Baseball: The World's Game

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It had been just over 20 years for Austronesia Professional Baseball’s last expansions. The Taiwan-Philippine Association introduced Hsinchu and Cagayan de Oro in 2007, while 2008 saw Johor Bahru and Kuala Lumpur leave South Asia Baseball and join the Sundaland Association. The game had continued to grow in the region along with the population, leading officials to work on the next expansion plans.

The decision was made to add one team to each of APB’s existing leagues, which would give both associations’ two leagues with seven teams each. Joining the Taiwan League was the Chiayi City Hawks while the Philippine League picked up the Batangas Beach Bums. The Java Sea League added an Indonesian team with the Makassar Maroon Giants, while the Malacca League introduced the Malaysia-based Penang Possums.



The other big change that came with this was a playoff expansion. Previously, only the first place teams advanced to the best-of-seven association championship. Both second place finishers would now advance as well with a division round pitting one league’s #1 against the other league’s #2. The top seed would host all games of the best-of-five series and had a one game advantage. The first place team would only need to win two of four games to advance, while the second place team would need to win three.

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Taoyuan took the Taiwan League title for the first time since 2022 and had the Taiwan-Philippine Association’s top seed at 98-64. The Tsunami led Austronesia Professional Baseball with 649 runs, beating out Taichung by five games. The Toucans advanced to the expanded playoffs at 93-69, taking second by seven over last year’s TL winner Tainan. This ended what was the longest playoff drought in APB history at 41 seasons for Taichung dating back to 1987.

There was a shakeup in the Philippine League with reigning Austronesia Champion and four-time defending PL champ Cebu dethroned by Quezon. The Zombies won it at 95-67 for their first playoff berth and winning season since 2022. The Crows were a close second at 93-69 to keep their playoff streak intact, holding off 90-72 efforts by Cagayan de Oro and Davao. Cebu gave up the TPA’s fewest runs at 437.

While Hsinchu struggled to 74-88, Binh Tang continued to roll with his ninth Taiwan-Philippine Association MVP. “The King” became the ninth player across all of pro baseball history with 9+ MVPs and the first in APB. Tang also won his ninth Silver Slugger and sixth playing first base. The amazing thing was he was still only 29-years old.

The Vietnamese lefty led in doubles (39), home runs (43), total bases (373), slugging (.619), OPS (.992), wRC+ (206), and WAR (11.4). Tang also had 199 hits, 94 runs, 103 RBI, and a .330 average. He was only three average points and six RBI from another Triple Crown. It was the seventh time Tang led the TPA in WAR and the ninth time he had the best OPS. He reached the 2000 hit, 1000 RBI, and 1000 runs scored milestones in 2029.

Davao’s Jah Manorek won his second Pitcher of the Year award, having also won in 2025. He had found his footing again after dealing with a 2026 torn rotator cuff and 2027 partially torn labrum. The 25-year old Indonesian righty led in wins (25-3), strikeouts (374), and shutouts (7). Manorek had a 1.65 ERA over 261.2 innings, 175 ERA+, and 9.9 WAR. He finished second in ERA behind Tainan’s Yi-Hsiang Chang at 1.47. Sadly, more injuries meant Manorek wouldn’t pitch another full season again and he’d be out of the game after the 2033 season.

Both league champs advanced out of the new divisional round. Taoyuan survived 3-2 over Cebu to deny the Crows’ pennant five-peat bid, while Quezon topped Taichung 3-1. Both the Zombies and Tsunami last made the Taiwan-Philippine Association Championship in 2022, which Quezon won. Taoyuan got their revenge 4-1 to end a 20-year pennant drought. The Tsunami became nine-time TPA champs (1971, 1978, 1982, 1983, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2008, 2029), which was tied with Cebu and Zamboanga for the most.



Semarang narrowly took the Sundaland Association’s top seed, winning the Java Sea League at 91-71. This ended an 11-year playoff drought for the Sliders, who led all of APB with only 372 runs allowed. Jakarta took second at 85-77 and Bandung was third at 81-81. With the playoff expansion, the Jaguars were able to extend their playoff streak to five seasons.

The Malacca League had new blood at the top with Batam first at 90-72 and expansion Penang second at 88-74. The Blue Raiders ended a 29-year playoff drought and led the SA with 491 runs scored. The Possums joined CABA’s Guyana and SAB’s Da Nang as the only expansion teams in any pro league to earn a playoff spot in their debut season. Penang did it with impressive speed, setting a new APB team record for 487 stolen bases. Medan was a close third at 87-75, while reigning SA champ Johor Bahru fell to 78-84 to end their four-year run atop the Malacca League.

Pekanbaru was 80-82 despite repeat Sundaland Association MVP wins for LF James Yuwono. It was his fourth MVP, also winning in 2024 and 2025. The 30-year old Indonesian lefty led in runs (92), home runs (51), RBI (104), total bases (373), OBP (.382), slugging (.671), OPS (1.053), wRC+ (272), and WAR (12.7). Yuwono’s WAR was the fifth-best by an APB position player and his .309 average left him seven points shy of a Triple Crown. Yuwon earned his seventh Silver Slugger.

Medan lefty Pao-Huang Lin won Pitcher of the Year in his third season. The 22-year old from Taiwan led in ERA (1.19), WHIP (0.66), and FIP- (38). Lin only tossed 188.2 innings in a split starter/bullpen role, but had 300 strikeouts, 7.5 WAR, a 16-2 record, and 11 saves.

Both top seeds got first round sweeps with Batam over Jakarta and Semarang over Penang. The Sliders had home field advantage, but the Blue Raiders won the Sundaland Association 4-2 to end a 30-year pennant drought. Batam became six-time SA champs (1972, 1973, 1991, 1997, 1998, 2029).



The 65^th Austronesia Championship was the second finals encounter between Taoyuan and Batam, as the Tsunami had won over the Blue Raiders in 1997. 2029 had the same end result with Taoyuan winning 4-1 to become seven-time APB champs (1978, 1982, 1983, 1996, 1997, 2008, 2029). This was the most titles by a TPA team and was second in all of APB only behind Jakarta’s eight.

Rookie of the Year winner Chun-Hsiang Lin added finals MVP to his mantle as well. The 22-year old had also won a Gold Glove in left field in his debut season. In 14 playoff games, Lin had 20 hits, 12 runs, 4 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, 8 RBI, and 1.1 WAR. Taoyuan’s Muhammad Wahid set a bad playoff record with 16 walks, although he was still strong in the title run with a 1.45 ERA and 43 Ks over 31 innings.



Other notes: Jakarta’s Rahmadi Wahid became the first player in APB history with a seven hit game, going 7-9 against Johor Bahru on August 9. Through the 2029 season, a seven-hit game has happened only 18 times in all of pro baseball history. APB’s 52^nd perfect game came from Depok’s Muhammad Haziq Izzuddin on June 8 with 11 Ks against Jakarta. The 53^rd happened on July 30 by Batam’s Timotius Kabagaimu with 4 Ks facing Singapore.

In milestones, Nazer Fairusshi became the 29^th member of the 400 home run club and the 39^th to 1000 RBI. Yee Husin was the 36^th pitcher to 3500 strikeouts. Ming-Hsuan Deng was the 30^th to 1000 runs scored. C Yi-Hsiang Chang won his 12^th and final Silver Slugger, becoming the first in APB at any position with 12. 1B Robert Corrado and 3B Rory Suiza both won their 8^th Gold Glove.

Austronesia Professional Baseball remained a very low scoring league for the 2020, although it was very slightly up from the prior decade. The Taiwan-Philippine Association (with the DH) saw its league ERA go from 2.74 in the 2010s to 2.83 in the 2020s, while the Sundaland Association (sans DH) went from 2.50 to 2.53. The TPA’s batting average went from .222 to .223, while the SA actually dropped from .215 to .212. With Chinese League Baseball’s bump up, APB was firmly the lowest scoring of the world leagues for the 2020s.

