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FuzzyRussianHat · 12-10-2024, 07:28 PM

Caracas again clobbered the Bolivar League competition, although they did drop from their 117 wins in 2019 to a still awesome 110-52. 2020 did see a larger gap between the #1 and #2 seeds as the Colts were 17 games better than second place. Caracas had their fourth consecutive Venezuela Division title and fourth 100+ win season in a row. The Colts allowed the fewest runs in Beisbol Sudamerica at 574 and had the third-lowest BB/9 in BSA history at 1.23.

Only two games separated the other four playoff teams. Defending BL champ Trujillo at 93-69 was again the #2 seed, although by a much thinner margin than with their 102-win effort the prior year. The Thoroughbreds repeated as Peru-Bolivia Division champ and got their third straight playoff berth. Trujillo was the top scoring team in BSA at 854 runs. Santa Cruz was only one game back the division at 92-70, ending a five-year playoff drought as one of the wild cards.

The Venezuela Division’s Ciudad Guayana was also 92-70 and got a wild card for their fourth berth in six years. With division winners not getting seeding preference in BSA, the Crawfish ended up with the #3 seed as the first wild card. This left the Giants as the #4 seed to host their first round series with Quito. At 91-71, the Thunderbolts won the Colombia-Ecuador Division, but had the weakest record of the playoff teams.

Quito earned repeat playoff berths, but it was their first division title since 2005. Medellin was second at 87-75 and the first team out, followed by Maturin (84-78) and Bogota (83-79). This ended the nine-year playoff streak by the Mutiny, a run that included eight division titles and two pennants. The Makos also were denied a third consecutive playoff berth.

Trujillo LF Rico Ortega won his second Bolivar League MVP, having also won way back in 2012. In his 12^th year with his hometown team, the 34-year old Peruvian led in slugging (.699), OPS (1.090), and wRC+ (182). Ortega added 7.2 WAR, a .349 average, 45 home runs, 117 RBI, and 108 runs. Ortega would play four more years for the Thoroughbreds, although this was his last great season.

Caracas ace Julio Arias repeated as Pitcher of the Year and became a three-time winner. The 27-year old Colombian righty led in wins (21-5), ERA (2.06), and quality starts (26). Arias struck out 210 over 227 innings with a 197 ERA+ and 6.4 WAR. The Colts gave him a five-year, $42,500,000 extension after the 2021 campaign.

Ciudad Guayana swept Quito 2-0 in the first round. The Giants then shocked their divisional rival Caracas 3-1 in the divisional series. Despite four straight 100+ win seasons, the Colts were yet again denied the pennant and went one-and-done for the second time. Ciudad Guayana got its first Bolivar League Championship Series try since their improbable 2017 Copa Sudamerica run.

On the other side, Santa Cruz got the 3-1 road win over Trujillo for a BLCS tossup between 92-win wild cards. The Crawfish hadn’t gotten this far since 2014. Despite an expected close series, Santa Cruz crushed CG with a sweep to earn their fourth pennant and first since the 2008-10 three-peat.

Defending Copa Sudamerica winner Recife had the Southern Cone League’s best record at 97-65. The Retrievers were 17 games better than anyone else in the North Division, extending their playoff streak to eight seasons. Recife got its 11^th playoff berth in 12 years and led the league in both runs (781) and fewest allowed (600). Fortaleza, winners of 102 games in 2020, was a distant second at 80-82 tied with Belo Horizonte.

The South Central Division had three playoff teams separated by three games. Santiago at 92-70 took the top spot, followed by Concepcion (90-72) and Salta (89-73). Last year’s top seed Asuncion was a distant fourth at 83-79. The Saints got their fifth playoff berth in six years, while the Chiefs’ streak grew to five seasons. Concepcion also got its ninth berth of the decade. The Silver Hawks posted their second-ever playoff berth since joining in the 2009 expansion (2015).

Fellow expansion team Porto Alegre won the Southeast Division at 89-73, beating Rio de Janeiro by four games. This was the second playoff berth for the Armadillos (2017). Buenos Aires, winners of the division the prior two years, dropped to 76-86.

Southern Cone League MVP went to Concepcion LF Michael Escalante in his 11^th year with the Chiefs. The 32-year old Chilean led in runs (125) and WAR (10.9). Escalante added 43 doubles, 42 homers, 117 RBI, 69 stolen bases, a 1.081 OPS, and 197 wRC+. He signed a new five-year, $84,000,000 extension in February to continue on with Concepcion.

Recife’s Yuandong Wang repeated as Pitcher of the Year and won his third in four years with the Retrievers. The 33-year old also had five POTY wins previously in Chinese League Baseball with his hometown Zhengzhou, becoming one of six in world history to win the award eight times in his career. Wang was the only ace in pro baseball history to win the award thrice in two different leagues.

