OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post

FuzzyRussianHat · 04-22-2025, 08:11 AM

The European League had repeat division winners with Gomel atop the North and Volgograd atop the South, both finishing 97-65. The defending EL champ Voyagers officially were the #1 seed by tiebreaker, although they only won the division by two games over 95-67 Samara. The Griffins’ division title came by only three games over 94-68 Moscow. The Steelers and Mules got the wild cards with Kazan (90-72) and Tel Aviv (87-75) the first teams out.

Volgograd led the EL in scoring with 657 runs and Gomel allowed the fewest at 483. For the Voyagers, they’ve made the playoffs nine out of ten seasons in the 2020s. Samara was a wild card for the third straight year and Moscow ended a three-year drought. Minsk, who had a three year playoff streak, plummeted to 68-94. St. Petersburg also notably dropped to 66-86 for their first losing campaign since 2019.

Krasnodar was a non-factor at 76-86, but they had the European League MVP with DH Anar Arzhanov. In his second year starting, the 25-year old Uzbek lefty led in WAR (8.2), runs (98), and total bases (368). Arzhanov had 191 hits, 32 doubles, 45 home runs, 94 RBI, and a .307/.364/.591 slash. He was living up to the billing for the Steamers, who got him with the #1 overall pick in the 2026 Eurasian Professional Baseball Draft.

Moscow’s Tagir Jumayev picked up Pitcher of the Year in his 11^th season on roster for the Mules. The 32-year old Azeri righty led in wins (19-4) and WHIP (0.82). Jumayev had a 1.82 ERA over 217 innings, 256 strikeouts, 172 ERA+, and 7.9 WAR. He missed the playoffs though to a ruptured disc in early September. Jamayev’s effort was strong enough to earn a five-year, $74,800,000 extension in May 2030 with Moscow.

Volgograd survived 3-2 over Moscow in the first round to keep their repeat hope intact. Samara upset Gomel 3-2 in a classic, giving the Steelers their second European League Championship Series trip in three years. Both Samara and Volgograd had come into EPB with the 2000 season, but the Steelers were still searching for their first pennant. The Voyagers denied Samara in a seven-game thriller, earning an impressive fifth title of the decade (2020, 22, 23, 28, 29).

The Asian League’s four playoff teams were separated by only two wins. Both division champs finished 92-70 with Nur-Sultan again atop the West and defending EPB champ Vladivostok atop the East. The Setters had the #1 seed by the tiebreaker and earned a third straight division title. Although the Shibas won it all last year, this was their first-ever division title.

Vladivostok had fierce competition in the East Division with Khabarovsk at 91-71 and Novosibirsk at 90-72, both securing wild cards. The Nitros ended the longest-active playoff drought in EPB at 32 seasons going back to 1996. The 2020 expansion Rockets picked up their first-ever playoff berth. Ufa at 85-77 was the first team out, followed by 82-80 Perm. The Shibas allowed the fewest runs in the AL at 487. Krasnoyarsk scored the most at 650, but also allowed the most at 658. The Cossacks struggled to 77-85, ending an 11-year playoff streak.

Nur-Sultan CF Khazbulat Dukhu won Asian League MVP in a rare win by a leadoff man. The 30-year old Russian nicknamed “Claw” led in hits (187), OBP (.395), and WAR (8.5). Dukhu had 72 runs, 31 doubles, 9 triples, 8 homers, 76 RBI, 66 stolen bases, .325 average, .846 OPS, and 155 wRC+. Dukhu is only the second non-pitcher to win MVP in EPB with fewer than 10 home runs, joining 2004 Hall of Famer Nikolay Denisov. The Setters had given Dukhu an eight-year, $72,400,000 extension back in November 2027.

In his Vladivostok debut, Nehor Pomerantz became a three-time Pitcher of the Year. It was his first in the Asian League, having won previously in the EL for Minsk in 2022 and 2027. Pomerantz had also won MVP with his 2022 effort. The 31-year old Israeli lefty was traded to the Shibas in the offseason for three prospects. Pomerantz led in strikeouts (331), shutouts (5), and FIP- (65). He had a 20-9 record, 2.40 ERA, 247.2 innings, 132 ERA+, and 7.7 WAR. Vladivostok would sign Pomerantz to a five-year, $105 million extension in September 2030.

