[FuzzyRussianHat]

Two pitchers earned spots in the Eurasian Professional Baseball Hall of Fame in the 1990 voting. Closer Sergiu Onisie grabbed a first ballot spot with 86.5%. Joining him was starter Serhiy Belov, who finally crossed the 66% requirement with 71.2% on his sixth ballot. SP Maksim Ekstrem was close on his second try, but short at 60.1%. Also above 50% was 1B Bartlomiej Tarka with a debut of 58.9%.



Dropped after ten ballots was closer Joachim Kohut, who had a 16 year career with ten different teams. He had a 1.45 ERA, 359 saves and 448 shutdowns, 1089.2 innings, 1719 strikeouts, 57.4 WAR, and two Reliever of the Year awards. His stat line was far more impressive than a lot of other relievers who got into other HOFs and his WAR was even around eight points better than Onisie, who got the nod. Kohut came very close with 60.5% in his debut, but fell down the ballot to only 14.7% by the end.

Also dropped was two-way player Elmar Petrov, who won the Asian League MVP in 1970. He had a 16-year career with seven teams, but was never a league leader statistically with his split duties. As a pitcher, Petrov had a 170-129 record, 2.83 ERA, 2791.1 innings, 2585 strikeouts, and 32.7 WAR. As a first baseman, he had 1252 hits, 608 runs, 277 home runs, 734 RBI, a .270/.317/.505 slash and 45.1 WAR. His combined numbers deserve a look, but being above average at both didn’t sway the voters, even despite winning three rings with three teams. Petrov debuted at 37.2% and had fallen to 4.6% at the end.



Sergiu Onisie – Closer – Tbilisi Trains – 86.5% First Ballot

Sergiu Onisie was a 6’4’’, 190 pound right-handed relief pitcher from Cornetu, a commune of around 7,000 people in southern Romania. Onisie had excellent stuff with great movement, although his control was subpar and he could be wild. His velocity peaked at 96-98 mph with a terrific slider and cutter, along with an occasional changeup. Onisie was a clubhouse captain that was greatly respected by his compatriots for his leadership, worth ethic, and intelligence.

Known relievers don’t often get picked high in the draft, but Onisie was an exception. Tbilisi selected him 18^th overall in the 1965 EPB Draft, although he wouldn’t debut until 1968 with limited appearances. He took over the closer role in 1969 and held it for the next seven seasons in Georgia. Onisie missed the second part of 1973 to a fractured elbow, but he had 30+ saves in each of the other seasons as the closer for the Trains.

1975 was his lone Reliever of the Year with a 0.88 ERA, 35 saves, 18-2 record, and 170 strikeouts over 91.2 innings with 6.6 WAR. He took third in voting in 1970, 71, and 72. Tbilisi had its first-ever sustained success with four straight playoff berths from 1972-76, although they only once got as far as the LCS. Onisie had a 2.84 ERA over 19 playoff innings with 31 strikeouts. In total with Tbilisi, he had a 1.34 ERA over 618.2 innings with 235 saves and 285 shutdowns, 971 strikeouts, and 33.7 WAR. Onisie also played for his native Romania in the World Baseball Championship from 1970-84. He was primarily a starter in the WBC with 150 innings, a 2.94 ERA, 229 strikeouts, a 10-7 record, and 4.9 WAR.

Despite his 1975 effort, Onisie was moved out of the closer role in 1976 and only pitched 40.1 innings that year. This led him to leave Tbilisi at the end of the season and enter free agency at age 31. He joined Moscow in 1977, taking second in Reliever of the Year voting with a league-best 34 saves. Onisie joined Almaty in 1978, but missed a chunk of the season to a strained shoulder. Next was two seasons with Ulaanbaatar, which included a third in Reliever of the Year voting in 1980.

