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FuzzyRussianHat · 12-30-2023, 07:11 AM

Two players secured spots in Beisbol Sudamerica’s Hall of Fame in 1988. They were both first ballot guys, but both in the 70% range. First baseman Afonso Revela got 74.4% and closer Pedro Heredia received 72.0%. Two others came close, but fell just short of the 66% mark. 1B Cy Cavazos got 61.7% on his fifth ballot and SP Manuel Gonzalez earned 59.6% on his eighth go. For both Cavazos and Gonzalez, this was the highest mark they had received. No players were dropped following ten ballots.

Afonso Revela – First Base – Santiago Saints – 74.4% First Ballot

Afonso Revela was a 6’0’’, 200 pound left-handed first baseman from Santos, Brazil; a city with around 430,000 people located about two hours south of greater Sao Paulo. Revela was very popular because he flat out hit dingers, posting a stretch of 11 straight seasons with 40+ home runs and topping 50+ eight times in that run. He also drew a ton of walks, often times with teams pitching around him. However, Revela struck out a ton and was a below average contact hitter. He was very much a “three true outcomes” type of hitter. Revela was a career first baseman and a terrible defender to boot. But he was a hard worker and hit dongs, a combo that will keep one employed in professional baseball.

Revela was signed as a teenage amateur free agent by Santiago in 1963, although it would be some time before he saw much playing time. His contact hitting was abysmal early in his career and with no designed hitter in the Southern Cone League, even with his power he didn’t have a spot. Revela officially debuted with a few at bats in 1967, but was primarily a pinch hitter through 1971. Plus, Santiago was in the midst of their dominant run in the Southern Cone League, so open spots were limited. Although he didn’t make any postseason starts, Revela received a Copa Sudamerica ring in 1971.

By 1972, Revela earned a full-time spot in the lineup and had cultivated his power to justify the spot, leading the league with 53 home runs. In 1973 and 1975, he took third in MVP voting. Revela never won the top award or a Silver Slugger, the curse of sharing a position and league with the eventual all-time home run king Valor Melo. In 1975, Revela became the single-season home run champ with 69 bombs. He held that title one season, as Melo crushed 74 the next year. Revela also played in the World Baseball Championship from 1973-76 for Brazil with 17 home runs and 25 RBI over 130 at bats.

Despite Revela’s success, his rise came with the end of Santiago’s run at the top with their decade-long playoff streak ending in 1974. Still, his towering homers would be fondly remembered and the Saints would retire his #39 uniform. In total with Santiago, Revela had 905 hits, 658 runs, 356 home runs, 692 RBI, a .254/.349/.586 slash, and 41.3 WAR. He became a free agent at age 31 following the 1977 season and signed a six-year, $2,290,000 deal with Rio de Janeiro.

He had four more seasons with 50+ homers with the Redbirds and led the Southern Cone League twice. Revela helped at the box office in Rio, but the team was a lower tier one still. In five seasons, he had 648 hits, 454 runs, 267 home runs, 517 RBI, a .253/.338/.593 slash and 26.5 WAR. In 1982, Revela became the seventh BSA hitter to 600 career home runs. He declined his contract option year after the season and found big money with MLB’s Charlotte, who was excited to bring his power to North Carolina. Revela signed a three-year, $2,940,000 deal with the Canaries and hit 33 homers as a starter there. He also posted -2.0 WAR with an American Association worst 221 strikeouts and a .172 average. Revela opted to retire after this season at age 36.

For his BSA career, Revela had 1553 hits, 1112 runs, 159 doubles, 623 home runs, 1209 RBI, 815 walks, a .254/.345/.589 slash, 175 wRC+, and 67.8 WAR. He was seventh on the all-time home run list at induction, but was overshadowed by Valor Melo’s power in his era. Unlike the well-rounded Melo as well, Revela really wasn’t that good at anything outside of the homers. Chicks dig the long ball though, as did enough Hall of Fame voters to put Revela in on the first ballot with 74.4%.

Pedro Heredia – Closer – Buenos Aires Atlantics – 72.0% First Ballot

Pedro Heredia was a 6’1’’, 200 pound right-handed relief pitcher from La Plata, Argentina; a city with a metro of more than 900,000 located an hour east of Buenos Aires. Heredia’s fastball was the stuff of legends with 99-101 mph peak velocity. He also mixed in a great curveball with solid control and decent movement, making him a tough pitcher to solve. Heredia was also very durable and ready to step in whenever called upon. He was a carefree and weird guy that didn’t lean into the fame, but the fans loved the fastball.

