OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post

FuzzyRussianHat · 02-21-2025, 12:47 PM

West African Baseball nearly had a blank Hall of Fame ballot for 2026 but closer Christopher James barely scraped in on his third ballot at 69.6%. 3B Ogunfeyimi Udoka barely missed joining James with a 65.2% debut, less than a point from the 66% requirement. Two other debuts were above 50% with 2B Kevin Ge at 58.6% and SP Zeb Onyedika at 57.5%. On their sixth tries, 1B Ikechukwu Onyia received 52.4% and CL Francis Koomson got 51.3%. RP Emma Markson also cracked the midway mark with 50.2% on his ninth attempt.

No players were dropped after ten ballots, but catcher Okoro Otene was worth mentioning. He fell below 5% on his ninth try and peaked at 24.1%, meaning WAB’s HOF still didn’t have a catcher. Otene was an elite defender with nine Gold Gloves, but his below average bat hurt his case. Over 17 years, Otene had 1885 hits, 844 runs, 549 doubles, 267 home runs, 1016 RBI, 2320 strikeouts, 378 walks, .240/.274/.421 slash, 90 wRC+, and 44.8 WAR.

As of 2037, Otene leads WAB catchers in WAR, runs, games, doubles, homers, RBI, and strikeouts. He’s possibly WAB’s best-ever catcher, but admittedly the bar hasn’t been set too high. Still, it was frustrating for many observers to see multiple world leagues fail to induct a single catcher while adding multiple relief pitchers, considering the far greater importance of the former over the latter.

Christopher James – Closer – Niamey Atomics - 69.6% Third Ballot

Christopher James was a 6’2’’, 205 pound relief pitcher from Zaria, Nigeria; a city of 736,000 and the capital of the Zazzau Emirate Council. James was known for having filthy stuff along with rock solid control and above average movement. He had an incredible 97-99 mph fastball that overpowered even the best hitters that was joined by a nice slider.

James’ stamina was respectable for a reliever, although he did run into some injury issues with his forearm specifically. He had a decent enough pickoff move and was a strong defender. You would be hard pressed to find someone more dedicated and loyal than James. His work ethic and selflessness garnered immense respect from his peers over a 13-year career.

In the 2005 WAB Draft, James was selected with the 13^th pick of the second round, 34^th overall, by Niamey. The Atomics made him their closer right away, a role James held for seven straight years. He led the Eastern League in saves in 2008 with 32, although his high would be 41 in 2012. 2009 had his best WAR total (4.6) and strikeout tally (163), while 2010 had his best ERA for Niamey (2.03). James finished second in Reliever of the Year voting in 2008 and 2010 and took third in 2009.

In James’ rookie season of 2006, Niamey won the EL pennant, falling in the WAB Championship to Monrovia. The Atomics repeated in 2007 and avenged the earlier loss to the Diplomats for the franchise’s second title. Niamey also had playoff trips from 2009-11, but never got beyond the second round. In 14 playoff appearances, James had 5 saves, a 3-1 record, 2.45 ERA, 25.2 innings, 42 strikeouts, 166 ERA+, and 0.4 WAR.

James also was a regular for Nigeria in the World Baseball Championship, although he was used primarily as a starter in the WBC. From 2006-15, James tossed 93 innings with a 3.48 ERA, 9-4 record, 140 strikeouts, 34 walks, 103 ERA+, and 1.7 WAR. The Nigerians would earn a third place finish in 2009 and fourth place in 2011.

After the 2012 season, James became a free agent heading towards age 30 and signed a three-year, $12,960,000 deal with Kumasi. He won his lone Reliever of the Year in his 2013 debut with the Monkeys, leading in saves (40) and games (71) with a career-best 2.02 ERA. He also passed Johnson Madu’s 246 to become the new WAB career saves leader. James had one scoreless playoff inning as Kumasi fell in the first round.

He was merely average in year two as the Monkeys missed the playoffs, but he became the first to 300 career saves. In the offseason, Kumasi traded him back to Niamey for three players. With the Monkeys, James had 69 saves, 126 games, 145 innings, 2.54 ERA, 216 strikeouts, 184 ERA+, and 5.7 WAR.

