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FuzzyRussianHat · 03-21-2024, 04:56 PM

For the third consecutive season, Kharkiv had the top record in the EPB European League. The Killer Bees beat their own 116 and 114 win totals for a new franchise record of 117-45 atop the South Division. Reigning EPB champ Minsk won the North Division at 109-53, extending the Miners’ record playoff streak to 17 seasons. Kazan gave chase though at 107-55, easily taking the first wild to end a two-year postseason skid. Warsaw narrowly kept their playoff streak going and extended it to ten years. The Wildcats secured the second wild card at 88-74, edging out Tirana by one game. Kyiv, who entered the season on a six-year playoff streak, limped to 78-84. It was the Kings’ first losing record since 1974.

Minsk LF Wojciech Jezierski won repeat European League MVPs. The 28-year old Polish righty led in runs (103), home runs (41), total bases (332), triple slash (.305/.399/.614), OPS (1.013), wRC+ (215), and WAR (10.2). Pitcher of the Year was Kharkiv’s Igor Kuchkowski. The 30-year old Pole was 12 poitns short of a Triple Crown with a 26-6 record, 1.48 ERA, and 403 strikeouts over 279.2 innings with 11.1 WAR.

The Killer Bees were shocked 3-2 in the first round by Warsaw, making it three straight seasons without a pennant for Kharkiv despite posting 110+ wins each time. Wild card Kazan also stunned defending champ Minsk with a road sweep. This sent the Crusaders to their first European League Championship Series since 1987, while the Wildcats were making their fifth appearance in six years. In a seven game classic, Kazan outlasted Warsaw to become three time EL champs. Their prior two titles were back in 1961 and 1968.

Irkutsk yet again was the class of the Asian League, taking the top seed and North Division at 107-55. It was the sixth straight division title and eighth straight playoff spot for the two-time defending AL champ Ice Cats. The wild card race was centered in the North as well with the spots going to Chelyabinsk (94-68) and Omsk (92-70). The Cadets ended a four-year playoff drought while the Otters ended a seven season skid. Novosibirsk’s streak ended at six years as they were 89-73 with Ufa close behind at 87-75. Tashkent took the South Division at 92-70 for three playoff berths in a row. Dushanbe was their closest competitor seven games back. Almaty’s six-year playoff streak was snapped with a lackluster 76-86 campaign.

Irkutsk David Kolesnikov won his second Asian League MVP. It was the final season in Russia for the 32-year old Muscovite, who left for MLB and Memphis the following season. Kolesnikov was the WARlord at 9.0 and added 37 home runs with a .264/.339/.524 slash. Omsk’s Samat Gadoev was Pitcher of the Year in his fourth full season. The Tajik righty had an 18-10 record, 1.96 ERA, 290 innings, 337 strikeouts and 7.6 WAR.

Irkutsk ousted Omsk 3-1 in the first round of the playoffs and Chelyabinsk upset Tashkent 3-1. The Cadets hadn’t been to the Asian League Championship Series since 1992, while the Ice Cats made it six straight appearances. Irkutsk secured its fifth pennant in that stretch, outlasting Chelyabinsk in a 4-3 battle. The Ice Cats are the second franchise to three-peat as AL champs, joining 1971-73 Almaty. They’re also the first team in either league to take five pennants in a six year stretch.

In the 43^rd Eurasian Professional Baseball Championship, Kazan defeated Irkutsk 4-2. The Crusaders improved to 3-0 all-time in the finale, adding the cup to their 1960s rings. Backup 3B Mikhail Valerii stepped up to win finals MVP after posting negative WAR in the regular season. He had 9 hits, 4 runs, 3 home runs, and 8 RBI in 6 playoff games. Pitcher Wojciech Grzybek also had a big postseason, going 5-0 in five starts with a 1.26 ERA over 43 innings and 56 strikeouts.

The Ice Cats were a repeat runner-up with a 2-3 mark in the 1990s and 2-7 record overall in the championship. This ultimately marked the end of Irkutsk’s Asian League dominance, as they would have to wait more than 30 years for their next finals trip.

Other notes: On August 17, Bratislava’s Karel Kriz went 7-7 against Kharkiv. As of 2037, he’s the only EPB batter with a seven hit game. Igor Bury reached 5500 strikeouts, joining all-time K king Alvi Tahiri as the only to do so. Bury pitched one more year to get to 5754, which is still second all-time but a long way from Tahiri’s 6909. 3B Mahammad Uzdenov won his seventh Gold Glove.

