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FuzzyRussianHat · 12-07-2025, 07:35 PM

The Eastern Conference was incredibly competitive with the five playoff teams only separated by six wins. Basra was by far the most dominant early on with a 62-30 record at the all-star break. The Bulldogs had a lackluster 34-36 mark in the second half, but the strong start still pushed them to the top seed at 96-66 atop the Mesopotamia Division. Basra was Arab League Baseball’s top scoring team with 932 runs and had the conference’s best run differential at +176 en route to a sixth successive division title.

The Gulf Division was the most competitive and required multiple tiebreaker games. Initially, it looked like it wouldn’t be close at all as at the all-star break, Doha was 57-36 and well ahead of both Muscat (46-44) and Bahrain (43-48). The Dash had a middling second half while the Threshers and the Blitz both climbed from their early holes. With two weeks left, Muscat had passed Doha for first place.

The final regular season series saw the Dash hosting the Threshers. The first two went to Muscat by 2-1 and 3-2 margins, but Doha closed out with 13-9 and 7-3 wins. Both teams were 92-70 after 162 games, setting up a winner-take-all fifth consecutive game as a tiebreaker.

Doha prevailed 6-4 to get the division title and the #2 seed, while Muscat was the first wild card. Both extended impressive playoff streaks with the Dash to nine straight years and the Threshers to 12. Because of Muscat mostly, this was only Doha’s second division crown of their streak. The Dash allowed the conference’s fewest runs at 672.

Meanwhile, Bahrain went 13-4 down the stretch to get to 89-73. This tied them with the Mesopotamia Division’s Sulaymaniyah for the second wild card. The Sultans had a strong 56-35 first half, but squandered their advantage on a 33-39 back end. Sulaymaniyah still got to host the tiebreaker game, but the Blitz were victorious 6-4. It was only the second-ever playoff trip for the 2016 expansion squad Bahrain, who won the conference title in 2026.

The defending Eastern Conference champ Mecca ended up as the #3 seed, repeating as Arabia Division champs at 91-71. The Marksmen extended their playoff streak to five seasons, while Medina’s five-year streak ended. The Mastodons and Riyadh tied for second place at 84-78. Mecca had a shot at the top seed until ending the season on a five-game losing streak, including a rough four-game sweep to 73-win Sanaa.

Eastern Conference MVP was a competitive race with Basra CF Kareem David winning with 14 first place votes and 335 points. Baghdad 1B Haidar Abdullah wasa close second with 11 first place votes and 294 points. Doha’s Khalid Luaibi had 4 first place nods and 259 points and Muscat’s Ahmed Yasser Basha got a first place nod as well. No one had a clear statistical edge, but David was the WARlord at 7.9.

The 30-year old Iraqi had 211 hits, 124 runs, 44 doubles, 11 triples, 31 homers, 114 RBI, 67 steals, a .353/.404/.619 slash, and 164 wRC+. David also provided 6.4 Zone Rating in center field, winning his seventh straight Silver Slugger in his eighth season. The Bulldogs signed him to an eight-year, $109,100,000 extension after the 2033 season, keeping him in Basra through 2041.

Pitcher of the Year was a two-man race with a historic result, as Mecca’s Moayad Hayel became the third in ALB history to win POTY and Reliever of the Year in the same season. Hayel had 18 first place votes and 141 points, edging out Basra’s Yaseen Al-Wajihuddin at 11 first place and 135 points. Al-Wajihuddin was the leader in wins and WAR among pitchers.

Hayel led in saves (40) and games (71) with a 1.86 ERA over 87 innings. The 31-year old Jordanian righty had a 9-6 record, 116 strikeouts, 241 ERA+, 48 FIP-, and 4.2 WAR. He worked his way back into the closer role after being used only 34.1 innings the prior year despite being healthy. The Marksmen gave Hayel a three-year, $17,700,000 extension in the spring.

Muscat ousted Bahrain 5-0 in the wild card round on a two-hit shutout by Hasan Hadzic. The Threshers carried the momentum with a 6-2 road win against Basra to start the second round. The Bulldogs rebounded with 8-1 and 6-4 wins to advance to the Eastern Conference Final for the fourth time in six years. Basra has been a conference finalist 23 times, more than any other ALB franchise.

Doha opened with a 6-3 win over Mecca, but the defending champ Marksmen exploded in a 10-5 second game. The finale saw Mecca score in the top of the ninth to force extras at 2-2. However in the tenth, Kouider Al Taweel got a leadoff single for Doha and eventually was knocked in by Ilias Germain on an infield single. The 3-2 result ended the Marksmen repeat bid and gave the Dash its first conference finals trip since 2032-33.

The last pennant for the Dash came in 2033 with an Eastern Conference Final over Basra. The Bulldogs certainly remembered and rolled to a sweep 6-4, 9-8, 7-5. Game two was the most dramatic with both teams scoring in the eighth and ninth, ultimately forcing extras. In the 11^th, Basra’s Ahmed Fayad ended it with a solo homer. The Bulldogs became nine-time conference champs (2004, 06, 08, 10, 11, 20, 25, 35, 38); second-most in all of ALB behind only Casablanca’s 10. SS Ahmad Fayad was series MVP, going 5-12 with 2 homers.

