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Linus Schindler – Starting Pitcher – Athens Anchors – 94.7% First Ballot

Linus Schindler was a 5’9’’, 205 pound left-handed pitcher from GroBraschen, a town of around 8,000 in eastern Germany. Schindler had outstanding pinpoint control, which allowed him to thrive despite having merely above average stuff and movement. His fastball only hit 92-94 mph, but he had a five-pitch arsenal led by an excellent knuckle curve. Schindler also had a strong sinker, okay splitter, and weak changeup. His stamina was respectable, but he was an ironman who was never hurt. Schindler tossed 199+ innings in 18 straight seasons, reliably filling his spot. He was a team captain and incredibly well respected in the clubhouse for his leadership and work ethic,

Schindler managed to catch the attention of a scout from Athens who was visiting a camp in Germany. They signed him at age 16 to a developmental deal, bringing him out to Greece. Schindler officially debuted with a lone relief appearance in 1978 at age 20. He also had one relief appearance in 1978 as Athens won the Southern Conference title, falling to Brussels in the EBF final.

Schindler was a full-time starter in 1979 and had 30+ games pitched every ear for the next 18 years. For most of his time in Athens, Schindler was considered steady and reliable, but not elite. He never was a conference leader or a Pitcher of the Year finalist with the Anchors. A highlight came on March 23 with a no-hitter against Rome with 11 strikeouts and two walks.

Athens won three division titles from 1979-81, but each year suffered first round exits. Schindler’s limited postseason innings were lousy with a 6.85 ERA over 22.1 innings. Athens would fall to the middle and bottom tiers for the rest of Schindler’s tenure. He remained loyal to the franchise, signing a six-year, $5,400,000 extension in March 1984.

In total with Athens, Schindler had a 167-143 record, 3.44 ERA, 2828.1 innings, 2384 strikeouts, 451 walks, 229/369 quality starts, 107 ERA+, and 46.2 WAR. The franchise would retire his #21 uniform at the end of his career. Schindler became a free agent after the 1990 season at age 33 and decided to return to Germany. He signed a four-year, $5,520,000 deal with Munich.

As he never relied on power, Schindler’s game aged well. His strongest seasons were with the Mavericks, leading in ERA (2.14) and WHIP (0.85) in 1992. This earned Schindler a second place in Pitcher of the Year voting. He was second again in 1993 with both seasons being above 7+ WAR.

Schindler caught the end of Munich’s 11-year playoff streak. The Mavericks won the Southern Conference in 1991, dropping the EBF final to Birmingham. They had additional division titles in 1992, 93, and 95. Schindler’s playoff stats were much better in Munich with a 3.27 ERA over 55 innings, 52 strikeouts, and a 117 ERA+. He also made a few appearances for Germany in his later years in the World Baseball Championship, although they were unremarkable.

Munich was quite happy with Schindler and gave him a three-year, $7,560,000 extension after the 1994 season. In 1995, he had the best K/BB (10.2) and most quality starts (26) in the conference. Schindler had a career high 274 innings in 1996 and still was just above average with a 106 ERA+. He had crossed the 250 win milestone in 250 and the 3500 strikeout milestone in 1996. Schindler was the fourth to 250 wins and the 17^th to 3500 Ks.

Although his numbers were a bit worse from 1995 to 1996, Schindler’s control and ability seemed to be still intact. Some wondered if he might try to chase Jean-Luc Roch’s 300 wins, as his durability meant he could probably hang around. However, he was content not to overstay his welcome, retiring after the 1996 season at age 39. With Munich, Schindler had a 107-60 record, 2.81 ERA, 1574 innings, 1310 strikeouts, 204 walks, 154/203 quality starts, 137 ERA+, and 34.8 WAR.

Schindler finished with a 274-203 record, 3.22 ERA, 4402.1 innings, 3694 strikeouts, 655 walks, 383/572 quality starts, 116 ERA+, 89 FIP-, and 81.0 WAR. He was a rare guy whose best years came in his mid to late 30s, as his Athens run alone suggested more of a “Hall of Pretty Good” type pitcher. Schindler retired with more innings than any EBF pitcher and still sits third as of 2037.

Schindler also was second in wins at retirement and remains fourth as of 2037. He’s 32^nd in pitching WAR and when looking at raw dominance, he’s towards the bottom of EBF Hall of Famers. But his control, durability, and reliability made Schindler a surefire Hall of Famer. He received 94.7% on the first ballot, a solid #2 in the 2002 EBF class.



J.F. Bourelly – Second Base – Marseille Musketeers – 67.4% Second Ballot

J.F. Bourelly was a 6’1’’, 200 pound right-handed second baseman from Champs-sur-Marne, France; an eastern suburb of Paris with around 25,000 people. Bourelly was renowned for stellar gap power and good home run power. Over a 162 game average, he’d get you 23 doubles, 21 triples, and 32 home runs. He may have gotten more attention for that skillset if he wasn’t Jacob Ronnberg’s teammate for most of his career, since Ronnberg was THE guy for extra base hits.