In 2020, Wang led in wins (20-4), strikeouts (311), WHIP (0.89), K/BB (19.4), quality starts (28), and WAR (8.1). The lefty added a 2.30 ERA over 261.2 innings and 158 ERA+. Between the two leagues, Wang led in strikeouts for the eighth different season. He would pitch one more season for the Retrievers, then bounced around four more seasons in South America.

Porto Alegre edged Salta 2-1 in the first round, then shocked the defending champ Recife 3-2 in the divisional series. This sent the Armadillos to the Southern Cone League Championship for the first time in franchise history. Santiago topped Concepcion 3-1 on the other side. Despite the Saints having seven playoff berths in the last decade, this was their first LCS trip since 1997. Santiago cruised 4-1 over Porto Alegre to end a 48-year pennant drought back to 1971. The Saints earned their ninth pennant overall.

Santiago also ended a 48-year Copa Sudamerica drought, taking the 90^th finale 4-2 against Santa Cruz. The Saints became six-time Cup winners (1936, 1961, 1964, 1966, 1971, 2020), which despite their drought is tied for the most with Salvador, Sao Paulo, Medellin, and Buenos Aires. 1B Nuno Escalante won finals MVP in his fifth year starting for Santiago. In 15 playoff starts, the Chilean lefty had 23 hits, 14 runs, 5 doubles, 4 homers, and 15 RBI.

Other notes: Concepcion had 296 doubles as a team, the second-most in Southern Cone League history behind their own 302 from 2014. Manuel Marquez became the 22^nd member of the 600 home run club. Marquez, Niccolo Coelho, and Antonio Arceo each passed 1500 runs scored; a mark met by 20 BSA players. Arceo and Marquez also both got to 2500 hits, making 67 batters to do so. Homer Torres became the 31^st to 1500 career RBI.

C Cicero Lugo won his 13^th consecutive Silver Slugger, setting a world record for any catcher. Lugo is the fourth in BSA history with 13+ Sluggers at any position. Coleho became an 11-time winner at third base. Luis Bustos became the eighth to reach 400 saves. Both Luciano Lozano and Bobby Santos reached 300 saves, making 33 closers to do so. Benicio Palacio became the 63^rd pitcher to 200 wins. SP Adrian Chacon won his seventh Gold Glove.

