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FuzzyRussianHat · 05-18-2024, 05:05 AM

After back-to-back wild cards, Multan exploded and dominated the ABF East League in 2003 at 113-49. This tied 1998 Hyderabad for the most wins in a season by an ABF team. Spots two to six were quite tight in fighting for the remaining three playoff spots. Lahore (93-69), Almaty (89-73), and Hyderabad (89-73) each advanced. The Longhorns ended a four-year playoff drought while the Horned Frogs ended a two-year skit. It was the first time in the playoffs for the Assassins since their EPB days with the last appearance in 1996.

Falling just short was Bishkek (88-74) and Dushanbe (86-76), which ended three year playoff streaks for both. The big collapse was reigning Asian Baseball Federation champ Tashkent, who plummeted to 68-94 and an 11^th place finish. The Tomcats dating back to their EPB days had a streak of eight consecutive playoff berths and ten straight winning seasons. It was the first time since 1964 that Tashkent won fewer than 70 games.

Taking East League MVP was Dushanbe 1B Maksim Ignashevich. The 34-year old Russian was in his third year with the Tomcats after a nice run previously with Baku. Ignashevich earned a Triple Crown with a .315 average, 48 home runs, and 138 RBI. He also led the EL in runs (106), hits (193), doubles (50), slugging (.644), OPS (.991), wRC+ (217), and WAR (10.4).

Bishkek’s Oskar Tamm won Pitcher of the Year and set a still-standing ABF record with 305.1 innings pitched. As of 2037, no other pitcher in ABF history has thrown 300+ innings in a season. The 26-year old Estonian lefty led in quality starts (30) and shutouts (6). He added a 1.97 ERA, 14-13 record, 373 strikeouts, and 9.2 WAR. The Black Sox were quite pleased with the investment, as they had given Tamm a six-year, $16,420,000 extension prior to the 2003 season.

Multan cruised to a first round sweep of Hyderabad, while Almaty edged Lahore 3-2. This was the Assassins first trip to the East League Championship Series and their first LCS of any king since the 1985 EPB season. For the Mighty Cocks, their only previous berths were their 1993 and 1994 pennants. Multan would roll to their third pennant, downing Almaty 3-1. They were the first Pakistani team to win a pennant since the league expansion brought in other Central Asian teams in 2000.

The West League was tight at the top with Ankara narrowly taking first at 98-64. This extended the Alouettes’ playoff streak to four seasons. Bursa was one back at 97-65, seeing their streak grow to seven seasons. The Blue Claws pitching staff recorded 1859 strikeouts, the second highest in WL history to that point. That mark remains third best as of 2037.

Istanbul ended a 14-year playoff drought by taking third at 94-68. Isfahan and Shiraz tied for the fourth and final spot at 88-74. No tiebreaker games are used in ABF and the reigning WL champion Imperials advanced on the tiebreaker. Isfahan barely managed to extend its playoff streak to nine seasons, a new ABF record.

Although Asgabat tied for seventh at 73-89, they had the West League MVP in 1B Murad Doskaliev. He also won a Triple Crown, making it six times that an ABF hitter has earned the distinction. The 27-year old Tajik lefty had 60 home runs, 130 RBI, and a .340 average. Doskaliev also led in runs (110), hits (201), total bases (426), OBP (.405), slugging (.721), OPS (1.126), wRC+ (226), and WAR (11.8). In addition, he had a historic day on April 18 against Ankara, going 6-9 with three home runs.

Isfahan’s Yazeed Anwari made more history with his eighth Pitcher of the Year, an honor no other ABF pitcher has earned as of 2037. The 30-year old Pakistani righty led in ERA (1.97), innings (292), WHIP (0.87), K/BB (11.6), quality starts (31), complete games (17), and shutouts (5). Anwari added 9.6 WAR, 372 strikeouts, and a 21-9 record. Sadly, his dominance would end the next year due to a torn UCL. Anwari would leave after that for MLB, but would be mediocre in his final years. His decade of dominance though for the Imperials is one of the finest stretches from any pitcher.

Ankara ousted defending champ Isfahan 3-1 while Istanbul upset Bursa 3-2 in the first round of the playoffs. For the Alouettes, this was their first West League Championship Series since 1994, while the Ironmen hadn’t made it since 1989. Top-seeded Ankara dominated to take the series 4-1 over Istanbul, earning their first-ever pennant. Of the original 10 teams of the old West Asia Association, that leaves only Tabriz and Shiraz without a single pennant in ABF’s short history.

Ankara’s first ever Asian Baseball Federation Championship appearance would be brief. Multan mauled them with a sweep in the 19^th ABF final, giving the Mighty Cocks their second title (1993). They also set a new record for most wins by an ABF champ, beating Istanbul’s 111-win 1988 effort. LF Simin Arefi was finals MVP as the 27-year old Iranian had 19 hits, 15 runs, 4 doubles, 6 home runs, and 16 RBI over 12 playoff starts. The 2003 Multan squad makes a fine case as the strongest ABF squad to date.

Other notes: Adana’s Humayun Kahil had a 32-game hit streak, the fourth longest in ABF history. Yazeed Anwari and Rami Naqvi became the second and third pitchers to 3500 career strikeouts. Anwari also was the first to reach 200 career wins. Pouya Malek became the first batter to 2000 hits.

