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FuzzyRussianHat · 04-09-2025, 07:08 AM

The 2029 Hall of Fame ballot for Eurasian Professional Baseball was a weaker one with the best debut at a measly 32.8%. Pitcher Povilas Zdancius was the lone inductee by just crossing the 66% requirement at 67.2% in his fifth ballot. Three others were above 50% with 3B Bladyslav Chychykov (59.9%) and 1B Roman Stanchinsky (55.8%) both on their second ballot. 1B Benjamin Bodnar got 51.4% for his tenth and final chance.

For Bodnar, he had an 18-year career almost exclusively with Yekaterinburg, helping them win four EPB titles. The Hungarian got as close at 59.0% in 2026 and was never below 44%. Bodnar won MVP honors in 2004 and had four Gold Gloves and five Silver Sluggers. His totals saw 2066 games, 2031 hits, 1023 runs, 292 doubles, 98 triples, 413 home runs, 1138 RBI, .276/.334/.510 slash, 155 wRC+, and 69.7 WAR. Injuries in his 30s greatly limited his tallies and left him in “Hall of Pretty Good” territory in the minds of many voters.

Povilas Zdancius – Pitcher – St. Petersburg Polar Bears – 67.2% Fifth Ballot

Povilas Zdancius was a 5’10’’, 180 pound right-handed pitcher from Vitebsk in northern Belarus, the country’s fourth-largest city with roughly 358,000 inhabitants. Zdancius had excellent control and great movement along with good stuff. His fastball peaked in the 95-97 mph range and was actually probably his weakest pitch. Zdancius’ changeup and sinker were his best offerings and he had a splitter.

Guys with four credible pitches are almost always starters, but Zdancius’ poor stamina led to most of his career coming from the bullpen. Despite the stamina issues, Zdancius‘ durability was great and he avoided the big injuries that often plague pitchers. He was subpar at holding runners and below average defensively. However, Zdancius had an excellent work ethic and was one of the smartest guys in the game. He was also appreciated in the clubhouse as a strong leader.

Zdancius was picked out of high school by St. Petersburg in the 1997 EPB Draft, going 108^th overall in the early fourth round. He would be the second-latest picked player to earn induction for EPB’s Hall of Fame with only Class of 2011 SP Temuujin Munkhuu going later at 127. Zdancius spent his first two years in the Polar Bears’ academy before seeing part-time relief use in 2000-01.

From 2002-04, Zdancius was a starter with strong results, leading the European League twice in quality starts. He had 6.5+ WAR each year as St. Petersburg continued a rebuild, falling just short of the playoffs in 2003 and 2004. Zdancius was third in 2003’s Pitcher of the Year voting with career bests in WAR (8.0), and strikeouts (299).

Despite that momentum, Zdancius was surprisingly relegated to only 18 relief appearances in 2005 despite being seemingly healthy. The Polar Bears moved him to the closer role for the four following years, where he twice led in games pitched and once in saves. Zdancius was Reliever of the Year in 2006 with 1.22 ERA over 81.1 innings, 35 saves, and 113 strikeouts. He took third in ROTY in 2007, 08, and 09.

St. Petersburg led the standings and got to the ELCS in 2005 and 2006, but lost both times against Moscow. The Polar Bears fell towards third place for the next few years. Zdancius’ limited playoff use saw two runs allowed in five innings and four appearances. He also saw brief World Baseball Championship use from 2001-03 for his native Belarus, but struggled to a 5.22 ERA over 29.1 innings.

Zdancius became a free agent after the 2009 season at age 32. For St. Petersburg, he had an 84-52 record, 140 saves, 1.91 ERA, 1182 innings, 1342 strikeouts, 194 walks, 143 ERA+, and 39.4 WAR. The Polar Bears organization liked Zdancius enough to eventually retire his #28 uniform. He’d spend the next nine years in South America, starting with a three-year, $9,360,000 deal with Bogota.

He was middle relief in 2010 for the Bats with a 2.45 ERA over 44 innings. Bogota traded Zdancius in the offseason to Cordoba, who put him back into a closer role for 2011. Zdancius was second in Reliever of the Year voting and led in games with 78 for 2011, posting a 2.45 ERA and 36 saves. The Chanticleers lost in the Southern Cone Championship with Zdancius posting a 5.23 ERA over 10.1 playoff innings.

Zdancius was demoted to middle relief for his second year with Cordoba. After that, he signed for two years and $11,600,000 with Rosario, where he had 74.1 innings, 3.39 ERA, and 1.0 WAR. Zdancius played for Callao in 2015 with a 2.89 ERA, 11 saves, 67 strikeouts, and 0.8 WAR in 74.2 innings. He had 2.38 ERA, 56.2 innings, 1.7 WAR, and 64 Ks in 2016 with Santiago. Zdancius then struggled to a 5.02 ERA over 14.1 innings in 2017 with Sao Paulo.

