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FuzzyRussianHat · 02-14-2025, 11:55 AM

The top two records in the Northern Conference came from the Central Division with Rotterdam (106-56) outracing Hanover (100-62) for the top spot. The Ravens earned their fifth consecutive division title while the Hitmen were a wild card for the third year running. It was the fourth straight 100+ win season for Rotterdam, who led all of the European Baseball Federation in runs scored (844) and led the conference in fewest allowed (566).

The West and East Division races were both intense for the #2 seed, division titles, and wild card slot. Stockholm at 98-64 won the East in a triumphant return to the Elite Tier, as the Swordsmen were the European Second League’s runner-up in 2024. This was the first playoff berth in the top flight for the Swedish capital since 1993. They finished four games ahead of Berlin and 4.5 ahead of Kharkiv for the division.

Reigning Baseball Grand Champion and three-time defending conference champ Dublin kept their West Division title streak alive at six seasons, albeit narrowly at 97-65. It was a drop from their three straight 110+ win campaigns, finishing 4.5 games ahead of Birmingham and five better than Glasgow. Both teams were right in the mix for the remaining two wild cards along with numerous other squads.

Berlin at 94-68 got the second spot for their second wild card in three years. The final spot had a tie at 93-69 between Kharkiv and Birmingham, which falling just short were Glasgow (92-70), Amsterdam (91-71), Hamburg (89-73), and Frankfurt (88-74). The Killer Bees beat the regular Bees in the tiebreaker game to give Kharkiv repeat playoff trips.

Three teams breached the 100+ loss threshold to suffer relegation in 2025. Riga was the clear bottom team at 53-109, while Nottingham (61-101) and Edinburgh (62-100) both narrowly suffered demotion. Tallinn (63-99), Antwerp (66-96), and Manchester (66-96) each struggled also, but escaped relegation. The Roosters and North Stars both only lasted two years in their EBF Elite stints. The Enforcers’ run lasted a solid 16 seasons with three playoff trips, although they had generally been a mid-level team.

Northern Conference MVP went to Rotterdam CF Kamil Bufka, who also won his third Gold Glove. The 26-year old Czech lefty led in runs (129), home runs (56), total bases (434), slugging (.716), OPS (1.103), wRC+ (198), and WAR (11.1). Bufka added 199 hits, 25 doubles, 21 triples, 125 RBI, and 61 stolen bases. The Ravens would lock him up to be their long-term star in July 2027 at eight years and $222,200,000.

Fourth-year Glasgow lefty Todd McBride snagged Pitcher of the Year. The 25-year old Englishman led in WHIP (0.92) and shutouts (6). McBride had a 20-6 record, 2.54 ERA, 223.1 innings, 233 strikeouts, 153 ERA+, and 7.1 WAR.

Dublin’s reign atop the Northern Conference ended as Kharkiv swept the Dinos in the first round. Berlin swept Hanover on the other side, but the top seeds held in round two. Rotterdam outlasted the Killer Bees 3-2 and Stockholm bested the Barons 3-1. It was the third straight Northern Conference Championship trip for the Ravens, but they hadn’t won the pennant since 1992. The Swordsmen had last made the conference final in 1993 and last won it in 1982.

Rotterdam stopped Stockholm 4-2 to get the Ravens over the hump, becoming six-time Northern Conference champ (1969, 1972, 1977, 1980, 1992, 2025). They also were the first Dutch finalist since Amsterdam in 2016. While Stockholm fell short, they had plenty of momentum to success after returning to the EBF Elite for the first time in eight years.

The Southern Conference runner-up the past two seasons Zagreb took the top seed at 108-54 in 2025. The Gulls’ playoff streak grew to six with their third division title and fifth 100+ win season of that run. Zagreb was the conference leader in runs scored with 808. Naples was ten back in the Central Division at 98-64, but that was enough to get the second wild card. The Nobles have earned four playoff trips since returning to the EBF Elite in 2019.

