OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post

FuzzyRussianHat · 02-02-2024, 04:26 AM

Chinese League Baseball had two players receive first ballot Hall of Fame inductions with the 1992 ballot. Pitcher Peng Huang led the way with 96.1% and was joined by a solid 87.3% for OF Hao Lan. Lan became the first position player inducted to CLB’s HOF after a bunch of pitchers made the cut before him. Two other position players fell just short of the 66% requirement. RF Xinze Yan had 63.1% on his third ballot and 1B Shenchao An got 62.7% on his fourth go. No players were dropped after ten failed ballots.

Peng Huang – Starting Pitcher – Changsha Cannons – 96.1% First Ballot

Peng Huang was a 6’1’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China’s far northwest with around four million people. Huang was known for having great control with strong movement and above average stuff. His velocity peaked in the 96-98 mph range with a three pitch arsenal of fastball, slider, and changeup. Huang had great stamina and durability, leading four times in complete games and twice in innings. He tossed 240+ innings in all but his first two seasons. Huang was a great leader and hard worker, earning the respect of his peers.

His talent and leadership was very evident coming up through the amateur ranks. In the 1972 CLB Draft, Changsha picked him with the #2 overall pick. Huang’s entire pro career came with the Cannons, although it took time to catch on. He was split between the rotation and bullpen as a rookie, then was used almost exclusively as a reliever in his second season. Year three is when Huang finally broke out as a full-time starter and a good one, leading that year in wins and quality starts.

Huang was second in Pitcher of the Year voting in both 1977 and 1978 and won the award in 1980. He had a league and career best 11.1 WAR season in 1978 and posted four seasons worth 8+ WAR. In 1976, he tossed a no-hitter with 14 strikeouts and one walk against Hong Kong on May 2. Huang also pitched from 1976-81 and in 1984 for China in the World Baseball Championship. He had a 12-1 record over 123 WBC innings with a 2.56 ERA, 153 strikeouts, 29 walks, and 2.8 WAR. Huang also earned a world title ring with China in 1979.

Despite Huang’s efforts, Changsha was generally one of CLB’s weaker teams for its first two decades. The Cannons would break through in 1977 with a second place finish in the Southern League. They upset Xi’an in the semifinal to earn a China Series berth, where they were defeated by Kunming. This was Huang’s only postseason and he had iffy results with a 3.41 ERA (79 ERA+) over 31.2 innings with a 0-3 record and 37 strikeouts. Still, his career-best 1.47 ERA in the regular season was a big reason they got there to begin with.

Huang signed a six-year contract extension worth $2,412,000 midway through the 1981 season. He wasn’t an awards finalist or league leader in his 30s, but Huang was consistently and reliably solid. The highlight of this run came on April 21, 1982. On that day, Huang tossed CLB’s 13^th perfect game, striking out 11 against Wuhan. He carried through the 1986 season with his last year seeing a noticeable drop in strikeouts and WAR. Huang considered staying to chase the 200 win milestone, but he opted to retire at age 36.

Huang’s final stats: 194-151 record, 2.10 ERA, 3398 innings, 3231 strikeouts to 572 walks, 323/403 quality starts, 171 complete games, 73 FIP- and 87.1 WAR. He was a leader and consistent contributor for a long time for Changsha, who retired his #24 uniform. At induction, he was sixth in pitching WAR and is still ninth all-time as of 2037, almost quietly putting up an excellent career. The voters certainly noticed Huang though, giving him a first ballot induction at 96.1%.

Hao Lan – Outfielder – Dalian Gold Dragons – 87.3% First Ballot

Hao Lan was a 6’3’’, 190 pound left-handed hitting outfielder from Neijiang, a city with around three million people in the southwestern Sichuan province. In his prime, Lan was a great all-around hitter with solid contact, great home run and gap power, and a solid eye. He had excellent pop in his bat, averaging around 30-35 home runs and around 30-35 doubles/triples per season. Lan was also very fast and an intelligent baserunner. His one weakness as a batter was a high strikeout rate, but he still made his plate appearances count far better than most. Lan was an outfielder who made about 2/3 of his starts in left with about 1/4 in center field and the rest in right. He was viewed as an above average defender in the corners and below average in center.

