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FuzzyRussianHat · 02-09-2025, 05:24 AM

For the first time in its history, Arab League Baseball had a four-player Hall of Fame class for 2025. All four players were first ballot picks with a co-headlining pair of RF/DH Farouk Adam at 97.7% and IF Mohamed Mustafa at 96.2%. CF Hassan El Zamek (84.6%) and SP Mostafa Nabil (72.7%) joined them in the impressive group. It was very nearly a five-player group as debuting SP Ziyad bin Mostafa got 65.8%, barely missing the 66% cutoff. No other players were above 40%.

SP Jameleddine El Baraka fell off the ballot after ten failed tries, peaking at 17.7% in his debut and ending with 5.0%. He won Pitcher of the Year and an ERA title in 1999 for Jeddah, but lost some accumulations between a brief MLB run and due to major injuries. El Baraka in ALB had a 145-91 record, 2.94 ERA, 2086 innings, 2127 strikeouts, 540 walks, 129 ERA+, and 47.7 WAR. The pace was certainly there had he been able to post a couple more healthy seasons, but his final full season was at age 32.

Farouk “Kingfish” Adam – Right Field/Designated Hitter – Basra Bulldogs – 97.7% First Ballot

Farouk Adam was a 6’5’’, 200 pound left-handed right fielder from Chandra, a village of around 6,000 in the Comoros. He joined his long-time teammate Nordine Soule as the only Comoron Hall of Famers. Along with Soule, HOF classmate Hassan El Zamek, and Mohamed Hassan; Basra in the 2000s had perhaps the most impressive collection of outfielders ever assembled.

Nicknamed “Kingfish,” Adam was a stellar contact hitter who graded as a 10/10 at his peak. He was very good at avoiding strikeouts and respectable at drawing walks. Adam’s splits were noticeable though with an excellent career 1.005 OPS and 173 wRC+ versus right-handed pitching compared to a .773 OPS and 112 wRC+ against lefties. The difference in power between RHP and LHP was quite pronounced.

Gap power made Adam especially dangerous, but he also gave you a solid clip of home runs with a 162 game average of 26 homers, 44 doubles, and 11 triples. He was a world class baserunner with very good speed in his prime, causing fits for pitchers once he was on base. Despite that baserunning speed and power, those skills didn’t translate into the field.

Adam had shockingly poor defensive range and graded as a terrible right fielder, where he made around 60% of his starts. He occasionally played first base and wasn’t any better there. Around ¼ of his starts came as a designated hitter. Adam’s offensive skills though definitely warranted a prominent spot in the lineup. He did miss some time in injury, but was usually reliable over a 19-year pro career. Adam became very popular for his exciting play style.

Basra had unique inroads into the limited baseball scene throughout the islands of the Comoros. The same scout that had discovered the eventual home run king Nordine Soule was the one to discover Adam. The Iraq-based Bulldogs were becoming popular because of Soule and he helped convince Adam to sign a developmental deal with Basra in October 1997. He spent four years in their academy, officially debuting in 2001 with 12 games and 1 start at age 20.

Adam’s full-time debut came in 2002 and he’d be a fixture in the Basra lineup for the next 16 years. He won Rookie of the Year in 2002 and won his first Silver Slugger in 2003 as a DH. That year, Adam was second in MVP voting behind Soule and led the Eastern Conference in hits (236), doubles (60), and total bases (396). Adam also posted a 30-game hitting streak, becoming the first ALB player to do so. That would be his career best, although he’d have a 20+ game hitting streak four more times in his career.

This also marked the start of Basra’s ten-year playoff streak. Despite Soule’s efforts, they hadn’t been able to get around Mosul in the division as the Muskies posted a late 1990s dynasty run. The Bulldogs fell in the first round in 2003 to Dubai. In August 2004, Basra locked Adam up on an eight-year, $10,980,000 extension.