James struggled in his return season to the Atomics with a 4.76 ERA and became a free agent again for 2016. Between stints with Niamey, James posted 262 saves over 506 games, 618.2 innings, 2.89 ERA, 1028 strikeouts, 167 walks, 146 ERA+, and 24.0 WAR. For his role in their two pennants and one championship win, the Atomics would eventually retire James’ #34 uniform.

Soon to be 33-years old, James signed a three-year, $13,800,000 deal with Port Harcourt. He was good in middle relief in 2016, but struggled early in 2017 in a return to the close role. James posted a 3.88 ERA over 99.2 innings with 20 saves, 132 strikeouts, and -0.1 WAR for the Hillcats. In July 2017, Port Harcourt traded James to Dakar for two prospects.

He stunk in limited use in 2017, but missed the end of the season to a torn meniscus. James returned to the closer role for most of 2018 for the Dukes with okay results, finishing his time there with a 3.95 ERA over 84.1 innings, 26 saves, 97 strikeouts, and an even zero WAR. He decided to retire after the 2018 campaign at age 35.

James finished with 777 games, 947.2 innings, 377 saves, 407 shutdowns, 72-90 record, 1473 strikeouts, 261 walks, 144 ERA+, 67 FIP-, and 29.6 WAR. He remained the WAB saves leader until finally passed in the mid 2030s by Guillaume Mbimbiangoye. James also retired with the most games pitched and ranks fourth as of 2037.

To that point, there hadn’t been much support for relievers in West African Baseball’s Hall of Fame, especially compared to some of the other closer-friendly HOFs. Johnson Madu had been the only true closer inducted and he was far more dominant, but only had 660 innings, 246 saves, 983 Ks, and 29.0 WAR. Axel Kouacou also had 206 saves, but he also had a significant amount of time as a starting pitcher.

James wasn’t the overwhelmingly dominant force either that a lot of other HOF closers were in other leagues, plus he only won ROTY once. However, being the undisputed saves leader and having a championship ring was enough for the majority. James barely missed the 66% requirement with 64.0% and 65.8% in his first two ballots. Third time was the charm with a weak field, finishing at 69.6% as the lone WAB inductee for 2026.

