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Beijing ended a three-year playoff drought and finished first in the Chinese Northern League standings for the first time since 1999. Beijing led the league in scoring with 516 runs. At 97-65, the Bears beat Shanghai by one game for the #1 spot. The Seawolves extended their NL record playoff streak to eight years.

Third place Shenyang (93-69) had a 1.83 team ERA and allowed 299 earned runs, which were the second-lowest in NL history behind only Beijing’s 1985 season. The Swans ended an 11-year playoff drought, which was tied for the longest active CLB drought entering the year.

Last year’s Northern League champ Xi’an narrowly took the fourth and final playoff spot at 89-73, edging Shijiazhuang (87-75), Changchun (84-78), Jinan (82-80), and Hangzhou (81-81). The 84 wins were a new best for the expansion Camels, who had won 62, 62, and 63 in the prior three years. After earning a playoff spot last year, Qingdao was tied for last at 67-95. Tianjin fell to 76-86 for their first losing seasons since 2006.

Shenyang two-way star Chuchuan Cao won both his second Northern League MVP and Pitcher of the Year. On the mound, the 26-year old lefty led in strikeouts (353) and WAR (9.7), while posting a 17-9 record, 1.47 ERA, and 156 ERA+ over 258 innings. Playing left field, he had 126 games with a .324/.373/.520 slash, 217 wRC+, 8.2 WAR, and 65 stolen bases.

The combined 17.9 WAR was only behind Cao’s own world record 21.6 from 2013. He tied with legendary Beisbol Sudamerica pitcher Mohamed Ramos’ 1936 for the second-most single-season WAR by one player in any pro league. Cao also had a no-hitter on May 23 with 15 strikeouts and three walks against Qingdao. In only four seasons, the Jiaxing native had already cemented his spot in pro baseball history.

While Cao certainly wasn’t to be denied, Shijiazhuang’s Cheng Kang deserved a mention as he posted repeat Triple Crown seasons, becoming the first in CLB history to do it twice. The fourth-year left fielder led qualifying batters in the triple slash (.306/.412./619), OPS (1.031), home runs (43), RBI (102), runs (85), walks (91), wRC+ (260), and WAR (11.7). This would be a slam dunk season in any other season with Kang posting a remarkable 46.7 WAR in his first four seasons for the Serpents. Meanwhile, Cao’s first four years saw 36.2 pitching WAR and 30.3 offensive WAR for an absurd 66.5.

Shanghai was the top performer out of the Round Robin at 4-2. Top seed Beijing and Xi’an both were 3-3, while Shenyang was 2-4. The Attack had the tiebreaker over the Bears to set up a Northern League semifinal rematch with the Seawolves. Shanghai again had home field advantage, but Xi’an earned repeat pennants in an absolute thriller.

All seven games of the series were decided by only one game. Game seven needed ten innings with Xi’an winning it 3-2. The Attack earned their sixth trip to the China Series (1974, 1976, 1994, 1995, 2014, 2015). With CLB’s notable parity, Xi’an was the first team since Changsha’s 2004-06 run to earn consecutive finals berths.



Chengdu dominated the Southern League at 101-61. Even though they set the SL’s record for consecutive playoff berths at eight and had won two CLB titles in that run, the Clowns hadn’t taken first in the standings since 1998. Chengdu led all of China in runs scored at 520.

The next three playoff teams were close together with Shenzhen (91-71), Nanning (90-72), and Kunming (87-75). The Spartans grew their playoff streak to five years. Like Shenyang, the Muscle ended what was the longest active playoff drought in CLB at 11 years. For the Nuts, they became the second of the 2009 expansion teams to advance to the playoffs, joining Shantou.

The Scorpions, who shockingly won it all in 2014, were tied for seventh at 82-80 with Macau. Chongqing and Guangzhou were tied for fifth at 84-78, which ended the Cavaliers hope for a third straight semifinal berth. Hong Kong and Wenzhou were both also in the mix at 81-81. Xiamen at 60-102 was a firm last place, posting the second fewest hits (939) and third worst batting average (.180) in SL history.

Foshan was the next worst team at 70-92, but their center fielder Zhen Zhang earned Southern League MVP. The 27-year old led in WAR at 12.9, which ranks as the 19^th best by a CLB position player as of 2037. Zhang had a 209 wRC+, .883 OPS, 33 home runs, and 77 runs. He stayed committed long-term to the Flyers, inking an eight-year, $152,000,000 extension in February 2016.

Pitcher of the Year was Shenzhen’s Wei Huang in his fifth season. He bounced back from a torn triceps and partially torn labrum in the prior two years. The 26-year old left led in ERA (1.32), and WHIP (0.74). Huang had a 17-5 record over 210.2 innings, 297 strikeouts, 176 ERA+, and 9.0 WAR. Despite the injury history, the Spartans bet on Huang with a six-year, $37,540,000 extension prior to the 2015 campaign.

Chengdu had the top record in China, but fared the worst in the Southern League’s Round Robin at 2-4. Shenzhen took first at 4-2, while Nanning and Kunming were both 3-3. The Nuts had the tiebreaker for their first-ever semifinal berth, while the Spartans had their second in four years. Nanning surprisingly crushed Shenzhen with a sweep, giving the Southern League crown to expansion teams in back-to-back years.



Unlike Shantou the prior year, Nanning was unable win the finals matchup with Xi’an. The Attack claimed the 46^th China Series in six games over the Nuts, giving Xi’an its fourth CLB title (1974, 1976, 1995, 2015). Second-year pitcher Weiwei Tam was finals MVP, posting a 0.40 ERA over 22.1 playoff innings. He had nine relief appearances and one start with 30 strikeouts and one complete game.



Other notes: CLB’s 48^th Perfect Game came on September 25 by Changsha’s Rashid Teklemariam with 10 strikeouts against Xiamen. LF Yucheng Xu won his seventh Gold Glove.