Adam won another Silver Slugger in 2004 and won Arab League Championship MVP despite Basra losing to Beirut in the final. In the playoff run, Adam started 8 games with 16 hits, 10 runs, 4 doubles, 3 homers, 7 RBI, 5 steals, 1.339 OPS, and 1.0 WAR. In 2005, he won his first batting title at .377 and led with 232 hits and 139 runs, setting a new ALB record for runs scored. Adam won a Silver Slugger at first base and was second again to Soule in MVP voting, posting his first-ever 10+ WAR season. Basra would fall in the conference final to Medina.

2006 was a major setback with a torn PCL in mid May, knocking Adam out for 10 months. He still earned a championship ring on crutches as Basra defeated Giza to win their first-ever ALB title. Adam lost a chunk of 2007 to a strained oblique, but won a Slugger in RF with 7.9 WAR over 103 games. Basra again fell to Medina in the conference final.

2008 was Basra’s finest season at 109-53, ousting the Mastodons for the conference title and winning their second ALB title over Casablanca. It was also Adam’s finest season, winning MVP and his fifth Silver Slugger. He broke his own runs scored record of 144 and posted career highs in hits (251), RBI (147), triple slash (.404/.442/.691), OPS (1.133), wRC+ (212), and WAR (11.7).

The hits and average would’ve both been single-season ALB records if not for teammate and HOF classmate Hassan El Zamek, who posted his own staggering 261 hits and .407 average. At the time, El Zamek’s 261 hits broke the world record of 257. Adam’s marks rank 6^th in average and 7^th in hits as of 2037. He matched his runs record the next year and held the top spot until 2027. Adam’s 144 runs remain the 4^th-best ALB single-seasons as of 2037.

Adam three-peated as MVP as he was also the WARlord with 10.4 in both 2009 and 2010. He won the batting title and Silver Sluggers both years as well and posted two 110+ stolen bases efforts. Basra was upset in the 2009 conference final by Kuwait. The Bulldogs won the 2010 pennant, but lost the ALB Championship to a 116-win Amman squad.

In 2011, Adam’s production dropped noticeably from the MVP years, but he still had 5.6 WAR and a conference-best 123 runs. He stepped up in the playoffs and won finals MVP again with Basra defeating Alexandria for the third and final ring of their run. In 13 starts, Adam had 1.035 OPS, 20 hits, 12 runs, 10 steals, and 0.8 WAR. The Bulldogs went 10-9 in the Baseball Grand Championship in a tie for eighth. In 19 starts, Adam had .944 OPS, 174 wRC+, and 0.9 WAR.

Basra gave the now 31-year old Adam a six-year, $36,300,000 extension in spring training 2012. He never again posted his MVP level seasons, but remained a good starter. Adam won two more Silver Sluggers in 2012 and 2017, earning nine total. The Bulldogs had the top seed in 2012, but were upset by Abu Dhabi in the conference final. This was the last hurrah for Basra’s exciting run, as they’d miss the playoffs from 2013-17.

Their exciting offense gave Basra and Adam three ALB rings and five conference titles. For his playoff career, Adam had 66 starts, 108 hits, 47 runs, 20 doubles, 5 triples, 11 homers, 51 RBI, 44 steals, .404/.430/.640 slash, 1.070 OPS, 190 wRC+, and 5.0 WAR. Although Soule’s historic power got most of the publicity, Adam’s production was especially impressive in the playoffs.

As of 2037, Adam is ALB’s playoff leader in hits and singles. Posting a .404 average of 267 playoff at-bats is also a remarkable feat. He ranks 9^th in batting average but with the caveat that only 40 plate appearances are needed to qualify. Adam ranks 6^th in playoff runs scored, 9^th in doubles, and 4^th in steals. Another impressive accomplishment is that Adam hit for the cycle four times in his career. He was the first to achieve that in ALB with only one other eventually matching that. As of 2037, only ten players in all of baseball history have achieved four cycles.

Basra bought out the remainder of Adam’s contract after the 2017 season, sending him to free agency at age 36. For the Bulldogs, he had 2254 games, 2988 hits, 1688 runs, 622 doubles, 151 triples, 384 home runs, 1418 RBI, 503 walks, 1319 stolen bases, .344/.382/.583 slash, 163 wRC+, and 104.0 WAR. Adam’s #23 uniform would quickly be retired at the end of his career and he remained a very popular figure both in Iraq and back home in Comoros.

