[FuzzyRussianHat]

The 1996 field for the Austronesia Professional Baseball Hall of Fame was pretty weak with the best debutant being RP Gilbert Tang at 31.4%. The thin field did help RF Lin Zulkifli finally get across the line at 67.4% on his third ballot. No one else was even above 50%, although two ninth ballot guys in 1B Po-Yu Shao and CL Lee Tira were in the upper 40s.



Dropped from the ballot ws 1B Ardan Riyadi, who had a 15 year run between three teams in APB. He got as high as 47.6% on his second ballot, but ended at only 23.6%. Riyadi won four Silver Sluggers, three Gold Gloves, and helped Surabaya to the 1971 title. He had 2033 hits, 991 runs, 290 doubles, 379 home runs, 1016 RBI, a .262/.296/.454 slash, and 88.1 WAR. Riyadi had the sixth best batting WAR in APB when he fell off the ballot with pretty good stats by APB’s low offense standards. However, he just never got the support of the voters for whatever reason.



Lin “Bullet” Zulkifli – Right Field – Manila Manatees – 67.4% Third Ballot

Lin Zulkifli was a 5’9’’, 200 pound left handed hitting right fielder from the city-state of Singapore. Zulkifli earned the nickname “Bullet” for his great speed and ability to leg out extra bases from the leadoff spot. He was one of the smartest baserunners in the game and was extremely popular for his sparkplug work ethic and leadership. Zulkifli was a very good contract hitter with a solid eye and great knack for avoiding strikeouts. He lacked home run power, only hitting 11 in his career, but Zulkifli wasn’t a singles slap hitter. He averaged around 25-30 doubles and another 25-30 triples each season. Zulkifli exclusively played defensively in right field and was excellent in that spot, earning eight Gold Gloves in his career.

Zulkifli was signed out of Singapore by a scout from Manila, bringing him to the Filipino capital in 1969 at 16 years old. He debuted in 1972 at age 19 for the Manatees, although his appearances were very limited that year and the next. Zulkifli would be a full-time starter from 1974 through 1988 as a regular fixture for the Manila lineup.

With his lack of home run tallies, Zulkifli didn’t ever win a Silver Slugger or earn MVP finalist consideration. Still, he led the Taiwan-Philippine Association in hits twice, doubles twice, triples eight times, batting average thrice, OBP thrice, and WAR once. Helped by the deep alleys of the Manila Grounds, Zulkifli actually had more triples than doubles in five different seasons. This scrappiness made him a star and favorite for Manatees fans, especially as they struggled in most of the 1970s. Zulkifli was also popular back home in Singapore, playing for them from 1972-89 in the World Baseball Championship. In 123 games, he had 118 hits, 47 runs, 20 doubles, 6 triples, a .271/.338/.344 slash, and 1.3 WAR.

Manila signed Zulkifli to an eight-year, $3,292,000 contract extension in the summer of 1978. It wouldn’t be until the later years of that deal that the Manatees finally returned to prominence. Manila won the Philippine League in 1983, 1985, and 1986. In 1985 and 1986, they won the TPA pennant and in 1986, the Manatees earned their first Austronesia Championship. After being unremarkable in the first two postseason runs, Zulkifli had 12 hits, 4 runs, 2 doubles, 2 triples, and a .316/.381/.553 slash to help Manila win the crown.

In a way, that was the last hurrah for Zulkifli. 1987 would see a strained hamstring cost him the final seven weeks of the season, then knee and foot issues cost him two months of 1988. In addition, his speed and contact abilities had begun to wane a bit. After the 1988 season, Manila let him go. Zulkifli played in the 1989 WBC for Singapore, but that was his last action with no one signing him for the season. He retired in the winter at age 37 and Manila immediately brought him in to retire his #23 uniform.

Zulkifli finished with 2410 hits, 903 runs, 408 doubles, 362 triples, 11 home runs, 624 RBI, 803 stolen bases, a .298/.348/.442 slash, 139 wRC+, and 81.8 WAR. At induction, he was the all-time leader in triples and he still sits second as of 2037. Zulkifli was also third in doubles, fourth in hits, fourth in batting average, and just outside of the top ten in hitting WAR. However, a lot of voters were convinced that homers and RBI were the most critical stats, two things Zulkifli lacked. Although he did win a ring with Manila, his best individual seasons were overlooked on some mediocre teams. He just missed the cut at 56.1% and 63.0% in his first two ballots. Third time was the charm though and Zulkifli just crossed the line at 67.4%, securing his spot in the Hall of Fame as one of the great leadoff men.