05-18-2024, 05:05 AM	#1254
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 3,171	2003 in ABF After back-to-back wild cards, Multan exploded and dominated the ABF East League in 2003 at 113-49. This tied 1998 Hyderabad for the most wins in a season by an ABF team. Spots two to six were quite tight in fighting for the remaining three playoff spots. Lahore (93-69), Almaty (89-73), and Hyderabad (89-73) each advanced. The Longhorns ended a four-year playoff drought while the Horned Frogs ended a two-year skit. It was the first time in the playoffs for the Assassins since their EPB days with the last appearance in 1996. Falling just short was Bishkek (88-74) and Dushanbe (86-76), which ended three year playoff streaks for both. The big collapse was reigning Asian Baseball Federation champ Tashkent, who plummeted to 68-94 and an 11^th place finish. The Tomcats dating back to their EPB days had a streak of eight consecutive playoff berths and ten straight winning seasons. It was the first time since 1964 that Tashkent won fewer than 70 games. Taking East League MVP was Dushanbe 1B Maksim Ignashevich. The 34-year old Russian was in his third year with the Tomcats after a nice run previously with Baku. Ignashevich earned a Triple Crown with a .315 average, 48 home runs, and 138 RBI. He also led the EL in runs (106), hits (193), doubles (50), slugging (.644), OPS (.991), wRC+ (217), and WAR (10.4). Bishkek’s Oskar Tamm won Pitcher of the Year and set a still-standing ABF record with 305.1 innings pitched. As of 2037, no other pitcher in ABF history has thrown 300+ innings in a season. The 26-year old Estonian lefty led in quality starts (30) and shutouts (6). He added a 1.97 ERA, 14-13 record, 373 strikeouts, and 9.2 WAR. The Black Sox were quite pleased with the investment, as they had given Tamm a six-year, $16,420,000 extension prior to the 2003 season. Multan cruised to a first round sweep of Hyderabad, while Almaty edged Lahore 3-2. This was the Assassins first trip to the East League Championship Series and their first LCS of any king since the 1985 EPB season. For the Mighty Cocks, their only previous berths were their 1993 and 1994 pennants. Multan would roll to their third pennant, downing Almaty 3-1. They were the first Pakistani team to win a pennant since the league expansion brought in other Central Asian teams in 2000. The West League was tight at the top with Ankara narrowly taking first at 98-64. This extended the Alouettes’ playoff streak to four seasons. Bursa was one back at 97-65, seeing their streak grow to seven seasons. The Blue Claws pitching staff recorded 1859 strikeouts, the second highest in WL history to that point. That mark remains third best as of 2037. Istanbul ended a 14-year playoff drought by taking third at 94-68. Isfahan and Shiraz tied for the fourth and final spot at 88-74. No tiebreaker games are used in ABF and the reigning WL champion Imperials advanced on the tiebreaker. Isfahan barely managed to extend its playoff streak to nine seasons, a new ABF record. Although Asgabat tied for seventh at 73-89, they had the West League MVP in 1B Murad Doskaliev. He also won a Triple Crown, making it six times that an ABF hitter has earned the distinction. The 27-year old Tajik lefty had 60 home runs, 130 RBI, and a .340 average. Doskaliev also led in runs (110), hits (201), total bases (426), OBP (.405), slugging (.721), OPS (1.126), wRC+ (226), and WAR (11.8). In addition, he had a historic day on April 18 against Ankara, going 6-9 with three home runs. Isfahan’s Yazeed Anwari made more history with his eighth Pitcher of the Year, an honor no other ABF pitcher has earned as of 2037. The 30-year old Pakistani righty led in ERA (1.97), innings (292), WHIP (0.87), K/BB (11.6), quality starts (31), complete games (17), and shutouts (5). Anwari added 9.6 WAR, 372 strikeouts, and a 21-9 record. Sadly, his dominance would end the next year due to a torn UCL. Anwari would leave after that for MLB, but would be mediocre in his final years. His decade of dominance though for the Imperials is one of the finest stretches from any pitcher. Ankara ousted defending champ Isfahan 3-1 while Istanbul upset Bursa 3-2 in the first round of the playoffs. For the Alouettes, this was their first West League Championship Series since 1994, while the Ironmen hadn’t made it since 1989. Top-seeded Ankara dominated to take the series 4-1 over Istanbul, earning their first-ever pennant. Of the original 10 teams of the old West Asia Association, that leaves only Tabriz and Shiraz without a single pennant in ABF’s short history. Ankara’s first ever Asian Baseball Federation Championship appearance would be brief. Multan mauled them with a sweep in the 19^th ABF final, giving the Mighty Cocks their second title (1993). They also set a new record for most wins by an ABF champ, beating Istanbul’s 111-win 1988 effort. LF Simin Arefi was finals MVP as the 27-year old Iranian had 19 hits, 15 runs, 4 doubles, 6 home runs, and 16 RBI over 12 playoff starts. The 2003 Multan squad makes a fine case as the strongest ABF squad to date. Other notes: Adana’s Humayun Kahil had a 32-game hit streak, the fourth longest in ABF history. Yazeed Anwari and Rami Naqvi became the second and third pitchers to 3500 career strikeouts. Anwari also was the first to reach 200 career wins. Pouya Malek became the first batter to 2000 hits. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports The Level Playing Field: Alternate MLB History From 1884-Onward Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)