It was clear though that he didn’t have the stamina to be a starting pitcher, which meant he wasn’t the most sought after prospect after his amateur career. Nearby Buenos Aires noticed him though and picked him 80^th overall in the 1971 Beisbol Sudamerica Draft; the first pick of the fourth round. He was thrown into the closer role immediately and excelled in that orle for the next eight seasons with the Atlantics. He had four seasons with a sub-one ERA and five seasons with 6+ WAR; a rarity for a reliever. On multiple occasions, his FIP- was in the single digits.

Heredia was Reliever of the Year in his rookie season and took second in Rookie of the Year voting. He then won five straight Reliever of the Year awards from 1975-79; joining Chano Angel as BSA’s only six-time winners of the award. He led the Southern Cone League in saves twice and posted a streak of 60 successful save opportunities that lasted from August 31, 1974 to May 27, 1976. Heredia also posted 51 straight scoreless innings from 8/10/77 to 6/30/78. There’s no easy way to check the records for all leagues for these specific stats, but they may both be world records. When he was on, he was simply untouchable.

This would serve Buenos Aires well as they put together their own six year playoff streak from 1975-80. The Atlantics won the 1975 Copa Sudamerica with Heredia tossing 10 scoreless innings with 22 strikeouts in that postseason run. Buenos Aires would fall in the league championship the next four years with Heredia posting a 1.65 playoff ERA over 32.2 innings with 69 strikeouts and 9 saves. He also pitched for Argentina from 1972-86 in the World Baseball Championship with a 2.34 ERA over 65.1 innings, 25 saves, and 126 strikeouts.

In 1979, he posted 7.0 WAR over 92.2 innings with 192 strikeouts, 44 saves, and a 0.68 ERA. This effort earned Heredia the Pitcher of the Year, the first reliever to win the award in Southern Cone League history. His contract expired after the 1979 season with Buenos Aires at age 30 and to the surprise of most, this marked the end of his South American career. Even more surprising was that he left for the newly formed South Asia Baseball. There had been plenty of prime players leaving to a more prestigious league, but someone going to a new and weaker league while at their peak was unheard of. Heredia never gave much detail to the media as to why he decided to leave, but he joined Yangon for the 1980 season.

He bounced around in six SAB seasons, although he was still great in the newly formed league. Heredia pitched with Yangon in 1980, Jaipur in 1981, Bengaluru in 1982, Yangon again in 1983, both Jaipur and Ahmedabad in 1984, and Yangon once more in 1985. Heredia won Reliever of the Year in 1980, 81, 82 and 84; giving him the award ten times in total. He also was third in 1980 and 1985 voting. He won a championship ring in 1982 with the Blazers.

In total in South Asia Baseball, Heredia had 212 saves, 1.41 ERA, 475 innings, 955 strikeouts, 90 walks, 18 FIP-, and 30.5 WAR. His 1985 was the weakest of the season, but he was still worth 4.4 WAR. He went unsigned in 1986 with his final appearances coming in the 1986 WBC. Heredia was unsigned again in 1987 and retired that winter at age 38.

For his entire pro career, Heredia had 521 saves, 1.20 ERA, 1164.1 innings, 2321 strikeouts, 213 walks, 607 shutdowns, a 284 ERA+, 15 FIP-, and 78.3 WAR. That line puts him among the absolute best relievers in pro baseball history. Despite his dominance, his BSA Hall of Fame candidacy was solely based on the Buenos Aires run with 309 saves and 366 shutdowns, a 1.04 ERA, 689.1 innings, 1366 strikeouts, 123 walks, 311 ERA+, 13 FIP-, and 47.8 WAR. Only Chano Angel had a better ERA among BSA Hall of Famers, but there were voters that still voted against him for leaving when he did. Still, his eight years with the Atlantics were historically dominant, seeing his #29 uniform retired. Enough voters were impressed by this peak to put him in even with only 309 saves, making Heredia a first ballot Hall of Famer at 72.0%.