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Reigning Oceania Champion Sydney repeated as Australasia League champ, winning their seventh pennant since 2018. The Snakes finished 98-64 and led the Oceania Baseball Association with 790 runs. It was their 15^th consecutive winning season, becoming a powerhouse after struggling in the 20^th Century.

Perth was second at 93-69 and Melbourne was third at 92-70. The Penguins ended a seven season run of losing campaigns. Canberra notably plunged to 66-96, their first losing season since 2021. Christchurch allowed the AL’s fewest runs at 595, but only scored 593 for a seventh place 77-85 finish.

In his 15^th season with Sydney, 2B Trey Cruz won his second Australasia League MVP. The 32-year old Guamanian had also won back in 2021. 2029 was Cruz’s 12^th Silver Slugger, becoming the third in OBA history to win 12+ Sluggers. Cruz led with 105 runs, 26 triples, 76 stolen bases, and 7.5 WAR. He added 193 hits, 30 doubles, 18 home runs, 94 RBI, and .930 OPS. Cruz also became the 26^th in OBA to reach 2500 career hits.

Christchurch ace Quinn Burry won his third Pitcher of the Year in four seasons. The 29-year old Australian righty led in wins (21-13), strikeouts (408), WHIP (0.90), quality starts (29), FIP- (65), and WAR (9.1). Burry had a 2.81 ERA over 301 innings with 135 ERA+. It was his fourth straight year as the AL strikeout leader, topping 400+ each time.



Port Moresby’s epic reign atop the Pacific League had ended in 2028 thanks to a 110-win effort by Honolulu. However, the Mud Hens reclaimed the throne in 2029 at 93-69 for their sixth pennant in seven years. Port Moresby became eight-time champs and led the PL with 743 runs scored. Fiji and Honolulu tied for second at 89-73 and Timor was fourth at 88-74. Vanuatu notably dropped to 74-88, their first losing season since 2013.

Pacific League MVP went to Port Moresby veteran LF Garia Sakail in his 12^th year on roster. The 32-year old hometown favorite led in hits (196), triples (23), RBI (117), total bases (385), average (.333), slugging (.655), wRC+ (188), and WAR (8.2). Those were all career bests by far, as was his 42 home runs, 101 runs scored, and 1.021 OPS. The Mud Hens gave Sakail a five-year, $153 million extension in the offseason thanks to this effort. He never matched this production again, but remained a respectable starter for his hometown squad.

In only his second season, Fiji lefty Clement Alu won Pitcher of the Year. The 25-year old Papuan led in quality starts (29), complete games (16), and shutouts (4). Alu had a 22-10 record, 2.87 ERA, 304.1 innings, 246 strikeouts, 127 ERA+, and 7.3 WAR. The Freedom had picked Alu sixth in the 2026 OBA Draft.



The 70^th Oceania Championship looked to be a rubber match in the finals rivalry between Sydney and Port Moresby. The Mud Hens won round one in 2024, followed by a Snakes win in 2025. Round three was a 4-1 Sydney win, giving the Snakes the repeat and their sixth OBA title (2018, 2019, 2022, 2025, 2028, 2029). 3B Colin Schindler repeated as finals MVP as the 27-year old hometown kid went 7-20 with 2 runs, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 1 homer, 5 RBI, and 3 steals.



Other notes: Canberra’s Jordy Vincent in the fall had a 35-game hitting streak, breaking the OBA record of 34 set in 2004 by Kiryl Savchuk. Vincent also became the 71^st player to 1000 career RBI. CF Pouvalu Manu won his 14^th Gold Glove and joined Beisbol Sudamerica’s Loury Nova as the only 14-time winners in center field across all of baseball history. Manu is the only 14-time winner in OBA at any spot and one of 16 at any position across all leagues.

The Oceania Baseball Association’s scoring in the 2020s was considered average when compared to the historical scale and against other world leagues. Stats stayed roughly the same as they were in the 2010s and 2000s. The Australasia League had more scoring with a 3.87 ERA and .258 batting average for the 2020s compared to a .251 average and 3.69 ERA in the Pacific League. The PL had a 3.80 ERA in 2025 specifically to set a new single-season high.

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The European League had repeat division winners with Gomel atop the North and Volgograd atop the South, both finishing 97-65. The defending EL champ Voyagers officially were the #1 seed by tiebreaker, although they only won the division by two games over 95-67 Samara. The Griffins’ division title came by only three games over 94-68 Moscow. The Steelers and Mules got the wild cards with Kazan (90-72) and Tel Aviv (87-75) the first teams out.

Volgograd led the EL in scoring with 657 runs and Gomel allowed the fewest at 483. For the Voyagers, they’ve made the playoffs nine out of ten seasons in the 2020s. Samara was a wild card for the third straight year and Moscow ended a three-year drought. Minsk, who had a three year playoff streak, plummeted to 68-94. St. Petersburg also notably dropped to 66-86 for their first losing campaign since 2019.

Krasnodar was a non-factor at 76-86, but they had the European League MVP with DH Anar Arzhanov. In his second year starting, the 25-year old Uzbek lefty led in WAR (8.2), runs (98), and total bases (368). Arzhanov had 191 hits, 32 doubles, 45 home runs, 94 RBI, and a .307/.364/.591 slash. He was living up to the billing for the Steamers, who got him with the #1 overall pick in the 2026 Eurasian Professional Baseball Draft.

Moscow’s Tagir Jumayev picked up Pitcher of the Year in his 11^th season on roster for the Mules. The 32-year old Azeri righty led in wins (19-4) and WHIP (0.82). Jumayev had a 1.82 ERA over 217 innings, 256 strikeouts, 172 ERA+, and 7.9 WAR. He missed the playoffs though to a ruptured disc in early September. Jamayev’s effort was strong enough to earn a five-year, $74,800,000 extension in May 2030 with Moscow.

Volgograd survived 3-2 over Moscow in the first round to keep their repeat hope intact. Samara upset Gomel 3-2 in a classic, giving the Steelers their second European League Championship Series trip in three years. Both Samara and Volgograd had come into EPB with the 2000 season, but the Steelers were still searching for their first pennant. The Voyagers denied Samara in a seven-game thriller, earning an impressive fifth title of the decade (2020, 22, 23, 28, 29).



The Asian League’s four playoff teams were separated by only two wins. Both division champs finished 92-70 with Nur-Sultan again atop the West and defending EPB champ Vladivostok atop the East. The Setters had the #1 seed by the tiebreaker and earned a third straight division title. Although the Shibas won it all last year, this was their first-ever division title.

Vladivostok had fierce competition in the East Division with Khabarovsk at 91-71 and Novosibirsk at 90-72, both securing wild cards. The Nitros ended the longest-active playoff drought in EPB at 32 seasons going back to 1996. The 2020 expansion Rockets picked up their first-ever playoff berth. Ufa at 85-77 was the first team out, followed by 82-80 Perm. The Shibas allowed the fewest runs in the AL at 487. Krasnoyarsk scored the most at 650, but also allowed the most at 658. The Cossacks struggled to 77-85, ending an 11-year playoff streak.

Nur-Sultan CF Khazbulat Dukhu won Asian League MVP in a rare win by a leadoff man. The 30-year old Russian nicknamed “Claw” led in hits (187), OBP (.395), and WAR (8.5). Dukhu had 72 runs, 31 doubles, 9 triples, 8 homers, 76 RBI, 66 stolen bases, .325 average, .846 OPS, and 155 wRC+. Dukhu is only the second non-pitcher to win MVP in EPB with fewer than 10 home runs, joining 2004 Hall of Famer Nikolay Denisov. The Setters had given Dukhu an eight-year, $72,400,000 extension back in November 2027.