Nur-Sultan outlasted Novosibirsk 3-2 and Vladivostok topped Khabarovsk 3-1 in the first round of the playoffs. This pitted the 2028 Asian League Championship Series winning Shibas against the 2027 winning Setters. The battle of the dogs went to Vladivostok 4-2 for the repeat.

The 75^th Eurasian Professional Baseball Championship was the first finals rematch since Moscow versus Yekaterinburg in 2006-07. Vladivostok won 4-2 over Volgograd in 2028, but the Voyagers got revenge 4-1 in 2029. It was Volgograd’s second EPB title, having also won in 2023. 2B Jan Cieslak was finals MVP in his second season, posting 22 hits, 12 runs,6 doubles, 1 homer, and 6 RBI over 17 playoff starts.

Other notes: Ivan Nikolin became the 15^th pitcher to 4500 career strikeouts. He pitched two more years and ended with 4962, retiring 8^th on the leaderboard. Nikolin also became the 61^st to 200 wins in 2029. Vitali Kolyayev became the 20^th closer to 300 saves. CF Robert Albrecht won his 8^th consecutive Gold Glove.

Timofei Averkin became the 31^st batter to 2500 hits. He won his 11^th Silver Slugger and 10^th in right field, becoming only the sixth at any position with 11+ Sluggers in EPB. Averkin, Timofei Kalinin, and Marat Kazimov also reached 400 home runs, making that club 76 players strong.

Eurasian Professional Baseball was one of the only world leagues to see scoring dip from the 2010s to the 2020s. The drop was slight, going from a 3.26 league ERA in the 2010s to around 3.15 in 2020s. The batting average went from around .245 to around .242. This put EPB into below average to low scoring on the historical scale and had them among the lower scoring leagues in the 2020s.

