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FuzzyRussianHat · 08-10-2025, 11:59 AM

1B/3B Ermeyas Chekol stood alone for the African Association of Baseball’s 2033 Hall of Fame class, easily making it in at 95.3%. SP Valentine Hategekimana came painfully close to the 66% requirement on his ninth ballot, but just missed with a new high of 63.9%. 1B Lifa Moyo was the other guy above 50%, earning 55.7% with his seventh try. No one was dropped after ten failed ballots.

Ermeyas “Chicken” Chekol – First/Third Base – Johannesburg Jackalopes – 95.3% First Ballot

Ermeyas Chekol was a 6’3’’, 200 pound left-handed hitting corner infielder from the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa. As a kid, Chekol’s surname was often mispronounced (sometimes intentionally) as “Chicken,” which stuck as a career nickname. It became a term of endearment later on as Chekol was a very popular player. He had the respect of peers and fans alike with his talent, work ethic, and intelligence.

Chekol was an excellent contact hitter and was known for his fantastic speed and base stealing skills. He did grade as average at best in terms of drawing walks, but was better than most at avoiding strikeouts in AAB. Chekol’s gap power was good and his home run power was okay. His 162 game average got you 42 doubles, 13 triples, and 17 home runs. Once on base though, he was an absolute menace for pitchers, successfully stealing on about 77% of his tries. Chekol’s batting was basically equal against righties and lefties.

Defensively, Chekol made roughly 2/3 of his starts at first base and the rest over at third. He graded as a reliably good defender at 1B, but was subpar at 3B. Chekol held up pretty well physically over a 19-year career, although he did run into some notable injuries especially in his 30s. He drew attention from scouts early on as a teenager, including from as far away as South Africa. One of these scouts from Johannesburg signed Chekol to a developmental deal in January 2005.

Chekol spent the better part of five years in the Jackalopes academy, although he was a rare teenage debut in 2008 with 21 games and 1 start at age 19. He had 61 games and 13 starts in 2009, but was lousy and not ready yet. Chekol got the full-time gig in 2010 with merely decent results, but he was a solid starter from 2011 onward. Chekol won his first batting title with a .342 average in 2011 and led that year and the next in triples.

From 2011-15, Chekol won five consecutive Silver Sluggers. The first two came at 1B, while the next three were at 3B. Johannesburg was rebuilding to start the decade, but returned as a top Southern Conference power by 2013, which started a ten-year streak of winning seasons. The Jackalopes made it back to the playoffs and first in the standings in 2014, but got upset in the conference final by Harare.

In 2015, Chekol led the conference with 190 hits as Johannesburg tied their franchise best at 110-52. He finished third in MVP voting, his first time as a finalist. They rolled Lusaka for the conference pennant, but fell in the Africa Series to Brazzaville. Chekol was conference finals MVP and had easily his best playoff run with 21 hits, 14 runs, 7 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, 14 RBI, and 13 steals in 15 games.

Johannesburg qualified for the Baseball Grand Championship as the at-large and had the last laugh. The Jackalopes finished tied for first at 15-4 with Denver and earned the title via tiebreaker having beaten the Dragons 13-7 in their meeting. Johannesburg was the first African team to claim the top honor. Chekol was surprisingly poor in the event with -0.3 WAR and .574 OPS.

Apart from his 2015 run, Chekol’s career AAB playoff stats were underwhelming. In 59 games, he had 68 hits, 41 runs, 19 doubles, 5 triples, 9 homers, 44 RBI, 28 steals, .278/.313/.506 slash, 114 wRC+, and 1.4 WAR. Chekol also played from 2011-17 for Ethiopia in the World Baseball Championship with 72 games, 65 hits, 36 runs, 13 doubles, 10 homers, 27 RBI, 39 steals, .248/.312/.420 slash, and 1.8 WAR. He did have a solid run in 2013 as the Ethiopians finished third, their best-ever finish to that point.

Chekol surprisingly didn’t win awards in 2016 despite it being his finest season statistically by several measures. He led with a career best 131 runs and 122 steals while also leading in hits (202) and average (.331). This also saw his best WAR total of 8.0. Johannesburg repeated as Southern Conference champs at 106-56, but again lost the Africa Series to Brazzaville.

