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FuzzyRussianHat · 02-11-2025, 05:17 AM

The African Association of Baseball’s Southern Conference had four teams within striking distance of first place. Lusaka narrowly took the top spot at 97-65, leading all of AAB with 930 runs scored. The Lake Monsters ended a nine-year playoff drought, having taken third last year. Lusaka set a team record with a .520 slugging percentage and their .288 batting average was the second-best in conference history to that point.

For the second spot, three-time defending conference champ Antananarivo and Maputo finished even at 95-67. The Eagles won the tiebreaker game over the Piranhas to extend their playoff streak to five seasons. Harare was a close fourth at 93-69 with Cape Town in the mix as well at 89-73. Maputo allowed the fewest runs in the conference at 744.

Last year’s wild card Lilongwe collapsed to 65-97, but they avoided relegation with a historically abysmal Luanda at 41-121. The Landsharks’ record remains the worst in AAB history as of 2037. Luanda’s pitching staff set all-time worsts in runs allowed (1011), hits (1661), H/9 (10.37), ERA (5.91), and earned runs (946). All of those remain AAB worsts with the exception of the ERA and earned runs, which would be topped in 2036.

Last year’s African Second League champ Gaborone debuted at 76-86 and surprised many by having the Southern Conference’s MVP and Pitcher of the Year. The former was 1B Thabiso Mlambo who missed out on a Triple Crown by the fourth decimal in his batting average. The 25-year old South African smacked 72 home runs with 184 RBI and a .347 average. Mlambo broke Mwarami Tale’s AAB RBI record of 180 from 2009 and posted the fifth-highest tally in world history to that point.

It was the 12^th season of 70+ homers in AAB, five behind the record 77 set by Tale and Kaunda Kalinga. Mlambo also led in total bases (462), slugging (.786), OPS (1.187), wRC+ (189), and WAR (8.9). The Golden Bears ultimately would only get two more years out of Mlambo. They traded him to Antananarivo in 2028, then he left for MLB. Harare DH Mainho Magaia also had a notable power effort in the MVP race with 71 homers and 158 RBI.

Pitcher of the Year went to Simon Kayongo in his fourth season for Gaborone. The 24-year old Ugandan righty led in ERA (2.81), WHIP (1.07), and WAR (7.1). Kayongo added a 14-10 record, 240 innings, 255 strikeouts, and 168 ERA+.

The Central Conference had the same two playoff teams as the prior year, but they switched spots. Lubumbashi was the reigning Africa Series champ, but was second last year. The Loggerheads finished first in 2025 at 97-65, taking first place for the first time since 2001. Lubumbashi led all AAB teams with 700 runs scored.

Addis Ababa was a close second at 93-69 and narrowly held off 92-70 Nairobi. The Brahmas had the conference’s top offense at 905 runs. Even though they missed the playoffs, the Night Hawks’ pitching staff set new AAB records for fewest walks (356) and best BB/9 (2.17). There was a hefty drop down to fourth place Bujumbura at 81-81. In their second shot at the top tier, Bangui again failed to adapt and was relegated right back to A2L with their 60-102 record.

Ndjamena was ninth at 75-87, but their first baseman Trevor Zhou won Central Conference MVP. The 28-year old Zimbabwean lefty led in OBP (.445), and WAR (9.4). Zhou had 110 runs, 49 doubles, 57 homers, 137 RBI, 1.215 OPS, and 211 wRC+. He signed a three-year, $32,500,000 extension before the season with the Magic. Zhou also had to fend off epic power from Addis Ababa DH Dagne Mersha in the MVP race, as Mersha smacked 72 homers with 151 RBI.

Nairobi righty Noel Kembo secured Pitcher of the Year, leading in wins (22-8), innings (262.1), complete games (12), and shutouts (7). The 27-year old from the Democratic Republic of the Congo won his fifth consecutive Gold Glove and added a 3.71 ERA, 238 strikeouts, 122 ERA+, and 6.2 WAR. Among Kembo’s shutouts was a no-hitter on July 6 with 10 Ks and 1 walk against Lubumbashi. He signed a four-year, $34,440,000 extension prior to the season with the Night Hawks.

