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Two starting pitchers were added to the Chinese League Baseball Hall of Fame in 2002. Both were strong first ballot adds with Zengxiang Zhang at 99.3% and Youpeng Yin at 91.2%. RF Shichao Zhang was the top performing position player, narrowly missing the 66% requirement with 61.8% on his third ballot. Closer Junwei Zhu missed on his fifth go with 60.0%. Also above 50% was Zhengyu Peng with 55.1% for his sixth ballot and CL Zhiming Cao at 52.3% in his debut.



Dropped after ten ballots was catcher Paotzu Yan, who was hurt by both the general anti-catcher bias of Hall of Fame voters and the tough standards CLB voters specifically had for any hitter. Yan was a 17-year veteran who won six Silver Sluggers and six Gold Gloves, posting 1624 hits, 654 runs, 337 doubles, 207 home runs, 772 RBI, a .227/.280/.371 slash, 117 wRC+ and 75.4 WAR. But alas, the accumulations are low because he’s a catcher in a league with incredibly low scoring.

As of 2037, Yan is CLB’s all-time leader amongst catchers in WAR, games, starts, hits, total bases, doubles, assists, putouts, total chances, innings, runners thrown out, and zone rating. Despite that, Yan peaked at 38.1% in 1994 and fell into the single-digits by the end with a 5.6% finish. CLB still doesn’t have a single catcher in the Hall of Fame as of 2037. But Yan is worth noting as possibly the league’s finest at the position.

Closer River Cournouyer also made it ten ballots, but fell off. He was an American defector who had nine seasons in China, winning two Reliever of the Year awards and posting 237 saves and 320 shutdowns, a 1.31 ERA, 691.2 innings, 199 ERA+, and 26.8 WAR. Cournoyer lacked the longevity and accumulations expected out of an inductee. He peaked at 34.5% and ended at 4.9%, but managed to earn ten years as an option.



Zengxiang Zhang – Starting Pitcher – Shenyang Seawolves – 99.3% First Ballot

Zengxiang Zhang was a 6’1’’, 185 pound right-handed pitcher from Toutunhe, a district in the prefecture-level city Urumqi in northwestern China. Zhang had outstanding pinpoint control of his arsenal, which was especially impressive considering he could hit triple digits reliably as well. He had good stuff and great movement, mixing a 99-101 mph fastball with a slider, forkball, and changeup. Zhang had respectable stamina and defensive chops as well. He was considered very intelligent with few better at picking their spots. On top of all that, Zhang was very durable, making him one of the most impressive arms to ever come out of China.

Zhang was a very highly rated prospect and was picked second overall by Shanghai in the 1980 CLB Draft. He spent 1981 in developmental, then was used as a reliever in 1982 and 1983. After showing great promise in his limited innings, Zhang was promoted to the rotation in 1984. From then through 1992, he would be the ace for the Seawolves with nine straight seasons worth 7+ WAR.

Zhang’s dominance would make him very popular nationwide despite the fact that Shanghai was a non-factor in his tenure. They didn’t make the playoffs once and averaged around 79 wins per season; firmly mid. Zhang would get to pitch on the big stage for China from 1986-97 in the World Baseball Championship. He posted a 2.78 ERA over 168.1 innings, 11-6 record, 225 strikeouts, 130 ERA+, and 5.8 WAR. Zhang also won two world titles with China (1993, 1994).

Zhang was great in his first few years as a starter, taking second in 1984 Pitcher of the Year voting, third in 1985, second in 1986, and second in 1989. He signed a four-year extension after the 1988 season with Shanghai worth $3,750,000. He would go from great to outstanding. From 1986-92, he was the Northern League leader in ERA six times. Zhang led in WHIP four times, K/BB four times, strikeouts once, and WAR thrice. He won three Pitcher of the Year honors (1989, 91, 92) and took second in 1990.


