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FuzzyRussianHat · 05-15-2025, 07:44 AM

DH Fakhri Rajavi stood alone for induction with a 93.5% debut with the Asian Baseball Federation’s 2030 Hall of Fame ballot. CL Ananthakrishnan Khan nearly joined him on his second try, but his 62.9% just missed the 66% requirement. 3B Eser Haspolatli debuted at 58.4% and SP Yhlas Batyrow got exactly 50% with his second ballot. No one else was above 50% and no players were dropped after ten failed ballots.

Fakhri Rajavi – Designated Hitter – Baku Blackbirds – 93.5% First Ballot

Fakhri Rajavi was a 6’6’’, 195 pound left-handed slugger from Shiraz, Iran’s fifth most populous city with around 1.5 million inhabitants. Rajavi was known for his outstanding home run power, which some scouts graded as a 10/10 at his peak. He was especially dominant facing right-handed pitching with a career 194 wRC+ and 1.033 OPS. Rajavi wasn’t bad against lefties with 124 wRC+, and .751 OPS.

On the whole, Rajavi was considered a good contact hitter with an above average eye for walks and subpar strikeout rate. His 162 game average got you an impressive 51 home runs along with 30 doubles. Rajavi wasn’t going leg out extra bases with truly abysmal baserunning speed and ability. Despite being an all-time slugger, Rajavi’s overall athleticism was hot garbage.

Because of that, he made around 80% of his career starts as a designated hitter. The rest of Rajavi’s starts came at first base with poor defensive grades. He did run into some major injuries, especially to his left knee, but still hung around for 17 seasons. Because of his towering home runs, Rajavi became extremely popular and was one of ABF’s most known stars of his era.

A tall lefty that can mash certainly draws attention and all eyes were on Rajavi entering the 2006 ABF Draft just before his 20^th birthday. Despite his athletic sluggishness, teams knew he had the potential to be a generational slugger. Thus, Baku picked Rajavi #1 overall, hoping he might change their fortunes. The Blackbirds had been a generally terrible team since the late 1980s, having most recently posted a winning season in 1985 while still part of Eurasian Professional Baseball.

Rajavi wasn’t fully formed yet and only played 20 games with two starts from 2007-08. He would play 136 games with 107 starts in 2009 with 34 homers, .828 OPS, and 3.1 WAR. This addition helped Baku’s turnaround with a 92-70 record and division title. Although they lost in the first round of the playoffs, it began what would be a seven-year playoff streak and six-year division title streak for the Blackbirds.

In 2010, Rajavi started the full year with his first of ten seasons with 40+ home runs. Baku earned their first West League pennant, although they were denied by Rawalpindi in the ABF Championship. Rajavi had a strong postseason run with .909 OPS in 17 games. 2011 would see a major setback though with a broken kneecap in late April. This kept Rajavi out 14 months total, not returning until late spring 2012.

Rajavi had a platoon role in 2012 with 117 games and 71 starts, but mashed with 5.4 WAR and 1.082 OPS. He was WLCS MVP and went 8-29 with 6 homers and 11 RBI in the playoff run as Baku defeated Lahore for their first-ever ABF title. The Blackbirds finished 8-11 in the Baseball Grand Championship with Rajavi posting .854 OPS and 0.5 WAR in 18 games.

From 2013-16, Rajavi had a run of good health and led the WL all four seasons in home runs, winning Silver Sluggers at DH each year. Thrice in that stretch he also led in RBI, total bases, slugging, OPS, and wRC+. In 2013, Rajavi posted only the ninth Triple Crown season by an ABF player with his lone batting title at .338, but he missed out on MVP honors to teammate Ali Sungu.

Baku repeated as West League champs in 2013, but lost the ABF Championship to Hyderabad. The Blackbirds won 104 games in both 2014-15, but both times fell in the first round. Rajavi was third in 2014’s MVP voting, then won the top honor in 2015 with career and league bests in homers (67), RBI (158), total bases (415), and WAR (9.7). This set the new ABF single-season RBI record which held until 2024 and still ranks third as of 2037. It also ranks as the eighth most HRs.

In May 2015, Rajavi signed an eight-year, $91,700,000 extension to remain the face of baseball in Baku. Although beloved in Azerbaijan, he was equally adored back home in Iran. Rajavi represented his country from 2010-23 in the World Baseball Championship with 125 games, 110 hits, 84 runs, 20 doubles, 46 home runs, 94 RBI, .256/.348/.625 slash, and 6.7 WAR.

