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FuzzyRussianHat · 08-24-2025, 05:30 AM

2034 was a strong three-player Hall of Fame class for the Oceania Baseball Association. All three were first ballot guys co-headlined by pitchers Colton Stark (99.4%) and Stef Page (96.7%). OF Stanley Yeo also made it firmly with 82.7%. Two returners came close to the 66% requirement with 3B Dale Harper at 61.8% on his sixth ballot and 1B R.W. Putnam at 60.9% for his fifth try. LF Samson Gould was also above 50%, specifically at 50.9% on his ninth attempt.

SP George Hudson fell off the ballot after ten tries, getting as close at 64.1% in 2027 before falling to a mere 17.3% at the end. He had a 15-year career with Guam and Perth and won the Oceania Championship in 2016-17 for the Golden Eagles. Hudson had a 189-204 record, 3.61 ERA, 3631.1 innings, 3362 strikeouts, 820 walks, 104 ERA+, 86 FIP-, and 71.9 WAR.

Hudson wasn’t a league leader or award winner generally and many traditionalist voters couldn’t get past the losing record. The ERA+ versus FIP- suggests he might have gotten some bad fielding luck, especially with some terrible Penguins teams early in his career. However, the numbers just weren’t impressive enough to keep Hudson from the Hall of Pretty Good.

CF Ashton Hughes lasted ten ballots, ending at only 4.5% and peaking at 25.7% in his debut. Hughes was a stellar defender who was one of only four players in world history with 13+ Gold Gloves in center field. He also ranks second in steals in OBA history (1346) and ranks 36^th in the world list as of 2037. Those skills made Hughes beloved in an 18-year career with Tahiti, who he helped win four OBA titles.

That said, Hughes simply wasn’t a very good batter. In 2620 games, he had a .249/.288/.365 slash, 86 wRC+, 61.2 WAR, 2566 hits, 1373 runs, 332 doubles, 178 triples, 166 home runs, 791 RBI, 512 walks, and 2167 strikeouts. Hughes also had an abysmal .463 OPS, 25 wRC+, and -0.8 WAR in his 51 playoff games. Exceptional defense and baserunning weren’t enough to cover up those flaws to the voters, but he was a fun and unique star of his era.

Two other guys fell off the ballot with under 5% on their ninth ballots. SP Ethan Juuderbiddil got to 32.5% and had a 208-182 record, 3.28 ERA, 3666 innings, 3148 strikeouts, 110 ERA+, 90 FIP-, and 67.0 WAR. He had good tenure, but wasn’t overwhelmingly dominant and was overlooked on mostly bad teams. P Adrian Haukena split between starting/relief and also had some years in MLB. In OBA, he had a 105-77 record, 118 saves, 3.02 ERA, 1349.2 innings, 1474 strikeouts, 120 ERA+, and 24.6 WAR. It was a respectable run, but definitely not Hall worthy although he debuted at 40.3%.

Colton Stark – Starting Pitcher – Port Moresby Mud Hens – 99.4% First Ballot

Colton Stark was a 6’0’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Adelaide, Australia. Stark had stellar control along with great stuff and movement in his prime. His fastball regularly his 99-101 mph, but his money pitch was a fantastic splitter. He had an extreme groundball tendency and regularly got harmless groundouts with the splitter. Stark also had a nice changeup and sinker, plus an okay curveball in the arsenal.

Stark’s main downside was low stamina compared to other OBA aces. Recurring back troubles also kept him from full loads a few times in the four-man rotation world of OBA. Stark had an excellent pickoff move and was great at holding runners, but his overall defense was weak. He was a true fan favorite with impressive loyalty and a stellar work ethic. Stark became absolutely beloved as one of the key figures of Port Moresby’s eventual dynasty run.

He left Australia for the Papuan capital on a developmental deal in January 2009. Stark took a long while to put it together, spending seven full years in their academy. He debuted in 2016 at age 23 with 40 okay innings. Stark saw 143.1 innings in 2017 with a bit more success, but he wasn’t an ace. He started to look like one as a full-timer in 2018, but bone chips in his elbow and a strained shoulder kept him out most of the second half.

Stark finally arrived as an ace in 2019 and was a Pitcher of the Year finalist for the first time in 2020, taking third. He signed a three-year, $20,680,000 extension in April 2020. At this point, Port Moresby had been mostly mediocre with a title drought back to 1985. They got back above .500 in 2022 as Stark won his first Pitcher of the Year, leading the Pacific League in wins (23-11), ERA (2.25), WHIP (0.93), FIP- (56), and WAR (10.9). That earned Stark the big extension the following March at $152 million over six years.