04-22-2025, 08:11 AM	#2224
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,603	2029 in EPB The European League had repeat division winners with Gomel atop the North and Volgograd atop the South, both finishing 97-65. The defending EL champ Voyagers officially were the #1 seed by tiebreaker, although they only won the division by two games over 95-67 Samara. The Griffins’ division title came by only three games over 94-68 Moscow. The Steelers and Mules got the wild cards with Kazan (90-72) and Tel Aviv (87-75) the first teams out. Volgograd led the EL in scoring with 657 runs and Gomel allowed the fewest at 483. For the Voyagers, they’ve made the playoffs nine out of ten seasons in the 2020s. Samara was a wild card for the third straight year and Moscow ended a three-year drought. Minsk, who had a three year playoff streak, plummeted to 68-94. St. Petersburg also notably dropped to 66-86 for their first losing campaign since 2019. Krasnodar was a non-factor at 76-86, but they had the European League MVP with DH Anar Arzhanov. In his second year starting, the 25-year old Uzbek lefty led in WAR (8.2), runs (98), and total bases (368). Arzhanov had 191 hits, 32 doubles, 45 home runs, 94 RBI, and a .307/.364/.591 slash. He was living up to the billing for the Steamers, who got him with the #1 overall pick in the 2026 Eurasian Professional Baseball Draft. Moscow’s Tagir Jumayev picked up Pitcher of the Year in his 11^th season on roster for the Mules. The 32-year old Azeri righty led in wins (19-4) and WHIP (0.82). Jumayev had a 1.82 ERA over 217 innings, 256 strikeouts, 172 ERA+, and 7.9 WAR. He missed the playoffs though to a ruptured disc in early September. Jamayev’s effort was strong enough to earn a five-year, $74,800,000 extension in May 2030 with Moscow. Volgograd survived 3-2 over Moscow in the first round to keep their repeat hope intact. Samara upset Gomel 3-2 in a classic, giving the Steelers their second European League Championship Series trip in three years. Both Samara and Volgograd had come into EPB with the 2000 season, but the Steelers were still searching for their first pennant. The Voyagers denied Samara in a seven-game thriller, earning an impressive fifth title of the decade (2020, 22, 23, 28, 29). The Asian League’s four playoff teams were separated by only two wins. Both division champs finished 92-70 with Nur-Sultan again atop the West and defending EPB champ Vladivostok atop the East. The Setters had the #1 seed by the tiebreaker and earned a third straight division title. Although the Shibas won it all last year, this was their first-ever division title. Vladivostok had fierce competition in the East Division with Khabarovsk at 91-71 and Novosibirsk at 90-72, both securing wild cards. The Nitros ended the longest-active playoff drought in EPB at 32 seasons going back to 1996. The 2020 expansion Rockets picked up their first-ever playoff berth. Ufa at 85-77 was the first team out, followed by 82-80 Perm. The Shibas allowed the fewest runs in the AL at 487. Krasnoyarsk scored the most at 650, but also allowed the most at 658. The Cossacks struggled to 77-85, ending an 11-year playoff streak. Nur-Sultan CF Khazbulat Dukhu won Asian League MVP in a rare win by a leadoff man. The 30-year old Russian nicknamed “Claw” led in hits (187), OBP (.395), and WAR (8.5). Dukhu had 72 runs, 31 doubles, 9 triples, 8 homers, 76 RBI, 66 stolen bases, .325 average, .846 OPS, and 155 wRC+. Dukhu is only the second non-pitcher to win MVP in EPB with fewer than 10 home runs, joining 2004 Hall of Famer Nikolay Denisov. The Setters had given Dukhu an eight-year, $72,400,000 extension back in November 2027. In his Vladivostok debut, Nehor Pomerantz became a three-time Pitcher of the Year. It was his first in the Asian League, having won previously in the EL for Minsk in 2022 and 2027. Pomerantz had also won MVP with his 2022 effort. The 31-year old Israeli lefty was traded to the Shibas in the offseason for three prospects. Pomerantz led in strikeouts (331), shutouts (5), and FIP- (65). He had a 20-9 record, 2.40 ERA, 247.2 innings, 132 ERA+, and 7.7 WAR. Vladivostok would sign Pomerantz to a five-year, $105 million extension in September 2030. Nur-Sultan outlasted Novosibirsk 3-2 and Vladivostok topped Khabarovsk 3-1 in the first round of the playoffs. This pitted the 2028 Asian League Championship Series winning Shibas against the 2027 winning Setters. The battle of the dogs went to Vladivostok 4-2 for the repeat. The 75^th Eurasian Professional Baseball Championship was the first finals rematch since Moscow versus Yekaterinburg in 2006-07. Vladivostok won 4-2 over Volgograd in 2028, but the Voyagers got revenge 4-1 in 2029. It was Volgograd’s second EPB title, having also won in 2023. 2B Jan Cieslak was finals MVP in his second season, posting 22 hits, 12 runs,6 doubles, 1 homer, and 6 RBI over 17 playoff starts. Other notes: Ivan Nikolin became the 15^th pitcher to 4500 career strikeouts. He pitched two more years and ended with 4962, retiring 8^th on the leaderboard. Nikolin also became the 61^st to 200 wins in 2029. Vitali Kolyayev became the 20^th closer to 300 saves. CF Robert Albrecht won his 8^th consecutive Gold Glove. Timofei Averkin became the 31^st batter to 2500 hits. He won his 11^th Silver Slugger and 10^th in right field, becoming only the sixth at any position with 11+ Sluggers in EPB. Averkin, Timofei Kalinin, and Marat Kazimov also reached 400 home runs, making that club 76 players strong. Eurasian Professional Baseball was one of the only world leagues to see scoring dip from the 2010s to the 2020s. The drop was slight, going from a 3.26 league ERA in the 2010s to around 3.15 in 2020s. The batting average went from around .245 to around .242. This put EPB into below average to low scoring on the historical scale and had them among the lower scoring leagues in the 2020s. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)