03-21-2024, 04:56 PM	#1082
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,648	1997 in EPB For the third consecutive season, Kharkiv had the top record in the EPB European League. The Killer Bees beat their own 116 and 114 win totals for a new franchise record of 117-45 atop the South Division. Reigning EPB champ Minsk won the North Division at 109-53, extending the Miners’ record playoff streak to 17 seasons. Kazan gave chase though at 107-55, easily taking the first wild to end a two-year postseason skid. Warsaw narrowly kept their playoff streak going and extended it to ten years. The Wildcats secured the second wild card at 88-74, edging out Tirana by one game. Kyiv, who entered the season on a six-year playoff streak, limped to 78-84. It was the Kings’ first losing record since 1974. Minsk LF Wojciech Jezierski won repeat European League MVPs. The 28-year old Polish righty led in runs (103), home runs (41), total bases (332), triple slash (.305/.399/.614), OPS (1.013), wRC+ (215), and WAR (10.2). Pitcher of the Year was Kharkiv’s Igor Kuchkowski. The 30-year old Pole was 12 poitns short of a Triple Crown with a 26-6 record, 1.48 ERA, and 403 strikeouts over 279.2 innings with 11.1 WAR. The Killer Bees were shocked 3-2 in the first round by Warsaw, making it three straight seasons without a pennant for Kharkiv despite posting 110+ wins each time. Wild card Kazan also stunned defending champ Minsk with a road sweep. This sent the Crusaders to their first European League Championship Series since 1987, while the Wildcats were making their fifth appearance in six years. In a seven game classic, Kazan outlasted Warsaw to become three time EL champs. Their prior two titles were back in 1961 and 1968. Irkutsk yet again was the class of the Asian League, taking the top seed and North Division at 107-55. It was the sixth straight division title and eighth straight playoff spot for the two-time defending AL champ Ice Cats. The wild card race was centered in the North as well with the spots going to Chelyabinsk (94-68) and Omsk (92-70). The Cadets ended a four-year playoff drought while the Otters ended a seven season skid. Novosibirsk’s streak ended at six years as they were 89-73 with Ufa close behind at 87-75. Tashkent took the South Division at 92-70 for three playoff berths in a row. Dushanbe was their closest competitor seven games back. Almaty’s six-year playoff streak was snapped with a lackluster 76-86 campaign. Irkutsk David Kolesnikov won his second Asian League MVP. It was the final season in Russia for the 32-year old Muscovite, who left for MLB and Memphis the following season. Kolesnikov was the WARlord at 9.0 and added 37 home runs with a .264/.339/.524 slash. Omsk’s Samat Gadoev was Pitcher of the Year in his fourth full season. The Tajik righty had an 18-10 record, 1.96 ERA, 290 innings, 337 strikeouts and 7.6 WAR. Irkutsk ousted Omsk 3-1 in the first round of the playoffs and Chelyabinsk upset Tashkent 3-1. The Cadets hadn’t been to the Asian League Championship Series since 1992, while the Ice Cats made it six straight appearances. Irkutsk secured its fifth pennant in that stretch, outlasting Chelyabinsk in a 4-3 battle. The Ice Cats are the second franchise to three-peat as AL champs, joining 1971-73 Almaty. They’re also the first team in either league to take five pennants in a six year stretch. In the 43^rd Eurasian Professional Baseball Championship, Kazan defeated Irkutsk 4-2. The Crusaders improved to 3-0 all-time in the finale, adding the cup to their 1960s rings. Backup 3B Mikhail Valerii stepped up to win finals MVP after posting negative WAR in the regular season. He had 9 hits, 4 runs, 3 home runs, and 8 RBI in 6 playoff games. Pitcher Wojciech Grzybek also had a big postseason, going 5-0 in five starts with a 1.26 ERA over 43 innings and 56 strikeouts. The Ice Cats were a repeat runner-up with a 2-3 mark in the 1990s and 2-7 record overall in the championship. This ultimately marked the end of Irkutsk’s Asian League dominance, as they would have to wait more than 30 years for their next finals trip. Other notes: On August 17, Bratislava’s Karel Kriz went 7-7 against Kharkiv. As of 2037, he’s the only EPB batter with a seven hit game. Igor Bury reached 5500 strikeouts, joining all-time K king Alvi Tahiri as the only to do so. Bury pitched one more year to get to 5754, which is still second all-time but a long way from Tahiri’s 6909. 3B Mahammad Uzdenov won his seventh Gold Glove. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)