[FuzzyRussianHat]

The Asian Baseball Federation’s 2039 Hall of Fame ballot didn’t have any inner-circle inductees, but three pitchers crossed the 66% induction threshold. SP Khairi Qaderi led this group with 76.0% in his debut. CL Raghid Yazdani finally made it in at 68.5% in his ninth ballot and SP/1B Saleh Naimatullah was a narrow first ballot nod at 66.8%.

Two returners were above 60% but short of induction with 3B Quraishi Lalak at 62.1% for his sixth ballot and LF Ramin Abilov with 60.1% on his seventh go. CL Yasar Khatter debuted at 58.7% and 3B Timur Tyan had 51.2% with his eighth ballot.



Three fell off the ballot after ten failed attempts, most notably 3B Eser Haspolatli who peaked with a 58.4% debut and ended at 45.4%. He was known as one of the best-ever defensive third basemen as one of 19 in world history with 14+ Gold Gloves. Only two AFB players have 14+ GGs and only two other 3B in the world have more than Haspolatli. He had a 20-year career mostly with Asgabat and won two Silver Sluggers with 2927 games, 2713 hits, 1355 runs, 436 doubles, 95 triples, 494 home runs, 1389 RBI, 568 walks, 2033 strikeouts, 565 steals, .260/.303/.462 slash, 129 wRC+, and 99.5 WAR.

Haspolatli is 5^th in games, 20^th in runs, 14^th in hits, 15^th in total bases (4821), 26^th in homers, 27^th in RBI, and 19^th in WAR among position players. However, he was never an offensive league leader and many voters felt he wasn’t a strong enough hitter to belong. His incredible defense and longevity wasn’t enough, although Haspolatli certainly has to be one of the more notable snubs you’ll find.

SP Dabir Arif lasted ten ballots, peaking at 40.1% in 2031 and ending with only 18.8%. He had a 20-year career, but was hurt by spending his final few seasons between MLB and CABA. In ABF, Arif had a 188-178 record, 2.99 ERA, 3277.1 innings, 3920 strikeouts, 711 walks, 111 ERA+, 88 FIP-, and 60.8 WAR. Longevity got him to 26^th in wins, 21^st in Ks, and 34^th in WAR for pitchers. However, Arif never was a Pitcher of the Year finalist and had limited black ink, banishing him to the Hall of Pretty Good.

A similar story was SP Aleksei Ahmadov, who debuted at 41.3% and finished at 7.5%. In an 18-year run, he had a 199-198 record, 3.13 ERA, 3601.2 innings, 3971 strikeouts, 102 ERA+, 90 FIP-, and 60.9 WAR. Ahmadov also was never a POTY finalist and almost never led the league. Neither had the dominance or prominence to get noticed against some of their more impressive peers.



Khairi Qaderi – Starting Pitcher – Dushanbe Dynamo – 76.0% First Ballot

Khairi Qaderi was a 6’3’’, 205 pound right-handed pitcher from Mahmud-e Raqi, Afghanistan; a city of 200,000 and the capital of Kapisa Province. Qaderi was the third Afghani added into ABF’s HOF. His raw stuff was incredible and he had above average movement, but “effectively wild” was an apt description of Qaderi. Still, he was able to thrive in spite of lackluster control.

Qaderi’s arsenal was three pitches; a 98-100 mph cutter, curveball, and changeup. Each was top shelf and he was a master at changing speeds, even if the pitches rarely ended up in the right spot. Qaderi’s stamina was below average relative to most ABF aces and earlier in his career he split time between starting and relief. He did manage to avoid major injuries in a 14-year career. Qaderi struggled with holding runners and defense. He was a bit dumb, but raw talent powered him to success.

Because of his control woes, many scouts were leery of Qaderi ahead of the 2018 ABF Draft. He was picked late in the second round, 58^th overall, by Dushanbe. Qaderi spent all of 2019 in developmental, then spent the next four years splitting time between starting and relief. He caught the tail-end of a decade-long playoff streak by the Dynamo and missed out on their pennants, as they had first round defeats from 2020-22.

