OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post

FuzzyRussianHat · 03-29-2025, 03:04 PM

For the third time in four years, Lusaka finished atop the Southern Conference standings. The Lake Monsters at 103-59 had the top record in the African Association of Baseball, leading all teams in fewest runs allowed (717) and leading the conference in runs scored (927). Cape Town earned its third straight playoff trip, grabbing second at 95-67. Durban was the next closest at 90-72, followed by both Harare and Johannesburg at 87-75. Defending conference champ Dar es Salaam shockingly plummeted to 64-98.

Southern Conference MVP went to Cape Town DH Johny Kibamba in his first year as a full-time starter. The 24-year old Congolese switch hitter came to the Cowboys in July 2027 after bouncing around as a trade piece. He was drafted in 2024 by Asmara, who sent him to Mogadishu in 2025, who then traded him to Nairobi in 2026 who then sent him to Cape Town. Kibamba had played sparingly before 2028, but stepped up by leading in runs (135), RBI (137), total bases (419), and wRC+ (171). He had 208 hits, 49 doubles, 50 homers, 89 steals, 1.085 OPS, and 7.2 WAR.

Harare’s Ghebrezgiabhier Alemayehu won Pitcher of the Year with arguably AAB’s best-ever pitching season to date. He earned the fourth pitching Triple Crown and set the league pitching WAR record of 11.96, breezing by Mobutu Kandol’s 10.17 from 2001. Alemayehu’s WAR mark remained #1 until passed twice in the mid 2030s by Abdullahi Aii.

The 24-year old Ethiopian righty had a 23-7 record, 3.14 ERA, and 338 strikeouts. He was also the leader in innings pitched (264), WHIP (1.08), K/BB (6.6), quality starts (21), and FIP- (48). Alemayehu had greatly exceeded the Hustlers’ hopes, since he was picked late in the third round of the 2022 AAB Draft.

It was a three-team race for the two playoff spots in the Central Conference. 2026’s first place finisher Nairobi bounced back from a losing 2027, grabbing first at 93-69 in 2028. The Night Hawks allowed the fewest runs in the CC at 723. Addis Ababa narrowly took second at 91-71 to end a two-year playoff drought. Kinshasa was third at 89-73.

Reigning Africa Series champ Mogadishu fell to fourth at 83-79 despite historic offensive stats. The Mighty Mice set new conference records for batting average (.295), OBP (.358), runs (962), and hits (1676). Unfortunately for them, they also allowed 907 runs. Their 1648 hits allowed would’ve been an all-time conference worst if not for Kigali giving up 1660. The 65-97 Guardians also set new CC worsts for earned runs allowed (892), H/9 (10.47), and team WHIP (1.577).

Addis Ababa DH Dagne Mersha repeated as Central Conference MVP and posted unfathomable power stats, even in a high scoring league like AAB. The 29-year old Ethiopian lefty set new AAB records for homers (90), RBI (189), runs (156), and total bases (510). The previous league high marks had been 77 homers, 184 RBI, 471 total bases, and 153 runs. Mersha’s marks remain AAB records as of 2037.

90 home runs was one short of the seemingly unreachable 91 crushed in the 2009 South Asia Baseball season by world homer king Majed Darwish. The Arab League’s Wissam Magdy had smacked 89 in 2027, the closest anyone had come to Darwish. Mersha’s 189 RBI was the best-ever by anyone not named Majed Darwish, as he had posted an absurd 220, 209, and 200 from 2008-10.

Mersha’s 510 total bases were the seventh-best in any world league and his 156 runs were fifth. He also led the conference in slugging (.810), OPS (1.220), wRC+ (190), and WAR (9.5). Mersha’s slugging was the fourth-best in AAB history and his OPS was seventh.

For the second time in three years, Kinshasa’s Aziz “Hot Stuff” Mussa won Pitcher of the Year. The 27-year old Djiboutian righty led in strikeouts (317), WHIP (1.09), FIP- (56), and WAR (8.8). Mussa had a 2.89 ERA over 221 innings, 167 ERA+, and 16-8 record. He also had a 20 strikeout game against Lubumbashi, one short of Paul Lambote’s AAB single-game record from 2009. Sadly, the former #1 overall pick tore his labrum in September and was never the same. Mussa would get a stretched elbow ligament in June 2029 and only pitched 244.1 total innings after that.