In 2018, Cordoba gave him a second shot and he had a 2.43 ERA in 33.1 innings. Zdancius had a 2.82 ERA over 165.2 innings, 162 Ks, and 2.6 WAR between the stints with the Chanticleers. For his Beisbol Sudamerica career, Zdancius had a 43-30 record, 65 saves, 2.91 ERA, 349 games, 429.2 innings, 427 strikeouts, 97 walks, 129 ERA+, and 5.9 WAR.

Zdancius came back to EPB in 2019 with Vladivostok where he posted a 3.41 ERA over 34.1 innings. The Shibas cut him in July, but Minsk grabbed him and he finished strong with 16.2 scoreless innings over five appearances. Zdancius decided to retire that winter shortly after his 42^nd birthday.

In EPB, Zdancius ended with an 86-53 record, 142 saves, 1.93 ERA, 454 games, 102 starts, 1233 innings, 1373 strikeouts, 198 walks, 83/102 quality starts, 22 complete games, 5 shutouts, 143 ERA+, 63 FIP-, and 40.0 WAR. Among all pitchers with 1000+ career innings, Zdancius’ ERA ranks 11^th. His .532 opoonents’ OPS ranks 17^th while his triple slash of .203/.240/.292 ranks 47^th/28^th/11^th.

His accumulation stats there are obviously incredibly low for either a starter or reliever. Zdancius’ resume was a difficult one to judge as there weren’t even comparisons amongst starters or relievers. The rate stats were obviously strong, but he was also by having half his career on a different continent. Working in his favor was a generally positive reputation and pitcher-friendly voters for the Eurasian Professional Baseball Hall of Fame.

Zdancius debuted at 64.9% in 2025, barely missing the 66% requirement. He was at 61.0%, 63.6%, and 50.4% in the next three ballots. His fifth ballot in 2029 came against a very weak field with no standout debuts. That helped Zdancius get the bump just across the line at 67.2% for a fifth ballot selection as the lone 2029 inductee. Many scholars cite Zdancius as one of the weaker additions you’ll find, but he’s in regardless.