12-07-2025, 07:35 PM	#2606
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 3,438	2038 ALB Eastern Conference The Eastern Conference was incredibly competitive with the five playoff teams only separated by six wins. Basra was by far the most dominant early on with a 62-30 record at the all-star break. The Bulldogs had a lackluster 34-36 mark in the second half, but the strong start still pushed them to the top seed at 96-66 atop the Mesopotamia Division. Basra was Arab League Baseball’s top scoring team with 932 runs and had the conference’s best run differential at +176 en route to a sixth successive division title. The Gulf Division was the most competitive and required multiple tiebreaker games. Initially, it looked like it wouldn’t be close at all as at the all-star break, Doha was 57-36 and well ahead of both Muscat (46-44) and Bahrain (43-48). The Dash had a middling second half while the Threshers and the Blitz both climbed from their early holes. With two weeks left, Muscat had passed Doha for first place. The final regular season series saw the Dash hosting the Threshers. The first two went to Muscat by 2-1 and 3-2 margins, but Doha closed out with 13-9 and 7-3 wins. Both teams were 92-70 after 162 games, setting up a winner-take-all fifth consecutive game as a tiebreaker. Doha prevailed 6-4 to get the division title and the #2 seed, while Muscat was the first wild card. Both extended impressive playoff streaks with the Dash to nine straight years and the Threshers to 12. Because of Muscat mostly, this was only Doha’s second division crown of their streak. The Dash allowed the conference’s fewest runs at 672. Meanwhile, Bahrain went 13-4 down the stretch to get to 89-73. This tied them with the Mesopotamia Division’s Sulaymaniyah for the second wild card. The Sultans had a strong 56-35 first half, but squandered their advantage on a 33-39 back end. Sulaymaniyah still got to host the tiebreaker game, but the Blitz were victorious 6-4. It was only the second-ever playoff trip for the 2016 expansion squad Bahrain, who won the conference title in 2026. The defending Eastern Conference champ Mecca ended up as the #3 seed, repeating as Arabia Division champs at 91-71. The Marksmen extended their playoff streak to five seasons, while Medina’s five-year streak ended. The Mastodons and Riyadh tied for second place at 84-78. Mecca had a shot at the top seed until ending the season on a five-game losing streak, including a rough four-game sweep to 73-win Sanaa. Eastern Conference MVP was a competitive race with Basra CF Kareem David winning with 14 first place votes and 335 points. Baghdad 1B Haidar Abdullah wasa close second with 11 first place votes and 294 points. Doha’s Khalid Luaibi had 4 first place nods and 259 points and Muscat’s Ahmed Yasser Basha got a first place nod as well. No one had a clear statistical edge, but David was the WARlord at 7.9. The 30-year old Iraqi had 211 hits, 124 runs, 44 doubles, 11 triples, 31 homers, 114 RBI, 67 steals, a .353/.404/.619 slash, and 164 wRC+. David also provided 6.4 Zone Rating in center field, winning his seventh straight Silver Slugger in his eighth season. The Bulldogs signed him to an eight-year, $109,100,000 extension after the 2033 season, keeping him in Basra through 2041. Pitcher of the Year was a two-man race with a historic result, as Mecca’s Moayad Hayel became the third in ALB history to win POTY and Reliever of the Year in the same season. Hayel had 18 first place votes and 141 points, edging out Basra’s Yaseen Al-Wajihuddin at 11 first place and 135 points. Al-Wajihuddin was the leader in wins and WAR among pitchers. Hayel led in saves (40) and games (71) with a 1.86 ERA over 87 innings. The 31-year old Jordanian righty had a 9-6 record, 116 strikeouts, 241 ERA+, 48 FIP-, and 4.2 WAR. He worked his way back into the closer role after being used only 34.1 innings the prior year despite being healthy. The Marksmen gave Hayel a three-year, $17,700,000 extension in the spring. Muscat ousted Bahrain 5-0 in the wild card round on a two-hit shutout by Hasan Hadzic. The Threshers carried the momentum with a 6-2 road win against Basra to start the second round. The Bulldogs rebounded with 8-1 and 6-4 wins to advance to the Eastern Conference Final for the fourth time in six years. Basra has been a conference finalist 23 times, more than any other ALB franchise. Doha opened with a 6-3 win over Mecca, but the defending champ Marksmen exploded in a 10-5 second game. The finale saw Mecca score in the top of the ninth to force extras at 2-2. However in the tenth, Kouider Al Taweel got a leadoff single for Doha and eventually was knocked in by Ilias Germain on an infield single. The 3-2 result ended the Marksmen repeat bid and gave the Dash its first conference finals trip since 2032-33. The last pennant for the Dash came in 2033 with an Eastern Conference Final over Basra. The Bulldogs certainly remembered and rolled to a sweep 6-4, 9-8, 7-5. Game two was the most dramatic with both teams scoring in the eighth and ninth, ultimately forcing extras. In the 11^th, Basra’s Ahmed Fayad ended it with a solo homer. The Bulldogs became nine-time conference champs (2004, 06, 08, 10, 11, 20, 25, 35, 38); second-most in all of ALB behind only Casablanca’s 10. SS Ahmad Fayad was series MVP, going 5-12 with 2 homers. __________________ 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)