In his Vladivostok debut, Nehor Pomerantz became a three-time Pitcher of the Year. It was his first in the Asian League, having won previously in the EL for Minsk in 2022 and 2027. Pomerantz had also won MVP with his 2022 effort. The 31-year old Israeli lefty was traded to the Shibas in the offseason for three prospects. Pomerantz led in strikeouts (331), shutouts (5), and FIP- (65). He had a 20-9 record, 2.40 ERA, 247.2 innings, 132 ERA+, and 7.7 WAR. Vladivostok would sign Pomerantz to a five-year, $105 million extension in September 2030.

Nur-Sultan outlasted Novosibirsk 3-2 and Vladivostok topped Khabarovsk 3-1 in the first round of the playoffs. This pitted the 2028 Asian League Championship Series winning Shibas against the 2027 winning Setters. The battle of the dogs went to Vladivostok 4-2 for the repeat.



The 75^th Eurasian Professional Baseball Championship was the first finals rematch since Moscow versus Yekaterinburg in 2006-07. Vladivostok won 4-2 over Volgograd in 2028, but the Voyagers got revenge 4-1 in 2029. It was Volgograd’s second EPB title, having also won in 2023. 2B Jan Cieslak was finals MVP in his second season, posting 22 hits, 12 runs,6 doubles, 1 homer, and 6 RBI over 17 playoff starts.



Other notes: Ivan Nikolin became the 15^th pitcher to 4500 career strikeouts. He pitched two more years and ended with 4962, retiring 8^th on the leaderboard. Nikolin also became the 61^st to 200 wins in 2029. Vitali Kolyayev became the 20^th closer to 300 saves. CF Robert Albrecht won his 8^th consecutive Gold Glove.

Timofei Averkin became the 31^st batter to 2500 hits. He won his 11^th Silver Slugger and 10^th in right field, becoming only the sixth at any position with 11+ Sluggers in EPB. Averkin, Timofei Kalinin, and Marat Kazimov also reached 400 home runs, making that club 76 players strong.

Eurasian Professional Baseball was one of the only world leagues to see scoring dip from the 2010s to the 2020s. The drop was slight, going from a 3.26 league ERA in the 2010s to around 3.15 in 2020s. The batting average went from around .245 to around .242. This put EPB into below average to low scoring on the historical scale and had them among the lower scoring leagues in the 2020s.

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2029 marked the beginning of an expanded European Baseball Federation Elite Tier with the conferences shifted into two 13-team divisions. Three teams were within two games of the top seed for the Northern Conference. Defending European Champion Hanover took the top spot at 108-54 to win the new East Division. Rotterdam at 106-56 was the West Division champ. Both extended lengthy playoff streaks with the Ravens mark growing to nine seasons and the Hitmen to seven.

Hanover needed historic offensive output to fend off 106-56 Kharkiv for the division crown. The Hitmen set new EBF team records for slugging percentage (.529), on-base percentage (.351). and triples (143). Hanover’s 955 runs scored were a Northern Conference best and behind only 1951 Madrid’s 958 runs for the EBF overall record. Their .306 batting average was second-best in EBF history behind Amsterdam’s .308 from 1986. Hanover also had 1715 hits, which ranked fourth in EBF’s annals.

As the first wild card, Kharkiv grew their playoff streak to six seasons. Antwerp was four behind Rotterdam in the West at 102-60, earning their first wild card since 2021. The Airedales allowed the NC’s fewest runs at 590. The remaining two wild cards came from the West with Manchester at 98-64 and Nantes at 96-66. The Crushers earned repeat playoff trips and the Trappers got their third straight.

The first teams out in the wild card race were Berlin (93-69), London (91-71), and Frankfurt (88-74). Other notables included Dublin at 73-89, posting back-to-back losing seasons for the first time since 2002-03. They were still plenty safe from relegation, which would now go to the worst team in each division. Helsinki was the clear last place in the East at 58-104, getting sent right back down after escaping the European Second League the prior year.

In the West, Amsterdam had the bottom slot at 55-107, finishing one worse than 56-106 Luxembourg. This was the first-ever demotion for the Anacondas, who had historically been one of EBF’s strongest franchises. They hadn’t lost 100+ games in a season since 1976 and had been a playoff regular earlier in the decade. One other note from the NC, Hamburg set a conference attendance record at 2,781,931 despite struggling to 67-95. The Hammers would’ve been relegated the prior year had the expansion not saved them.

Northern Conference MVP went to Hanover 1B Jacinto Calvillo, the 2026 Rookie of the Year. The 24-year old Spanish lefty led in the triple slash (.379/.446/.721), OPS (1.168), wRC+ (206), WAR (10.9), and RBI (151). Cavillo added 222 hits, 134 runs, 32 doubles, and 52 home runs. He finished only seven homers shy of a Triple Crown. The following winter, the Hitmen signed Calvillo to an eight-year, $216 million extension.

Manchester’s David Ruiz repeated as Pitcher of the Year, leading in both ERA (2.31) and FIP- (59). The 28-year old Spanish lefty had an 18-6 record, 225.2 innings, 257 strikeouts, 172 ERA+, and 7.9 WAR. Prior to the 2029 campaign, the Crushers gave Ruiz a four-year, $62 million extension.

Both wild card round matchups saw 2-0 sweeps with Manchester over Antwerp and Kharkiv over Nantes. The Killer Bees upset Rotterdam 3-2 in round two, while the Crushers shocked reigning champ Hanover 3-1. Kharkiv earned its second Northern Conference Championship trip in four years, while it was the first ever for Manchester.

In a seven game classic, Kharkiv outlasted Manchester to earn their third EBF pennant (2000, 2002, 2029). The Killer Bees had six overall when including their Eurasian Professional Baseball successes. Kharkiv also became the first Ukrainian team to make it to the European Championship since Kyiv’s 2006-08 run.



Defending Southern Conference champ Munich took the top seed at 103-59 to win the new West Division, giving the Mavericks their ninth consecutive division title. It was their tenth straight playoff berth as they led the SC with 794 runs scored. Munich had to fend of 100-62 Barcelona for first place, who allowed the fewest runs at 587. The Bengals earned their third straight playoff trip and had their first 100+ win season since 2011.

In 2028, Zagreb missed the playoffs for the only time in the decade. The Gulls were back in 2029 atop the East Division at 98-64. Next were Odesa (95-67) and Ljubljana (93-69), who both picked up wild cards for repeat playoff berths. The final wild card went to Zurich (89-73), who held off Madrid (87-75), Seville (86-76), Milan (85-77), Chisinau (84-78), Tirana (84-78), and Marseille (83-79). The Mountaineers got their 11^th playoff berth since 2016.

Vienna had the worst record in the conference at 59-103 and was relegated out of the East Division. Yerevan had been close at 62-100, but survived another year. Zaragoza meanwhile was the clear worst in the West at 60-102. It was the second demotion for the Vultures, who had made it back to the EBF Elite in 2027. The Valiants had only been back two years after their last E2L stint.

Munich veteran 1B Vince Corapi won Southern Conference MVP. The 34-year old Italian was in his sixth season for the Mavericks and led in hits (211) and RBI (127). Corapi had 110 runs, 35 doubles, 15 triples, 35 home runs, .350/.392/.633 slash, 189 wRC+, and 8.5 WAR. He inked a new three-year, $85,200,000 extension with Munich the following autumn.

Mavericks ace Nejc Novak repeated as Pitcher of the Year and became a four-time winner (2022, 24, 28, 29). He was only the eighth in EBF to win POTY 4+ times. The 33-year old Slovene righty led in wins (21-5) and WHIP (0.99). Novak posted a 2.80 ERA over 228.1 innings with 211 strikeouts, 138 ERA+, and 7.0 WAR. He had a late August shutout against Seville to become EBF’s 41^st pitcher with 200 wins. In the offseason, Novak committed further to Munich with a four-year, $106,400,000 extension.