The Boars traded him to Asagabat for the 1981 season, which was his last full-time season as a closer. Onisie’s ERA was above two for the first time since the start of his career and he wasn’t re-signed after one year with the Alphas. Moscow brought him back in 1982, but he was traded at the deadline to Bucharest. He finished the season with the Broncos as a closer with solid results. Onisie then signed with Kyiv for his final two seasons and earned a Soviet Series ring in 1983 as a setup man. He’d only see 4.1 innings the next year and retired that winter at age 38. Upon retirement, Tbilisi would opt to retire his #26 uniform.

Onisie’s final stats: 399 saves and 476 shutdowns, 1075 innings, 1614 strikeouts to 340 walks, a 45 FIP-, and 49.6 WAR. He was third all-time in saves at induction and still sits fourth as of 2037. This seemed to be the magic numbers for the EPB voters, plus Onisie was known as a clubhouse leader and standup guy. He got the first ballot nod at 86.5%.



Serhiy Belov – Starting Pitcher – Krasnoyarsk Cossacks – 71.2% Sixth Ballot

Serhiy Belov was a 5’11’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Biysk, a city of 210,000 in south central Russia not far from Kazakhstan’s eastern border. Belov had great control on his pitches with good stuff, although his movement was often subpar. His velocity on his fastball peaked at 96-98 mph and he mixed in a changeup, splitter, and cutter. Belov had excellent stamina, leaving the league in both innings pitched and complete games thrice in his career. Through the first decade of his career, Belov was a bit of an ironman with 11 straight seasons of 250+ innings pitched.

Belov was a top Russian pitching prospect out of the amateur ranks and was selected 11^th overall in the 1963 EPB Draft by Krasnoyarsk. He was a full-time starter immediately for the Cossacks and essentially never missed a start in his eight seasons there. Belov took third in Rookie of the Year voting in 1964, but regressed in his second season. He found consistency in year three and would post 6+ WAR and 300+ strikeouts in each of his remaining Krasnoyarsk seasons.

Belov would never be a Pitcher of the Year finalist and generally only led the league in innings pitched. Krasnoyarsk saw improvement over his tenure, but they never made the playoffs and merely were above average. Belov was steady and reliable though and the Cossacks would retire his #23 uniform at the end of his career. With Krasnoyarsk, Belov had a 130-125 record, 3.19 ERA, 2304.1 innings, 2544 strikeouts, 396 walks, 174/277 quality starts, 150 complete games, and 51.3 WAR.

At age 30, Belov entered free agency for the first time and ended up signing a five-year, $1,002,000 deal with Kazan. He would lead in WHIP in his debut season, his only time leading the stat in his career. Belov had three consecutive 5+ WAR seasons to start his Kazan run, although he’d never see the playoffs with them either. Injuries cost him large chunks of his final two seasons with the Crusaders, including a bone spur in his elbow in 1976. With Kazan, Belov had a 58-58 record, 2.80 ERA, 1072.1 innings, 1210 strikeouts, 159 walks, 84 FIP-, and 21.7 WAR.

Belov became a free agent again at age 35 and signed with Prague, giving them one average season. He went to Yekaterinburg in 1978, but a ruptured finger tendon cost him most of the season. Belov signed with Tbilisi in 1979, but suffered a torn labrum in his one start with the Trains. He opted to retire that winter at age 38.

Belov’s final stats: 206-200 record, 3.07 ERA, 3713 innings, 4011 strikeouts, 618 walks, 292/448 quality starts, 234 complete games, a 84 FIP-, and 76.7 WAR. He was the 11^th pitcher to 4000 strikeouts and the 24^th to reach 200 wins. But his ERA+ (102) suggested sustained averageness and he’d be the first EPB Hall of Famer with an ERA above 3.00. As of 2037, he has the worst ERA of any EPB Hall of Famer. His accumulations still were enough for many voters, as Belov was never below 50% in his six ballots. He debuted at 61.3% and got to 63.1% on his fourth try, although he fell to a low of 53.1% on the fifth ballot. With a fairly quiet 1990 group, Belov won enough over to sneak in with a sixth ballot induction at 71.2%.