02-21-2025, 12:47 PM	#2091
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,935	2026 WAB Hall of Fame West African Baseball nearly had a blank Hall of Fame ballot for 2026 but closer Christopher James barely scraped in on his third ballot at 69.6%. 3B Ogunfeyimi Udoka barely missed joining James with a 65.2% debut, less than a point from the 66% requirement. Two other debuts were above 50% with 2B Kevin Ge at 58.6% and SP Zeb Onyedika at 57.5%. On their sixth tries, 1B Ikechukwu Onyia received 52.4% and CL Francis Koomson got 51.3%. RP Emma Markson also cracked the midway mark with 50.2% on his ninth attempt. No players were dropped after ten ballots, but catcher Okoro Otene was worth mentioning. He fell below 5% on his ninth try and peaked at 24.1%, meaning WAB’s HOF still didn’t have a catcher. Otene was an elite defender with nine Gold Gloves, but his below average bat hurt his case. Over 17 years, Otene had 1885 hits, 844 runs, 549 doubles, 267 home runs, 1016 RBI, 2320 strikeouts, 378 walks, .240/.274/.421 slash, 90 wRC+, and 44.8 WAR. As of 2037, Otene leads WAB catchers in WAR, runs, games, doubles, homers, RBI, and strikeouts. He’s possibly WAB’s best-ever catcher, but admittedly the bar hasn’t been set too high. Still, it was frustrating for many observers to see multiple world leagues fail to induct a single catcher while adding multiple relief pitchers, considering the far greater importance of the former over the latter. Christopher James – Closer – Niamey Atomics - 69.6% Third Ballot Christopher James was a 6’2’’, 205 pound relief pitcher from Zaria, Nigeria; a city of 736,000 and the capital of the Zazzau Emirate Council. James was known for having filthy stuff along with rock solid control and above average movement. He had an incredible 97-99 mph fastball that overpowered even the best hitters that was joined by a nice slider. James’ stamina was respectable for a reliever, although he did run into some injury issues with his forearm specifically. He had a decent enough pickoff move and was a strong defender. You would be hard pressed to find someone more dedicated and loyal than James. His work ethic and selflessness garnered immense respect from his peers over a 13-year career. In the 2005 WAB Draft, James was selected with the 13^th pick of the second round, 34^th overall, by Niamey. The Atomics made him their closer right away, a role James held for seven straight years. He led the Eastern League in saves in 2008 with 32, although his high would be 41 in 2012. 2009 had his best WAR total (4.6) and strikeout tally (163), while 2010 had his best ERA for Niamey (2.03). James finished second in Reliever of the Year voting in 2008 and 2010 and took third in 2009. In James’ rookie season of 2006, Niamey won the EL pennant, falling in the WAB Championship to Monrovia. The Atomics repeated in 2007 and avenged the earlier loss to the Diplomats for the franchise’s second title. Niamey also had playoff trips from 2009-11, but never got beyond the second round. In 14 playoff appearances, James had 5 saves, a 3-1 record, 2.45 ERA, 25.2 innings, 42 strikeouts, 166 ERA+, and 0.4 WAR. James also was a regular for Nigeria in the World Baseball Championship, although he was used primarily as a starter in the WBC. From 2006-15, James tossed 93 innings with a 3.48 ERA, 9-4 record, 140 strikeouts, 34 walks, 103 ERA+, and 1.7 WAR. The Nigerians would earn a third place finish in 2009 and fourth place in 2011. After the 2012 season, James became a free agent heading towards age 30 and signed a three-year, $12,960,000 deal with Kumasi. He won his lone Reliever of the Year in his 2013 debut with the Monkeys, leading in saves (40) and games (71) with a career-best 2.02 ERA. He also passed Johnson Madu’s 246 to become the new WAB career saves leader. James had one scoreless playoff inning as Kumasi fell in the first round. He was merely average in year two as the Monkeys missed the playoffs, but he became the first to 300 career saves. In the offseason, Kumasi traded him back to Niamey for three players. With the Monkeys, James had 69 saves, 126 games, 145 innings, 2.54 ERA, 216 strikeouts, 184 ERA+, and 5.7 WAR. James struggled in his return season to the Atomics with a 4.76 ERA and became a free agent again for 2016. Between stints with Niamey, James posted 262 saves over 506 games, 618.2 innings, 2.89 ERA, 1028 strikeouts, 167 walks, 146 ERA+, and 24.0 WAR. For his role in their two pennants and one championship win, the Atomics would eventually retire James’ #34 uniform. Soon to be 33-years old, James signed a three-year, $13,800,000 deal with Port Harcourt. He was good in middle relief in 2016, but struggled early in 2017 in a return to the close role. James posted a 3.88 ERA over 99.2 innings with 20 saves, 132 strikeouts, and -0.1 WAR for the Hillcats. In July 2017, Port Harcourt traded James to Dakar for two prospects. He stunk in limited use in 2017, but missed the end of the season to a torn meniscus. James returned to the closer role for most of 2018 for the Dukes with okay results, finishing his time there with a 3.95 ERA over 84.1 innings, 26 saves, 97 strikeouts, and an even zero WAR. He decided to retire after the 2018 campaign at age 35. James finished with 777 games, 947.2 innings, 377 saves, 407 shutdowns, 72-90 record, 1473 strikeouts, 261 walks, 144 ERA+, 67 FIP-, and 29.6 WAR. He remained the WAB saves leader until finally passed in the mid 2030s by Guillaume Mbimbiangoye. James also retired with the most games pitched and ranks fourth as of 2037. To that point, there hadn’t been much support for relievers in West African Baseball’s Hall of Fame, especially compared to some of the other closer-friendly HOFs. Johnson Madu had been the only true closer inducted and he was far more dominant, but only had 660 innings, 246 saves, 983 Ks, and 29.0 WAR. Axel Kouacou also had 206 saves, but he also had a significant amount of time as a starting pitcher. James wasn’t the overwhelmingly dominant force either that a lot of other HOF closers were in other leagues, plus he only won ROTY once. However, being the undisputed saves leader and having a championship ring was enough for the majority. James barely missed the 66% requirement with 64.0% and 65.8% in his first two ballots. Third time was the charm with a weak field, finishing at 69.6% as the lone WAB inductee for 2026. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)