brought a title to his longtime team.

Surabaya fell mostly to the middle tier for the next few years, as did Hartati’s production. He would manage his tenth Silver Slugger in 2003, becoming only the fifth in APB history with ten Sluggers at any position. It was his fourth at 2B with six in CF. The Sunbirds gave Hartati a three-year, $10,520,000 extension after the 2000 season. Various injuries plagued him in his later years, including a torn meniscus in 2001 and a torn thumb ligament in 2003.

Hartati’s deal expired after the 2003 season, making him a free agent for the first time at age 42. He still hoped to play somewhere and opened up a worldwide search. That led him to EPB and the Russian capital, signing a three-year, $10,400,000 deal with Moscow. A strained abdominal muscle kept him out almost half of his debut season with the Mules.

2005 saw very average numbers with 1.1 WAR over 124 games. However, Hartati stepped up big in the playoffs as Moscow won the EPB Championship over Yekaterinburg. In 11 playoff starts, Hartati had 12 hits, 2 runs, 2 doubles, 2 triples, 1 homer, and 6 RBI. He was named finals MVP, becoming one of the very few in pro baseball history to earn finals MVP in multiple leagues. He had 4.0 WAR and a 137 wRC+ over 213 games total for Moscow. Hartati failed to meet the vesting criteria for the third year of his deal.

Hartati was now 44 years old, but still willing and eager to play. He came back to Indonesia and Semarang was willing to sign him for three years at $8,720,000. Hartati started the whole season, but was merely passable with a 99 wRC+ and 0.7 WAR. He decided to officially retire that winter just after his 45^th birthday. Surabaya would honor him by retiring his #11 uniform for his 19-years of service.

For his APB career, Hartati had 2390 hits, 1115 runs, 329 doubles, 139 triples, 362 home runs, 1072 RBI, 482 walks, 485 stolen bases, a .278/.320/.475 slash, 177 wRC+, and 69.7 WAR. These tallies rank well in the very low scoring world of APB as of 2037 with Hartati 18^th in hits, 21^st in runs, 65^th in doubles, 66^th in triples, 55^th in home runs, 32^nd in RBI, and 77^th in WAR among position players. His WAR was notably far lower than you’d expect due to his garbage defense. Among all batters with 3000+ plate appearances, his .795 OPS ranks 65^th.

Hartati proved a tough case for many voters, especially those turned off by his defense. APB voters were notably tough for hitters to begin with and even with the ten Silver Sluggers and longevity, his tallies weren’t as high as some would’ve wanted. Supporters appreciated his steadfastness to Surabaya and role in their 1999 championship season.

In his 2012 ballot debut, Hartati began with 51.0%. He bounced around and was in the 40s twice, but also in the 60s twice. Hartati made it to 62.7% in 2016 and 63.4% in 2018, but couldn’t breach the 66% requirement. He fell back to 51.6% in 2019, then had a chance with his penultimate ballot in 2020. With a quieter field, Hartati got the bump he needed to 73.3%. He became only the third APB inductee to get in on his ninth ballot and was the lone addition in 2020.