Ljubljana swept Odesa and Barcelona edged Zurich 2-1 in the wild card round. Both division champs held in round two with Munich defeating the Juggernauts 3-1 and Zagreb besting Barcelona 3-1. This continued the Southern Conference Championship rivalry between the Gulls and Mavericks. Munich had beaten Zagreb in 2021, 2023, and 2026 en route to pennants.

The Gulls got the edge in 2027, their lone pennant of the decade to that point despite five conference finals trip. Zagreb not only got one back in 2029, but they surprisingly swept the defending Southern Conference champ. It was the fourth pennant for the Gulls (1960, 1975, 2027, 2029).



The 80^th European Championship featured two teams from Eastern Europe for the first time since Kyiv versus Bucharest in 2008. In a seven game classic, Kharkiv claimed the gold over Zagreb. It was the Killer Bees’ third EBF title (2000, 2002, 2029) and sixth overall crown when adding their 1980, 1998, and 1999 EPB wins.



Gulls LF Luka Muller was finals MVP in defeat, posting 25 hits, 11 runs, 2 doubles, 3 triples, 5 homers, 16 RBI, 8 steals, and 1.3 WAR over 15 playoff starts. That earned the 29-year old Frenchman a big payday in a contract year, as he left for Major League Baseball and signed a five-year, $151,300,000 deal with Charlotte.

Other notes: EBF’s 41^st perfect game came on March 30 from Veinna’s Thorleifur Gunnarsson with 8 strikeouts against Brno. The 42^nd perfect came on August 10 as Odesa’s Sid James fanned seven facing Yerevan. Notably, Tirana’s Jan Mulder also had a no hitter on 8/10, making it the third day in EBF history with multiple no-hitters along with 9/14/1971 and 5/1/1956. Despite their 71-91 finish, Skopje set a new EBF season attendance record with 2,964,553 tickets sold.

In milestones, Theofilos Psarras became the 14^th member of the 3000 hit club. Psarras won his 13^th Silver Slugger split between RF/LF, joining the legendary Harvey Coyle and Jacob Ronnberg as EBF’s only 13+ Slugger winners. 3B Stefanos Emmanoulidis won his 8^th Silver Slugger. Aleksandr Parts became the 27^th to reach 1500 runs scored and also won his 7^th Gold Glove at first base. Andrea Tonetti won his 8^th Gold Glove, splitting them evenly between 2B/SS. Edoardo Manni was the 60^th pitcher to get 3000 strikeouts.

Kharkiv’s Danut Alecsandrescu had a four home run game facing Madrid on July 26, the 19^th such game in EBF history. Alecsandrescu also did it the prior year, becoming only the fourth in all of pro baseball history to achieve multiple four home run games. Prior to 2029, only SAB legend Tirtha Upadhyaya (1997, 1998, 2005) and AAB’s Timeo Kahudi (1997, 2000) had done it. Earlier in 2029, MLB’s Khalaf bin Abdullah remarkably did it twice in the same season.

The European Baseball Federation’s scoring numbers remained mostly consistent overall with what they had been since the 1990s. The Northern Conference did see its highest-ever league ERA, going from 3.76 in the 2010s to 3.92 in the 2020s. However, the Southern Conference dropped from 3.82 to 3.80. Both graded as above average on the historical scale relative to other leagues. The conferences had a batting average around .261 for the 2020s to stay in essentially the same range.

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Baseball’s popularity in South America continued to go up at a seemingly exponential rate, leading Beisbol Sudamerica officials to plan the fourth expansion by the end of the 2020s. BSA’s previous expansions had come in 1974, 1987, and 2009. The 2029 plan kept the format of three divisions per league, but added a new team to each division. Thus, both leagues would have three divisions of seven teams for 42 total squads in South America.



The Bolivar League added the Maracay Misfits to the Venezuela Division. The Colombia-Ecuador Division finally got a second Ecuadoran team with the Bucaramanga Battalion. Meanwhile, the Peru-Bolivia Division welcomed its third Bolivian team with the Cochabamba Bashers.

Two new Brazilian teams entered the Southern Cone League with the Belem Blue Crabs for the North Division and the Curitiba Carnivores for the Southeast Division. The South Central Division introduced the Valparaiso Voodoo for a third Chilean team. BSA now had 11 Brazilian teams, five from Argentina, three from Chile, four from Peru, three from Bolivia, seven from Venezuela, five from Colombia, two from Ecuador, one from Uruguay, and one from Paraguay.



The playoff structure was unchanged with the three division champs and two wild cards advancing from each league. Seeding remained based on record and not based on position, meaning wild cards could be ranked higher than weaker division champs.

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Barranquilla’s playoff streak grew to eight years with their sixth Colombia-Ecuador Division title of the run. The Blues had the Bolivar League’s best record at 104-58, their sixth time above 100 wins in the decade. Barranquilla led the BL with 883 runs scored. The #2 seed was defending BL champ Lima at 95-67, atop the Peru-Bolivia Division for the third straight year.

Arequipa (92-70) and La Paz (90-72) both gave the Lobos chase, earning the two wild card spots. The Pump Jacks ended a 23-year playoff drought, while the Arrows ended a two-year skid. The first teams out came from Colombia with Medellin at 89-73 and Bogota at 87-75. The Bats allowed the Bolivar League’s fewest runs at 627.

Maracaibo claimed the last spot by winning the Venezuela Division at 88-74, ending a 12-year postseason drought. Caracas was second at 85-77, followed by Barquisimeto at 83-79. The Colts have posted 14 straight winning seasons, although this was only the third time in that run without a division crown. The Black Cats notably had their first winning season since 2016. Also of note was Bolivia’s Santa Cruz at 79-83, ending their five year playoff streak. It was the first losing season for the Crawfish since 2018.

Lima RF Marc Melgar repeated as Bolivar League MVP with one of the all-time great seasons. He had the first hitting Triple Crown in Beisbol Sudamerica since 2009 and only the 12^th ever. Melgar also set new BSA single-season records for slugging percentage (.811) and OPS (1.281). His .419 batting average nearly set the world record, behind only Francisco Magellan’s .420 from the 2010 BSA season. As of 2037, Melgar’s average remains the second-best qualifying single-season in world history while his OPS ranks 15^th, slugging is 23^rd, and OBP (.470) is 21^st. The OBP was the sixth-best within BSA.

On top of Melgar’s .420/.470/.811 slash, he led with 253 hits, 61 home runs, 143 RBI, 489 total bases, 219 wRC+, and 11.1 WAR. The 27-year old hometown hero’s hits were third-most in BSA history and his total bases were four short of Juan Suarez’s 493 from 2022. This also ranked as the 15^th-most total bases and 28^th most hits in world history as of 2037. Melgar also scored 131 runs with 29 doubles, 12 triples, and 75 stolen bases. The former #1 overall draft pick inked an eight-year, $160,500,000 extension with the Lobos prior to the 2029 campaign.

Barquisimeto’s Jorge Fred won Pitcher of the Year, leading in ERA (1.61) and FIP- (67). The 27-year old Venezuelan lefty had a 12-9 record, 196 innings, 177 strikeouts, 245 ERA+, and 6.1 WAR. Fred also was a two-way player who had an impressive 66 games in the outfield worth 3.7 WAR with a 1.008 OPS, 14 home runs, 87 hits, and 39 runs. He posted those stats despite being out from August 4 onward with a ruptured finger tendon. The Black Cats gave Fred a five-year, $58,100,000 extension after the 2030 season.