Zhang’s deal ended after the 1992 season seemingly at the peak of his game coming off a career-best 10.6 WAR. Shanghai fans loved him, but they knew the franchise wasn’t competitive or rich enough to keep him. Still, his #27 uniform would get retired by the franchise. Much to the chagrin of China’s political leaders, this baseball star had seemingly grown beyond what CLB could offer. Thus, Zhang decided to leave for the United States and Major League Baseball.

Philadelphia would be the buyer, signing Zhang for five years and $11,880,000, more than doubling his best year’s AAV with Shanghai. He wouldn’t be Pitcher of the Year finalist level with the Phillies, but Zhang was a darn good starter for them. He spent four years in Philly with a 69-35 record, 3.11 ERA, 1021.1 innings, 734 strikeouts, 113 ERA+, and 19.8 WAR. The only playoff start of his decorated career came in 1995 with the Phillies as well.

Philadelphia declined the team-option fifth year, making Zhang a free agent entering 1997 at age 36. Dallas would scoop him up on a three-year, $10,920,000 deal. Zhang maintained steady solid numbers in three years with the Dalmatians, although the team didn’t give him much run support. Zhang had a 39-50 record, 3.77 ERA, 803 innings, 398 strikeouts, 105 ERA+, and 14.8 WAR.

He was a free agent again at age 39 and found a home in Brooklyn for two years and $7,760,000. Zhang ate innings, but was fairly average in 2000 for the Dodgers. His velocity was dropping quickly though and he struggle d in 2001, getting cut by Brooklyn in July. He finished the year in Virginia Beach’s minor league system and retired that winter at age 40. In MLB, he had a 126-114 record, 3.46 ERA, 2228.1 innings, 1304 strikeouts, 306 walks, 105 ERA+, and 38.3 WAR. A quite fine career for a guy who entered at age 32.

For his entire pro career, Zhang had a 270-191 record, 2.41 ERA, 4545.2 innings, 4077 strikeouts, 528 walks, 424/555 quality starts, 134 ERA+, and 121.1 WAR. Just with Shanghai though, he had a 144-77 record, 1.39 ERA, 2317.1 innings, 2773 strikeouts, 222 walks, 0.72 WHIP, 12.5 K/BB, 240/266 quality starts, 182 ERA+, and 82.8 WAR.

Among CLB starters in the Hall of Fame, none have a better ERA. Zhang’s rate stats are remarkable and even with only a decade in CLB, he’s still 12^th all-time in pitching WAR as of 2037. Had Zhang remained in China his whole career, he would have had a good shot to be the league’s GOAT pitcher. Even with a shorter tenure and being on forgettable teams, Zhang was a no-doubter at 99.3%, entering the 2002 Hall of Fame class as one of CLB’s all-time best.



Youpeng “Cash” Yin – Starting Pitcher – Beijing Bears - 91.2% First Ballot

Youpeng Yin was a 5’10’’, 190 pound right-handed pitcher from Hegang, a city of nearly 900,000 in China’s northeastern Heilongjiang province bordering Russia. The nickname “Cash” actually wasn’t from Yin being boastful, as he was renowned as a selfless team captain type. It came from him never wanting to use credit cards or checks for big purchases; always wanting to pay in cash. Yin would be very well respected as a leader and hard worker throughout his career.

As a pitcher, Yin had absolutely filthy movement on his pitches and stellar control. His stuff was considered merely good with a 93-95 mph fastball mixed with a great splitter, plus a slider and curveball. Yin had an extreme groundball tendency and very rarely surrendered home runs. His stamina was subpar with fewer complete games than most contemporary aces. Yin still provided reliable consistent innings thanks to having good durability.

His movement and control were well beyond his years, making Yin the top pitching prospect in the 1982 CLB Draft. Beijing selected him with the #1 overall pick and split him between the bullpen and starting as a rookie. He took third in Rookie of the Year voting in 1983. Yin was full-time in the rotation after that and had his entire nine year Chinese career in the capital.