12-30-2023, 07:11 AM	#833
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 3,342	1988 BSA Hall of Fame Two players secured spots in Beisbol Sudamerica’s Hall of Fame in 1988. They were both first ballot guys, but both in the 70% range. First baseman Afonso Revela got 74.4% and closer Pedro Heredia received 72.0%. Two others came close, but fell just short of the 66% mark. 1B Cy Cavazos got 61.7% on his fifth ballot and SP Manuel Gonzalez earned 59.6% on his eighth go. For both Cavazos and Gonzalez, this was the highest mark they had received. No players were dropped following ten ballots. Afonso Revela – First Base – Santiago Saints – 74.4% First Ballot Afonso Revela was a 6’0’’, 200 pound left-handed first baseman from Santos, Brazil; a city with around 430,000 people located about two hours south of greater Sao Paulo. Revela was very popular because he flat out hit dingers, posting a stretch of 11 straight seasons with 40+ home runs and topping 50+ eight times in that run. He also drew a ton of walks, often times with teams pitching around him. However, Revela struck out a ton and was a below average contact hitter. He was very much a “three true outcomes” type of hitter. Revela was a career first baseman and a terrible defender to boot. But he was a hard worker and hit dongs, a combo that will keep one employed in professional baseball. Revela was signed as a teenage amateur free agent by Santiago in 1963, although it would be some time before he saw much playing time. His contact hitting was abysmal early in his career and with no designed hitter in the Southern Cone League, even with his power he didn’t have a spot. Revela officially debuted with a few at bats in 1967, but was primarily a pinch hitter through 1971. Plus, Santiago was in the midst of their dominant run in the Southern Cone League, so open spots were limited. Although he didn’t make any postseason starts, Revela received a Copa Sudamerica ring in 1971. By 1972, Revela earned a full-time spot in the lineup and had cultivated his power to justify the spot, leading the league with 53 home runs. In 1973 and 1975, he took third in MVP voting. Revela never won the top award or a Silver Slugger, the curse of sharing a position and league with the eventual all-time home run king Valor Melo. In 1975, Revela became the single-season home run champ with 69 bombs. He held that title one season, as Melo crushed 74 the next year. Revela also played in the World Baseball Championship from 1973-76 for Brazil with 17 home runs and 25 RBI over 130 at bats. Despite Revela’s success, his rise came with the end of Santiago’s run at the top with their decade-long playoff streak ending in 1974. Still, his towering homers would be fondly remembered and the Saints would retire his #39 uniform. In total with Santiago, Revela had 905 hits, 658 runs, 356 home runs, 692 RBI, a .254/.349/.586 slash, and 41.3 WAR. He became a free agent at age 31 following the 1977 season and signed a six-year, $2,290,000 deal with Rio de Janeiro. He had four more seasons with 50+ homers with the Redbirds and led the Southern Cone League twice. Revela helped at the box office in Rio, but the team was a lower tier one still. In five seasons, he had 648 hits, 454 runs, 267 home runs, 517 RBI, a .253/.338/.593 slash and 26.5 WAR. In 1982, Revela became the seventh BSA hitter to 600 career home runs. He declined his contract option year after the season and found big money with MLB’s Charlotte, who was excited to bring his power to North Carolina. Revela signed a three-year, $2,940,000 deal with the Canaries and hit 33 homers as a starter there. He also posted -2.0 WAR with an American Association worst 221 strikeouts and a .172 average. Revela opted to retire after this season at age 36. For his BSA career, Revela had 1553 hits, 1112 runs, 159 doubles, 623 home runs, 1209 RBI, 815 walks, a .254/.345/.589 slash, 175 wRC+, and 67.8 WAR. He was seventh on the all-time home run list at induction, but was overshadowed by Valor Melo’s power in his era. Unlike the well-rounded Melo as well, Revela really wasn’t that good at anything outside of the homers. Chicks dig the long ball though, as did enough Hall of Fame voters to put Revela in on the first ballot with 74.4%. Pedro Heredia – Closer – Buenos Aires Atlantics – 72.0% First Ballot Pedro Heredia was a 6’1’’, 200 pound right-handed relief pitcher from La Plata, Argentina; a city with a metro of more than 900,000 located an hour east of Buenos Aires. Heredia’s fastball was the stuff of legends