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FuzzyRussianHat · 10-19-2024, 06:31 AM

Chinese League Baseball had been considered a “dead ball” league compared to the rest of the pro baseball world. In the 2000s, CLB had the lowest offense of any world league with a league ERA around 2.48 and batting average around .212. 2015 had all-time lows in both the Northern League (.205) and Southern League (.203) for batting average. The NL’s 2.28 ERA was the lowest in any season in any league ever in 2015, while the SL was 2.34.

While CLB wasn’t trying to go to the other extreme, officials did want to up the offense and the perceived excitement. Thus, CLB instituted rules changes beginning in 2016. The league batting average jumped to around .223 with an ERA around 2.75 for 2016. These numbers were still very low on the historical world scale, but pushed CLB closer to the offensive environment it started with in the 1970s. It put them more in line with the neighboring Austronesia Professional Baseball as well.

The Northern League had four different playoff teams from the prior year. Changchun and Jinan tied for first at 95-67 with the Camels officially getting the #1 spot on the tiebreaker. Although there had already been 2009 expansion teams that had gotten to and won the China Series, Changchun was the first to earn a first place finish in the standings. It was only the second-ever winning season for the Camels. The Jumbos meanwhile ended a three-year playoff drought.

Shijiazhuang (91-71) and Qingdao (88-74) earned the other two playoff spots. The expansion Serpents also earned their first-ever berth, while the Devils had their third in five years. Missing the cut were Shenyang (85-77), last year’s top seed Beijing (84-78), defending Chinese League champ Xi’an (83-79), and Hangzhou (82-80). Shanghai was ninth at 79-83, ending their record eight-year playoff streak and their eight-year run of winning seasons.

Shijiazhuang LF Cheng Kang won his third Northern League MVP in five seasons with a truly historic effort. Considering he had 46.7 WAR in his first four seasons and led in the triple slash all four years, it was hard to believe he could do better. However, the 27-year old lefty set numerous career highs with an all-time season. Kang set the CLB total bases record at 433, a mark that still holds as of 2037.

Kang earned his third consecutive Triple Crown and is the only CLB player with three. He crushed 68 home runs, 30 more than second place in the NL. This fell two short of Peng Wang’s single-season record of 70 from 2011. Kang had a .349/.422/.758 slash and led in RBI (135), hits (199), runs (118), OPS (1.180), wRC+ (297), and WAR (14.9).

The slugging and OPS were both CLB records that were only bested in 2034 by Jinhao Lin. The WAR mark ranks third-best in CLB history for position players. The Serpents gave him the biggest extension in Chinese baseball history in the winter for eight-years and $114,400,000.

Amazingly, Kang didn’t have the best WAR in the NL in 2016, as two-way star Chuchuan Cao had 16.7 with 10.4 pitching and 6.3 offensively. The Shenyang star finished second in MVP voting, but topped 16+ combined WAR for the fourth straight year. Cao also made history on April 11 with CLB’s 49^th perfect game, striking out 14 against Xi’an. Through his first five seasons, Cao had an absurd 83.2 WAR.

Zhengzhou’s Yuandong Wang earned his fifth Pitcher of the Year (2009-11, 2014, 2016). The 29-year old lefty led in strikeouts (347), and shutouts (6). Wang added a 17-9 record, 1.38 ERA, 8.9 WAR, and 193 ERA+ over 254.1 innings. His ninth year with the Zips was his last, as he left in the offseason for Brazil with a six-year, $64,800,000 deal with Recife.

In the Northern League’s round robin, the top two seeds advanced with Changchun at 5-1 and Jinan at 3-3, while both Qingdao and Shijiazhuang finished at 2-4. It was the first-ever semifinal berth for the expansion Camels, while the Jumbos earned their third (2000, 2007). The series was a seven-game classic with Changchun prevailing, marking the third straight year that one of the expansion teams made it to the China Series.

Shenzhen had the Southern League’s best record and the top mark overall in CLB at 104-58. The Spartans earned their sixth consecutive playoff berth and finished first for the fourth time in that stretch. Shenzhen was the highest scoring team in CLB at 605. Defending SL champ Nanning was second at 97-65, followed by Kunming at 95-67. Both teams earned repeat wild card berths.