Lan’s talent was very evident as an amateur and he was picked third overall by Dalian in the 1971 CLB Draft. He was put into the lineup as a starter immediately and showed he belonged, although he’d miss two months to a strained abdominal muscle as a rookie. Despite that, Lan still was second in Rookie of the Year voting. He’d be healthy and a full-timer for the remaining six years with the Gold Dragons.

By his third season, Lan was established as the top hitter in China. He was the Northern League MVP in 1972 and led the league in runs, home runs, RBI, total bases, slugging, OPS, wRC+, and WAR. The next year, he won MVP again and led in all of those same stats minus RBI. With Dalian, Lan had Silver Sluggers in 1974, 75, and 78 with the first in center and the others in left. He took third in 1976 MVP voting and second in 1978. Lan was also a regular in the World Baseball Championship for China from 1975-86, playing 152 games with 114 hits, 87 runs, 17 doubles, 34 home runs, 75 RBI, and 4.4 WAR.

Lan’s MVP bat helped Dalian finish first in the Northern League standings in 1974 and 1975. In 1975, the Gold Dragons were CLB champions and Lan was China Series MVP. In 17 playoff starts with Dalian, he had 24 hits, 9 runs, 2 doubles, 2 home runs, 11 RBI, 11 stolen bases, and 1.3 WAR. In total with the Gold Dragons, Lan had 1078 hits, 618 runs, 180 doubles, 236 home runs, 572 RBI, 384 stolen bases, a .279/.344/.550 slash, 187 wRC+, and 61.4 WAR.

By the end of the 1970s, Dalian had fallen towards the bottom of the standings and wasn’t expecting to be able to re-sign Lan with free agency pending soon. Before the 1979 season, he was traded to Hong Kong for prospects. One of those was pitcher Baoxian He, who went onto have a 14-year Hall of Fame run with Dalian.

HK had been the league runner-up in 1978 and hoped Lan could make the Champions the champs. They actually won more games in 1979, but fell short of the playoffs in a top-heavy Southern League. Lan certainly held up his end by winning a third MVP and fourth Silver Slugger. He won his lone batting title and led the league in the triple slash, WAR, hits, runs, home runs, and wRC+. His 115 runs scored was a single season record, although it would get beat the next year. Still, that and his 114 in 1974 were the second and third most in a CLB season until the 2010s.

Lan was a huge commodity in free agency at age 30 and signed a six-year, $2,628,000 with Jinan. The Jumbos were a bottom tier team in his tenure and never made the playoffs, but Lan was still great. He took third in 1980 MVP voting and won five Silver Sluggers from 1980-84, giving him nine for his career. Lan led in stolen bases in 1981 with 70, but this would be his only time as a league leader. Still, he posted five straight seasons of 7+ WAR and crossed 100 career WAR.

In his final season with Jinan in 1985, Lan suffered a broken kneecap in late April that knocked him out almost the entire season. In total with the Jumbos, Lan had 709 hits, 386 runs, 105 doubles, 160 home runs, 390 RBI, a .256/.317/.503 slash, 177 wRC+, and 41.3 WAR. His contract expired and his future was uncertain as a 36-year old coming off a major injury. Still, his success drew attention from suitors across the globe and Lan decided to end his run in China.

MLB’s Seattle Grizzlies was the big buyer, signing Lan to a three-year, $3,960,000 deal. He started all of 1986 and was a respectable starter, but not an award winner. Injuries cost him a bit of 1987 and his production were merely average. Lan failed to meet the vesting criteria in his deal and became a free agent at age 38. He remained in MLB and signed a one-year, $1,660,000 deal with Virginia Beach.