with 99-101 mph peak velocity. He also mixed in a great curveball with solid control and decent movement, making him a tough pitcher to solve. Heredia was also very durable and ready to step in whenever called upon. He was a carefree and weird guy that didn’t lean into the fame, but the fans loved the fastball. It was clear though that he didn’t have the stamina to be a starting pitcher, which meant he wasn’t the most sought after prospect after his amateur career. Nearby Buenos Aires noticed him though and picked him 80^th overall in the 1971 Beisbol Sudamerica Draft; the first pick of the fourth round. He was thrown into the closer role immediately and excelled in that orle for the next eight seasons with the Atlantics. He had four seasons with a sub-one ERA and five seasons with 6+ WAR; a rarity for a reliever. On multiple occasions, his FIP- was in the single digits. Heredia was Reliever of the Year in his rookie season and took second in Rookie of the Year voting. He then won five straight Reliever of the Year awards from 1975-79; joining Chano Angel as BSA’s only six-time winners of the award. He led the Southern Cone League in saves twice and posted a streak of 60 successful save opportunities that lasted from August 31, 1974 to May 27, 1976. Heredia also posted 51 straight scoreless innings from 8/10/77 to 6/30/78. There’s no easy way to check the records for all leagues for these specific stats, but they may both be world records. When he was on, he was simply untouchable. This would serve Buenos Aires well as they put together their own six year playoff streak from 1975-80. The Atlantics won the 1975 Copa Sudamerica with Heredia tossing 10 scoreless innings with 22 strikeouts in that postseason run. Buenos Aires would fall in the league championship the next four years with Heredia posting a 1.65 playoff ERA over 32.2 innings with 69 strikeouts and 9 saves. He also pitched for Argentina from 1972-86 in the World Baseball Championship with a 2.34 ERA over 65.1 innings, 25 saves, and 126 strikeouts. In 1979, he posted 7.0 WAR over 92.2 innings with 192 strikeouts, 44 saves, and a 0.68 ERA. This effort earned Heredia the Pitcher of the Year, the first reliever to win the award in Southern Cone League history. His contract expired after the 1979 season with Buenos Aires at age 30 and to the surprise of most, this marked the end of his South American career. Even more surprising was that he left for the newly formed South Asia Baseball. There had been plenty of prime players leaving to a more prestigious league, but someone going to a new and weaker league while at their peak was unheard of. Heredia never gave much detail to the media as to why he decided to leave, but he joined Yangon for the 1980 season. He bounced around in six SAB seasons, although he was still great in the newly formed league. Heredia pitched with Yangon in 1980, Jaipur in 1981, Bengaluru in 1982, Yangon again in 1983, both Jaipur and Ahmedabad in 1984, and Yangon once more in 1985. Heredia won Reliever of the Year in 1980, 81, 82 and 84; giving him the award ten times in total. He also was third in 1980 and 1985 voting. He won a championship ring in 1982 with the Blazers. In total in South Asia Baseball, Heredia had 212 saves, 1.41 ERA, 475 innings, 955 strikeouts, 90 walks, 18 FIP-, and 30.5 WAR. His 1985 was the weakest of the season, but he was still worth 4.4 WAR. He went unsigned in 1986 with his final appearances coming in the 1986 WBC. Heredia was unsigned again in 1987 and retired that winter at age 38. For his entire pro career, Heredia had 521 saves, 1.20 ERA, 1164.1 innings, 2321 strikeouts, 213 walks, 607 shutdowns, a 284 ERA+, 15 FIP-, and 78.3 WAR. That line puts him among the absolute best relievers in pro baseball history. Despite his dominance, his BSA Hall of Fame candidacy was solely based on the Buenos Aires run with 309 saves and 366 shutdowns, a 1.04 ERA, 689.1 innings, 1366 strikeouts, 123 walks, 311 ERA+, 13 FIP-, and 47.8 WAR. Only Chano Angel had a better ERA among BSA Hall of Famers, but there were voters that still voted against him for leaving when he did. Still, his eight years with the Atlantics were historically dominant, seeing his #29 uniform retired. Enough voters were impressed by this peak to put him in even with only 309 saves, making Heredia a first ballot Hall of Famer at 72.0%. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports The Level Playing Field: Alternate MLB History From 1884-Onward Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)