Maracaibo swept La Paz in the first round, then was ousted 3-1 by Barranquilla in the divisional series. The Blues earned their fifth trip to the Bolivar League Championship Series in six years. Arequipa upset Lima 3-1 on the other side to earn their first-ever BLCS trip. The upstart Arrows then shocked Barranquilla 4-1 in the BLCS to earn their first pennant. With that, every Bolivar League team had now won at least one pennant apart from the brand new expansion teams. Arequipa had entered BSA in 1987 along with Mendoza.

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Brasilia repeated as the Southern Cone League’s top seed and the North Division champ at 107-55. The Bearcats set a new league record with a team .495 slugging percentage and led with 813 runs scored. It was an eight game drop to the #2 seed Santiago, who claimed the South Central Division at 99-63. The Saints allowed the fewest runs at 528 and grew their playoff streak to 10 seasons. Since 2015, Santiago has missed the playoffs only once and has 11 division titles.

The closest division was the Southeast with Sao Paulo (94-68) edging out Rosario (93-69), and defending Copa Sudamerica champ Buenos Aires (92-70). The Padres extended their playoff streak to six years. The North Division meanwhile had Belo Horizonte at 93-69 and Manaus at 92-70. With that, the Robins and Hogs earned wild cards while the Atlantics and Magpies missed the cut. Rosario earned its second trip in three years and BH ended a four-year drought. Also notably was Concepcion at 82-80, only their third playoff miss since 2011.

Salta finished 84-78 and had the Southern Cone League MVP Antonio Coria. The 27-year old Argentinian LF led in hits (251), doubles (41), RBI (120), total bases (427), triple slash (.405/.430/.690), OPS (1.120), wRC+ (222), and WAR (9.8). With Coria and Melgar’s efforts, BSA has seen nine seasons with a qualifying hitter at or above .400. Coria added 109 runs, 15 triples, 35 homers and hit for the cycle in August. This was already the third cycle of his career, becoming the sixth in BSA history to achieve the feat thrice.

Although Concepcion missed the playoffs, they had reason for optimism with Luis Enrique De La Cruz winning both Pitcher of the Year and Rookie of the Year. He was picked 14^th overall in the 2026 BSA Draft and earned a full-time slot for 2029. De La Cruz led in ERA (2.12), innings (280), quality starts (29), and complete games (19). The 23-year old Chilean righty had a 17-10 record, 249 strikeouts, and 8.1 WAR.

Also notable was Buenos Aires’ Igor Vigil winning his fourth Reliever of the Year. He became the ninth in BSA history to win the award 4+ times with wins from 2024-26 with Porto Alegre. Vigil had been with Buenos Aires since a 2027 trade and in 2029 had 33 saves, 1.54 ERA, 133 strikeouts, 82 innings, and 4.0 WAR. He would try his hand at MLB in 2030 with Washington.

Belo Horizonte edged Rosario 2-1 in the first round, then upset Brasilia 3-1 in the divisional series. It was back-to-back one-and-dones for the Bearcats, while the Hogs secured their first trip to the Southern Cone Championship since 2001. Sao Paulo outlasted Santiago 3-2 on the other side, giving the Padres their fifth LCS trip in six years.

For the fourth straight appearance, Sao Paulo was ousted in the Southern Cone Championship. Belo Horizonte got the firm 4-1 victory to end a 37-year pennant drought for the Hogs. Belo Horizonte became six-time league champs (1939, 1948, 1950, 1952, 1991, 2029). The Hogs had lost their first Copa Sudamerica, but had won four straight since.



The 99^th Copa Sudamerica was an all-timer that wasn’t decided until the final pitch of game seven. The finale was an all-time pitcher’s duel with no score entering the ninth inning. On top of that, Belo Horizonte hadn’t even gotten a hit off Arequipa through eight innings. The Hogs only got one hit for the entire game, but it proved to be decisive and from an unlikely source.

35-year old catcher Junior Perdomo had joined Belo Horizonte in 2029 after 13 years with Caracas. He was known as a defense-first catcher and definitely wasn’t known as a home run hitter. For his entire 15-year career, Perdomo would hit only 51 dingers. However, in game seven of the 99^th Copa Sudamerica, Perdomo sent a solo shot over the fence for the 1-0 walk-off victory. It was one of only three career playoff homers for Perdomo.

With that, Belo Horizonte became five-time cup winners. Despite Brazilian teams making up a plurality in Beisbol Sudamerica, the Hogs were the only Brazilian team to claim the Cup in the 2020s. Two-time league MVP Paco Amorim had a big postseason for Arequipa, winning finals MVP in defeat and BLCS MVP. In 16 playoff starts, the 29-year old Brazilian 1B had 29 hits, 15 runs, 5 doubles, 7 home runs, 19 RBI, 1.478 OPS, and 2.0 WAR.



Other notes: BSA’s 51^st perfect game came on August 16 from Fortaleza’s Alex Pederneiras with six strikeouts against Montevideo. Expansion Curitiba had a rough debut at 52-110, setting new Southern Cone League all-time pitching worsts for team ERA (5.01), hits (1774), runs (871), earned runs (794), H/9 (11.19), and WHIP (1.517).

In milestones, Pablo Amor became the 26^th batter to 1500 career runs scored. Amor and Michael Escalante became the 37^th and 38^th to reach 1500 RBI. Benjamim Pinheiro and Jeffry Lucero were the 82^nd and 83^rd to 2500 hits. Pinheiro joined the 500 home run club along with Eddy Corunha, Emmanuel Angel, and Juan Rizo. This made the club 62 players strong. Corunha also won his 8^th Silver Slugger at shortstop. Agostino Cortez was the 69^th pitcher to 200 wins and Antonio Kercado became the 39^th to 300 saves. LF Feliz Zaldivar won his 7^th Gold Glove.

Beisbol Sudamerica’s scoring was similar in the 2020s to the prior three decades since instituting rule changes. BSA had been a low scoring league when it founded in the 1930s, but had been considered an above average scoring league since the 2000s.

With the DH, the Bolivar League had a 4.08 ERA for the 2020s while the Southern Cone League was at 3.67. However, the BL had a .278 batting average, the highest of any world league in the 2020s. The Southern Cone was at .266 for the decade. Although BSA had among the most hits of any league, the scoring wasn’t nearly as inflated as the African leagues were in the 2020s.

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The Japan League’s Central Division was incredibly top heavy with Kobe (109-53) outlasting Kyoto (101-61) for first place and the top seed. The Blaze allowed the league’s fewest runs (516) while the Kamikaze scored the most (729). Both wild cards came from the Central with defending JL champ Nagoya next at 94-68. Kobe’s playoff streak grew to seven years. Kyoto had their second berth in three years and the Nightowls had their third in four.

Niigata dominated the North Division at 97-65 for the #2 seed, growing their playoff streak to three. Tokyo (93-69) took the Capital Division over Saitama (88-74) to end a five-year playoff drought. Hiroshima was the only team above .500 in the West Division at 90-72 to grow their division title streak to four. Okayama was notably second at 81-81, becoming the first of the 2025 expansion teams to get to .500. Fukuoka was notable at 79-83, their first losing campaign since 2017.

Niigata RF Masanori Fukuoka won his third Japan League MVP in four years, although he didn’t replicate his record-setting 2028. Still, the 27-year old lefty led in runs (117), triples (23), home runs (53), RBI (129), total bases (404), slugging (.682), OPS (1.039), and wRC+ (194). Fukuoka added 182 hits, .307 average, and 9.2 WAR.

The Green Dragons also had Takehiro Nakajima repeat as Pitcher of the Year. The 30-year old lefty led in WAR (11.5), and quality starts (28). Nakajima had a 1.98 ERA over 268.2 innings, 17-6 record, 301 strikeouts, and 177 ERA+.