Here, Lan became an interesting part of MLB lore. The Vikings were only in their seventh season, but the expansion squad had a Cinderella wild card run to the 1988 World Series title. Lan was a starter with below average hitting in the regular season, but he stepped up in the playoffs with 19 hits, 12 runs, 4 doubles, and 8 RBI in the postseason. Lan was named World Series MVP, holding the incredibly unique distinction of winning finals MVP in two different leagues. In total in MLB, he had 6.4 WAR, 346 hits, 216 runs, 62 home runs, 181 RBI, and a .238/.319/.436.

That would be the end of his MLB career, although Lan wasn’t done yet. He ended up signing a three-year, $2,440,000 to go to Eurasian Professional Baseball and the Almaty Assassins. He struggled in his two years in Kazakhstan and was eventually relegated to the bench, posting -0.5 WAR for the run. Lan was released after the 1990 season and hoped to catch on somewhere in 1991. After going unsigned, he retired at age 42.

For his entire pro career, Lan had 2386 hits, 1375 runs, 373 doubles, 171 triples, 518 home runs, 1276 RBI, 772 stolen bases, a .262/.332/.515 slash, 170 wRC+, and 120.8 WAR. For his China run specifically, Lan had 1971 hits, 1119 runs, 307 doubles, 147 triples, 437 home runs, 1056 RBI, 721 stolen bases, a .273/.338/.538 slash, 185 wRC+, and 114.9 WAR. Those accumulations are impressive in CLB’s very low offense environment. At induction, Lan was CLB’s home run leader as well as third in runs, 12^th in hits, fourth in RBI, ninth in stolen bases, and third in hitting WAR. As of 2037, he’s still seventh in WAR and eighth in runs. Although 437 homers is low compared to other leagues, Lan stayed CLB’s leader until the early 2000s and sits 11^th as of 2037. He was a fitting choice to be the first position player inducted into the CLB Hall of Fame, even if his 87.3% seems a bit lower than the stats might suggest.