In a strong West Division, Munich (100-62) narrowly held off Zurich (99-63) to give the Mavericks five straight division titles. It was Munich’s sixth straight playoff trip as well. The Mountaineers were the first wild card for their third consecutive postseason berth and their ninth in ten years. Defending European Champion Chisinau earned their third straight East Division title at 94-68. The Counts were nine games ahead of second place Odesa, but 85-77 was a solid debut season as the Drifters were last year’s E2L champ.

Seville was third in the West at 93-69, picking up the final wild card over Zaragoza (90-72), and Malta (89-73). The Stingrays earned their second wild card in three years. For the historically inept Marvels, 89 wins set a new franchise record. They were still the only original EBF team to never make the playoffs in the league’s 76 year history. The Gold Hawks notably allowed the fewest runs in EBF at 547.

The Southern Conference also had multiple relegated teams with Thessaloniki (60-102) and Bucharest (62-100) both losing triple-digits. Tirana was the next closest at 66-96, but survived. The Tritons had been a success story amongst the E2L originals and won the pennant in 2017. They got relegated for 2023, but got right back after one year. The return sadly lasted only two years for Thessaloniki. Meanwhile, this was the first relegation for the Broncos since leaving Eurasian Professional Baseball, who had generally hovered around the mid-tier with 79.9 wins per season in EBF.

Leading Zagreb’s efforts was Southern League MVP Ludevit Dano. The 36-year old Slovak third baseman was in his second year with the Gulls, having played previously 12 years for Zurich. Dano led in runs (124), homers (55), and WAR (8.5). He added 183 hits, .965 OPS, and 172 wRC+.

Madrid was a forgettable 77-85, but they had the Pitcher of the Year Griffin Arnall. The 30-year old Irish lefty signed for six years and $98,600,000 with the Conquistadors in 2024 after eight seasons with Lisbon. Arnall led in ERA (2.21), and quality starts (24). He added an 18-6 record and 270 strikeouts over 232.1 innings with 169 ERA+ and 6.6 WAR.

Zurich topped Naples 2-0 and Chisinau downed Seville 2-0 in the first round. The Mountaineers then stunned top seed Zagreb 3-1 in round two to earn their first Southern Conference Championship trip since 2020. The bad postseason results continued for the Gulls, who had no pennants in the last six years despite five 100+ win seasons. Munich held firm 3-1 against defending EBF champ Chisinau, sending the Mavericks to their fifth conference final in six years.

The Mavericks seemed well on their way by starting the series up 3-0, but Zurich rallied to take the series in seven. It was the third rally from down 3-0 in Southern Conference Championship history, joining 1961 and 1967. The Mountaineers earned their third pennant in a decade (2016, 2019, 2025) and their 12^th overall, which leads all EBF teams.

The 76^th European Championship was the second finals meeting between Rotterdam and Zurich with the Ravens winning back in 1980. Both teams’ historic finals results continued on a similar path Rotterdam rolled the Mountaineers with a sweep. The Ravens were now 6-0 all-time in the finals and ended a 32-year title drought. For Zurich, they fell to 3-9 in the European Championship.

Finals MVP was 3B Jyriki Vartiainen, best known for his Gold Glove defense and not his bat. The 27-year old from Finland started 15 playoff games with 15 hits, 10 runs, 6 doubles, and 5 RBI. Rotterdam now had the second-most EBF rings behind only Dublin’s seven. The Ravens were the only franchise in all of pro baseball to be unbeaten in the championship and have six titles. The cup returned to Amsterdam for the first time since Rotterdam’s 1992 title.

Other notes: The incredible Harvey Coyle played his 20^th and final season with Oslo, finishing the season with an absurd 205.4 career WAR. He became only the 3^rd in all of pro baseball history with 200+ WAR, passing world strikeout king Mohamed Ramos (205.1) of Besibol Sudamerica for 2nd. The only player still in front of him was OBA/MLB legend Jimmy Caliw at 214. Like Coyle, Caliw combined excellent batting at shortstop with tremendous defense.