In 2018, Rajavi led Iran to their deepest run, taking runner-up to Poland. In 24 games, he had 23 hits, 13 runs, 6 homers, 15 RBI, .911 OPS, and 1.3 WAR. The Iranians also earned a division title in 2015 with Rajavi getting 9 homers, 17 RBI, and 17 runs in 15 starts. As of 2037, Rajavi leads all Iranians in the WBC in homers and RBI. He also is third in WAR among position players, fourth in hits, and third in runs.

Baku’s playoff streak ended at 86-76 in 2016. They got back for a WLCS defeat to 116-win Tehran as a wild card in 2017. Rajavi still won a Silver Slugger that year despite missing two months in the summer to a broken collarbone. 2017 also saw a four home run game against Tabriz in September, which was only the fourth 4 HR game in ABF history to that point.

From 2018-21, the Blackbirds would be outside the playoffs and around the .500 mark despite Rajavi’s best efforts. Rajavi led in homers and RBI in both 2018-19 for two more Silver Sluggers, finishing with seven total. He won his second MVP in 2018 and had his fourth 9+ WAR season, an especially impressive feat considering the huge penalty in that stat for a DH.

In July 2021, Rajavi suffered a ruptured MCL that put him out until the following spring. He returned to form in 2022 with his sixth and final 50+ homer season. Baku returned to the playoffs at 102-60 and won another WL pennant before losing to Bishkek in the ABF Championship. Rajavi struggled though in the playoffs with a .649 OPS. He made up for it in the Baseball Grand Championship with 1.113 OPS, 1.5 WAR, 10 homers, 20 RBI, and 14 runs in 19 starts. The Blackbirds ended up in a four-way tie for ninth at 10-9.

2022 had also seen Rajavi become the fourth member of the 600 home run club. His former teammate Ali Sungu had retired in 2021 with the top slot at 683, a goal for Rajavi to chase. His power dipped significantly though in 2023 with only 35 dingers and .822 OPS over 146 games. Baku got back to the WLCS but was denied by Tabriz. Rajavi struggled to 4-22 and one homer in eight playoff starts.

For his playoff career with Baku, Rajavi had strong numbers overall. He played 94 games with 83 starts, posting 82 hits, 46 runs, 13 doubles, 25 homers, 56 RBI, .262/.319/.556 slash, 156 wRC+, and 3.7 WAR. Rajavi retired one behind Sungu for playoff homers, although he ranks eighth as of 2037. He also ranks 10^th in RBI.

At this point, Rajavi was at 665 regular season homers and 1523 RBI, not far from Sungu’s 683 dingers and Petri Viskari’s record 1685 RBI. His decline had been noticeable though and Baku didn’t re-sign their long-time star, sending Rajavi to free agency for the first time at age 37. He ended up inking a two-year, $9,120,000 deal with Shymkent, who had joined ABF in the 2020 expansion. They hoped a famous star chasing milestones would sell tickets.

Rajavi was used in a platoon role facing RHP, but he was merely decent with 13 homers, .712 OPS, and 1.2 WAR over 130 games and 61 starts. Shymkent earned their first-ever wild card, but lost in the first round with Rajavi going 1-12 with seven strikeouts in the series. Rajavi was five behind Sungu for the homer crown, but decided to retire that winter shortly after his 38^th birthday. Baku quickly honored him by retiring his #9 uniform.

The final stats saw 2153 games, 2090 hits, 1217 runs, 393 doubles, 678 home runs, 1568 RBI, 630 walks, 1810 strikeouts, .285/.346/.623 slash, 179 wRC+, and 90.1 WAR. As of 2037, Rajavi ranks 6^th in homers, 9^th in RBI, 19^th in total bases (4563), 59^th in hits, 32^nd in runs, 55^th in games, 63^rd in walks, 74^th in strikeouts, and 28^th in WAR among position players. Among ABF batters with 3000+ plate appearances, Rajavi’s .969 OPS ranks 18^th and he is 12^th in slugging.

From a pure power standpoint, few in Asian Baseball Federation history, few compare to Rajavi. Being a DH limits him when discussing the tip top players in league history, but his status as a Hall of Famer was obvious. Rajavi was a huge reason Baku emerged as a regular contender from the 2010s onward. At 93.5%, he was the lone inductee for ABF’s 2030 class.