02-02-2024, 04:26 AM	#936
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,647	1992 CLB Hall of Fame Chinese League Baseball had two players receive first ballot Hall of Fame inductions with the 1992 ballot. Pitcher Peng Huang led the way with 96.1% and was joined by a solid 87.3% for OF Hao Lan. Lan became the first position player inducted to CLB’s HOF after a bunch of pitchers made the cut before him. Two other position players fell just short of the 66% requirement. RF Xinze Yan had 63.1% on his third ballot and 1B Shenchao An got 62.7% on his fourth go. No players were dropped after ten failed ballots. Peng Huang – Starting Pitcher – Changsha Cannons – 96.1% First Ballot Peng Huang was a 6’1’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China’s far northwest with around four million people. Huang was known for having great control with strong movement and above average stuff. His velocity peaked in the 96-98 mph range with a three pitch arsenal of fastball, slider, and changeup. Huang had great stamina and durability, leading four times in complete games and twice in innings. He tossed 240+ innings in all but his first two seasons. Huang was a great leader and hard worker, earning the respect of his peers. His talent and leadership was very evident coming up through the amateur ranks. In the 1972 CLB Draft, Changsha picked him with the #2 overall pick. Huang’s entire pro career came with the Cannons, although it took time to catch on. He was split between the rotation and bullpen as a rookie, then was used almost exclusively as a reliever in his second season. Year three is when Huang finally broke out as a full-time starter and a good one, leading that year in wins and quality starts. Huang was second in Pitcher of the Year voting in both 1977 and 1978 and won the award in 1980. He had a league and career best 11.1 WAR season in 1978 and posted four seasons worth 8+ WAR. In 1976, he tossed a no-hitter with 14 strikeouts and one walk against Hong Kong on May 2. Huang also pitched from 1976-81 and in 1984 for China in the World Baseball Championship. He had a 12-1 record over 123 WBC innings with a 2.56 ERA, 153 strikeouts, 29 walks, and 2.8 WAR. Huang also earned a world title ring with China in 1979. Despite Huang’s efforts, Changsha was generally one of CLB’s weaker teams for its first two decades. The Cannons would break through in 1977 with a second place finish in the Southern League. They upset Xi’an in the semifinal to earn a China Series berth, where they were defeated by Kunming. This was Huang’s only postseason and he had iffy results with a 3.41 ERA (79 ERA+) over 31.2 innings with a 0-3 record and 37 strikeouts. Still, his career-best 1.47 ERA in the regular season was a big reason they got there to begin with. Huang signed a six-year contract extension worth $2,412,000 midway through the 1981 season. He wasn’t an awards finalist or league leader in his 30s, but Huang was consistently and reliably solid. The highlight of this run came on April 21, 1982. On that day, Huang tossed CLB’s 13^th perfect game, striking out 11 against Wuhan. He carried through the 1986 season with his last year seeing a noticeable drop in strikeouts and WAR. Huang considered staying to chase the 200 win milestone, but he opted to retire at age 36. Huang’s final stats: 194-151 record, 2.10 ERA, 3398 innings, 3231 strikeouts to 572 walks, 323/403 quality starts, 171 complete games, 73 FIP- and 87.1 WAR. He was a leader and consistent contributor for a long time for Changsha, who retired his #24 uniform. At induction, he was sixth in pitching WAR and is still ninth all-time as of 2037, almost quietly putting up an excellent career. The voters certainly noticed Huang though, giving him a first ballot induction at 96.1%. Hao Lan – Outfielder – Dalian Gold Dragons – 87.3% First Ballot Hao Lan was a 6’3’’, 190 pound left-handed hitting outfielder from Neijiang, a city with around three million people in the southwestern Sichuan province. In his prime, Lan was a great all-around hitter with solid contact, great home run and gap power, and a solid eye. He had excellent pop in his bat, averaging around 30-35 home runs and around 30-35 doubles/triples per season. Lan was also very fast and an intelligent baserunner. His one weakness as a batter was a high strikeout rate, but he still made his plate appearances count far better than most. Lan was an outfielder who made about 2/3 of his starts in left with about 1/4 in center field and the rest in right. He was viewed as an above average defender in the corners and below average in center. Lan’s talent was very evident as an amateur and he was picked third overall by Dalian in the 1971 CLB Draft. He was put into the lineup as a starter immediately and showed he belonged, although he’d miss two months to a strained abdominal muscle as a rookie. Despite that, Lan still was second in Rookie of the Year voting. He’d be healthy and a full-timer for the remaining six years with the Gold Dragons. By his third season, Lan was established as the top hitter in China. He was the Northern League MVP in 1972 and led