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West African Baseball had a three-player Hall of Fame class for 2029, easily captained by 1B/DH Lawrence Nassif at a nearly unanimous 99.4%. DH/OF Moses Ajaero also made it with his debut at 73.7%. 2B Kevin Ge got in at 69.8% on his fourth ballot, just passing the 66% requirement. The next closest was 3B Joey Agboola debuting at 58.0%. Two returners cracked 50% with CL Francis Koomson at 52.9% on his ninth try and SP Isaac Appiah with 52.6% for his fifth go. No one was dropped after ten failed ballots.



Lawrence Nassif – First Base/Designated Hitter – Conakry Coyotes – 99.4% First Ballot

Lawrence Nassif was a 6’3’’, 205 pound right-handed first baseman from Bafoussam, the largest city in Cameroon’s West Region with around 347,000 inhabitants. Nassif was an excellent contact hitter with a very strong bat. He wasn’t one to post gaudy totals, but his production was remarkably consistent. Nassif’s 162 game average got you 42 home runs and 131 RBI, posting 14 seasons with 40+ homers and 17 straight with 100+ RBI.

Nassif’s gap power was also quite good with 40 doubles and 4 triples per his 162 game average. His ability to draw walks and avoid strikeouts were both fairly average, but getting many quality hits easily made up for that. Nassif’s baserunning instincts were pretty good, but he could only do so much as his speed was abysmal.

While his swing was silky smooth, Nassif’s glove work was laughably poor. He split his career starts evenly between first base and designated hitter. Nassif was an ironman who started 145+ games in 18 consecutive seasons. He was also one of the highest character men in baseball and was an excellent team captain. Nassif’s incredible bat, leadership, work ethic, intelligence, and adaptability made him one of West Africa’s most beloved baseball icons ever.

Nassif moved from Cameroon to Nigeria by signing a developmental deal in April 2001 with Kano. Most people don’t realize he started with the Condors since he never played a game for them. He spent the better part of four years in their academy, but was traded to Ouagadougou in December 2004 in a three-player swap. Nassif debuted in 2005 with 43 games and 23 starts for the Osprey at age 20.

2006 began an 18-year run as a regular WAB fixture. Nassif had a respectable rookie campaign, but really found his power in his second full year. Nassif won a Silver Slugger as a DH and was third in 2007’s MVP voting, leading the Eastern League in runs (115), and RBI (129). This was also his first of eight seasons worth 6+ and first of ten seasons with an OPS above one. It also gave Ouagadougou only their second-ever 100 win season, although they were upset by Ibadan in the playoffs.

The Osprey had sustained success with Nassif, earning playoff berths from 2007-09 and from 2011-12. Ouagadougou led the standings in 2009 and 2012, setting a franchise-best 111-51 in the former. However, the Osprey couldn’t make it beyond the ELCS with defeats there in 2009, 2011, and 2012. Nassif’s playoff stats were surprisingly pedestrian over 21 games with 21 hits, 7 runs, 4 doubles, 4 home runs, 12 RBI, .269/.314/.474 slash, 108 wRC+, and 0.5 WAR.

Nassif’s stellar power was a big reason they got that far though. He won another Silver Slugger as a DH in 2008 and took third in MVP voting in 2008 and 2009, along with a second place in 2011. Nassif’s lone time as the WARlord came in 2009 with 7.5 along with his lone batting title with a career best .368. His best WAR (7.8), wRC+ (190), and OPS (1.077) all came in 2011; which also had his first 50 home run season. Nassif also led in runs and OPS in 2012.

Ouagadougou had given Nassif a five-year, $13,180,000 extension in May 2008. He declined the option year after the 2012 campaign and opted for free agency at age 28. With the Osprey, Nassif had 1138 games, 1449 hits, 762 runs, 294 doubles, 30 triples, 294 home runs, 842 RBI, .333/.371/.617 slash, 168 wRC+, and 45.6 WAR. By some metrics, it was his most productive run, although Nassif would be best remembered for his second stop. Still, Ouagadougou fans liked to claim him even if Nassif was inducted in Conakry’s black and orange instead of the blue and red.

The Coyotes backed up the Brinks truck, signing Nassif for an eight-year, $114,400,000 deal. It was a bold move for Conakry, who had finished a last place 62-100 in 2012. They improved slightly, but would still be below .500 from 2013-16. Nassif was third in 2013 and 2017’s MVP voting and won another Slugger in 2017. He led the Western League in home runs in both 2013 (43) and with a career high 51 in 2016.

