[FuzzyRussianHat]

For the third year in a row, Jerusalem had the top record in the Western Conference, posting their third straight 100+ win season. The Jets finished 106-56 for their fifth consecutive Levant Division title and seventh straight playoff berth. Jerusalem allowed only 624 runs, the fewest among all teams in Arab League Baseball.

The #2 seed went to Nile Division champ Cairo at 98-64, their second division crown in three years. The Pharaohs earned their fourth straight playoff trip and 13^th in 14 years. It wasn’t an easy fight with Khartoum a close second at 94-68. The Cottonmouths had their first winning season since 2021 and ended a 30-year playoff drought, the second-longest in ALB history. Cairo was the top scoring team in the WC with 914 runs and had 389 doubles, the third-best in conference history.

Alexandria was also competitive in the Nile at 89-73. That kept them one short of the second wild card behind reigning ALB champ Damascus, who finished 90-72 in the Levant. The Dusters’ wild card streak grew to three seasons. In a weak Mediterranean Division, Algiers prevailed at 83-79. The next closest team was a lousy 72-90 Tripoli. The Arsenal now was on an eight-year playoff run with seven division titles in that stretch. It was also their ninth playoff trip in a decade, notably having gotten only one playoff berth in the 31 preceding years.

Helping end Khartoum’s playoff drought was Western Conference MVP Nadjib Madi, a 26-year old Algerian 1B in his second season starting. He led with 58 home runs, .723 slugging, 1.119 OPS, and 184 wRC+. Madi added 210 hits, 116 runs, 35 doubles, 141 RBI, .352 average, and 7.9 WAR. He managed to edge out Jerusalem’s Hassan Shanshol for the honor despite a record-breaking campaign for the latter.

Shanshol broke his world record from 2027 of 157 stolen bases by swiping 159 in 2030. 150+ steals had happened four times ever in pro baseball with Shanshol doing it twice. He also set an ALB runs scored record at 154, which ranked as the sixth-best single season in world history to that point. The 28-year old Iraqi also was the leader in hits (248), batting average (.397), OBP (.450), and WAR (10.7). Shanshol crossed 1000 career steals with his 2030 world record.

Pitcher of the Year went to Khartoum’s Mohamed Fayad in his sixth season. The 26-year old Egyptian righty led in wins (20-8), strikeouts (319), and WHIP (1.08). Fayad’s 3.10 ERA was second to Jerusalem’s Husain Al-Shahari’s 2.86. Fayad had 252.2 innings with a 145 ERA+ and 7.0 WAR. This effort earned him a huge payday, signing a six-year, $211,900,000 extension in the winter.

Khartoum swept defending ALB champ Damascus in the wild card round, then upset the top seed Jerusalem 2-1 in round two. For the third straight year, the Jets were one-and-done despite having the top seed. The Cottonmouths hadn’t earned a trip to the Western Conference Final since their 1997-99 run, winning their lone pennants in 1997-98.

Cairo swept Algiers on the other side, which was their first WCF trip since 2021 despite making the playoffs seven times from 2022-29. The Pharaohs prevailed 3-1 over their division rival to become seven-time conference champs (1990, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2020, 2021, 2030). Only Casablanca has more Western Conference pennants with ten.



Two-time defending Eastern Conference champ Muscat was again the top seed, this time at 102-60. The Threshers won the Gulf Division for the fourth consecutive year and the fifth time in six years. Muscat stole 548 bases, second-most in ALB history behind their own 576 from the prior season. Doha was a strong second in the division at 94-68, earning the first wild card. The Dash snapped a decade-long playoff drought.

The #2 seed was Mosul at 94-68 atop the Mesopotamia Division, leading the conference with 909 runs scored. The Muskies picked up a third straight division crown. Sulaymaniyah was second at 90-72, which nabbed them the second wild card and grew their playoff streak to four seasons. Dubai was the next closest in the wild card race at 85-77.

The Diamonds had allowed the fewest runs at 639, but under-performed their expected win/loss by nine. Dubai had posted a franchise-best 111 wins the prior year. Medina meanwhile rolled to the Arabia Division at 92-70, ten games ahead of Riyadh. It was a repeat division crown for the Mastodons and their fifth playoff trip in six years.

Earning Eastern Conference MVP was Doha LF Abdullah Nazerudeen in his third season starting. The 26-year old Yemeni righty led in RBI (141), total bases (426), slugging (.701), OPS (1.087), and wRC+ (181). Nazerudeen smacked 52 home runs with 38 doubles, 208 hits, 115 runs, .342 average, and 7.8 WAR. The Dash had taken Nazerudeen sixth overall in the 2025 ALB Draft.

Pitcher of the Year was Mecca’s Pete Doca in his second-year as a full-time starter. The 26-year old Italian lefty flamed out as a prospect in Europe, but was given a shot and developed by the Marksmen in 2024. Doca led in ERA (1.93), WHIP (0.80), and FIP- (62). His effort is one of only 23 qualifying ALB seasons with an ERA below two. Doca also had a 15-4 record in 181.2 innings, 270 strikeouts, and 6.3 WAR. After the season, Mecca inked him to a five-year, $42,500,000 extension.

Doha edged Sulaymaniyah 2-1 in the wild card round, but fell 2-1 in a valiant second round effort against Muscat. Medina swept Mosul on the other side, giving the Mastodons their third Eastern Conference Final trip since 2025. It was now three straight for the Threshers, although they hadn’t clashed yet in the finals. Muscat’s dynasty run continued, outlasting Medina 3-2 for a third straight pennant. The only other Eastern Conference three-peat previously was the Mastodons’ four straight from 1992-95.



Despite their three pennants, Muscat was still looking for their first Arab League Championship crown. The Threshers finally got it in 2030, winning the 41^st finale in a seven-game thriller with Cairo. Muscat is the first of the 2016 expansion teams to win it all and the 17^th of ALB’s 30 franchises with a ring. For the Pharaohs, they fell to 1-6 all-time in their finals trips.

Two-time conference MVP Ahmed Yasser Basha won finals MVP facing off against his hometown team. In 15 playoff starts, the 29-year old RF had 20 hits, 10 runs, 3 doubles, 4 home runs, 14 RBI, and 1.015 OPS. Basha also earned his eighth Gold Glove in 2030 and would sign a six-year, $210,900,000 extension with Muscat in December 2031.



Other notes: In seven playoff games for Medina, Mohammed Jamil set a playoff record with four triples. Giza stole 497 bases as a team, setting an Eastern Conference record. Damascus’s Kerlos Sharaf had a 34-hame hitting streak, three short of Abdul Jalil Dahir’s record of 37 from 2028.

Walid Bennani became the 16^th member of the 600 home run club and Malik Zouaoui became the 17^th. Zouaoui, Sami Sayed, and Omar Abdel Rahman all got to 1500 career RBI, a mark met by 21 ALB sluggers. Sayed and Lyes Adel became the 23^rd and 24^th to 2500 career hits. Osama Ahmed was the 13^th to score 1500 runs. RF Nathan Nasreddine won his 8^th consecutive Gold Glove.

ALB strikeout king Ahmed Hussain became the first ALB ace to 5000 career strikeouts. As of 2037, he is one of only 44 in world history in the 5k club. Hussain struggled in his last of 19 seasons with Basra, but would still pitch two more years with Casablanca. Hussain finished 2030 at 299 wins, primed to become ALB’s first 300 game winner. At this point, he was already the pitching WARlord and moved into the #1 spot for innings pitched at 4204.2. In other pitching notables, Mohammed Fattah became the 15^th to 200 wins and the 12^th to 3500 strikeouts.