In 2023, Stark repeated as Pitcher of the Year by leading in wins (27-9), ERA (2.16), WHIP (0.91), K/BB (10.4), quality starts (34), FIP- (52), and WAR (12.3). This was his career best for WAR, quality starts, innings (304.2), and strikeouts. This also marked the start of the dynasty run for Port Moresby, who finished 102-60 to win the Pacific League title. They defeated Christchurch in the Oceania Championship with Stark winning both his starts with a 1.72 ERA and 15 Ks in 15.2 innings.

Stark continued to pitch great in the Baseball Grand Championship, although the Mud Hens finished 8-11. He had a 1.69 ERA over 37.1 innings with 49 Ks, 3-1 record, and 2.2 WAR. Stark won his third straight Pitcher of the Year in 2024 despite missing close to two months with a herniated disc and a bone spur in his elbow. He had another ERA title with a career best 1.94.

Port Moresby was 103-59 and beat Sydney to repeat as OBA champs. Stark was surprisingly poor in the series, going 1-2 with a 7.32 ERA over 19.2 innings. He was back to himself in the BGC with a 1.97 ERA over 32 innings with 47 strikeouts as the Mud Hens tied for eighth at 10-9.

Stark made it four straight Pitcher of the Year awards and ERA titles in 2025. He had a career best 27-3 record and led in ERA (2.29), WHIP (0.89), quality starts (29), FIP- (54), and WAR (10.6). Port Moresby again won the Pacific League but were denied the OBA title three-peat in a rematch with Sydney. Stark had a 2.57 ERA in his two starts over 14 innings.

Port Moresby had an all-time great team in 2026 at 119-43, returning to the top spot with a finals win over Christchurch. They were one of six teams at 12-7 in the BGC and were officially eighth once the tiebreakers were sorted. Stark was merely very good in the regular season, but was excellent in the finals with a 1.29 ERA over two wins and 14 innings. In the BGC, he had a 3.21 ERA over 33.2 innings with 42 strikeouts.

For his OBA playoff career, the poor 2024 hurt Stark’s final stats. He had a 3.55 ERA over 63.1 innings, 5-2 record, 67 strikeouts, 7 walks, 105 ERA+, 73 FIP-, and 1.8 WAR. In the Baseball Grand Championship, Stark had a 9-7 record, 3.02 ERA, 128 innings, 163 strikeouts, 29 walks, and 4.5 WAR. He also pitched from 2019-28 in the World Baseball Championship for Australia with a 2.41 ERA over 149.2 innings, 8-7 record, 196 strikeouts, and 5.6 WAR. Stark certainly earned a reputation as a big game pitcher.

Stark’s 2027 was looking more like his award-winning seasons, although he missed two months in the spring to a herniated disc and the final weeks to a strained oblique. Notably on August 17 against New Caledonia, Stark tossed OBA’s 17^th perfect game with 13 strikeouts. Port Moresby finished 106-56 for a fifth straight Pacific League title and beat Canberra to win their fourth OBA title in five years. Due to injury, Stark was out for the series. He was back by the BGC but struggled to a 6.12 ERA in 25 innings as the Mud Hens finished 6-13.

In 2028, Stark still looked effective with his stellar control, but his stuff was declining and his velocity had gone to regular triple-digits to a 96-98 mph peak. Port Moresby went 94-68, tying for third in the standings to end their title streak. Stark missed nearly two months in the summer to a herniated disc. Then in the final week of the season, he suffered a partially torn labrum.

Initially, the recovery time was 3-4 months and Stark was expected to be back for 2029. It wasn’t going to be with Port Moresby, who voided the team option year of his contract. In December, Stark suffered a setback in recovery and his doctors advised him to retire. He didn’t officially file the papers until winter 2029 at age 37. Port Moresby soon retired his #16 uniform for his critical role in the dynasty.

Stark finished with a 205-103 record, 2.56 ERA, 2855 innings, 3107 strikeouts, 405 walks, 283/391 quality starts, 49 complete games, 10 shutouts, 141 ERA+, 64 FIP-, and 92.2 WAR. As of 2037, Stark is 32^nd in wins, 62^nd in innings, 45^th in strikeouts, and 12^th in WAR among pitchers. His ERA is 42^nd among OBA pitchers with 1000+ innings. Stark’s 1.28 BB/9 ranks 31^st, his 9.79 K/9 is 79^th, and his .594 opponent’s OPS ranks 45^th. He’s also 46^th for opponent’s OBP (.258) and 52^nd for slugging (.336).

He didn’t quite have the longevity to reach the all-time best pitcher conversation with the likes of Akira Brady, Tarzan Rao, or Timothy Manglona. Stark is definitely right on the cusp of the inner-circle and probably clinches it when you consider accolades. Stark had four ERA titles, four Pitcher of the Year awards, and a starring role in a dynasty that won five pennants and four OBA titles. This got him a near unanimous 99.4% to lead a three-player 2034 Hall of Fame class for the Oceania Baseball Association.