Adam wasn’t done yet and signed a one-year deal for 2018 with Medina. His production dipped notably with only 0.9 WAR over a full season, but he did reach 3000 career hits, joining Soule as the only players to reach the mark to that point. There was a thought that he might chase Soule’s top spot of 3339. At this point, Adam had also passed El Zamek as ALB’s stolen bases leader. He went to Suez in 2019 but was forgettable as a part-time starter with 1.0 WAR and 103 wRC+. Adam decided to retire that winter at age 38.

The grand totals for Adam were 2539 games, 3266 hits, 1817 runs, 689 doubles, 169 triples, 406 home runs, 1547 RBI, 540 walks, 1187 strikeouts, 1386 stolen bases, .337/.375/.569 slash, 157 wRC+, and 106.0 WAR. As of 2037, Adam is 20^th in games played, 3^rd in hits, 5^th in runs, 4^th in singles (2002), 9^th in doubles, 13^th in triples, 77^th in homers, 12^th in total bases (5511), 29^th in RBI, 3^rd in steals, 86^th in walks, and 6^th in WAR among position players.

Among batters with 3000+ plate appearances in ALB, Adam’s batting average ranks 13^th, his OBP is 30^th, slugging is 83^rd, and his .944 OPS is 53^rd. Among all world Hall of Famers as of 2037, Adam’s batting average ranks 38^th. He also has the 30^th most steals of any pro. Adam certainly was an inner-circle level great on some historic offenses but was overshadowed by playing with Soule, who is widely viewed as the GOAT of Arab League Baseball.

Still, Adam makes many of the top ten lists for ALB’s best-ever position players and cracks the top five in a few. Few guys in baseball history were as impressive contact hitters, especially on the playoff stage. Not only that, but he hit plenty of extra base hits and was one of the most dangerous baserunners of his era. At 97.7%, Adam had the highest percentage in a loaded four-player class for ALB in 2025.

Mohamed “Frolic” Mustafa – Infielder – Abu Dhabi Destroyers – 96.2% First Ballot

Mohamed Mustafa was a 6’1’’, 190 pound right-handed infielder from Ad Du’ayn, Sudan; a city of around 300,000 in the country’s southwest. Mustafa was an excellent contact hitter with a reliably strong pop in his bat, posting 35 home runs, 40 doubles, and 9 triples per his 162 game average. He wasn’t often a conference leader, but Mustafa regularly was in the top 10 in the big counting stats.

He was merely average at best in terms of drawing walks and avoiding strikeouts. On the basepaths, Mustafa was reliably above average to good. He spent his first few seasons mostly at shortstop, but struggled defensively there without the needed range or arm strength. Mustafa started about half of his career games at second base and was below average there, but was serviceable enough with a bat far better than usual for the spot. He also started off-and-on at first base and graded as a solid defender there.

Even if Mustafa wasn’t an amazing defender, he was versatile enough to be plugged in when needed and often played a little bit at all three spots each year. His adaptability and ironman durability also played a big role in his utility, starting 140+ games in all but his first and final seasons. Few guys in Mustafa’s era had a more well-rounded skillset.

A scout from Abu Dhabi discovered Mustafa down in Sudan and signed him to a developmental deal in November 1997. Although nearly his entire pro career came in the United Arab Emirates, Mustafa regularly represented Sudan in the World Baseball Championship. From 2006-18, he played 118 games with 115 hits, 58 runs, 16 doubles, 29 home runs, 62 RBI, .260/.318/.502 slash, and 3.8 WAR. In 2017, Mustafa helped Sudan earn its first-ever division title.

Mustafa didn’t immediately crack the lineup for Abu Dhabi, spending the better part of seven years in their academy. He debuted in 2003 at age 22 but was unremarkable over 64 games and 43 starts. The Destroyers didn’t use him at all in 2004, but decided he was ready for the full-time gig in 2005. Mustafa won Silver Sluggers at shortstop in 2006, 2007, and 2008. Abu Dhabi signed him to a seven-year, $24,040,000 extension in June 2010. That year, Mustafa joined the short list of players with a four home run game, going it on 5/19/2010 against Basra.