The Jackalopes fell one win short of the playoffs in 2017, but did notably give Chekol a seven-year, $79,600,000 extension in the winter. From 2016-19, he was the leader each year in runs scored. Chekol was third in 2018’s MVP voting, then got second in 2019 along with his sixth Silver Slugger. In 2019, Chekol led with career highs in batting average (.354) and OBP (.421). He had his bests for slugging (.598), OPS (1.020), wRC+ (187), and homers (27).

Johannesburg was back atop the Southern Conference standings from 2018-20. They beat Luanda for the 2018 pennant, but lost the Africa Series to 111-win Kampala. In 2019, the Landsharks got revenge in a conference finals rematch. The Jackalopes won their fourth pennant in six years with a 2020 victory over Dar es Salaam. However yet again, Johannesburg was unable to win the AAB title thanks to the Peacocks. They remained above .500 in 2021-22, but the playoff streak was done.

Chekol dealt with a high ankle sprain for part of 2020 and regressed significantly with .741 OPS and 103 wRC+, career worsts to that point. In the first game of 2021, he suffered a catastrophic torn PCL that knocked him out ten months. Chekol also lost close to two months in 2022 with a fractured hand. By this point, his production was merely decent when healthy.

Johannesburg went 74-88 in 2023, their first losing season since 2012. They then had a franchise-worst 54-108 mark in 2024, shockingly getting relegated after winning multiple pennants within the last decade. The Jackalopes escaped the African Second League after only one season by winning the 2025 pennant and taking runner-up in the A2L Championship.

That one year in A2L was Chekol’s final season with Johannesburg, playing 2253 games with 2573 hits, 1498 runs, 485 doubles, 137 triples, 314 home runs, 1145 RBI, 1312 steals, .305/.369/.507 slash, 131 wRC+, and 70.9 WAR. He remained very popular with Jackalopes fans for his role in winning four pennants in six years and saw his #10 uniform retired soon after.

Chekol joined Maputo in 2026 and was decent over 151 games with 172 hits, 108 runs, 41 doubles, 17 homers, 82 RBI, 77 steals, .298/.353/.485 slash, 107 wRC+, and 2.7 WAR. With the Piranhas, Chekol became the eighth AAB batter to 2500 career hits and the tenth to 1500 runs scored. He went to Mogadishu in 2027 with similar stats with 165 hits, 89 runs, 37 doubles, 16 homers, 72 RBI, 80 steals, .274/.333/.434 slash, 96 wRC+, and 1.7 WAR. He became the third in AAB to reach 1400+ stolen bases and ranks 28^th in world history for steals as of 2037.

Mogadishu had gotten promoted back to AAB’s First League in 2027 after two years in A2L. The Mighty Mice shocked the field in their return by winning the Africa Series over Dar es Salaam. Chekol finally got his AAB ring, although he stunk in the playoffs with .506 OPS, 21 wRC+, and -0.5 WAR. He fared little better in the BGC with .551 OPS, 59 wRC+, and -0.1 WAR as Mogadishu went 8-11. Chekol wanted to still play in 2028, but teams had little interest in an aged first baseman with little power. He retired that winter shortly after his 40^th birthday.

For his AAB career, Chekol had 2442 games, 2754 hits, 1591 runs, 521 doubles, 138 triples, 330 home runs, 1203 RBI, 808 walks, 1397 strikeouts, 1405 steals, .302/.365/.497 slash, 128 wRC+, and 73.0 WAR. As of 2037, Chekol ranks 13^th in games, 11^th in runs, 6^th in hits, 18^th in total bases (4541), 20^th in doubles (521), 4^th in triples, 37^th in RBI, 88^th in homers, 4^th in steals, 41^st in walks, and 17^th in WAR among position players. He is 41^st in batting average and 68^th in OBP among those with 3000+ plate appearances.

Chekol probably didn’t have enough awards or power to be considered an “inner-circle” level of Hall of Famer, especially with big bats expected at first base. But almost everyone agreed he earned a spot among the African Association of Baseball’s all-time greats. Chekol received 95.3% upon his debut ballot and was the lone inductee for AAB in 2033.