08-24-2025, 05:30 AM	#2403
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,807	2034 OBA Hall of Fame (Part 1) 2034 was a strong three-player Hall of Fame class for the Oceania Baseball Association. All three were first ballot guys co-headlined by pitchers Colton Stark (99.4%) and Stef Page (96.7%). OF Stanley Yeo also made it firmly with 82.7%. Two returners came close to the 66% requirement with 3B Dale Harper at 61.8% on his sixth ballot and 1B R.W. Putnam at 60.9% for his fifth try. LF Samson Gould was also above 50%, specifically at 50.9% on his ninth attempt. SP George Hudson fell off the ballot after ten tries, getting as close at 64.1% in 2027 before falling to a mere 17.3% at the end. He had a 15-year career with Guam and Perth and won the Oceania Championship in 2016-17 for the Golden Eagles. Hudson had a 189-204 record, 3.61 ERA, 3631.1 innings, 3362 strikeouts, 820 walks, 104 ERA+, 86 FIP-, and 71.9 WAR. Hudson wasn’t a league leader or award winner generally and many traditionalist voters couldn’t get past the losing record. The ERA+ versus FIP- suggests he might have gotten some bad fielding luck, especially with some terrible Penguins teams early in his career. However, the numbers just weren’t impressive enough to keep Hudson from the Hall of Pretty Good. CF Ashton Hughes lasted ten ballots, ending at only 4.5% and peaking at 25.7% in his debut. Hughes was a stellar defender who was one of only four players in world history with 13+ Gold Gloves in center field. He also ranks second in steals in OBA history (1346) and ranks 36^th in the world list as of 2037. Those skills made Hughes beloved in an 18-year career with Tahiti, who he helped win four OBA titles. That said, Hughes simply wasn’t a very good batter. In 2620 games, he had a .249/.288/.365 slash, 86 wRC+, 61.2 WAR, 2566 hits, 1373 runs, 332 doubles, 178 triples, 166 home runs, 791 RBI, 512 walks, and 2167 strikeouts. Hughes also had an abysmal .463 OPS, 25 wRC+, and -0.8 WAR in his 51 playoff games. Exceptional defense and baserunning weren’t enough to cover up those flaws to the voters, but he was a fun and unique star of his era. Two other guys fell off the ballot with under 5% on their ninth ballots. SP Ethan Juuderbiddil got to 32.5% and had a 208-182 record, 3.28 ERA, 3666 innings, 3148 strikeouts, 110 ERA+, 90 FIP-, and 67.0 WAR. He had good tenure, but wasn’t overwhelmingly dominant and was overlooked on mostly bad teams. P Adrian Haukena split between starting/relief and also had some years in MLB. In OBA, he had a 105-77 record, 118 saves, 3.02 ERA, 1349.2 innings, 1474 strikeouts, 120 ERA+, and 24.6 WAR. It was a respectable run, but definitely not Hall worthy although he debuted at 40.3%. Colton Stark – Starting Pitcher – Port Moresby Mud Hens – 99.4% First Ballot Colton Stark was a 6’0’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Adelaide, Australia. Stark had stellar control along with great stuff and movement in his prime. His fastball regularly his 99-101 mph, but his money pitch was a fantastic splitter. He had an extreme groundball tendency and regularly got harmless groundouts with the splitter. Stark also had a nice changeup and sinker, plus an okay curveball in the arsenal. Stark’s main downside was low stamina compared to other OBA aces. Recurring back troubles also kept him from full loads a few times in the four-man rotation world of OBA. Stark had an excellent pickoff move and was great at holding runners, but his overall defense was weak. He was a true fan favorite with impressive loyalty and a stellar work ethic. Stark became absolutely beloved as one of the key figures of Port Moresby’s eventual dynasty run. He left Australia for the Papuan capital on a developmental deal in January 2009. Stark took a long while to put it together, spending seven full years in their academy. He debuted in 2016 at age 23 with 40 okay innings. Stark saw 143.1 innings in 2017 with a bit more success, but he wasn’t an ace. He started to look like one as a full-timer in 2018, but bone chips in his elbow and a strained shoulder kept him out most of the second half. Stark finally arrived as an ace in 2019 and was a Pitcher of the Year finalist for the first time in 2020, taking third. He signed a three-year, $20,680,000 extension in April 2020. At this point, Port Moresby had been mostly mediocre with a title drought back to 1985. They got back above .500 in 2022 as Stark won his first Pitcher of the Year, leading the Pacific League in wins (23-11), ERA (2.25), WHIP (0.93), FIP- (56), and WAR (10.9). That earned Stark the big extension the following March at $152 million over six years. In 2023, Stark repeated as Pitcher of the Year by leading in wins (27-9), ERA (2.16), WHIP (0.91), K/BB (10.4), quality starts (34), FIP- (52), and WAR (12.3). This was his career best for WAR, quality starts, innings (304.2), and strikeouts. This also marked the start of the dynasty run for Port Moresby, who finished 102-60 to win the Pacific League title. They defeated Christchurch in the Oceania Championship with Stark winning both his starts with a 1.72 ERA and 15 Ks in 15.2 innings. Stark continued to pitch great in the Baseball Grand Championship, although the Mud Hens finished 8-11. He had a 1.69 ERA over 37.1 innings with 49 Ks, 3-1 record, and 2.2 WAR. Stark won his third straight Pitcher of the Year in 2024 despite missing close to two months with a herniated disc and a bone spur in his elbow. He had another ERA title with a career best 1.94. Port Moresby was 103-59 and beat Sydney to repeat as OBA champs. Stark was surprisingly poor in the series, going 1-2 with a 7.32 ERA over 19.2 innings. He was back to himself in the BGC with a 1.97 ERA over 32 innings with 47 strikeouts as the Mud Hens tied for eighth at 10-9. Stark made it four straight Pitcher of the Year awards and ERA titles in 2025. He had a career best 27-3 record and led in ERA (2.29), WHIP (0.89), quality starts (29), FIP- (54), and WAR (10.6). Port Moresby again won the Pacific League but were denied the OBA title three-peat in a rematch with Sydney. Stark had a 2.57 ERA in his two starts over 14 innings. Port Moresby had an all-time great team in 2026 at 119-43, returning to the top spot with a finals win over Christchurch. They were one of six teams at 12-7 in the BGC and were officially eighth once the tiebreakers were sorted. Stark was merely very good in the regular season, but was excellent in the finals with a 1.29 ERA over two wins and 14 innings. In the BGC, he had a 3.21 ERA over 33.2 innings with 42 strikeouts. For his OBA playoff career, the poor 2024 hurt Stark’s final stats. He had a 3.55 ERA over 63.1 innings, 5-2 record, 67 strikeouts, 7 walks, 105 ERA+, 73 FIP-, and 1.8 WAR. In the Baseball Grand Championship, Stark had a 9-7 record, 3.02 ERA, 128 innings, 163 strikeouts, 29 walks, and 4.5 WAR. He also pitched from 2019-28 in the World Baseball Championship for Australia with a 2.41 ERA over 149.2 innings, 8-7 record, 196 strikeouts, and 5.6 WAR. Stark certainly earned a reputation as a big game pitcher. Stark’s 2027 was looking more like his award-winning seasons, although he missed two months in the spring to a herniated disc and the final weeks to a strained oblique. Notably on August 17 against New Caledonia, Stark tossed OBA’s 17^th perfect game with 13 strikeouts. Port Moresby finished 106-56 for a fifth straight Pacific League title and beat Canberra to win their fourth OBA title in five years. Due to injury, Stark was out for the series. He was back by the BGC but struggled to a 6.12 ERA in 25 innings as the Mud Hens finished 6-13. In 2028, Stark still looked effective with his stellar control, but his stuff was declining and his velocity had gone to regular triple-digits to a 96-98 mph peak. Port Moresby went 94-68, tying for third in the standings to end their title streak. Stark missed nearly two months in the summer to a herniated disc. Then in the final week of the season, he suffered a partially torn labrum. Initially, the recovery time was 3-4 months and Stark was expected to be back for 2029. It wasn’t going to be with Port Moresby, who voided the team option year of his contract. In December, Stark suffered a setback in recovery and his doctors advised him to retire. He didn’t officially file the papers until winter 2029 at age 37. Port Moresby soon retired his #16 uniform for his critical role in the dynasty. Stark finished with a 205-103 record, 2.56 ERA, 2855 innings, 3107 strikeouts, 405 walks, 283/391 quality starts, 49 complete games, 10 shutouts, 141 ERA+, 64 FIP-, and 92.2 WAR. As of 2037, Stark is 32^nd in wins, 62^nd in innings, 45^th in strikeouts, and 12^th in WAR among pitchers. His ERA is 42^nd among OBA pitchers with 1000+ innings. Stark’s 1.28 BB/9 ranks 31^st, his 9.79 K/9 is 79^th, and his .594 opponent’s OPS ranks 45^th. He’s also 46^th for opponent’s OBP (.258) and 52^nd for slugging (.336). He didn’t quite have the longevity to reach the all-time best pitcher conversation with the likes of Akira Brady, Tarzan Rao, or Timothy Manglona. Stark is definitely right on the cusp of the inner-circle and probably clinches it when you consider accolades. Stark had four ERA titles, four Pitcher of the Year awards, and a starring role in a dynasty that won five pennants and four OBA titles. This got him a near unanimous 99.4% to lead a three-player 2034 Hall of Fame class for the Oceania Baseball Association. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)