Shantou took the fourth and final spot at 91-71, led by a powerful offense with 228 home runs and a .436 slugging percentage. The homer mark remains the SL’s all-time best as of 2037 while the slugging ranks third. The 2014 champ Scorpions made it back by five games over Chengdu (86-76), six over Dongguan (85-77), and eight over Wenzhou (84-78). This ended the Clowns’ eight-year playoff streak, which was tied with Shanghai for the longest in CLB history. Shenzhen now had the longest active run at six seasons.

Shantou CF Zhenfeng Lu won the Southern League MVP in his sixth season for the Scorpions. The 27-year old righty led in hits (180), runs (113), total bases (373), slugging (.623), OPS (.972), wRC+ (213), and WAR (13.0). Liu added 47 home runs and 122 RBI. As of 2037, his WAR mark is the 11^th-best single season by a CLB position player.

Nanning lefty Liangyi Shi won Pitcher of the Year in his seventh season for the Nuts. The 28-year old posted only the fifth pitching Triple Crown in CLB history with a 21-9 record, 1.76 ERA, and 335 strikeouts. Shi was also the WARlord at 9.7 and posted a 155 ERA+ and seven shutouts over 255.2 innings. Shi signed a five-year, $44,800,000 extension with Nanning prior to the season.

While the top two advanced from the Northern League’s round robin, the opposite happened in the Southern League. Kunming and Shantou both advanced at 4-2 with Shenzhen at 3-3 and Nanning at 1-5. This was the first time in the semifinal since 2003 for the Muscle and the second in three years for the Scorpions. The series was uneventful with a Kunming sweep, sending them to the China Series for the seventh time (1977-79, 2000, 02-03, 16).

In the 47^th China Series, Changchun became the second of the 2009 expansion teams to win it all, defeating Kunming in a seven game thriller. The Camels became the 20^th of CLB’s 30 franchises to secure the title. 1B Tie Li was MVP of the finals and the semifinals in his fifth year with Changchun. In 20 playoff starts, he had 25 hits, 14 runs, 11 home runs, and 24 RBI. Li set new CLB playoff records for hits, homers, and RBI. The RBI mark still holds as the top spot in 2037, while the HR mark is second-best.

Other notes: CLB had two perfect games in 2016. Along with the previously mentioned one by Chuchuan Cao, Hangzhou’s Sen Guo tossed the 50^th CLB perfecto on August 14, striking out nine against Tianjin.