The downside for Bourelly is that he was a below average contact hitter with a below average eye and a high strikeout rate. When he made contact though, he made it count with nearly half of his career hits going for extra bags. Bourelly had very good speed, but his baserunning instincts and skills were fairly average.

Bourelly was exclusively a second baseman and was reliably strong there. He only won a single Gold Glove in 1995 near the end of his career, but a career 143.6 zone rating and 1.044 EFF confirm that Bourelly was excellent defensively. He was also remarkably durable at a physically demanding position, rarely missing significant chunks to injury.

Bourelly’s stock rose quickly throughout the amateur ranks in the greater Paris area. In the 1978 EBF Draft, he was brought to southern France as Marseille used the 18^th overall pick on him. Bourelly was a full-time starter immediately and held that role for 12 seasons with the Musketeers. He would have ten straight seasons with 5+ WAR for Marseille. Bourelly was never a conference leader though and didn’t get major awards attention, especially sharing a lineup with someone as remarkable as Jacob Ronnberg.

Bourelly was still a critical piece in Marseille getting nine playoff appearances in the 1980s. He stepped up big in the playoffs, winning Southern Conference Finals MVP thrice (1981, 85, 86). Each of those seasons, the Musketeers went on to win the European Championship. In 77 playoff starts with Marseille, Bourelly had 101 hits, 55 runs, 12 doubles, 18 triples, 19 home runs, 55 RBI, a .316/.347/.644 slash, 174 wRC+, and 4.0 WAR. He was a rare guy who had a far more impressive playoff slash than his regular season one, as he only one was above a .300 average in the regular season and only twice above a .600 slugging mark.

The Musketeers locked him down quickly much like with Ronnberg, giving Bourelly an eight-year, $5,640,000 extension after the 1982 season. His two Silver Sluggers would come in 1987 and 1988. While he might have been overlooked by some European fans, Bourelly was very popular with the Marseille faithful, especially as a playoff stud. His #14 uniform would eventually get retired as well. With the Musketeers, Bourelly had 1857 hits, 1094 runs, 281 doubles, 261 triples, 366 home runs, 1142 RBI, a .268/.304/.543 slash, 137 wRC+, and 72.4 WAR.

Bourelly became a free agent after the 1990 season at age 34 as Marseille looked to begin their rebuild. He went back closer to home with a three-year, $4,040,000 deal with Paris. Bourelly had two solid seasons with the Poodles, posting 9.9 WAR, a 129 wRC+, 307 hits, 168 runs, 55 doubles, 50 triples, and 52 home runs He would decline the third year option in his contact and enter free agency at age 36.

Bourelly would leave Europe and head to America, taking a three-year, $6,720,000 offer from MLB’s Virginia Beach. He struggled against MLB pitching in two seasons as a Viking, although his defense was still good enough to earn positive WAR despite a 70 wRC+ and .194 average. Bourelly didn’t meet the vesting criteria in his deal and was let go after two seasons.

Bourelly returned to Europe on a one-year, $1,640,000 deal with Athens. He looked like his old self even at age 38 with a 4.5 WAR season for the Anchors. This also netted him his lone Gold Glove. With his stock bumped back up, Bourelly gave MLB another shot. Austin signed him to two years, $5,280,000. Again, he had positive WAR (1.6) despite well below average offense (84 wRC+).

Again, Bourelly didn’t meet the vesting criteria and was now maybe the only 40-year old second baseman still going. He wasn’t ready to quit yet and found a new home in Egypt on a one-year deal with Cairo of the Arab League. He looked great with 5.4 WAR, 38 home runs, and 107 RBI in only 119 games. The Pharaohs gave him another year and million dollars for 1998, but he was used in a backup role with only 23 starts. Bourelly still wanted to play somewhere in 1999, but went unsigned and had to retire that winter at age 42.

For his entire pro career, Bourelly had 2740 hits, 1575 runs, 408 doubles, 360 triples, 559 home runs, 1692 RBI, 465 stolen bases, a .258/.295/.523 slash, 128 wRC, and 96.4 WAR. His non-EBF stats did pad the accumulations a bit. Still, his EBF totals were 2998 hits, 1339 runs, 354 doubles, 324 triples, 450 home runs, 1397 RBI, 406 stolen bases, a .266/.303/.539 slash, 135 wRC+, and 86.8 WAR. He had the second most WAR accumulated at second base and still is third as of 2037.

Despite that and his excellent playoff resume, Bourelly still seemed to be overlooked due to the lack of black ink. He wasn’t a first ballot Hall of Famer, falling short at 59.2%. Bourelly only narrowly got in with 67.4% on his second try in 2002. However, he seemed well deserved and it was fitting that he went in with his longtime teammate and fellow Marseille star Jacob Ronnberg.