08-10-2025, 11:59 AM	#2376
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 3,460	2033 AAB Hall of Fame 1B/3B Ermeyas Chekol stood alone for the African Association of Baseball’s 2033 Hall of Fame class, easily making it in at 95.3%. SP Valentine Hategekimana came painfully close to the 66% requirement on his ninth ballot, but just missed with a new high of 63.9%. 1B Lifa Moyo was the other guy above 50%, earning 55.7% with his seventh try. No one was dropped after ten failed ballots. Ermeyas “Chicken” Chekol – First/Third Base – Johannesburg Jackalopes – 95.3% First Ballot Ermeyas Chekol was a 6’3’’, 200 pound left-handed hitting corner infielder from the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa. As a kid, Chekol’s surname was often mispronounced (sometimes intentionally) as “Chicken,” which stuck as a career nickname. It became a term of endearment later on as Chekol was a very popular player. He had the respect of peers and fans alike with his talent, work ethic, and intelligence. Chekol was an excellent contact hitter and was known for his fantastic speed and base stealing skills. He did grade as average at best in terms of drawing walks, but was better than most at avoiding strikeouts in AAB. Chekol’s gap power was good and his home run power was okay. His 162 game average got you 42 doubles, 13 triples, and 17 home runs. Once on base though, he was an absolute menace for pitchers, successfully stealing on about 77% of his tries. Chekol’s batting was basically equal against righties and lefties. Defensively, Chekol made roughly 2/3 of his starts at first base and the rest over at third. He graded as a reliably good defender at 1B, but was subpar at 3B. Chekol held up pretty well physically over a 19-year career, although he did run into some notable injuries especially in his 30s. He drew attention from scouts early on as a teenager, including from as far away as South Africa. One of these scouts from Johannesburg signed Chekol to a developmental deal in January 2005. Chekol spent the better part of five years in the Jackalopes academy, although he was a rare teenage debut in 2008 with 21 games and 1 start at age 19. He had 61 games and 13 starts in 2009, but was lousy and not ready yet. Chekol got the full-time gig in 2010 with merely decent results, but he was a solid starter from 2011 onward. Chekol won his first batting title with a .342 average in 2011 and led that year and the next in triples. From 2011-15, Chekol won five consecutive Silver Sluggers. The first two came at 1B, while the next three were at 3B. Johannesburg was rebuilding to start the decade, but returned as a top Southern Conference power by 2013, which started a ten-year streak of winning seasons. The Jackalopes made it back to the playoffs and first in the standings in 2014, but got upset in the conference final by Harare. In 2015, Chekol led the conference with 190 hits as Johannesburg tied their franchise best at 110-52. He finished third in MVP voting, his first time as a finalist. They rolled Lusaka for the conference pennant, but fell in the Africa Series to Brazzaville. Chekol was conference finals MVP and had easily his best playoff run with 21 hits, 14 runs, 7 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, 14 RBI, and 13 steals in 15 games. Johannesburg qualified for the Baseball Grand Championship as the at-large and had the last laugh. The Jackalopes finished tied for first at 15-4 with Denver and earned the title via tiebreaker having beaten the Dragons 13-7 in their meeting. Johannesburg was the first African team to claim the top honor. Chekol was surprisingly poor in the event with -0.3 WAR and .574 OPS. Apart from his 2015 run, Chekol’s career AAB playoff stats were underwhelming. In 59 games, he had 68 hits, 41 runs, 19 doubles, 5 triples, 9 homers, 44 RBI, 28 steals, .278/.313/.506 slash, 114 wRC+, and 1.4 WAR. Chekol also played from 2011-17 for Ethiopia in the World Baseball Championship with 72 games, 65 hits, 36 runs, 13 doubles, 10 homers, 27 RBI, 39 steals, .248/.312/.420 slash, and 1.8 WAR. He did have a solid run in 2013 as the Ethiopians finished third, their best-ever finish to that point. Chekol surprisingly didn’t win awards in 2016 despite it being his finest season statistically by several measures. He led with a career best 131 runs and 122 steals while also