12-10-2024, 07:28 PM	#1873
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,896	2020 in BSA Caracas again clobbered the Bolivar League competition, although they did drop from their 117 wins in 2019 to a still awesome 110-52. 2020 did see a larger gap between the #1 and #2 seeds as the Colts were 17 games better than second place. Caracas had their fourth consecutive Venezuela Division title and fourth 100+ win season in a row. The Colts allowed the fewest runs in Beisbol Sudamerica at 574 and had the third-lowest BB/9 in BSA history at 1.23. Only two games separated the other four playoff teams. Defending BL champ Trujillo at 93-69 was again the #2 seed, although by a much thinner margin than with their 102-win effort the prior year. The Thoroughbreds repeated as Peru-Bolivia Division champ and got their third straight playoff berth. Trujillo was the top scoring team in BSA at 854 runs. Santa Cruz was only one game back the division at 92-70, ending a five-year playoff drought as one of the wild cards. The Venezuela Division’s Ciudad Guayana was also 92-70 and got a wild card for their fourth berth in six years. With division winners not getting seeding preference in BSA, the Crawfish ended up with the #3 seed as the first wild card. This left the Giants as the #4 seed to host their first round series with Quito. At 91-71, the Thunderbolts won the Colombia-Ecuador Division, but had the weakest record of the playoff teams. Quito earned repeat playoff berths, but it was their first division title since 2005. Medellin was second at 87-75 and the first team out, followed by Maturin (84-78) and Bogota (83-79). This ended the nine-year playoff streak by the Mutiny, a run that included eight division titles and two pennants. The Makos also were denied a third consecutive playoff berth. Trujillo LF Rico Ortega won his second Bolivar League MVP, having also won way back in 2012. In his 12^th year with his hometown team, the 34-year old Peruvian led in slugging (.699), OPS (1.090), and wRC+ (182). Ortega added 7.2 WAR, a .349 average, 45 home runs, 117 RBI, and 108 runs. Ortega would play four more years for the Thoroughbreds, although this was his last great season. Caracas ace Julio Arias repeated as Pitcher of the Year and became a three-time winner. The 27-year old Colombian righty led in wins (21-5), ERA (2.06), and quality starts (26). Arias struck out 210 over 227 innings with a 197 ERA+ and 6.4 WAR. The Colts gave him a five-year, $42,500,000 extension after the 2021 campaign. Ciudad Guayana swept Quito 2-0 in the first round. The Giants then shocked their divisional rival Caracas 3-1 in the divisional series. Despite four straight 100+ win seasons, the Colts were yet again denied the pennant and went one-and-done for the second time. Ciudad Guayana got its first Bolivar League Championship Series try since their improbable 2017 Copa Sudamerica run. On the other side, Santa Cruz got the 3-1 road win over Trujillo for a BLCS tossup between 92-win wild cards. The Crawfish hadn’t gotten this far since 2014. Despite an expected close series, Santa Cruz crushed CG with a sweep to earn their fourth pennant and first since the 2008-10 three-peat. Defending Copa Sudamerica winner Recife had the Southern Cone League’s best record at 97-65. The Retrievers were 17 games better than anyone else in the North Division, extending their playoff streak to eight seasons. Recife got its 11^th playoff berth in 12 years and led the league in both runs (781) and fewest allowed (600). Fortaleza, winners of 102 games in 2020, was a distant second at 80-82 tied with Belo Horizonte. The South Central Division had three playoff teams separated by three games. Santiago at 92-70 took the top spot, followed by Concepcion (90-72) and Salta (89-73). Last year’s top seed Asuncion was a distant fourth at 83-79. The Saints got their fifth playoff berth in six years, while the Chiefs’ streak grew to five seasons. Concepcion also got its ninth berth of the decade. The Silver Hawks posted their second-ever playoff berth since joining in the 2009 expansion (2015). Fellow expansion team Porto Alegre won the Southeast Division at 89-73, beating Rio de Janeiro by four games. This was the second playoff berth for the Armadillos (2017). Buenos Aires, winners of the division the prior two years, dropped to 76-86. Southern Cone League MVP went to Concepcion LF Michael Escalante in his 11^th year with the Chiefs. The 32-year old Chilean led in runs (125) and WAR (10.9). Escalante added 43 doubles, 42 homers, 117 RBI, 69 stolen bases, a 1.081 OPS, and 197 wRC+. He signed a new five-year, $84,000,000 extension in February to continue on with Concepcion. Recife’s Yuandong Wang repeated as Pitcher of the Year and won his third in four years with the Retrievers. The 33-year old also had five POTY wins previously in Chinese League Baseball with his hometown Zhengzhou, becoming one of six in world history to win the award eight times in his career. Wang was the only ace in pro baseball history to win the award thrice in two different leagues. In 2020, Wang led in wins (20-4), strikeouts (311), WHIP (0.89), K/BB (19.4), quality starts (28), and WAR (8.1). The lefty added a 2.30 ERA over 261.2 innings and 158 ERA+. Between the two leagues, Wang led in strikeouts for the eighth different season. He would pitch one more season for the Retrievers, then bounced around four more seasons in South America. Porto Alegre edged Salta 2-1 in the first round, then shocked the defending champ Recife 3-2 in the divisional series. This sent the Armadillos to the Southern Cone League Championship for the first time in franchise history. Santiago topped Concepcion 3-1 on the other side. Despite the Saints having seven playoff berths in the last decade, this was their first LCS trip since 1997. Santiago cruised 4-1 over Porto Alegre to end a 48-year pennant drought back to 1971. The Saints earned their ninth pennant overall. Santiago also ended a 48-year Copa Sudamerica drought, taking the 90^th finale 4-2 against Santa Cruz. The Saints became six-time Cup winners (1936, 1961, 1964, 1966, 1971, 2020), which despite their drought is tied for the most with Salvador, Sao Paulo, Medellin, and Buenos Aires. 1B Nuno Escalante won finals MVP in his fifth year starting for Santiago. In 15 playoff starts, the Chilean lefty had 23 hits, 14 runs, 5 doubles, 4 homers, and 15 RBI. Other notes: Concepcion had 296 doubles as a team, the second-most in Southern Cone League history behind their own 302 from 2014. Manuel Marquez became the 22^nd member of the 600 home run club. Marquez, Niccolo Coelho, and Antonio Arceo each passed 1500 runs scored; a mark met by 20 BSA players. Arceo and Marquez also both got to 2500 hits, making 67 batters to do so. Homer Torres became the 31^st to 1500 career RBI. C Cicero Lugo won his 13^th consecutive Silver Slugger, setting a world record for any catcher. Lugo is the fourth in BSA history with 13+ Sluggers at any position. Coleho became an 11-time winner at third base. Luis Bustos became the eighth to reach 400 saves. Both Luciano Lozano and Bobby Santos reached 300 saves, making 33 closers to do so. Benicio Palacio became the 63^rd pitcher to 200 wins. SP Adrian Chacon won his seventh Gold Glove. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)