10-19-2024, 06:31 AM	#1714
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 3,179	2016 in CLB Chinese League Baseball had been considered a “dead ball” league compared to the rest of the pro baseball world. In the 2000s, CLB had the lowest offense of any world league with a league ERA around 2.48 and batting average around .212. 2015 had all-time lows in both the Northern League (.205) and Southern League (.203) for batting average. The NL’s 2.28 ERA was the lowest in any season in any league ever in 2015, while the SL was 2.34. While CLB wasn’t trying to go to the other extreme, officials did want to up the offense and the perceived excitement. Thus, CLB instituted rules changes beginning in 2016. The league batting average jumped to around .223 with an ERA around 2.75 for 2016. These numbers were still very low on the historical world scale, but pushed CLB closer to the offensive environment it started with in the 1970s. It put them more in line with the neighboring Austronesia Professional Baseball as well. The Northern League had four different playoff teams from the prior year. Changchun and Jinan tied for first at 95-67 with the Camels officially getting the #1 spot on the tiebreaker. Although there had already been 2009 expansion teams that had gotten to and won the China Series, Changchun was the first to earn a first place finish in the standings. It was only the second-ever winning season for the Camels. The Jumbos meanwhile ended a three-year playoff drought. Shijiazhuang (91-71) and Qingdao (88-74) earned the other two playoff spots. The expansion Serpents also earned their first-ever berth, while the Devils had their third in five years. Missing the cut were Shenyang (85-77), last year’s top seed Beijing (84-78), defending Chinese League champ Xi’an (83-79), and Hangzhou (82-80). Shanghai was ninth at 79-83, ending their record eight-year playoff streak and their eight-year run of winning seasons. Shijiazhuang LF Cheng Kang won his third Northern League MVP in five seasons with a truly historic effort. Considering he had 46.7 WAR in his first four seasons and led in the triple slash all four years, it was hard to believe he could do better. However, the 27-year old lefty set numerous career highs with an all-time season. Kang set the CLB total bases record at 433, a mark that still holds as of 2037. Kang earned his third consecutive Triple Crown and is the only CLB player with three. He crushed 68 home runs, 30 more than second place in the NL. This fell two short of Peng Wang’s single-season record of 70 from 2011. Kang had a .349/.422/.758 slash and led in RBI (135), hits (199), runs (118), OPS (1.180), wRC+ (297), and WAR (14.9). The slugging and OPS were both CLB records that were only bested in 2034 by Jinhao Lin. The WAR mark ranks third-best in CLB history for position players. The Serpents gave him the biggest extension in Chinese baseball history in the winter for eight-years and $114,400,000. Amazingly, Kang didn’t have the best WAR in the NL in 2016, as two-way star Chuchuan Cao had 16.7 with 10.4 pitching and 6.3 offensively. The Shenyang star finished second in MVP voting, but topped 16+ combined WAR for the fourth straight year. Cao also made history on April 11 with CLB’s 49^th perfect game, striking out 14 against Xi’an. Through his first five seasons, Cao had an absurd 83.2 WAR. Zhengzhou’s Yuandong Wang earned his fifth Pitcher of the Year (2009-11, 2014, 2016). The 29-year old lefty led in strikeouts (347), and shutouts (6). Wang added a 17-9 record, 1.38 ERA, 8.9 WAR, and 193 ERA+ over 254.1 innings. His ninth year with the Zips was his last, as he left in the offseason for Brazil with a six-year, $64,800,000 deal with Recife. In the Northern League’s round robin, the top two seeds advanced with Changchun at 5-1 and Jinan at 3-3, while both Qingdao and Shijiazhuang finished at 2-4. It was the first-ever semifinal berth for the expansion Camels, while the Jumbos earned their third (2000, 2007). The series was a seven-game classic with Changchun prevailing, marking the third straight year that one of the expansion teams made it to the China Series. Shenzhen had the Southern League’s best record and the top mark overall in CLB at 104-58. The Spartans earned their sixth consecutive playoff berth and finished first for the fourth time in that stretch. Shenzhen was the highest scoring team in CLB at 605. Defending SL champ Nanning was second at 97-65, followed by Kunming at 95-67. Both teams earned repeat wild card berths. Shantou took the fourth and final spot at 91-71, led by a powerful offense with 228 home runs and a .436 slugging percentage. The homer mark remains the SL’s all-time best as of 2037 while the slugging ranks third. The 2014 champ Scorpions made it back by five games over Chengdu (86-76), six over Dongguan (85-77), and eight over Wenzhou (84-78). This ended the Clowns’ eight-year playoff streak, which was tied with Shanghai for the longest in CLB history. Shenzhen now had the longest active run at six seasons. Shantou CF Zhenfeng Lu won the Southern League MVP in his sixth season for the Scorpions. The 27-year old righty led in hits (180), runs (113), total bases (373), slugging (.623), OPS (.972), wRC+ (213), and WAR (13.0). Liu added 47 home runs and 122 RBI. As of 2037, his WAR mark is the 11^th-best single season by a CLB position player. Nanning lefty Liangyi Shi won Pitcher of the Year in his seventh season for the Nuts. The 28-year old posted only the fifth pitching Triple Crown in CLB history with a 21-9 record, 1.76 ERA, and 335 strikeouts. Shi was also the WARlord at 9.7 and posted a 155 ERA+ and seven shutouts over 255.2 innings. Shi signed a five-year, $44,800,000 extension with Nanning prior to the season. While the top two advanced from the Northern League’s round robin, the opposite happened in the Southern League. Kunming and Shantou both advanced at 4-2 with Shenzhen at 3-3 and Nanning at 1-5. This was the first time in the semifinal since 2003 for the Muscle and the second in three years for the Scorpions. The series was uneventful with a Kunming sweep, sending them to the China Series for the seventh time (1977-79, 2000, 02-03, 16). In the 47^th China Series, Changchun became the second of the 2009 expansion teams to win it all, defeating Kunming in a seven game thriller. The Camels became the 20^th of CLB’s 30 franchises to secure the title. 1B Tie Li was MVP of the finals and the semifinals in his fifth year with Changchun. In 20 playoff starts, he had 25 hits, 14 runs, 11 home runs, and 24 RBI. Li set new CLB playoff records for hits, homers, and RBI. The RBI mark still holds as the top spot in 2037, while the HR mark is second-best. Other notes: CLB had two perfect games in 2016. Along with the previously mentioned one by Chuchuan Cao, Hangzhou’s Sen Guo tossed the 50^th CLB perfecto on August 14, striking out nine against Tianjin. __________________ 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)