In the wild card round, Kyoto edged Hiroshima 2-1 and Tokyo topped Nagoya 2-0. The top seeds prevailed in the divisional series with Kobe outlasting the Kamikaze 3-2 and Niigata downing Tokyo 3-1. The Blaze got their second Japan League Championship Series berth in five years, while the Green Dragons made it three straight. Kobe was the favorite at 109-55, but Niigata crushed them with a road sweep. The Green Dragons won their second pennant in three years and their eighth overall (1990, 1991, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2027, 2029).



Busan was again the Korea League’s top seed with their sixth straight South Division title at 105-57. The Blue Jays playoff streak grew to ten seasons, standing alone as the longest streak in East Asia Baseball history. Busan allowed the fewest runs in the KL at 530. Over in the North Division, reigning EAB champ Goyang made it a division title three-peat at 98-64.

Next behind the Green Sox in the North were Suwon (95-67) and Incheon (91-71), taking the first two wild cards. The Snappers ended a seven-year playoff drought and the Inferno grew their streak to four. The third wild card narrowly went to Yongin (86-76) for their second berth in three years. Changwon (85-77), Pyongyang (83-79), and Seongnam (83-79) missed the cut. Ulsan notably fell to 75-87 to prevent a fourth straight playoff trip.

Hamhung led the KL with 800 runs, but struggled to 76-86 by allowing the most at 837. 1B Toichi Kimura again powered the Heat’s offense and repeated as Korea League MVP. The 24-year old lefty led in runs scored (121), home runs (66), total bases (440), slugging (.710), OPS (1.069), and wRC+ (190). Kimura added 201 hits, 39 doubles, 145 RBI, and 9.1 WAR. He was already living up to the eight-year, $167,600,000 extension he got the prior November.

Ulsan’s Jin-Yu Jun won his third Pitcher of the Year in four seasons. In only his fifth year with the Swallows, Jun led in strikeouts (326), K/BB (13.6), FIP- (42), and WAR (11.1). He had a 2.55 ERA, 11-13 record, and 150 ERA+ over 240 innings.

In March, Jun signed a world record seven-year, $385 million extension with Ulsan. The later years of the deal were set to pay Jun $58 million annually. The Swallows appreciated Jun, but quickly realized they couldn’t afford that monster deal. Ulsan traded Jun in the offseason to Kobe for two prospects.

Yongin swept Incheon in the wild card round and gave top seed Busan a challenge, although the Blue Jays escaped with a 3-2 divisional series win. Suwon swept Goyang on the other side, giving the Snappers their first Korea League Championship Series trip since 2009. It was the fifth of the decade for Busan, who earned their third title of the 2020s with a 4-2 win over Suwon. The Blue Jays now had 14 KL pennants, second only to Daegu’s 16.



Despite their record playoff streak, the EAB title had eluded Busan with a drought going back to 1971. The losing streak continued as Niigata won the 109^th East Asian Championship 4-1 over the Blue Jays. The Green Dragons won their second title in three years and fifth overall (1991, 2006, 2008, 2027, 2029). 1B Ichiro Kojo was finals MVP, posting 22 hits, 8 runs, 6 doubles, 1 triple, 1 homer, and 9 RBI over 13 playoff starts.



Other notes: Hiroshima’s offense struck out 976 times all season, a new Japan League team best. Ga-On Kwan became the 8^th reliever to earn 400 career saves. Shin-Nin Ikegami was the 48^th pitcher to 3500 career strikeouts and the 70^th to 200 wins. Both SS Jae-Won Park and RF Chae-Yun Choi won their 10^th consecutive Gold Glove. They are among 13 players in EAB history with 10+ Gold Glove wins.

East Asia Baseball’s scoring environment remained remarkably steady with similar totals in the 2020s as they’ve had since the 1950s. The Japan League (sans DH) had a 3.37 ERA and .246 average for the decade, while the Korea League (with DH) had a 3.76 ERA and .257 average. The JL graded as below average for scoring on the historical scale while the KL was merely average. While EAB’s scoring was a bit lower in its first few decades, it hadn’t seen the major jumps that some of the other world leagues had seen.

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The Central American Baseball Association surprised many by lowering their active roster size to only 22 players beginning with 2029. CABA had begun with 25, but lowered to 24 in 1973 and 23 in 1998. While teams had their reserve roster to keep inactive players, a 22-man active roster made every spot precious. While a few leagues had gone as low as 23, CABA was the only world league to try out a 22-man roster.



Defending Mexican League champ Leon took the South Division and the top seed at 104-58. It was the third consecutive division title for the Lions and grew their playoff streak to five seasons. Leon allowed the ML’s fewest runs at 484. The division was top heavy with Ecatepec (100-62) and Puebla (99-63) close behind. The rest of the division finished below .500, including Cancun who went from back-to-back playoff berths down to a last place 65-97.

As wild cards, the Explosion ended a six-year playoff drought and the Pumas snapped a three-year skid. Ecatepec was the top scoring team with 711 runs and since division champs didn’t get seeding preference, they the Explosion had the #2 seed and a bye. Tijuana won their third North Division title in four years at 95-67, but was the #4 seed.

The remaining two wild cards went to Culiacan (91-71) and Monterrey (87-75). The Cocks were the first of the 2025 expansion teams to make the playoffs. The Matadors earned their second berth in four years. San Luis Potosi (85-77) and Juarez (83-79) were the first teams out. Last year’s MLCS runner-up Mexicali notably dropped to 75-89 and 2027 league champ Guadalajara fell to 71-91. Leon was the only Mexican League team to make it back from the 2028 playoff field.

Monterrey LF Julio Ortega won Mexican League MVP in his first full-time season as a starter. The 22-year old lefty led in doubles (41), triple slash (.367/.425/.686), OPS (1.112), and wRC+ (231). Ortega had 8.7 WAR, 179 hits, 85 runs, 37 home runs, and 94 RBI. The Matadors had picked Ortega #6 in the 2025 CABA Draft. He suffered a fractured knee in 2030 and would be plagued with major injuries for much of his 20s.

Tijuana’s Richard Wright joined the legendary Junior Vergara as the only nine-time Pitcher of the Year winners in CABA history. Only three other pitchers in all of pro baseball history had won the honor 9+ times. All of Wrights wins came in the 2020s with his lone miss in 2023, despite still leading in ERA that year. In 2029, the 31-year old posted a 1.44 ERA for an unprecedented ninth ERA title.

Wright also led in strikeouts (376) and WAR (12.4) for the eighth time. The Jamaican lefty also led again in K/BB (12.1), shutouts (8), FIP- (34), and WHIP (0.74). Wright had a 19-4 record and 10 saves over 243 innings, missing a Triple Crown by two wins. His strikeout tally, WHIP, and WAR were career bests to that point, placing Wright second in MVP voting as well. In 2029, Wright became CABA’s 56^th pitcher with 200 wins, the 30^th with 3500 strikeouts, and the 9^th with 100+ WAR.

In the first round of the playoffs, Tijuana ousted Culiacan and Puebla topped Monterrey, both 2-0. Leon rolled Tijuana 3-0 to keep their repeat hope alive, while Ecatepec outlasted Puebla 3-2. The Explosion made the Mexican League Championship Series in 2022, but their most recent pennant was back in 2010. Ecatepec ended that 18-year drought and upset the defending champ Lions in a seven-game thriller. The Explosion became 15-time Mexican League champions, third most behind Monterrey and Juarez at 18 apiece.



Reigning CABA champ Honduras took the Caribbean League’s top seed at 107-55 atop the Central Division. It was their seventh consecutive playoff berth and third division title. Bahamas won the West Division and the #2 seed at 100-62 to grow the Buccaneers’ playoff streak to five. Trinidad took the East Division at 96-66, which was their first postseason berth or winning season since 2020. The Trail Blazers allowed the fewest runs at 524.