05-15-2025, 07:44 AM	#2248
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,627	2030 ABF Hall of Fame DH Fakhri Rajavi stood alone for induction with a 93.5% debut with the Asian Baseball Federation’s 2030 Hall of Fame ballot. CL Ananthakrishnan Khan nearly joined him on his second try, but his 62.9% just missed the 66% requirement. 3B Eser Haspolatli debuted at 58.4% and SP Yhlas Batyrow got exactly 50% with his second ballot. No one else was above 50% and no players were dropped after ten failed ballots. Fakhri Rajavi – Designated Hitter – Baku Blackbirds – 93.5% First Ballot Fakhri Rajavi was a 6’6’’, 195 pound left-handed slugger from Shiraz, Iran’s fifth most populous city with around 1.5 million inhabitants. Rajavi was known for his outstanding home run power, which some scouts graded as a 10/10 at his peak. He was especially dominant facing right-handed pitching with a career 194 wRC+ and 1.033 OPS. Rajavi wasn’t bad against lefties with 124 wRC+, and .751 OPS. On the whole, Rajavi was considered a good contact hitter with an above average eye for walks and subpar strikeout rate. His 162 game average got you an impressive 51 home runs along with 30 doubles. Rajavi wasn’t going leg out extra bases with truly abysmal baserunning speed and ability. Despite being an all-time slugger, Rajavi’s overall athleticism was hot garbage. Because of that, he made around 80% of his career starts as a designated hitter. The rest of Rajavi’s starts came at first base with poor defensive grades. He did run into some major injuries, especially to his left knee, but still hung around for 17 seasons. Because of his towering home runs, Rajavi became extremely popular and was one of ABF’s most known stars of his era. A tall lefty that can mash certainly draws attention and all eyes were on Rajavi entering the 2006 ABF Draft just before his 20^th birthday. Despite his athletic sluggishness, teams knew he had the potential to be a generational slugger. Thus, Baku picked Rajavi #1 overall, hoping he might change their fortunes. The Blackbirds had been a generally terrible team since the late 1980s, having most recently posted a winning season in 1985 while still part of Eurasian Professional Baseball. Rajavi wasn’t fully formed yet and only played 20 games with two starts from 2007-08. He would play 136 games with 107 starts in 2009 with 34 homers, .828 OPS, and 3.1 WAR. This addition helped Baku’s turnaround with a 92-70 record and division title. Although they lost in the first round of the playoffs, it began what would be a seven-year playoff streak and six-year division title streak for the Blackbirds. In 2010, Rajavi started the full year with his first of ten seasons with 40+ home runs. Baku earned their first West League pennant, although they were denied by Rawalpindi in the ABF Championship. Rajavi had a strong postseason run with .909 OPS in 17 games. 2011 would see a major setback though with a broken kneecap in late April. This kept Rajavi out 14 months total, not returning until late spring 2012. Rajavi had a platoon role in 2012 with 117 games and 71 starts, but mashed with 5.4 WAR and 1.082 OPS. He was WLCS MVP and went 8-29 with 6 homers and 11 RBI in the playoff run as Baku defeated Lahore for their first-ever ABF title. The Blackbirds finished 8-11 in the Baseball Grand Championship with Rajavi posting .854 OPS and 0.5 WAR in 18 games. From 2013-16, Rajavi had a run of good health and led the WL all four seasons in home runs, winning Silver Sluggers at DH each year. Thrice in that stretch he also led in RBI, total bases, slugging, OPS, and wRC+. In 2013, Rajavi posted only the ninth Triple Crown season by an ABF player with his lone batting title at .338, but he missed out on MVP honors to teammate Ali Sungu. Baku repeated as West League champs in 2013, but lost the ABF Championship to Hyderabad. The Blackbirds won 104 games in both 2014-15, but both times fell in the first round. Rajavi was third in 2014’s MVP voting, then won the top honor in 2015 with career and league bests in homers (67), RBI (158), total bases (415), and WAR (9.7). This set the new ABF single-season RBI record which held until 2024 and still ranks third as of 2037. It also ranks as the eighth most HRs. In May 2015, Rajavi signed an eight-year, $91,700,000 extension to remain the face of baseball in Baku. Although beloved in Azerbaijan, he