He was moved to second base and really started to thrive, beginning a seven-year streak of seasons worth 7.5+ WAR. Mustafa won Silver Sluggers at 2B in from 2010-16, giving him ten total. This also started Abu Dhabi’s first ever sustained success. The Destroyers ended a 16-year playoff drought in 2010, falling to Basra in the Eastern Conference Championship. AD missed the playoffs narrowly in 2011, then started a six-year streak from 2012-17.

In 2011, Mustafa won MVP honors with conference and career bests in hits (222), total bases (450), batting average (.368), and WAR (11.2). Mustafa also posted his bests in homers (56), RBI (141), triple slash (.368/.405/.746), OPS (1.151), and wRC+ (202). Each season from 2011-16 saw OPS above one, 100+ runs scored, 40+ homers, and 110+ RBI. Mustafa finished third in 2012’s MVP voting and was again WARlord (9.5), but more important was the team result.

Abu Dhabi won their first (and only as of 2037) Arab League Championship in 2012, beating Tripoli in the final. Mustafa was the MVP of the conference finals win over Basra, starting 13 playoff games with 20 hits, 8 runs, 3 homers, 6 RBI, .966 OPS, and 0.7 WAR. He was merely decent in the Baseball Grand Championship with a .218/.279/.500 slash and 0.5 WAR over 19 starts. Abu Dhabi finished in the bottom half at 7-12.

The Destroyers had a first round exit in 2013, then fell in the conference finals in 2014 and 2015. Mustafa won his second MVP in 2013 with a conference-best 54 homers along with 10.2 WAR. He finished third in 2014’s MVP voting and second in both 2015 and 2016. Mustafa also picked up a Gold Glove in the 2016 run, leading the conference in WAR for the third time at 9.6. 2016 had his career best in runs scored (119) while he led in hits (213) and average (.356) in 2015.

Abu Dhabi was an impressive 114-48 in 2016, but still was the underdog in their conference championship win over 117-45 Jeddah. Mustafa was MVP of the series, but the Destroyers would fall to Damascus in the ALB Championship. Abu Dhabi won the pennant again in 2017, but dropped the final to Casablanca. For his playoff career, Mustafa had 56 starts, 64 hits, 24 runs, 12 doubles, 10 home runs, 36 RBI, 11 walks, .303/.338/.521 slash, 129 wRC+, and 1.4 WAR.

Mustafa’s WAR fell to 4.3 in 2017, then down to 2.4 in 2018. 2018 marked the start of a rebuild as Abu Dhabi plummeted to 71-91. He had signed a conditional two-year extension after the 2017 season at $27,400,000, but the Destroyers decided to blow it up after their 2018 struggles. Their long-time star Mustafa was traded in the offseason to Damascus for three prospects.

He had a part-time role with limited success for the Dusters in 2019 with 102 games, 94 starts, .775 OPS, 98 wRC+, and 0.5 WAR. Mustafa decided to retire that winter shortly after his 39^th birthday. Abu Dhabi immediately brought him in to retire his #31 uniform and he remained a celebrated franchise icon and ambassador for many years to come. The 2010s are generally looked at as the “good ol’ days” for Destroyers fans as it was their longest run of sustained success.

Mustafa finished with 2337 games, 2825 hits, 1378 runs, 575 doubles, 130 triples, 500 home runs, 1577 RBI, 504 walks, 1528 strikeouts, 555 stolen bases, .318/.354/.581 slash, 154 wRC+, and 94.9 WAR. As of 2037, Mustafa is 35^th in games played, 38^th in runs, 18^th in hits, 29^th in doubles, 31^st in triples, 46^th in homers, 23^rd in total bases (5160), 25^th in RBI, and 10^th in WAR among position players.

Among those with 3000+ plate appearances, Mustafa ranks 53^rd in batting average, 69^th in slugging, and his .935 OPS is 62^nd. He’s also one of only seven players in ALB with 10+ Silver Sluggers. Most scholars would place Mustafa among the top 20 position players in league history and a few even put him into the top ten. He was a Hall of Fame lock at 96.2% and co-headlined an impressive four-player class for Arab League Baseball in 2025.