Lusaka dethroned Antananarivo 4-1 in the Southern Conference Championship to win their third pennant (2012, 2013, 2025). The Central Conference Championship rematch again had the #2 seed upset the #1 with Addis Ababa defeating reigning champ Lubumbashi 4-2. The Brahmas became nine-time conference champs with their first pennant since the 2006-13 dynasty run.

During Addis Ababa’s dynasty run, they won the Africa Series against Lusaka in both 2012 and 2013. The 31^st Africa Series saw the Lake Monsters get revenge to become the 14^th AAB franchise to win it all, defeating the Brahmas 5-3. 1B Shamiel Moloto was the playoff star, winning MVP in both rounds for Lusaka. The 28-year old South African in 12 playoff starts had 15 hits, 13 runs, 5 doubles, 7 homers, 12 RBI, and 1.147 OPS.

Other notes: 2025 was the final season for SP Ermias Tadele, who retired as and remains AAB’s all-time leader in wins (239-150), innings (3530.1), starts (455), hits allowed (3182), and pitching WAR (112.7). Over 16 years, the Ethiopian lefty had a 3.20 ERA, 128 ERA+, 3471 strikeouts, and three Pitcher of the Year awards. Tadele ranks 4^th in strikeouts as of 2037 and is still nearly 40 WAR points ahead of the next best pitcher, solidifying his spot as the league’s GOAT for many.

Addis Ababa’s Sayyid Pius drew 15 walks in the postseason to set a new AAB record. In a bad record, Luanda SP Frank Kandulu allowed 193 walks on the season. This was an all-time worst for all of pro baseball history, beating his own 183 walks from the prior year.

In milestones, Patrick Babila became the 7^th member of the 700 home run club. Babila (at first base) and C Destin Kette both won their 9^th Gold Glove. This joined shortstops Joaquim Artur and Didrik Borgstrom as the only nine-time winners to that point in AAB. SS Djibrilla Ousseini won his 8^th Silver Slugger. Alister Masalila became the 6^th pitcher with 3000 strikeouts.

Promotion/Relegation: Storied franchises Johannesburg and Kinshasa earned promotion back to the top tier after one year in the African Second League. The Jackalopes replaced Luanda in the Southern Conference and the Sun Cats replaced Bangui.