The Southern Conference Championship was a rematch from two years prior. Just like in 2026, #2 seed Cape Town upset top seed Lusaka. With a 4-1 win, the Cowboys earned their third pennant. The Central Conference Championship needed all seven games with Addis Ababa outlasting Nairobi. The Brahmas were now ten-time pennant winners (2006-13, 25, 28).

In the 34^th Africa Series, Cape Town was dominant 5-1 over Addis Ababa to earn their second AAB title (1996). The Cowboys are the first South African champ since Durban’s 2006-07 repeat. Conference MVP Johny Kibamba was also finals MVP with 17 hits, 9 runs, 2 doubles, 3 homers, 8 RBI, 1.064 OPS, and 0.7 WAR over 10 playoff starts.

Other notes: Lusaka’s Destin Mpika stole 153 bases, breaking the AAB record previously set in 2019 by West Germano at 143. Mpika’s mark was the second-best in any pro league ever behind Hassan Shanshol’s 157 in the 2024 Arab League Baseball season. Mpika became only the third in any league to top 150+ steals.

Patrick Babila became the 5^th member of AAB’s 800 home run club and the 9^th to 2500 hits. Maninho Magaia and Warren Biloa became the 9^th and 10^th to 600 dingers. Biloa also became the 9^th to 1500 RBI. SP Noel Kembo won his 8^th consecutive Gold Glove. SS Djibrilla Ousseini won his 10^th Silver Slugger

Promotion/Relegation: Expansion was announced for 2029 and thus the last place teams Comoros and Kigali were spared from relegation. The top two from the African Second League’s Southern Conference (Windhoek and Maseru) and the top two from the Central Conference (Bakavu and Pointe-Noire) would each be added. Both AAB conferences would have 12 teams going forward instead of the previous 10. The playoffs and other formatting would remain the same while eight total new franchises would be added to A2L.