Conakry made it to .500 in 2017 with another Slugger and third place in MVP voting for Nassif. 2018 would start a five-year playoff streak for the Coyotes with Nassif again winning a Slugger and taking third in MVP voting. In 2019, Nassif had a career best 159 RBI. The Coyotes lost in the second round in 2018 and the WLCS in 2019.

In 2020, Conakry broke through at 107-55 and defeated Yaounde for the West African Championship. Nassif’s playoff stats were poor the prior two years, but he stepped up in 2020 in eight starts with 10 hits, 6 runs, 3 doubles, 2 homers, 4 RBI, .954 OPS, and 0.4 WAR. The Coyotes then surprised on the world stage by finishing 14-5 in the Baseball Grand Championship, second only to Denver. In 19 starts, Nassif had 19 hits, 12 runs, 5 doubles, 5 homers, 18 RBI, .253/.309/.520, 166 wRC+, and 0.9 WAR.

It was a heck of a way to end an eight-year run for Conakry as Nassif cemented his spot in the hearts in the Guinean capital. For the Coyotes, Nassif had 1270 games, 1726 hits, 883 runs, 307 doubles, 338 home runs, 1101 RBI, .341/.384/.612 slash, 151 wRC+, and 41.1 WAR. Conakry would go onto retire Nassif’s #19 uniform for his efforts.

Nassif had also risen up the leaderboards with his consistent numbers. In 2020, he joined Darwin Morris as WAB’s only 3000 hit club members. Nassif also joined Morris and Ahamad Mathew as the only players at 600 home runs. He also had a chance to join Morris in the 2000 run and 2000 RBI clubs. Nassif’s production was slightly down from his Ouagadougou peaks, but he was still looking quite solid in his mid 30s. With his impeccable durability, Nassif seemed primed to make a run at some of Morris’s tallies.

The 36-year old Nassif moved to Cotonou on a three-year, $24,600,000 deal. The Copperheads would be mid-tier in his run, but Nassif stayed steady and won a Silver Slugger in 2022. That was his fifth overall and only one playing first base. Despite his power, Nassif also never won MVP, hurt by being a DH. He crossed 2000 RBI in July 2021, but did fall short of the 2000 run milestone.

With 215 hits in 2021, Nassif passed Morris’s 3288 to become WAB’s new hit king. He held the title only briefly as the eventual world leader Fares Belaid had him beat in 2024. Nassif did usurp Morris’s 2129 RBI for the top spot and did hold that one for a decade before finally being caught. He fell 51 homers short of Morris for the top spot, but notably passed him for the most total bases. Nassif also became the WAB doubles king and the first to 700, although that was also quickly ceded to Belaid.

With Cotonou, Nassif had 473 games, 591 hits, 314 runs, 103 doubles, 123 homers, 395 RBI, .324/.368/.592 slash, 140 wRC+, and 12.2 WAR. He had still been a strong hitter with 39 homers and 3.1 WAR in his last year, however his batting average was sub .300 and OPS sub .900 for the first time since his rookie year. Nassif wanted to still play, but couldn’t find any suitors after a poor showing in the 2024 World Baseball Championship with Cameroon. Only two years prior, he had posted 1.248 OPS over 11 WBC games. He opted for retirement in winter 2024 at age 40.

Nassif finished with 2881 games, 3766 hits, 1959 runs, 704 doubles, 65 triples, 755 home runs, 2338 RBI, 729 walks, 1926 strikeouts, 165 steals, .335/.376/.611 slash, 156 wRC+, and 98.9 WAR. As of 2037, Nassif ranks 7^th in games, 3^rd in hits, 7^th in runs, 5^th in total bases (6865), 4^th in doubles, 7^th in home runs, 3^rd in RBI, 32^nd in walks, 68^th in strikeouts, and 9^th in WAR among position players. Among batters with 3000+ plate appearances in WAB, Nassif’s .987 OPS is 24^th and his triple slash ranks 39^th/56^th/27^th.

The tallies also reach the leaderboards for all of pro baseball history as of 2037 as Nassif ranks 18^th in hits, 46^th in runs, 16^th in doubles, and 13^th in RBI. Among Hall of Famers across all leagues, Nassif also ranks 44^th in batting average. He did lose WAR points though largely because half of his starts were as a DH and he played putrid defense at first base.

Still, Nassif’s hitting ability put him among the inner-circle of Hall of Famers for West African Baseball. He likely is on the shortlist for the best batters to never win MVP, although he came close several times. At 99.4%, Nassif was a nearly unanimous headliner for a strong three-player 2029 class.