Coyle finished his age 38 season with an EBF-best 951 home runs, along with 1844 runs, 3134 hits, and 2152 RBI. He passed Jack Kennedy’s 2017 for third on the RBI list and now ranked 7^th in runs and 10^th in hits in EBF. After an incredible run as the face of Oslo (and European baseball generally), Coyle would be traded in the offseason to Birmingham for prospects.

EBF hit king Jiri Lebr played his final season at age 44 with Thessaloniki. He was best known for a 17-year run with Budapest before bouncing between five teams in his final six seasons. He also had a one-year stint in MLB in there for Washington. Lebr left as EBF’s leader in hits (4494), singles (3198), games (3426), at-bats (13,238), and RBI (2346); marks he still holds as of 2037.

Counting his one MLB season, Lebr retired with 4651 professional hits, second in world history behind only Prometheo Garcia’s 4917 between CABA/MLB. Lebr was also just behind Garcia in at-bats, 6^th in games played, and 7^th in RBI. He showed the value of consistency and ironman durability, as Lebr won only two Silver Sluggers and was only an MVP finalist twice. His 123.19 WAR ranks 15^th among EBF position players as of 2037.

In other milestones, Omer Kadri Nesin was the 22^nd to reach 1500 runs scored and the 41^st to 2500 hits. Nico Tofani became the 29^th to 1500 RBI. Ludevit Dano was the 38^th member of the 500 home run club and Forest Campbell was the 40^th pitcher to 200 wins. OF Theofilos Psarras won his 10^th Silver Slugger. Riga’s Ales Dabrowski on June 4 went 7-9 against Nottingham, becoming only the third in EBF history to post a seven-hit game. Across all world leagues to that point, it was only the 14^th seven-hit game.

Promotion/Relegation: Things would be a mess as Bucharest, Thessaloniki, Riga, Edinburgh, and Nottingham were each relegated to the European Second League after losing 100+ games. Earning promotion was E2L champ Luxembourg, runner-up Sofia, semifinalists Marseille and Kyiv, and the top record holding Tbilisi. See the image below for the realignment prompted by 2025’s results.