03-29-2025, 03:04 PM	#2177
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,816	2028 in AAB For the third time in four years, Lusaka finished atop the Southern Conference standings. The Lake Monsters at 103-59 had the top record in the African Association of Baseball, leading all teams in fewest runs allowed (717) and leading the conference in runs scored (927). Cape Town earned its third straight playoff trip, grabbing second at 95-67. Durban was the next closest at 90-72, followed by both Harare and Johannesburg at 87-75. Defending conference champ Dar es Salaam shockingly plummeted to 64-98. Southern Conference MVP went to Cape Town DH Johny Kibamba in his first year as a full-time starter. The 24-year old Congolese switch hitter came to the Cowboys in July 2027 after bouncing around as a trade piece. He was drafted in 2024 by Asmara, who sent him to Mogadishu in 2025, who then traded him to Nairobi in 2026 who then sent him to Cape Town. Kibamba had played sparingly before 2028, but stepped up by leading in runs (135), RBI (137), total bases (419), and wRC+ (171). He had 208 hits, 49 doubles, 50 homers, 89 steals, 1.085 OPS, and 7.2 WAR. Harare’s Ghebrezgiabhier Alemayehu won Pitcher of the Year with arguably AAB’s best-ever pitching season to date. He earned the fourth pitching Triple Crown and set the league pitching WAR record of 11.96, breezing by Mobutu Kandol’s 10.17 from 2001. Alemayehu’s WAR mark remained #1 until passed twice in the mid 2030s by Abdullahi Aii. The 24-year old Ethiopian righty had a 23-7 record, 3.14 ERA, and 338 strikeouts. He was also the leader in innings pitched (264), WHIP (1.08), K/BB (6.6), quality starts (21), and FIP- (48). Alemayehu had greatly exceeded the Hustlers’ hopes, since he was picked late in the third round of the 2022 AAB Draft. It was a three-team race for the two playoff spots in the Central Conference. 2026’s first place finisher Nairobi bounced back from a losing 2027, grabbing first at 93-69 in 2028. The Night Hawks allowed the fewest runs in the CC at 723. Addis Ababa narrowly took second at 91-71 to end a two-year playoff drought. Kinshasa was third at 89-73. Reigning Africa Series champ Mogadishu fell to fourth at 83-79 despite historic offensive stats. The Mighty Mice set new conference records for batting average (.295), OBP (.358), runs (962), and hits (1676). Unfortunately for them, they also allowed 907 runs. Their 1648 hits allowed would’ve been an all-time conference worst if not for Kigali giving up 1660. The 65-97 Guardians also set new CC worsts for earned runs allowed (892), H/9 (10.47), and team WHIP (1.577). Addis Ababa DH Dagne Mersha repeated as Central Conference MVP and posted unfathomable power stats, even in a high scoring league like AAB. The 29-year old Ethiopian lefty set new AAB records for homers (90), RBI (189), runs (156), and total bases (510). The previous league high marks had been 77 homers, 184 RBI, 471 total bases, and 153 runs. Mersha’s marks remain AAB records as of 2037. 90 home runs was one short of the seemingly unreachable 91 crushed in the 2009 South Asia Baseball season by world homer king Majed Darwish. The Arab League’s Wissam Magdy had smacked 89 in 2027, the closest anyone had come to Darwish. Mersha’s 189 RBI was the best-ever by anyone not named Majed Darwish, as he had posted an absurd 220, 209, and 200 from 2008-10. Mersha’s 510 total bases were the seventh-best in any world league and his 156 runs were fifth. He also led the conference in slugging (.810), OPS (1.220), wRC+ (190), and WAR (9.5). Mersha’s slugging was the fourth-best in AAB history and his OPS was seventh. For the second time in three years, Kinshasa’s Aziz “Hot Stuff” Mussa won Pitcher of the Year. The 27-year old Djiboutian righty led in strikeouts (317), WHIP (1.09), FIP- (56), and WAR (8.8). Mussa had a 2.89 ERA over 221 innings, 167 ERA+, and 16-8 record. He also had a 20 strikeout game against Lubumbashi, one short of Paul Lambote’s AAB single-game record from 2009. Sadly, the former #1 overall pick tore his labrum in September and was never the same. Mussa would get a stretched elbow ligament in June 2029 and only pitched 244.1 total innings after that. The Southern Conference Championship was a rematch from two years prior. Just like in 2026, #2 seed Cape Town upset top seed Lusaka. With a 4-1 win, the Cowboys earned their third pennant. The Central Conference Championship needed all seven games with Addis Ababa outlasting Nairobi. The Brahmas were now ten-time pennant winners (2006-13, 25, 28). In the 34^th Africa Series, Cape Town was dominant 5-1 over Addis Ababa to earn their second AAB title (1996). The Cowboys are the first South African champ since Durban’s 2006-07 repeat. Conference MVP Johny Kibamba was also finals MVP with 17 hits, 9 runs, 2 doubles, 3 homers, 8 RBI, 1.064 OPS, and 0.7 WAR over 10 playoff starts. Other notes: Lusaka’s Destin Mpika stole 153 bases, breaking the AAB record previously set in 2019 by West Germano at 143. Mpika’s mark was the second-best in any pro league ever behind Hassan Shanshol’s 157 in the 2024 Arab League Baseball season. Mpika became only the third in any league to top 150+ steals. Patrick Babila became the 5^th member of AAB’s 800 home run club and the 9^th to 2500 hits. Maninho Magaia and Warren Biloa became the 9^th and 10^th to 600 dingers. Biloa also became the 9^th to 1500 RBI. SP Noel Kembo won his 8^th consecutive Gold Glove. SS Djibrilla Ousseini won his 10^th Silver Slugger Promotion/Relegation: Expansion was announced for 2029 and thus the last place teams Comoros and Kigali were spared from relegation. The top two from the African Second League’s Southern Conference (Windhoek and Maseru) and the top two from the Central Conference (Bakavu and Pointe-Noire) would each be added. Both AAB conferences would have 12 teams going forward instead of the previous 10. The playoffs and other formatting would remain the same while eight total new franchises would be added to A2L. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)