[FuzzyRussianHat]

The ALB’s Western Conference saw all three divisions with repeat champs. Two-time defending conference champ Khartoum had the best overall record at 100-62, winning a fierce Nile Division. They outlasted a 94-68 effort by Alexandria and 88-74 mark by Cairo. Amman was atop the Levant Division for the fourth time in five years as they were 93-69. Jerusalem was the closest competitor at 86-76. Casablanca at 92-70 narrowly claimed the Mediterranean Division, beating Algiers by only one game. The Bruins have been a playoff team in eight of the first ten seasons of Arab League Baseball; the most of any franchise.

Western Conference MVP went to Jerusalem 2B Mustafa bin Nazim for the second time in three years. The 24-year old Omani switch hitter led in OBP (.413), slugging (.683), OPS (1.096), and wRC+ (202). Additionally, bin Nazim had 9.4 WAR, a .338 average, 52 home runs, and 119 RBI. He managed to beat Algiers’ Medhi Idris despite the 64 dingers from Idris; the second-most in a season so far in ALB.

Amman’s Tha’er Nasr won Pitcher of the Year. The 29-year old Jordanian righty was the leader in strikeouts (335), innings (275), and complete games (12). He added 6.7 WAR and a 3.11 ERA with a 14-15 record. His Aviators teammate Khemais Khalid also notably won a fourth Reliever of the Year award. As of 2037, Khalid is one of only four pitchers to win the award four times in ALB.

Amman edged Casablanca 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs, setting up a Western Conference Finals rematch with Khartoum. The Cottonmouths were looking to three-peat, but the Aviators pulled off the upset 3-1. This gave Amman their first-ever pennant.



It was an intense battle for the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Jeddah ended up taking it at 107-55, repeating as Saudi Division champs. Reigning ALB champ Mosul ended up one back at 106-56, but still cruised to a fifth consecutive Iraq Division title. After taking second in back-to-back seasons, Dubai ended up on top at 94-68 in the Gulf Division. It was the sixth time the Diamonds earned a playoff berth. Defending division winner Doha was a distant second at 84-78.

Mosul shortstop Mohammed Mohamed became a four-time Eastern Conference MVP, remarkably earning it despite missing two months to injury. The 25-year old Saudi saw posted a blistering 11.8 WAR in only 116 games, hitting 47 home runs with 117 RBI, a .386/.448/.827 slash, and 242 wRC+. He would’ve led in batting average, but didn’t have enough at-bats. This effort beat out defending MVP Nordine Soule of Basra for the award, who smacked 62 homers with 136 RBI. Jeddah’s Jameleddine El Baraka won Pitcher of the Year as the 24-year old Algerian had the ERA title at 1.98. He added a 19-8 record over 218 innings with 237 strikeouts and 6.4 WAR.

Mousl fended off Dubai 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs, sending the defending champs to their fifth consecutive Eastern Conference Final. It was the first-ever finals berth for Jeddah, who had home field advantage. The playoff experience allowed the Muskies to triumph 3-2, repeating as EC champs and taking their third pennant in four years.



In the tenth Arab League Championship, Mosul became the third franchise win repeat titles, joining Medina and Casablanca. The Muskies bested Amman 4-2, boosted by Mohammed Mohamed’s return to the lineup in late September. He repeated as finals MVP and posted 17 hits, 11 runs, 7 homers, and 11 RBI over 14 playoff starts.



Other notes: For the first time in ALB history, there weren’t any no-hitters thrown all season. In the first decade of Arab League Baseball, the league ERA was around 3.62, which graded as very historically average. The batting average was around .241, below average on the historical trend but very middle-of-the-road amongst all leagues in the 1990s. Like most leagues, ALB would see offense tick upward in later years, eventually reaching high to very high numbers by the 2030s.