Beijing very quickly reversed their fortunes, going from having the #1 pick in 1982 to a league title two years later. Yin played a major role in the Bears dynasty with four straight finals berths from 1984-87 and titles in 1984, 85, and 87. In the playoffs, Yin had a 2.15 ERA over 117.1 innings for Beijing with 150 strikeouts, 119 ERA+, 48 FIP-, and 4.7 WAR. Yin also had a 1.73 ERA in 41.2 innings for China in the World Baseball Championship from 1985-90.

For Beijing, Yin led the Northern League five times in WAR and posted eight straight seasons worth 7+ WAR. He also led twice in FIP-, four times in quality starts, once in WHIP, once in strikeouts, once in ERA, and twice in wins. Yin won Pitcher of the Year in 1986 and 1987. He finished second in 1985, third in 1988, second in 1989, and second in 1991.

Beijing gave Yin a five-year, $2,106,000 extension after the 1986 season. The Bears missed the playoffs from 1988-90, but made it back to the China Series in 1991. That would mark the end of Yin’s deal, making him a free agent at age 30. He had worldwide offers and struggled with the decision, having really loved his time in Beijing. Yin would leave though and wrap his Chinese career after only nine seasons. The Bears would retire his #23 uniform and fans would remember him fondly for years after as the ace of their mid 1980s dynasty.

Often times, great players left their home country’s league for MLB, as it was generally considered the best league and definitely offered the most money. Yin surprised a lot of people though by going to Russia of all places right after the Soviet Union collapsed. He went to Eurasian Professional Baseball and signed a six-year, $6,320,000 deal with Novosibirsk.

Yin played five years with the Nitros and helped them to five straight playoff berths. However, they had four one-and-dones with one ALCS defeat. Back injuries cropped up, costing him some postseason opportunities, although he did have a 0.60 ERA in the 15 innings he tossed. Yin was consistently good there, but he wasn’t a league leader or awards finalist. With Novosibirsk, he posted a 74-40 record, 2.48 ERA, 1059.2 innings, 928 strikeouts, 116 ERA+, and 25.1 WAR. The Nitros would buy out the final year of his deal, making Yin a free agent entering 1997 at age 35.

This time, he went MLB and got fairly big money with a three-year, $9,400,000 deal with Kansas City. Yin was okay in two seasons as a Cougar with a 3.74 ERA over 476 innings and 7.7 WAR with an 89 ERA+ and 94 FIP-. After the 1998 season, KC traded Yin to Portland. Yin got rocked in four starts with the Pacifics and was cut in May 1999.

Tampa signed him for a few relief appearances, but cut him in late August. Yin wrapped 1999 in Washington’s minor league system. Detroit signed him for 2000, but Yin suffered a torn labrum after six relief appearances. That effectively ended his MLB career, although he attempted a minor league comeback. Toronto gave him a few relief appearances in the minors in 2001, but bone chips in his elbow officially cooked his goose at age 40. For his MLB attempts, Yin had a 20-35 record, 3.97 ERA, 535.2 innings, 260 strikeouts, 87 ERA+, and 8.1 WAR.

For his entire pro career, Yin had a 236-144 record, 2.20 ERA, 3745.2 innings, 3666 strikeouts, 474 walks, 129 ERA+, 66 FIP-, and 108.8 WAR. That’s a slam dunk Hall of Fame career. His CLB numbers were only nine years, but they were an impressive burst with a 142-69 record, 1.62 ERA, 2150.1 innings, 2478 strikeouts, 271 walks, 249/280 quality starts, 157 ERA+, 54 FIP-, and 75.6 WAR.

Like his Hall of Fame classmate Zhang, there’s a “what if?” with Yin as to how high up the CLB leaderboards he could’ve gone had he stayed in China his whole career. As of 2037, his ERA is the fourth best among all HOF starters in CLB. Yin’s peak was also undeniable, plus he was a team captain and a key part of Beijing’s dynasty. Thus, he got 91.2% and joined Zhang in an impressive 2002 class.