the league in runs, home runs, RBI, total bases, slugging, OPS, wRC+, and WAR. The next year, he won MVP again and led in all of those same stats minus RBI. With Dalian, Lan had Silver Sluggers in 1974, 75, and 78 with the first in center and the others in left. He took third in 1976 MVP voting and second in 1978. Lan was also a regular in the World Baseball Championship for China from 1975-86, playing 152 games with 114 hits, 87 runs, 17 doubles, 34 home runs, 75 RBI, and 4.4 WAR. Lan’s MVP bat helped Dalian finish first in the Northern League standings in 1974 and 1975. In 1975, the Gold Dragons were CLB champions and Lan was China Series MVP. In 17 playoff starts with Dalian, he had 24 hits, 9 runs, 2 doubles, 2 home runs, 11 RBI, 11 stolen bases, and 1.3 WAR. In total with the Gold Dragons, Lan had 1078 hits, 618 runs, 180 doubles, 236 home runs, 572 RBI, 384 stolen bases, a .279/.344/.550 slash, 187 wRC+, and 61.4 WAR. By the end of the 1970s, Dalian had fallen towards the bottom of the standings and wasn’t expecting to be able to re-sign Lan with free agency pending soon. Before the 1979 season, he was traded to Hong Kong for prospects. One of those was pitcher Baoxian He, who went onto have a 14-year Hall of Fame run with Dalian. HK had been the league runner-up in 1978 and hoped Lan could make the Champions the champs. They actually won more games in 1979, but fell short of the playoffs in a top-heavy Southern League. Lan certainly held up his end by winning a third MVP and fourth Silver Slugger. He won his lone batting title and led the league in the triple slash, WAR, hits, runs, home runs, and wRC+. His 115 runs scored was a single season record, although it would get beat the next year. Still, that and his 114 in 1974 were the second and third most in a CLB season until the 2010s. Lan was a huge commodity in free agency at age 30 and signed a six-year, $2,628,000 with Jinan. The Jumbos were a bottom tier team in his tenure and never made the playoffs, but Lan was still great. He took third in 1980 MVP voting and won five Silver Sluggers from 1980-84, giving him nine for his career. Lan led in stolen bases in 1981 with 70, but this would be his only time as a league leader. Still, he posted five straight seasons of 7+ WAR and crossed 100 career WAR. In his final season with Jinan in 1985, Lan suffered a broken kneecap in late April that knocked him out almost the entire season. In total with the Jumbos, Lan had 709 hits, 386 runs, 105 doubles, 160 home runs, 390 RBI, a .256/.317/.503 slash, 177 wRC+, and 41.3 WAR. His contract expired and his future was uncertain as a 36-year old coming off a major injury. Still, his success drew attention from suitors across the globe and Lan decided to end his run in China. MLB’s Seattle Grizzlies was the big buyer, signing Lan to a three-year, $3,960,000 deal. He started all of 1986 and was a respectable starter, but not an award winner. Injuries cost him a bit of 1987 and his production were merely average. Lan failed to meet the vesting criteria in his deal and became a free agent at age 38. He remained in MLB and signed a one-year, $1,660,000 deal with Virginia Beach. Here, Lan became an interesting part of MLB lore. The Vikings were only in their seventh season, but the expansion squad had a Cinderella wild card run to the 1988 World Series title. Lan was a starter with below average hitting in the regular season, but he stepped up in the playoffs with 19 hits, 12 runs, 4 doubles, and 8 RBI in the postseason. Lan was named World Series MVP, holding the incredibly unique distinction of winning finals MVP in two different leagues. In total in MLB, he had 6.4 WAR, 346 hits, 216 runs, 62 home runs, 181 RBI, and a .238/.319/.436. That would be the end of his MLB career, although Lan wasn’t done yet. He ended up signing a three-year, $2,440,000 to go to Eurasian Professional Baseball and the Almaty Assassins. He struggled in his two years in Kazakhstan and was eventually relegated to the bench, posting -0.5 WAR for the run. Lan was released after the 1990 season and hoped to catch on somewhere in 1991. After going unsigned, he retired at age 42. For his entire pro career, Lan had 2386 hits, 1375 runs, 373 doubles, 171 triples, 518 home runs, 1276 RBI, 772 stolen bases, a .262/.332/.515 slash, 170 wRC+, and 120.8 WAR. For his China run specifically, Lan had 1971 hits, 1119 runs, 307 doubles, 147 triples, 437 home runs, 1056 RBI, 721 stolen bases, a .273/.338/.538 slash, 185 wRC+, and 114.9 WAR. Those accumulations are impressive in CLB’s very low offense environment. At induction, Lan was CLB’s home run leader as well as third in runs, 12^th in hits, fourth in RBI, ninth in stolen bases, and third in hitting WAR. As of 2037, he’s still seventh in WAR and eighth in runs. Although 437 homers is low compared to other leagues, Lan stayed CLB’s leader until the early 2000s and sits 11^th as of 2037. He was a fitting choice to be the first position player inducted into the CLB Hall of Fame, even if his 87.3% seems a bit lower than the stats might suggest. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)