Salvador was 12 back in the Central at 95-67, but got the first wild card to end an 11-year playoff drought. Haiti was seven back in the West at 93-69 and got the second wild card and their third in-a-row. Guatemala at 89-73 got the final spot to extend their streak to nine years. Missing the cut were Puerto Rico (88-74), Curacao (87-75), Santiago (84-78), and Santo Domingo (84-78).

It was only the second playoff miss in eight years for the Dolphins, but they did post a winning season each year of the 2020s. The Sailfish led in scoring with 862 runs, but also allowed the most at 829. The Chaos were the first of the 2025 expansion teams in the Caribbean League with a winning season.

Salvador 1B Fernando Silva won his second MVP in three years. The 26-year old Guatemalan lefty led in runs (119), hits (223), home runs (55), RBI (147), and total bases (431). Silva had a .359/.384/.694 slash, falling only two points short of a Triple Crown. He also had 8.6 WAR and 188 wRC+. The Stallions eventually signed Silva to a seven-year, $244,100,000 extension in July 2031.

Bahamas ace Carlos Montes won his second Pitcher of the Year, having also taken it in 2026. The 28-year old Puerto Rican righty led in wins (20-8), ERA (2.20), FIP- (50), and WAR (10.0). Montes struck out 324 over 245.1 innings with 181 ERA+. He was 26 Ks shy of a Triple Crown behind Israel Montague’s 350 strikeouts. Prior to the 2029 campaign, the Buccaneers gave Montes a seven-year, $186,700,000 extension.

The first round saw Salvador over Haiti 2-0 and Guatemala over Trinidad 2-1. The Stallions stunned Bahamas 3-2 in the second round for their first Caribbean League Championship Series trip since their 2017 pennant. Reigning champ Honduras survived a five-game war with the Ghosts. The Horsemen successfully repeated with a 4-2 CLCS victory over Salvador, leading all teams as 19-time Caribbean champs.



The 119^th CABA Championship was the third time that Honduras and Ecatepec met in the finals. The Horsemen got a sweep in the first meeting in 2003, followed by a 4-3 Explosion win the following year. The rubber match was a 4-1 Ecatepec win in 2029, denying Honduras’ repeat hope. It was the seventh different champ in as many years for CABA.

Ecatepec ended an 18-year title drought and became nine-time CABA champs (1929, 31, 32, 43, 99, 2000, 04, 10, 29), tying with the Horsemen for the second-most. Only Mexico City has more with 11 rings. Finals MVP was RF Alfredo Escobedo, who only played 38 games in the regular season and started 16. The 25-year old started 17 playoff games with 15 hits, 8 runs, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 3 homers, and 9 RBI.



Other notes: Guadeloupe’s Cristiano Rizo had 37 triples, tying the CABA single-season record set by Iwan Valen in 2001 and Altificio Hernandez in 2029. Barbados struck out 1586 times as a team, setting a new Caribbean League worst. Voodoo Leyva was the 63^rd batter to 2500 hits. Ruben Cabrera became the 65^th member of the 500 home run club,

Quirino Brito became the 13^th pitcher to reach 4000 strikeouts and Angel Brea was the 31^st to 3500 Ks. Brea and Rodney Louis both got to 200 wins, making 56 pitchers to reach the mark in CABA through 2029. SS Ferdinand Varela won his 8^th Silver Slugger.

The Central American Baseball Association’s scoring environment stayed roughly in the same range in the 2020s as it has been since the 1990s. The Mexican League’s ERA went down slightly from 3.83 in the 2010s to 3.67 in the 2020s. The Caribbean League was higher as usual with the DH and actually went up from 3.96 to 4.01.

For batting averages, the ML dropped from .262 to .259, while the CL went up from .265 to .267. The Caribbean League graded as above average scoring on the historical scale and relative to other leagues in the 2020s, while the ML was in the average range.

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The reigning Baseball Grand Champion and National Association champ Ottawa repeated as the NA’s top seed at 104-58 atop the Northeast Division. The Elks allowed the fewest runs in Major League Baseball at 626 and grew their playoff streak to three seasons. Ottawa had a season attendance of 3,390,390, second-best in NA history behind their 3,431,240 from the prior year. Montreal was a strong second in the Northeast at 98-64 to earn the first wild card. The Maples picked up their fifth playoff trip in six years.

Tulsa took the #2 seed at 99-63, winning the Lower Midwest Division in the first-ever playoff berth for the 2021 expansion squad. The Tornado had a team .484 slugging percentage, setting a new National Association record. Indianapolis was a close second at 96-66 to earn the second wild card. The Racers grew their playoff streak to three seasons and led the NA with 860 runs.

The other division winners were Chicago (95-67) in the Upper Midwest and Washington (93-69) in the East. The Cubs picked up their ninth playoff berth of the 2020s and fourth straight, while the Admirals got their seventh berth of the decade. At 92-70, Omaha was just behind Chicago and Baltimore was just behind Washington. The Orioles won plenty of close games, setting a new MLB team record with 53 saves.

The Hawks, Orioles, and Kansas City each tied for the final wild card at 92-70, requiring a pair of tiebreaker games. Omaha defeated Baltimore, but was ousted by the Cougars to give the spot to KC. Kansas City ended an eight-year playoff drought. The next closest teams were both Cincinnati and Columbus at 88-74. Philadelphia, Halifax, and Cleveland were 2028 playoff teams that were just below .500 in 2029.

Chicago RF Milton Ramirez won National Association MVP with a record breaking campaign. The 28-year old Filipino lefty led in batting average, on-base percentage, and hits for the seventh time each. Ramirez’s .410 average broke the MLB record set two years prior of .405 by Hunter Morissey. He became the third in MLB history to bat above .400 and was one of only 10 across all of pro baseball history with a qualifying season above .410.

Ramirez also broke MLB’s hits record with 249, passing Sebastian Lunde’s 242 which had held since 1949. It was the fifth season in MLB history at or above 240 hits. Ramirez’s .460 OBP was the fourth-best in MLB to that point. He also led in stolen bases (63) and WAR (10.3) while adding 118 runs, 35 doubles, 19 triples, 16 home runs, 93 RBI, 1.069 OPS, and 195 wRC+. Ramirez also breached the 2000 hit and 1000 run career milestones in 2029, marks almost never reached by someone still in their 20s. He had debuted at age 19 in 2020 for the Cubs.

Wichita was a non-factor at 73-89, but they had the Pitcher of the Year John Ziocha in only his second season. The 22-year old Zimbabwean lefty led in ERA (1.86), WHIP (0.98), and quality starts (27). His ERA was the 22^nd-best qualifying season in MLB to that point. Ziocha also had 6.3 WAR over 242 innings, 185 strikeouts, 15-7 record, and 204 ERA+.

Also worth noting, Vic McCallister became only the fourth in MLB history to win Reliever of the Year four times. He won it in 2029 with Washington, having previously won in 2020, 2024, and 2025 with Memphis. McCallister was traded to DC in the summer of 2027. For 2029, he had a 1.76 ERA over 81.2 innings, 27 saves, 106 strikeouts, and 3.1 WAR. The 31-year old Louisianan would sign with Houston for 2030.

Indianapolis was the lone wild card to advance out of the first round, edging Chicago 3-2. Tulsa outlasted Kansas City 3-2 and Washington topped Montreal 3-1. The Racers took top seed Ottawa to the limit, but the Elks survived 3-2 in the second round. Ottawa advanced to the National Association Championship Series for the 18^th time in franchise history, second only to Philadelphia’s 22 trips.

The Tornado swept the Admirals 3-0 on the other side, becoming the first of the 2021 expansion teams to earn an association championship appearance. Tulsa gave the reigning Grand Champion a valiant fight, but Ottawa earned the repeat with a 4-2 victory. Canada’s capital won its 13^th National Association pennant (1924-25, 29, 38, 40, 56, 65, 75, 83, 86, 2003, 28-29)., also second only to the Phillies’ 14.