leading in hits (202) and average (.331). This also saw his best WAR total of 8.0. Johannesburg repeated as Southern Conference champs at 106-56, but again lost the Africa Series to Brazzaville. The Jackalopes fell one win short of the playoffs in 2017, but did notably give Chekol a seven-year, $79,600,000 extension in the winter. From 2016-19, he was the leader each year in runs scored. Chekol was third in 2018’s MVP voting, then got second in 2019 along with his sixth Silver Slugger. In 2019, Chekol led with career highs in batting average (.354) and OBP (.421). He had his bests for slugging (.598), OPS (1.020), wRC+ (187), and homers (27). Johannesburg was back atop the Southern Conference standings from 2018-20. They beat Luanda for the 2018 pennant, but lost the Africa Series to 111-win Kampala. In 2019, the Landsharks got revenge in a conference finals rematch. The Jackalopes won their fourth pennant in six years with a 2020 victory over Dar es Salaam. However yet again, Johannesburg was unable to win the AAB title thanks to the Peacocks. They remained above .500 in 2021-22, but the playoff streak was done. Chekol dealt with a high ankle sprain for part of 2020 and regressed significantly with .741 OPS and 103 wRC+, career worsts to that point. In the first game of 2021, he suffered a catastrophic torn PCL that knocked him out ten months. Chekol also lost close to two months in 2022 with a fractured hand. By this point, his production was merely decent when healthy. Johannesburg went 74-88 in 2023, their first losing season since 2012. They then had a franchise-worst 54-108 mark in 2024, shockingly getting relegated after winning multiple pennants within the last decade. The Jackalopes escaped the African Second League after only one season by winning the 2025 pennant and taking runner-up in the A2L Championship. That one year in A2L was Chekol’s final season with Johannesburg, playing 2253 games with 2573 hits, 1498 runs, 485 doubles, 137 triples, 314 home runs, 1145 RBI, 1312 steals, .305/.369/.507 slash, 131 wRC+, and 70.9 WAR. He remained very popular with Jackalopes fans for his role in winning four pennants in six years and saw his #10 uniform retired soon after. Chekol joined Maputo in 2026 and was decent over 151 games with 172 hits, 108 runs, 41 doubles, 17 homers, 82 RBI, 77 steals, .298/.353/.485 slash, 107 wRC+, and 2.7 WAR. With the Piranhas, Chekol became the eighth AAB batter to 2500 career hits and the tenth to 1500 runs scored. He went to Mogadishu in 2027 with similar stats with 165 hits, 89 runs, 37 doubles, 16 homers, 72 RBI, 80 steals, .274/.333/.434 slash, 96 wRC+, and 1.7 WAR. He became the third in AAB to reach 1400+ stolen bases and ranks 28^th in world history for steals as of 2037. Mogadishu had gotten promoted back to AAB’s First League in 2027 after two years in A2L. The Mighty Mice shocked the field in their return by winning the Africa Series over Dar es Salaam. Chekol finally got his AAB ring, although he stunk in the playoffs with .506 OPS, 21 wRC+, and -0.5 WAR. He fared little better in the BGC with .551 OPS, 59 wRC+, and -0.1 WAR as Mogadishu went 8-11. Chekol wanted to still play in 2028, but teams had little interest in an aged first baseman with little power. He retired that winter shortly after his 40^th birthday. For his AAB career, Chekol had 2442 games, 2754 hits, 1591 runs, 521 doubles, 138 triples, 330 home runs, 1203 RBI, 808 walks, 1397 strikeouts, 1405 steals, .302/.365/.497 slash, 128 wRC+, and 73.0 WAR. As of 2037, Chekol ranks 13^th in games, 11^th in runs, 6^th in hits, 18^th in total bases (4541), 20^th in doubles (521), 4^th in triples, 37^th in RBI, 88^th in homers, 4^th in steals, 41^st in walks, and 17^th in WAR among position players. He is 41^st in batting average and 68^th in OBP among those with 3000+ plate appearances. Chekol probably didn’t have enough awards or power to be considered an “inner-circle” level of Hall of Famer, especially with big bats expected at first base. But almost everyone agreed he earned a spot among the African Association of Baseball’s all-time greats. Chekol received 95.3% upon his debut ballot and was the lone inductee for AAB in 2033. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports The Level Playing Field: Alternate MLB History From 1884-Onward Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)