02-09-2025, 05:24 AM	#2052
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,652	2025 ALB Hall of Fame (Part 1) For the first time in its history, Arab League Baseball had a four-player Hall of Fame class for 2025. All four players were first ballot picks with a co-headlining pair of RF/DH Farouk Adam at 97.7% and IF Mohamed Mustafa at 96.2%. CF Hassan El Zamek (84.6%) and SP Mostafa Nabil (72.7%) joined them in the impressive group. It was very nearly a five-player group as debuting SP Ziyad bin Mostafa got 65.8%, barely missing the 66% cutoff. No other players were above 40%. SP Jameleddine El Baraka fell off the ballot after ten failed tries, peaking at 17.7% in his debut and ending with 5.0%. He won Pitcher of the Year and an ERA title in 1999 for Jeddah, but lost some accumulations between a brief MLB run and due to major injuries. El Baraka in ALB had a 145-91 record, 2.94 ERA, 2086 innings, 2127 strikeouts, 540 walks, 129 ERA+, and 47.7 WAR. The pace was certainly there had he been able to post a couple more healthy seasons, but his final full season was at age 32. Farouk “Kingfish” Adam – Right Field/Designated Hitter – Basra Bulldogs – 97.7% First Ballot Farouk Adam was a 6’5’’, 200 pound left-handed right fielder from Chandra, a village of around 6,000 in the Comoros. He joined his long-time teammate Nordine Soule as the only Comoron Hall of Famers. Along with Soule, HOF classmate Hassan El Zamek, and Mohamed Hassan; Basra in the 2000s had perhaps the most impressive collection of outfielders ever assembled. Nicknamed “Kingfish,” Adam was a stellar contact hitter who graded as a 10/10 at his peak. He was very good at avoiding strikeouts and respectable at drawing walks. Adam’s splits were noticeable though with an excellent career 1.005 OPS and 173 wRC+ versus right-handed pitching compared to a .773 OPS and 112 wRC+ against lefties. The difference in power between RHP and LHP was quite pronounced. Gap power made Adam especially dangerous, but he also gave you a solid clip of home runs with a 162 game average of 26 homers, 44 doubles, and 11 triples. He was a world class baserunner with very good speed in his prime, causing fits for pitchers once he was on base. Despite that baserunning speed and power, those skills didn’t translate into the field. Adam had shockingly poor defensive range and graded as a terrible right fielder, where he made around 60% of his starts. He occasionally played first base and wasn’t any better there. Around ¼ of his starts came as a designated hitter. Adam’s offensive skills though definitely warranted a prominent spot in the lineup. He did miss some time in injury, but was usually reliable over a 19-year pro career. Adam became very popular for his exciting play style. Basra had unique inroads into the limited baseball scene throughout the islands of the Comoros. The same scout that had discovered the eventual home run king Nordine Soule was the one to discover Adam. The Iraq-based Bulldogs were becoming popular because of Soule and he helped convince Adam to sign a developmental deal with Basra in October 1997. He spent four years in their academy, officially debuting in 2001 with 12 games and 1 start at age 20. Adam’s full-time debut came in 2002 and he’d be a fixture in the Basra lineup for the next 16 years. He won Rookie of the Year in 2002 and won his first Silver Slugger in 2003 as a DH. That year, Adam was second in MVP voting behind Soule and led the Eastern Conference in hits (236), doubles (60), and total bases (396). Adam also posted a 30-game hitting streak, becoming the first ALB player to do so. That would be his career best, although he’d have a 20+ game hitting streak four more times in his career. This also marked the start of Basra’s ten-year playoff streak. Despite Soule’s efforts, they hadn’t been able to get around Mosul in the division as the Muskies posted a late 1990s dynasty run. The Bulldogs fell in the first round in 2003 to Dubai. In August 2004, Basra locked Adam up on an eight-year, $10,980,000 extension. Adam won another Silver Slugger in 2004 and won Arab League Championship MVP despite Basra losing to Beirut in the final. In the playoff run, Adam started 8 games with 16 hits, 10 runs, 4 doubles, 3 homers, 7 RBI, 5 steals, 1.339 OPS, and 1.0 WAR. In 2005, he won his first batting title at .377 and led with 232 hits and 139 runs, setting a new ALB record for runs scored. Adam won a Silver Slugger at first base and was second again to Soule in MVP voting, posting his first-ever 10+ WAR season. Basra would fall in the conference final to Medina. 