Dushanbe fell into the middle-tier after that for the next five years with a lone playoff trip and one-and-done in 2025. Qaderi earned a full-time starting role in 2024 and had his best season, leading the East League in WAR (8.3), FIP- (57), wins (20-10), and strikeouts (356). He also had a career-best 2.52 ERA, finishing second in Pitcher of the Year voting.

Qaderi never matched that production in his later Dushanbe run with inconsistent results. The Dynamo gave him a four-year, $38,700,000 extension after the 2025 season. They fell towards the bottom of the standings by the end of the 2020s. Qaderi concurrently pitched in the World Baseball Championship with good results for his native Afghanistan. From 2021-33, he had a 2.90 ERA over 124 innings, 5-10 record, 187 strikeouts, 126 ERA+, 87 FIP-, and 2.8 WAR. 2030 was notably one of his weaker runs, but it was notable as Afghanistan’s first-ever division title.

With Dushanbe going nowhere and Qaderi in the last year of his deal, he was traded in July 2029 to Bishkek for two prospects. One was SS Khalid Amanzholov, who would win 2033 Rookie of the Year and later win two Gold Gloves for the Dynamo. Qaderi with Dushanbe had a 105-88 record, 3.28 ERA, 1680.1 innings, 2458 strikeouts, 558 walks, 16 complete games, 5 shutouts, 109 ERA+, 77 FIP-, and 38.7 WAR. His efforts over a decade were enough to get his #12 later retired by the Dynamo.

Qaderi was impressive to end the year for the Black Sox with a 1.39 ERA over 71.1 innings, 103 Ks, and 2.5 WAR. However, Bishkek missed the playoffs on a tiebreaker. A free agent for the first time at age 31, Qaderi moved to Iran on a four-year, $49,900,000 deal with Mashhad. The Mercury were on a nine-year playoff streak and had won West League pennants in 2025-26 with an ABF title in 2025.

Mashhad’s playoff streak continued with Qaderi with three division titles and 100+ win seasons in 2032-33. Unfortunately, this run coincided with Baku’s historic dynasty, as the Blackbirds won the ELCS from 2029-33 with four ABF titles. Qaderi accounted well for himself in the playoffs with a 2.69 ERA in 67 innings and 82 strikeouts, but Baku was untouchable at this point.

Qaderi was more consistent with Mashhad and took second in 2032’s POTY voting, leading the league with a 23-7 record and 28 quality starts. He had his second-best WAR of 7.5 that year and had 340, 340, and 341 strikeouts in his first three seasons. Qaderi finished with a 75-36 record, 3.17 ERA, 995 innings, 1317 strikeouts, 297 walks, 125 ERA+, 84 FIP-, and 21.4 WAR. His final season saw 4.7 WAR and 296 Ks, so he certainly could’ve kept going. However, Qaderi decided to retire after the 2033 campaign at age 35.

In total, Qaderi had a 185-127 record, 3.19 ERA, 2746.2 innings, 3878 strikeouts, 870 walks, 235/356 quality starts, 49 complete games, 11 shutouts, 116 ERA+, 79 FIP-, and 62.7 WAR. Qaderi ranks 29^th in wins, 40^th in innings, 23^rd in strikeouts, and 28^th in pitching WAR. His 12.71 K/9 is 14^th among pitchers with 1000+ career innings and his 6.99 H/9 is 82^nd.

Qaderi’s rate stats fit in with some of the lower-end Hall of Fame pitchers for the Asian Baseball Federation, but he did lack the Pitcher of the Year award. His accumulations weren’t overwhelming, but supporters argued he could’ve stuck around a few more years believably and reached those milestones. With no major standouts on the 2039 ballot, Qaderi’s resume popped out a bit more than the others. He received 76.0% for a first ballot nod to lead the three-man crew for 2039.