https://i.imgur.com/iE9F4B7.png

02-14-2025, 11:55 AM	#2068
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,650	2025 in EBF The top two records in the Northern Conference came from the Central Division with Rotterdam (106-56) outracing Hanover (100-62) for the top spot. The Ravens earned their fifth consecutive division title while the Hitmen were a wild card for the third year running. It was the fourth straight 100+ win season for Rotterdam, who led all of the European Baseball Federation in runs scored (844) and led the conference in fewest allowed (566). The West and East Division races were both intense for the #2 seed, division titles, and wild card slot. Stockholm at 98-64 won the East in a triumphant return to the Elite Tier, as the Swordsmen were the European Second League’s runner-up in 2024. This was the first playoff berth in the top flight for the Swedish capital since 1993. They finished four games ahead of Berlin and 4.5 ahead of Kharkiv for the division. Reigning Baseball Grand Champion and three-time defending conference champ Dublin kept their West Division title streak alive at six seasons, albeit narrowly at 97-65. It was a drop from their three straight 110+ win campaigns, finishing 4.5 games ahead of Birmingham and five better than Glasgow. Both teams were right in the mix for the remaining two wild cards along with numerous other squads. Berlin at 94-68 got the second spot for their second wild card in three years. The final spot had a tie at 93-69 between Kharkiv and Birmingham, which falling just short were Glasgow (92-70), Amsterdam (91-71), Hamburg (89-73), and Frankfurt (88-74). The Killer Bees beat the regular Bees in the tiebreaker game to give Kharkiv repeat playoff trips. Three teams breached the 100+ loss threshold to suffer relegation in 2025. Riga was the clear bottom team at 53-109, while Nottingham (61-101) and Edinburgh (62-100) both narrowly suffered demotion. Tallinn (63-99), Antwerp (66-96), and Manchester (66-96) each struggled also, but escaped relegation. The Roosters and North Stars both only lasted two years in their EBF Elite stints. The Enforcers’ run lasted a solid 16 seasons with three playoff trips, although they had generally been a mid-level team. Northern Conference MVP went to Rotterdam CF Kamil Bufka, who also won his third Gold Glove. The 26-year old Czech lefty led in runs (129), home runs (56), total bases (434), slugging (.716), OPS (1.103), wRC+ (198), and WAR (11.1). Bufka added 199 hits, 25 doubles, 21 triples, 125 RBI, and 61 stolen bases. The Ravens would lock him up to be their long-term star in July 2027 at eight years and $222,200,000. Fourth-year Glasgow lefty Todd McBride snagged Pitcher of the Year. The 25-year old Englishman led in WHIP (0.92) and shutouts (6). McBride had a 20-6 record, 2.54 ERA, 223.1 innings, 233 strikeouts, 153 ERA+, and 7.1 WAR. Dublin’s reign atop the Northern Conference ended as Kharkiv swept the Dinos in the first round. Berlin swept Hanover on the other side, but the top seeds held in round two. Rotterdam outlasted the Killer Bees 3-2 and Stockholm bested the Barons 3-1. It was the third straight Northern Conference Championship trip for the Ravens, but they hadn’t won the pennant since 1992. The Swordsmen had last made the conference final in 1993 and last won it in 1982. Rotterdam stopped Stockholm 4-2 to get the Ravens over the hump, becoming six-time Northern Conference champ (1969, 1972, 1977, 1980, 1992, 2025). They also were the first Dutch finalist since Amsterdam in 2016. While Stockholm fell short, they had plenty of momentum to success after returning to the EBF Elite for the first time in eight years. The Southern Conference runner-up the past two seasons Zagreb took the top seed at 108-54 in 2025. The Gulls’ playoff streak grew to six with their third division title and fifth 100+ win season of that run. Zagreb was the conference leader in runs scored with 808. Naples was ten back in the Central Division at 98-64, but that was enough to get the second wild card. The Nobles have earned four playoff trips since returning to the EBF Elite in 2019. In a strong West Division, Munich (100-62) narrowly held off Zurich (99-63) to give the Mavericks five straight division titles. It was Munich’s sixth straight playoff trip as well. The Mountaineers were the first wild card for their third consecutive postseason berth and their ninth in ten years. Defending European Champion Chisinau earned their third straight East Division title at 94-68. The Counts were nine games ahead of second place Odesa, but 85-77 was a solid debut season as the Drifters were last year’s E2L champ. Seville was third in the West at 93-69, picking up the final wild card over Zaragoza (90-72), and Malta (89-73). The Stingrays earned their second wild card in three years. For the historically inept Marvels, 89 wins set a new franchise record. They were still the only original EBF team to never make the playoffs in the league’s 76 year history. The Gold Hawks notably allowed the fewest runs in EBF at 547. The Southern Conference also had multiple relegated teams with Thessaloniki (60-102) and Bucharest (62-100) both losing triple-digits. Tirana was the next closest at 66-96, but survived. The Tritons had been