2006 was a major setback with a torn PCL in mid May, knocking Adam out for 10 months. He still earned a championship ring on crutches as Basra defeated Giza to win their first-ever ALB title. Adam lost a chunk of 2007 to a strained oblique, but won a Slugger in RF with 7.9 WAR over 103 games. Basra again fell to Medina in the conference final. 2008 was Basra’s finest season at 109-53, ousting the Mastodons for the conference title and winning their second ALB title over Casablanca. It was also Adam’s finest season, winning MVP and his fifth Silver Slugger. He broke his own runs scored record of 144 and posted career highs in hits (251), RBI (147), triple slash (.404/.442/.691), OPS (1.133), wRC+ (212), and WAR (11.7). The hits and average would’ve both been single-season ALB records if not for teammate and HOF classmate Hassan El Zamek, who posted his own staggering 261 hits and .407 average. At the time, El Zamek’s 261 hits broke the world record of 257. Adam’s marks rank 6^th in average and 7^th in hits as of 2037. He matched his runs record the next year and held the top spot until 2027. Adam’s 144 runs remain the 4^th-best ALB single-seasons as of 2037. Adam three-peated as MVP as he was also the WARlord with 10.4 in both 2009 and 2010. He won the batting title and Silver Sluggers both years as well and posted two 110+ stolen bases efforts. Basra was upset in the 2009 conference final by Kuwait. The Bulldogs won the 2010 pennant, but lost the ALB Championship to a 116-win Amman squad. In 2011, Adam’s production dropped noticeably from the MVP years, but he still had 5.6 WAR and a conference-best 123 runs. He stepped up in the playoffs and won finals MVP again with Basra defeating Alexandria for the third and final ring of their run. In 13 starts, Adam had 1.035 OPS, 20 hits, 12 runs, 10 steals, and 0.8 WAR. The Bulldogs went 10-9 in the Baseball Grand Championship in a tie for eighth. In 19 starts, Adam had .944 OPS, 174 wRC+, and 0.9 WAR. Basra gave the now 31-year old Adam a six-year, $36,300,000 extension in spring training 2012. He never again posted his MVP level seasons, but remained a good starter. Adam won two more Silver Sluggers in 2012 and 2017, earning nine total. The Bulldogs had the top seed in 2012, but were upset by Abu Dhabi in the conference final. This was the last hurrah for Basra’s exciting run, as they’d miss the playoffs from 2013-17. Their exciting offense gave Basra and Adam three ALB rings and five conference titles. For his playoff career, Adam had 66 starts, 108 hits, 47 runs, 20 doubles, 5 triples, 11 homers, 51 RBI, 44 steals, .404/.430/.640 slash, 1.070 OPS, 190 wRC+, and 5.0 WAR. Although Soule’s historic power got most of the publicity, Adam’s production was especially impressive in the playoffs. As of 2037, Adam is ALB’s playoff leader in hits and singles. Posting a .404 average of 267 playoff at-bats is also a remarkable feat. He ranks 9^th in batting average but with the caveat that only 40 plate appearances are needed to qualify. Adam ranks 6^th in playoff runs scored, 9^th in doubles, and 4^th in steals. Another impressive accomplishment is that Adam hit for the cycle four times in his career. He was the first to achieve that in ALB with only one other eventually matching that. As of 2037, only ten players in all of baseball history have achieved four cycles. Basra bought out the remainder of Adam’s contract after the 2017 season, sending him to free agency at age 36. For the Bulldogs, he had 2254 games, 2988 hits, 1688 runs, 622 doubles, 151 triples, 384 home runs, 1418 RBI, 503 walks, 1319 stolen bases, .344/.382/.583 slash, 163 wRC+, and 104.0 WAR. Adam’s #23 uniform would quickly be retired at