04-09-2025, 07:08 AM	#2198
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 3,023	2029 EPB Hall of Fame The 2029 Hall of Fame ballot for Eurasian Professional Baseball was a weaker one with the best debut at a measly 32.8%. Pitcher Povilas Zdancius was the lone inductee by just crossing the 66% requirement at 67.2% in his fifth ballot. Three others were above 50% with 3B Bladyslav Chychykov (59.9%) and 1B Roman Stanchinsky (55.8%) both on their second ballot. 1B Benjamin Bodnar got 51.4% for his tenth and final chance. For Bodnar, he had an 18-year career almost exclusively with Yekaterinburg, helping them win four EPB titles. The Hungarian got as close at 59.0% in 2026 and was never below 44%. Bodnar won MVP honors in 2004 and had four Gold Gloves and five Silver Sluggers. His totals saw 2066 games, 2031 hits, 1023 runs, 292 doubles, 98 triples, 413 home runs, 1138 RBI, .276/.334/.510 slash, 155 wRC+, and 69.7 WAR. Injuries in his 30s greatly limited his tallies and left him in “Hall of Pretty Good” territory in the minds of many voters. Povilas Zdancius – Pitcher – St. Petersburg Polar Bears – 67.2% Fifth Ballot Povilas Zdancius was a 5’10’’, 180 pound right-handed pitcher from Vitebsk in northern Belarus, the country’s fourth-largest city with roughly 358,000 inhabitants. Zdancius had excellent control and great movement along with good stuff. His fastball peaked in the 95-97 mph range and was actually probably his weakest pitch. Zdancius’ changeup and sinker were his best offerings and he had a splitter. Guys with four credible pitches are almost always starters, but Zdancius’ poor stamina led to most of his career coming from the bullpen. Despite the stamina issues, Zdancius‘ durability was great and he avoided the big injuries that often plague pitchers. He was subpar at holding runners and below average defensively. However, Zdancius had an excellent work ethic and was one of the smartest guys in the game. He was also appreciated in the clubhouse as a strong leader. Zdancius was picked out of high school by St. Petersburg in the 1997 EPB Draft, going 108^th overall in the early fourth round. He would be the second-latest picked player to earn induction for EPB’s Hall of Fame with only Class of 2011 SP Temuujin Munkhuu going later at 127. Zdancius spent his first two years in the Polar Bears’ academy before seeing part-time relief use in 2000-01. From 2002-04, Zdancius was a starter with strong results, leading the European League twice in quality starts. He had 6.5+ WAR each year as St. Petersburg continued a rebuild, falling just short of the playoffs in 2003 and 2004. Zdancius was third in 2003’s Pitcher of the Year voting with career bests in WAR (8.0), and strikeouts (299). Despite that momentum, Zdancius was surprisingly relegated to only 18 relief appearances in 2005 despite being seemingly healthy. The Polar Bears moved him to the closer role for the four following years, where he twice led in games pitched and once in saves. Zdancius was Reliever of the Year in 2006 with 1.22 ERA over 81.1 innings, 35 saves, and 113 strikeouts. He took third in ROTY in 2007, 08, and 09. St. Petersburg led the standings and got to the ELCS in 2005 and 2006, but lost both times against Moscow. The Polar Bears fell towards third place for the next few years. Zdancius’ limited playoff use saw two runs allowed in five innings and four appearances. He also saw brief World Baseball Championship use from 2001-03 for his native Belarus, but struggled to a 5.22 ERA over 29.1 innings. Zdancius became a free agent after the 2009 season at age 32. For St. Petersburg, he had an 84-52 record, 140 saves, 1.91 ERA, 1182 innings, 1342 strikeouts, 194 walks, 143 ERA+, and 39.4 WAR. The Polar Bears organization liked Zdancius enough to eventually retire his #28 uniform. He’d spend the next nine years in South America, starting with a three-year, $9,360,000 deal with Bogota. He was middle relief in 2010 for the Bats with a 2.45 ERA over 44 innings. Bogota traded Zdancius in the offseason to Cordoba, who put him back into a closer role for 2011. Zdancius was second in Reliever of the Year voting and led in games with 78 for 2011, posting a 2.45 ERA and 36 saves. The Chanticleers lost in the Southern Cone Championship with Zdancius posting a 5.23 ERA over 10.1 playoff innings. Zdancius was demoted to middle relief for his second year with Cordoba. After that, he signed for two years and $11,600,000 with Rosario, where he had 74.1 innings, 3.39 ERA, and 1.0 WAR. Zdancius played for Callao in 2015 with a 2.89 ERA, 11 saves, 67 strikeouts, and 0.8 WAR in 74.2 innings. He had 2.38 ERA, 56.2 innings, 1.7 WAR, and 64 Ks in 2016 with Santiago. Zdancius then struggled to a 5.02 ERA over 14.1 innings in 2017 with Sao Paulo. In 2018, Cordoba gave him a second shot and he had a 2.43 ERA in 33.1 innings. Zdancius had a 2.82 ERA over 165.2 innings, 162 Ks, and 2.6 WAR between the stints with the Chanticleers. For his Beisbol Sudamerica career, Zdancius had a 43-30 record, 65 saves, 2.91 ERA, 349 games, 429.2 innings, 427 strikeouts, 97 walks, 129 ERA+, and 5.9 WAR. Zdancius came back to EPB in 2019 with Vladivostok where he posted a 3.41 ERA over 34.1 innings. The Shibas cut him in July, but Minsk grabbed him and he finished strong with 16.2 scoreless innings over five appearances. Zdancius decided to retire that winter shortly after his 42^nd birthday. In EPB, Zdancius ended with an 86-53 record, 142 saves, 1.93 ERA, 454 games, 102 starts, 1233 innings, 1373 strikeouts, 198 walks, 83/102 quality starts, 22 complete games, 5 shutouts, 143 ERA+, 63 FIP-, and 40.0 WAR. Among all pitchers with 1000+ career innings, Zdancius’ ERA ranks 11^th. His .532 opoonents’ OPS ranks 17^th while his triple slash of .203/.240/.292 ranks 47^th/28^th/11^th. His accumulation stats there are obviously incredibly low for either a starter or reliever. Zdancius’ resume was a difficult one to judge as there weren’t even comparisons amongst starters or relievers. The rate stats were obviously strong, but he was also by having half his career on a different continent. Working in his favor was a generally positive reputation and pitcher-friendly voters for the Eurasian Professional Baseball Hall of Fame. Zdancius debuted at 64.9% in 2025, barely missing the 66% requirement. He was at 61.0%, 63.6%, and 50.4% in the next three ballots. His fifth ballot in 2029 came against a very weak field with no standout debuts. That helped Zdancius get the bump just across the line at 67.2% for a fifth ballot selection as the lone 2029 inductee. Many scholars cite Zdancius as one of the weaker additions you’ll find, but he’s in regardless. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)