was equally adored back home in Iran. Rajavi represented his country from 2010-23 in the World Baseball Championship with 125 games, 110 hits, 84 runs, 20 doubles, 46 home runs, 94 RBI, .256/.348/.625 slash, and 6.7 WAR. In 2018, Rajavi led Iran to their deepest run, taking runner-up to Poland. In 24 games, he had 23 hits, 13 runs, 6 homers, 15 RBI, .911 OPS, and 1.3 WAR. The Iranians also earned a division title in 2015 with Rajavi getting 9 homers, 17 RBI, and 17 runs in 15 starts. As of 2037, Rajavi leads all Iranians in the WBC in homers and RBI. He also is third in WAR among position players, fourth in hits, and third in runs. Baku’s playoff streak ended at 86-76 in 2016. They got back for a WLCS defeat to 116-win Tehran as a wild card in 2017. Rajavi still won a Silver Slugger that year despite missing two months in the summer to a broken collarbone. 2017 also saw a four home run game against Tabriz in September, which was only the fourth 4 HR game in ABF history to that point. From 2018-21, the Blackbirds would be outside the playoffs and around the .500 mark despite Rajavi’s best efforts. Rajavi led in homers and RBI in both 2018-19 for two more Silver Sluggers, finishing with seven total. He won his second MVP in 2018 and had his fourth 9+ WAR season, an especially impressive feat considering the huge penalty in that stat for a DH. In July 2021, Rajavi suffered a ruptured MCL that put him out until the following spring. He returned to form in 2022 with his sixth and final 50+ homer season. Baku returned to the playoffs at 102-60 and won another WL pennant before losing to Bishkek in the ABF Championship. Rajavi struggled though in the playoffs with a .649 OPS. He made up for it in the Baseball Grand Championship with 1.113 OPS, 1.5 WAR, 10 homers, 20 RBI, and 14 runs in 19 starts. The Blackbirds ended up in a four-way tie for ninth at 10-9. 2022 had also seen Rajavi become the fourth member of the 600 home run club. His former teammate Ali Sungu had retired in 2021 with the top slot at 683, a goal for Rajavi to chase. His power dipped significantly though in 2023 with only 35 dingers and .822 OPS over 146 games. Baku got back to the WLCS but was denied by Tabriz. Rajavi struggled to 4-22 and one homer in eight playoff starts. For his playoff career with Baku, Rajavi had strong numbers overall. He played 94 games with 83 starts, posting 82 hits, 46 runs, 13 doubles, 25 homers, 56 RBI, .262/.319/.556 slash, 156 wRC+, and 3.7 WAR. Rajavi retired one behind Sungu for playoff homers, although he ranks eighth as of 2037. He also ranks 10^th in RBI. At this point, Rajavi was at 665 regular season homers and 1523 RBI, not far from Sungu’s 683 dingers and Petri Viskari’s record 1685 RBI. His decline had been noticeable though and Baku didn’t re-sign their long-time star, sending Rajavi to free agency for the first time at age 37. He ended up inking a two-year, $9,120,000 deal with Shymkent, who had joined ABF in the 2020 expansion. They hoped a famous star chasing milestones would sell tickets. Rajavi was used in a platoon role facing RHP, but he was merely decent with 13 homers, .712 OPS, and 1.2 WAR over 130 games and 61 starts. Shymkent earned their first-ever wild card, but lost in the first round with Rajavi going 1-12 with seven strikeouts in the series. Rajavi was five behind Sungu for the homer crown, but decided to retire that winter shortly after his 38^th birthday. Baku quickly honored him by retiring his #9 uniform. The final stats saw 2153 games, 2090 hits, 1217 runs, 393 doubles, 678 home runs, 1568 RBI, 630 walks, 1810 strikeouts, .285/.346/.623 slash, 179 wRC+, and 90.1 WAR. As of 2037, Rajavi ranks 6^th in homers, 9^th in RBI, 19^th in total bases (4563), 59^th in hits, 32^nd in runs, 55^th in games, 63^rd in walks, 74^th in strikeouts, and 28^th in WAR among position players. Among ABF batters with 3000+ plate appearances, Rajavi’s .969 OPS ranks 18^th and he is 12^th in slugging. From a pure power standpoint, few in Asian Baseball Federation history, few compare to Rajavi. Being a DH limits him when discussing the tip top players in league history, but his status as a Hall of Famer was obvious. Rajavi was a huge reason Baku emerged as a regular contender from the 2010s onward. At 93.5%, he was the lone inductee for ABF’s 2030 class. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)