the end of his career and he remained a very popular figure both in Iraq and back home in Comoros. Adam wasn’t done yet and signed a one-year deal for 2018 with Medina. His production dipped notably with only 0.9 WAR over a full season, but he did reach 3000 career hits, joining Soule as the only players to reach the mark to that point. There was a thought that he might chase Soule’s top spot of 3339. At this point, Adam had also passed El Zamek as ALB’s stolen bases leader. He went to Suez in 2019 but was forgettable as a part-time starter with 1.0 WAR and 103 wRC+. Adam decided to retire that winter at age 38. The grand totals for Adam were 2539 games, 3266 hits, 1817 runs, 689 doubles, 169 triples, 406 home runs, 1547 RBI, 540 walks, 1187 strikeouts, 1386 stolen bases, .337/.375/.569 slash, 157 wRC+, and 106.0 WAR. As of 2037, Adam is 20^th in games played, 3^rd in hits, 5^th in runs, 4^th in singles (2002), 9^th in doubles, 13^th in triples, 77^th in homers, 12^th in total bases (5511), 29^th in RBI, 3^rd in steals, 86^th in walks, and 6^th in WAR among position players. Among batters with 3000+ plate appearances in ALB, Adam’s batting average ranks 13^th, his OBP is 30^th, slugging is 83^rd, and his .944 OPS is 53^rd. Among all world Hall of Famers as of 2037, Adam’s batting average ranks 38^th. He also has the 30^th most steals of any pro. Adam certainly was an inner-circle level great on some historic offenses but was overshadowed by playing with Soule, who is widely viewed as the GOAT of Arab League Baseball. Still, Adam makes many of the top ten lists for ALB’s best-ever position players and cracks the top five in a few. Few guys in baseball history were as impressive contact hitters, especially on the playoff stage. Not only that, but he hit plenty of extra base hits and was one of the most dangerous baserunners of his era. At 97.7%, Adam had the highest percentage in a loaded four-player class for ALB in 2025. Mohamed “Frolic” Mustafa – Infielder – Abu Dhabi Destroyers – 96.2% First Ballot Mohamed Mustafa was a 6’1’’, 190 pound right-handed infielder from Ad Du’ayn, Sudan; a city of around 300,000 in the country’s southwest. Mustafa was an excellent contact hitter with a reliably strong pop in his bat, posting 35 home runs, 40 doubles, and 9 triples per his 162 game average. He wasn’t often a conference leader, but Mustafa regularly was in the top 10 in the big counting stats. He was merely average at best in terms of drawing walks and avoiding strikeouts. On the basepaths, Mustafa was reliably above average to good. He spent his first few seasons mostly at shortstop, but struggled defensively there without the needed range or arm strength. Mustafa started about half of his career games at second base and was below average there, but was serviceable enough with a bat far better than usual for the spot. He also started off-and-on at first base and graded as a solid defender there. Even if Mustafa wasn’t an amazing defender, he was versatile enough to be plugged in when needed and often played a little bit at all three spots each year. His adaptability and ironman durability also played a big role in his utility, starting 140+ games in all but his first and final seasons. Few guys in Mustafa’s era had a more well-rounded skillset. A scout from Abu Dhabi discovered Mustafa down in Sudan and signed him to a developmental deal in November 1997. Although nearly his entire pro career came in the United Arab Emirates, Mustafa regularly represented Sudan in the World Baseball Championship. From 2006-18, he played 118 games with 115 hits, 58 runs, 16 doubles, 29 home runs, 62 RBI, .260/.318/.502 slash, and 3.8 WAR. In 2017, Mustafa helped Sudan earn its first-ever division title. Mustafa didn’t immediately crack the lineup for Abu Dhabi, spending the better part of seven years in their academy. He debuted in 2003 at age 22 but was unremarkable over 64 games and 43 starts. The Destroyers didn’t use him at all in 2004, but decided he was ready for the full-time gig in 2005. Mustafa won Silver Sluggers at shortstop in 2006, 2007, and 2008. Abu Dhabi signed him to a seven-year, $24,040,000 