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For the first time in franchise history, Jinan took first in the CLB Northern League. The Jumbos finished 91-71 for their second playoff berth in four years. Xi’an was two games back at 89-73, earning a fourth consecutive playoff appearance and their sixth in seven years. For the second wild card, Dalian (86-76) edged out Qingdao (85-77), Shenyang (83-79), and Tianjin (82-80). It was the first playoff spot for the Gold Dragons since their 1989-94 dynasty run. Defending China Series champ Beijing dropped to seventh at 80-82.

Northern League MVP went to Dalian veteran first baseman Ruilong Xu. The 32-year old led in hits (178), total bases (307), slugging (.524), OPS (.871), and wRC+ (201). Xi also had 28 home runs, .304 average, and 8.0 WAR. Pitcher of the Year was Tianjin’s Dongbin He. Nicknamed “Tubby,” He led in wins (18-8), ERA (1.37), and innings (290). He added 268 strikeouts with 7.2 WAR.



Last year’s China Series runner-up Guangzhou repeated as the first place team in the Southern League. The Gamecocks finished 99-63 for China’s best record. Kunming was a close second at 96-66, snapping a 21-year playoff drought. Foshan took third at 94-68 for their fourth playoff appearance in five years. Although the Flyers finished third, their team ERA of 1.81 and 300 earned runs were the second best in SL history. Just short in the wild card race were Chongqing (92-70) and Shenzhen (89-73).

Kunming’s Tao Yang earned his second Southern League MVP. The 31-year old lefty led in home runs (52), total bases (323), slugging (.619), OPS (.956), and wRC+ (225). Yang also had 102 RBI and 9.8 WAR.

Foshan’s Jinlong Han won his fourth Pitcher of the Year in five years with a historic effort. He set still-standing CLB records for shutouts (12), WHIP (0.58), opponent OBP (.1696), opponent slugging (.1994), and opponent OPS (.3694). The 30-year old also led in ERA (0.94), innings (287.2), strikeouts (403), quality starts (30), complete games (26), FIP- (32), and WAR (13.8). His 21-7 record was one win short of a Triple Crown. Han’s strikeout mark was the fourth-best in CLB history, his ERA was third best, and his WAR mark was third best. Among his 12 shutouts was a no-hitter with 14 strikeouts and two walks against Macau. Han joined Momota Oichi as the only pitchers with four no-hitters in a CLB career.

Both Southern League teams prevailed in the first round of the playoffs over their Northern League counterparts 2-1. Kunming edged Dalian and Foshan upset Xi’an. The Muscle sunned Jinan 4-1 in the semifinal, sending Kunming to the China Series for the first time since 1979. On the other side, Guangzhou swept the Flyers to earn a repeat finals berth. Foshan was knocked out in the semi for the third time in four years.



In the 31^st China Series, Guangzhou downed league rival Kunming 4-1 for their second-ever CLB title (1971). LF Wenfeng Feng was finals MVP, getting eight hits, 3 runs, 2 home runs, and 4 RBI in 9 playoff starts. The Gamecocks are now 2-3 in their finals appearances while the Muscle are 2-2.



Other notes: The 28^th perfect game in CLB was thrown by Hong Kong’s Xin Fan against Macau with four strikeouts. Jinlong Han became the 12^th pitcher to 3000 career strikeouts. 3B Feixien Wu and SS Xuepeng Ye each won their eighth Gold Glove. 2B Chenglin Huang picked up his seventh Silver Slugger.