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2028 Regular Season
Western League Review
With a solid pitching staff led by Mark Fort (15-7, 2.27 ERA) and a batting lineup headlined by star 2B Jack Underwood (.299, 25 HR, 84 RBI), Kansas City cruised to their third consecutive division crown finishing with a 97-65 record well ahead of runners up Oklahoma City who despite owning the lowest scoring offense in the NABL managed to still win 76 games. Denver, even after their offseason spending and having a roster boasting the NABL’s premier player Dixon Bodean (.289, 36 HR, 101 RBI), only managed to win 66 games largely because their pitching was among the league’s worst (Gerald Helton, 7-14, 4.84 ERA was the pick of a poor bunch) while Minneapolis sleepwalked their way through a 63-99 season, the worst in franchise history.
In the Southwest division, Las Vegas returned to the top winning 102 games (the first 100-win season in team history), the key to the Gamblers success was the NABL’s #1 pitching staff headlined by Holden Willis (20-5, 2.31 ERA). Dallas, with RF Nick Richardson (.289, 36 HR, 103 RBI) and 1B Ron Gilfedder (.284, 37 HR, 92 RBI) leading their exciting offense, continued their climb to relevance finishing as runners up with a record of 87-75, their best return since 2019. Houston slipped back to third finishing 86-76 despite the best efforts of all world pitcher Marc Birstall (21-5, 1.56 ERA) and fellow starter David Cook (15-10, 2.46 ERA), Phoenix finished fourth with an 82-80 record while Austin’s off-season spending did not produce the desired results as they endured a disastrous 67-win campaign.
Seattle and San Diego once again battled to the wire for the Pacific division crown, the Pioneers (91-71) edging the Mariners (88-74) for the second year in a row. Both teams were built on pitching, Seattle could boast a stellar rotation featuring Matt Powell (13-5, 1.87 ERA), Daniel Werner (13-6, 2.24 ERA) and 23-year-old rising star Domingas Fidi (17-6, 2.65 ERA) while San Diego’s bullpen with the likes of Anthony Jacobs 13-7, 2.96 ERA in 69 games), Guilherme Malagueira (10-3, 3.02 ERA before injury ended his season) and swingman Clifford West (12-3, 2.88 ERA in 47 games) was among the NABL’s best. San Jose (79-83) were their nearest challengers climbing out of the cellar with new manager Dan Stone instilling a new found belief in the team after an impressive finish to the season, San Francisco once again struggled for consistency and ended their campaign with a 76-86 record, their ninth without a winning record. Los Angeles finished the season rock bottom with a 74-88 record and whilst the Raul Pena (14-7, 2.55 ERA) led pitching staff was solid, their offense was decidedly un-clutch, batting a league worst .206 with men in scoring position.
Final Standings
Midwest Division
Kansas City 97-65 *
Oklahoma City 76-86
Denver 66-96
Minneapolis 63-99
Southwest Division
Las Vegas 102-60 *
Dallas 87-75
Houston 86-76
Phoenix 82-80
Austin 67-95
Pacific Division
Seattle 91-71 *
San Diego 88-74 *
San Jose 79-83
Sanfrancisco 76-86
Los Angeles 74-88
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