[FuzzyRussianHat]

The Western League saw some changes at the top of the standings with defending West African Baseball champ Abidjan missing the playoffs on a fourth place 83-79 finish. The Athletes had made the playoffs in each of WAB’s first eight years and won the WL title four times in that stretch. Bamako took first at 105-57 to snap a five-year playoff drought for the Bullfrogs. Kumasi was second at 95-67 to keep its postseason streak intact at six years. Nouakchott grabbed third at 87-75 for the final wild card spot. This was the first postseason berth for the Night Riders. Monrovia, who was the WLCS runner-up last year, dropped to a lousy 72-90.

Nouakchott had the Western League MVP in 3B Epule Fongang. The Cameroonian righty was already in his fifth season at only age 23 and led in hits for the fourth straight season, this time with 190. He also led in runs (103), triples (25), total bases (333), and WAR (9.2), adding a .314 average and 20 home runs with 113 RBI. Bamako lefty Addise Assefa won the Pitcher of the Year with the 26-year old Ethiopian leading in strikeouts (401), WAR (9.1), quality starts 930), and wins (21-9). Assefa was the first-ever WAB pitcher to strikeout 400+ in a season, topping the previous record of 386. He had a 2.32 ERA in 283.2 innings.



In the Eastern League, Ouagadougou finished first at 105-57 to earn back-to-back playoff berths. After missing the field for the first time ever last year, Lagos earned the first wild card with their second place finish at 93-69. The third spot went to Kano at 89-73, giving the Condors a sixth playoff berth in WAB’s first nine seasons. Last year’s EL champ Port Harcourt tied for fourth at 84-78 with Douala. Benin City, the runner-up last year, fell to sixth at 79-83.

Osprey CF Robbie Oakes won the Eastern League MVP. The 25-year old lefty from South Africa led in runs (127), walks (112), stolen bases (85), OBP (.422), and WAR (10.8). Pitcher of the Year was Moussa Sidi, who had been traded to Lagos from Conakry during spring training. The 28-year old Mauritanian lefty led the league in ERA at 2.32, posting 256 strikeouts, a 15-8 record, and 6.3 WAR in 221 innings.

Both wild card round series were sweeps with Nouakchott upsetting Kumasi in the WL and Lagos topping Kano as expected in the EL. Both League Championship Series went all five games with the WLCS going to Bamako over the Night Riders, giving the Bulldogs their second Western League title (1976). In the ELCS, Lagos upset Ouagadougou to return to their throne atop the Eastern League. The Lizards are now five-time EL winners, having won in 1977, 78, 79, 81, and now 83.



Lagos added its fourth overall WAB title as they crushed Bamako with a sweep in the ninth West African Championship. The Lizards have won those four in six years with the additional rings in 1978, 79, and 81. SS Ismael Sidi was the finals MVP with the 29-year old former league MVP getting 16 hits, 7 runs, 6 extra base hits, and 8 RBI in 11 playoff games.



Other notes; Douala’s Mokhtar Mariama had a 30-game hit streak, setting a new WAB single season record. The mark would get topped later in the decade. Stephen Tshukudu and George Nandjou became the first WAB batters to 400 career home runs.