02-11-2025, 05:17 AM	#2058
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,823	2025 in AAB The African Association of Baseball’s Southern Conference had four teams within striking distance of first place. Lusaka narrowly took the top spot at 97-65, leading all of AAB with 930 runs scored. The Lake Monsters ended a nine-year playoff drought, having taken third last year. Lusaka set a team record with a .520 slugging percentage and their .288 batting average was the second-best in conference history to that point. For the second spot, three-time defending conference champ Antananarivo and Maputo finished even at 95-67. The Eagles won the tiebreaker game over the Piranhas to extend their playoff streak to five seasons. Harare was a close fourth at 93-69 with Cape Town in the mix as well at 89-73. Maputo allowed the fewest runs in the conference at 744. Last year’s wild card Lilongwe collapsed to 65-97, but they avoided relegation with a historically abysmal Luanda at 41-121. The Landsharks’ record remains the worst in AAB history as of 2037. Luanda’s pitching staff set all-time worsts in runs allowed (1011), hits (1661), H/9 (10.37), ERA (5.91), and earned runs (946). All of those remain AAB worsts with the exception of the ERA and earned runs, which would be topped in 2036. Last year’s African Second League champ Gaborone debuted at 76-86 and surprised many by having the Southern Conference’s MVP and Pitcher of the Year. The former was 1B Thabiso Mlambo who missed out on a Triple Crown by the fourth decimal in his batting average. The 25-year old South African smacked 72 home runs with 184 RBI and a .347 average. Mlambo broke Mwarami Tale’s AAB RBI record of 180 from 2009 and posted the fifth-highest tally in world history to that point. It was the 12^th season of 70+ homers in AAB, five behind the record 77 set by Tale and Kaunda Kalinga. Mlambo also led in total bases (462), slugging (.786), OPS (1.187), wRC+ (189), and WAR (8.9). The Golden Bears ultimately would only get two more years out of Mlambo. They traded him to Antananarivo in 2028, then he left for MLB. Harare DH Mainho Magaia also had a notable power effort in the MVP race with 71 homers and 158 RBI. Pitcher of the Year went to Simon Kayongo in his fourth season for Gaborone. The 24-year old Ugandan righty led in ERA (2.81), WHIP (1.07), and WAR (7.1). Kayongo added a 14-10 record, 240 innings, 255 strikeouts, and 168 ERA+. The Central Conference had the same two playoff teams as the prior year, but they switched spots. Lubumbashi was the reigning Africa Series champ, but was second last year. The Loggerheads finished first in 2025 at 97-65, taking first place for the first time since 2001. Lubumbashi led all AAB teams with 700 runs scored. Addis Ababa was a close second at 93-69 and narrowly held off 92-70 Nairobi. The Brahmas had the conference’s top offense at 905 runs. Even though they missed the playoffs, the Night Hawks’ pitching staff set new AAB records for fewest walks (356) and best BB/9 (2.17). There was a hefty drop down to fourth place Bujumbura at 81-81. In their second shot at the top tier, Bangui again failed to adapt and was relegated right back to A2L with their 60-102 record. Ndjamena was ninth at 75-87, but their first baseman Trevor Zhou won Central Conference MVP. The 28-year old Zimbabwean lefty led in OBP (.445), and WAR (9.4). Zhou had 110 runs, 49 doubles, 57 homers, 137 RBI, 1.215 OPS, and 211 wRC+. He signed a three-year, $32,500,000 extension before the season with the Magic. Zhou also had to fend off epic power from Addis Ababa DH Dagne Mersha in the MVP race, as Mersha smacked 72 homers with 151 RBI. Nairobi righty Noel Kembo secured Pitcher of the Year, leading in wins (22-8), innings (262.1), complete games (12), and shutouts (7). The 27-year old from the Democratic Republic of the Congo won his fifth consecutive Gold Glove and added a 3.71 ERA, 238 strikeouts, 122 ERA+, and 6.2 WAR. Among Kembo’s shutouts was a no-hitter on July 6 with 10 Ks and 1 walk against Lubumbashi. He signed a four-year, $34,440,000 extension prior to the season with the Night Hawks. Lusaka dethroned Antananarivo 4-1 in the Southern Conference Championship to win their third pennant (2012, 2013, 2025). The Central Conference Championship rematch again had the #2 seed upset the #1 with Addis Ababa defeating reigning champ Lubumbashi 4-2. The Brahmas became nine-time conference champs with their first pennant since the 2006-13 dynasty run. During Addis Ababa’s dynasty run, they won the Africa Series against Lusaka in both 2012 and 2013. The 31^st Africa Series saw the Lake Monsters get revenge to become the 14^th AAB franchise to win it all, defeating the Brahmas 5-3. 1B Shamiel Moloto was the playoff star, winning MVP in both rounds for Lusaka. The 28-year old South African in 12 playoff starts had 15 hits, 13 runs, 5 doubles, 7 homers, 12 RBI, and 1.147 OPS. Other notes: 2025 was the final season for SP Ermias Tadele, who retired as and remains AAB’s all-time leader in wins (239-150), innings (3530.1), starts (455), hits allowed (3182), and pitching WAR (112.7). Over 16 years, the Ethiopian lefty had a 3.20 ERA, 128 ERA+, 3471 strikeouts, and three Pitcher of the Year awards. Tadele ranks 4^th in strikeouts as of 2037 and is still nearly 40 WAR points ahead of the next best pitcher, solidifying his spot as the league’s GOAT for many. Addis Ababa’s Sayyid Pius drew 15 walks in the postseason to set a new AAB record. In a bad record, Luanda SP Frank Kandulu allowed 193 walks on the season. This was an all-time worst for all of pro baseball history, beating his own 183 walks from the prior year. In milestones, Patrick Babila became the 7^th member of the 700 home run club. Babila (at first base) and C Destin Kette both won their 9^th Gold Glove. This joined shortstops Joaquim Artur and Didrik Borgstrom as the only nine-time winners to that point in AAB. SS Djibrilla Ousseini won his 8^th Silver Slugger. Alister Masalila became the 6^th pitcher with 3000 strikeouts. Promotion/Relegation: Storied franchises Johannesburg and Kinshasa earned promotion back to the top tier after one year in the African Second League. The Jackalopes replaced Luanda in the Southern Conference and the Sun Cats replaced Bangui. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)