a success story amongst the E2L originals and won the pennant in 2017. They got relegated for 2023, but got right back after one year. The return sadly lasted only two years for Thessaloniki. Meanwhile, this was the first relegation for the Broncos since leaving Eurasian Professional Baseball, who had generally hovered around the mid-tier with 79.9 wins per season in EBF. Leading Zagreb’s efforts was Southern League MVP Ludevit Dano. The 36-year old Slovak third baseman was in his second year with the Gulls, having played previously 12 years for Zurich. Dano led in runs (124), homers (55), and WAR (8.5). He added 183 hits, .965 OPS, and 172 wRC+. Madrid was a forgettable 77-85, but they had the Pitcher of the Year Griffin Arnall. The 30-year old Irish lefty signed for six years and $98,600,000 with the Conquistadors in 2024 after eight seasons with Lisbon. Arnall led in ERA (2.21), and quality starts (24). He added an 18-6 record and 270 strikeouts over 232.1 innings with 169 ERA+ and 6.6 WAR. Zurich topped Naples 2-0 and Chisinau downed Seville 2-0 in the first round. The Mountaineers then stunned top seed Zagreb 3-1 in round two to earn their first Southern Conference Championship trip since 2020. The bad postseason results continued for the Gulls, who had no pennants in the last six years despite five 100+ win seasons. Munich held firm 3-1 against defending EBF champ Chisinau, sending the Mavericks to their fifth conference final in six years. The Mavericks seemed well on their way by starting the series up 3-0, but Zurich rallied to take the series in seven. It was the third rally from down 3-0 in Southern Conference Championship history, joining 1961 and 1967. The Mountaineers earned their third pennant in a decade (2016, 2019, 2025) and their 12^th overall, which leads all EBF teams. The 76^th European Championship was the second finals meeting between Rotterdam and Zurich with the Ravens winning back in 1980. Both teams’ historic finals results continued on a similar path Rotterdam rolled the Mountaineers with a sweep. The Ravens were now 6-0 all-time in the finals and ended a 32-year title drought. For Zurich, they fell to 3-9 in the European Championship. Finals MVP was 3B Jyriki Vartiainen, best known for his Gold Glove defense and not his bat. The 27-year old from Finland started 15 playoff games with 15 hits, 10 runs, 6 doubles, and 5 RBI. Rotterdam now had the second-most EBF rings behind only Dublin’s seven. The Ravens were the only franchise in all of pro baseball to be unbeaten in the championship and have six titles. The cup returned to Amsterdam for the first time since Rotterdam’s 1992 title. Other notes: The incredible Harvey Coyle played his 20^th and final season with Oslo, finishing the season with an absurd 205.4 career WAR. He became only the 3^rd in all of pro baseball history with 200+ WAR, passing world strikeout king Mohamed Ramos (205.1) of Besibol Sudamerica for 2nd. The only player still in front of him was OBA/MLB legend Jimmy Caliw at 214. Like Coyle, Caliw combined excellent batting at shortstop with tremendous defense. Coyle finished his age 38 season with an EBF-best 951 home runs, along with 1844 runs, 3134 hits, and 2152 RBI. He passed Jack Kennedy’s 2017 for third on the RBI list and now ranked 7^th in runs and 10^th in hits in EBF. After an incredible run as the face of Oslo (and European baseball generally), Coyle would be traded in the offseason to Birmingham for prospects. EBF hit king Jiri Lebr played his final season at age 44 with Thessaloniki. He was best known for a 17-year run with Budapest before bouncing between five teams in his final six seasons. He also had a one-year stint in MLB in there for Washington. Lebr left as EBF’s leader in hits (4494), singles (3198), games (3426), at-bats (13,238), and RBI (2346); marks he still holds as of 2037. Counting his one MLB season, Lebr retired with 4651 professional hits, second in world history behind only Prometheo Garcia’s 4917 between CABA/MLB. Lebr was also just behind Garcia in at-bats, 6^th in games played, and 7^th in RBI. He showed the value of consistency and ironman durability, as Lebr won only two Silver Sluggers and was only an MVP finalist twice. His 123.19 WAR ranks 15^th among EBF position players as of 2037. In other milestones, Omer Kadri Nesin was the 22^nd to reach 1500 runs scored and the 41^st to 2500 hits. Nico Tofani became the 29^th to 1500 RBI. Ludevit Dano was the 38^th member of the 500 home run club and Forest Campbell was the 40^th pitcher to 200 wins. OF Theofilos Psarras won his 10^th Silver Slugger. Riga’s Ales Dabrowski on June 4 went 7-9 against Nottingham, becoming only the third in EBF history to post a seven-hit game. Across all world leagues to that point, it was only the 14^th seven-hit game. Promotion/Relegation: Things would be a mess as Bucharest, Thessaloniki, Riga, Edinburgh, and Nottingham were each relegated to the European Second League after losing 100+ games. Earning promotion was E2L champ Luxembourg, runner-up Sofia, semifinalists Marseille and Kyiv, and the top record holding Tbilisi. See the image below for the realignment prompted by 2025’s results. https://i.imgur.com/iE9F4B7.png __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)