extension in June 2010. That year, Mustafa joined the short list of players with a four home run game, going it on 5/19/2010 against Basra. He was moved to second base and really started to thrive, beginning a seven-year streak of seasons worth 7.5+ WAR. Mustafa won Silver Sluggers at 2B in from 2010-16, giving him ten total. This also started Abu Dhabi’s first ever sustained success. The Destroyers ended a 16-year playoff drought in 2010, falling to Basra in the Eastern Conference Championship. AD missed the playoffs narrowly in 2011, then started a six-year streak from 2012-17. In 2011, Mustafa won MVP honors with conference and career bests in hits (222), total bases (450), batting average (.368), and WAR (11.2). Mustafa also posted his bests in homers (56), RBI (141), triple slash (.368/.405/.746), OPS (1.151), and wRC+ (202). Each season from 2011-16 saw OPS above one, 100+ runs scored, 40+ homers, and 110+ RBI. Mustafa finished third in 2012’s MVP voting and was again WARlord (9.5), but more important was the team result. Abu Dhabi won their first (and only as of 2037) Arab League Championship in 2012, beating Tripoli in the final. Mustafa was the MVP of the conference finals win over Basra, starting 13 playoff games with 20 hits, 8 runs, 3 homers, 6 RBI, .966 OPS, and 0.7 WAR. He was merely decent in the Baseball Grand Championship with a .218/.279/.500 slash and 0.5 WAR over 19 starts. Abu Dhabi finished in the bottom half at 7-12. The Destroyers had a first round exit in 2013, then fell in the conference finals in 2014 and 2015. Mustafa won his second MVP in 2013 with a conference-best 54 homers along with 10.2 WAR. He finished third in 2014’s MVP voting and second in both 2015 and 2016. Mustafa also picked up a Gold Glove in the 2016 run, leading the conference in WAR for the third time at 9.6. 2016 had his career best in runs scored (119) while he led in hits (213) and average (.356) in 2015. Abu Dhabi was an impressive 114-48 in 2016, but still was the underdog in their conference championship win over 117-45 Jeddah. Mustafa was MVP of the series, but the Destroyers would fall to Damascus in the ALB Championship. Abu Dhabi won the pennant again in 2017, but dropped the final to Casablanca. For his playoff career, Mustafa had 56 starts, 64 hits, 24 runs, 12 doubles, 10 home runs, 36 RBI, 11 walks, .303/.338/.521 slash, 129 wRC+, and 1.4 WAR. Mustafa’s WAR fell to 4.3 in 2017, then down to 2.4 in 2018. 2018 marked the start of a rebuild as Abu Dhabi plummeted to 71-91. He had signed a conditional two-year extension after the 2017 season at $27,400,000, but the Destroyers decided to blow it up after their 2018 struggles. Their long-time star Mustafa was traded in the offseason to Damascus for three prospects. He had a part-time role with limited success for the Dusters in 2019 with 102 games, 94 starts, .775 OPS, 98 wRC+, and 0.5 WAR. Mustafa decided to retire that winter shortly after his 39^th birthday. Abu Dhabi immediately brought him in to retire his #31 uniform and he remained a celebrated franchise icon and ambassador for many years to come. The 2010s are generally looked at as the “good ol’ days” for Destroyers fans as it was their longest run of sustained success. Mustafa finished with 2337 games, 2825 hits, 1378 runs, 575 doubles, 130 triples, 500 home runs, 1577 RBI, 504 walks, 1528 strikeouts, 555 stolen bases, .318/.354/.581 slash, 154 wRC+, and 94.9 WAR. As of 2037, Mustafa is 35^th in games played, 38^th in runs, 18^th in hits, 29^th in doubles, 31^st in triples, 46^th in homers, 23^rd in total bases (5160), 25^th in RBI, and 10^th in WAR among position players. Among those with 3000+ plate appearances, Mustafa ranks 53^rd in batting average, 69^th in slugging, and his .935 OPS is 62^nd. He’s also one of only seven players in ALB with 10+ Silver Sluggers. Most scholars would place Mustafa among the top 20 position players in league history and a few even put him into the top ten. He was a Hall of Fame lock at 96.2% and co-headlined an impressive four-player class for Arab League Baseball in 2025. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)