Three-time defending World Series champ San Diego was the American Association’s top seed for the third year in a row. It didn’t come easy with the AA’s seven playoff teams separated by only seven wins. Still, 99-63 earned the Seals another Southwest Division title and their sixth playoff trip in seven seasons. San Diego’s 638 runs allowed were the fewest in the AA. Oakland was second in the Southwest at 94-68, giving the Owls their third wild card in five years.

At 98-64, Nashville was the #2 seed atop the Southeast Division. The Knights earned their third division title in five years and fifth of the decade. Last year’s division champ Charlotte was a close second at 96-66, nabbing the first wild card. The Canaries grabbed their third playoff appearance in four years.

Seattle secured the Northwest Division for the seventh year running with a 95-67 finish. Anchorage was next at 92-70 to get the final wild card. It was the third wild card berth for the Avalanche since joining in the 2021 expansion. The weakest division winner was Houston at 94-68 atop the South Central. The Hornets picked up their sixth playoff trip in eight years. Houston by far led MLB in scoring with 967 runs.

Last year’s AACS runner-up Dallas was second to the Hornets at 89-73. The Dalmatians and San Francisco were also the first teams out in the wild card race at three games back on Anchorage. The next closest were Sacramento (88-74), San Antonio (86-76), Los Angeles (84-78), and Salt Lake City (84-78).

Although Oklahoma City was 77-85, their RF Neil Hollinger won his third American Association MVP. The 27-year old Canadian had also won in 2025 and 2027. Hollinger led in homers (62), total bases (418), slugging (.736), OPS (1.142), and wRC+ (192). He also had 195 hits, 125 runs, 33 doubles, 132 RBI, .343 average, and 8.4 WAR. Hollinger had one year left with OKC, then signed a seven-year, $248 million deal with Columbus.

Veteran righty Riley Morales won his second Pitcher of the Year in his third season with San Diego. The Shorewood, Minnesota native won his first way back in 2020 for Cincinnati. The 32-year old righty led in ERA (2.95), and quality starts (24). Morales also had a 19-10 record, 278 innings, 218 strikeouts, 147 ERA+, and 5.8 WAR. He had signed a six-year deal with the Seals and gave them three excellent seasons, but he would surprise many by opting out in the winter. Morales inked a new five-year, $195 million deal with Houston in the offseason.

Charlotte upset Houston in the first round 3-2 and was the only wild card to advance to round two. Seattle swept Oakland and Nashville swept Anchorage on the other side. The Canaries almost dethroned San Diego, but the Seals survived 3-2 to earn a fourth straight trip to the American Association Championship Series. On the other side, the Grizzlies edged the Knights 3-2.

It was yet another AACS battle between Seattle and San Diego. The Grizzlies had seen terrible luck with AACS losses from 2023-27. The 2023, 2026, and 2027 defeats had come to the Seals. San Diego also had a 2007 AACS victory against Seattle. The trends didn’t change in 2029 with the Seals winning 4-2 for the first four-peat in American Association history. The only other four-peat in MLB was Philadelphia’s epic seven-year reign atop the National Association from 1941-47.

San Diego won their fifth pennant in seven years, a feat only matched in AA history by Houston more than a century prior (six from 1905-12). The Seals now had an AA-best 14 pennants (1936, 55, 56, 58, 66, 67, 2007, 08, 10, 23, 26-29). As for Seattle, they were now 2-12 all-time in their AACS trips.
The 129^th World Series would be only the third-ever rematch from the prior year. Both previous ones came during Philadelphia’s seven straight trips in the 1940s, meeting Dallas in 1942-43 and Los Angeles in 1945-46. The Phillies had the only World Series four-peat ever from 1941-44; a feat San Diego was hoping to replicate. The 2028 battle had been a classic with the Seals surviving 4-3 over Ottawa. The Elks had arguably gotten the last laugh by winning the Baseball Grand Championship, which ended SD’s bid for a historic third straight BGC win.



Despite the anticipation for the rematch, the series was a dud as San Diego rolled to a sweep over Ottawa. Veteran 3B Artem Huseinov was finals MVP in his 17^th pro season and third with the Seals. He had made his biggest mark in Europe with Warsaw in the 2010s. The 37-year old Ukrainian in 15 playoff starts had 16 hits, 7 runs, 5 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs, and 6 RBI.



The Seals were the first 11-time World Series winner (1936, 55, 56, 58, 66, 2007, 10, 26, 27, 28, 29). The only teams in world history with 11+ overall titles in their league were Minsk (14 in EPB), Kano (12 in WAB), Ahmedabad (12 in SAB), and Mexico City (11 in CABA). Getting four straight is tough in any league, but doing it in the hypercompetitive world of 2020s MLB (and winning two Grand Championships) certainly has to place San Diego’s effort in the conversation for the best dynasty in pro baseball history.

This was also the capper for manager Dian Gesang, who retired with the win at age 71. The Indonesian had played only 77 total games in Austronesia Professional Baseball in the 1990s. Gesang’s managing career began with San Diego in 2022, but was an all-timer going 782-514 for a .603 win percentage, six playoff trips, five pennants, four World Series rings, and two Grand Championships. Gesang became the second MLB manager with four WS titles along with Eric Stockman, who led Houston from 1901-15.

Other notes: 2029 was the final year for MLB home run and RBI king Isaac Cox, struggling at age 42 to -0.3 WAR over 111 games with El Paso. Cox was able to finish with 7156 total bases, passing Stan Provost’s 6989 which had held since 1956. Cox retired with 929 homers and 2333 RBI, which as of 2037 ranks 17^th and 14^th among all players in pro baseball history.

Cox’s 2251 runs fell second on the MLB list to Provost’s 2348, but ranks 7^th on the world ranks as of 2037. Cox also got to 3607 hits, 7^th in MLB history and 36^th in the world. His 137.9 WAR sits 3rd among MLB position players and 9th among everybody. On the WAR board for all players ever in baseball history, Cox is 87^th as of 2037 and 6^th among American-born players.

One of those Americans ahead of him was pitcher Vincent Lepp, who also wrapped his career in 2029. He pitched one year for Calgary at age 40 with 3.8 WAR and a 4.64 ERA over 254 innings. Lepp retired with a 334-194 record, 2.87 ERA, 5085 innings, 4652 strikeouts, and 144.4 WAR.

On the MLB leaderboard, Lepp finished 4^th in wins, 11^th in innings, 4^th in strikeouts, and 1^st with 73 shutouts. He was 3^rd in WAR among MLB pitchers and 5^th among everyone. On the world leaderboard as of 2037, Lepp is 62^nd in WAR among all players ever, 17^th in wins, 23^rd in innings, and 11^th in shutouts.

Baseball’s all-time WARlord Harvey Coyle remained timeless in his third MLB season with Ottawa. The 42-year old English shortstop posted 6.4 WAR over 130 games to grow his world record WAR total to 233.5. Combined with his European Baseball Federation stats, Coyle now had 3615 hits, 2137 runs, 1083 home runs, and 2461 RBI. He had 32 homers in 2029, passing Nordine Soule (1073) for second on the world leaderboard.

Philadelphia’s Khalaf bin Abdullah twice hit four home runs in a game in 2029, doing it on May 13 against New York and June 17 against Brooklyn. To that point, only SAB legend Tirtha Upadhyaya (1997, 1998, 2005) and AAB’s Timeo Kahudi (1997, 2000) had done it multiple times in a career. EBF’s Danut Alecsandrescu joined this group with his second four homer game in July 2029. As of 2037, bin Abdullah is still the only player ever to smack four homers twice in the same season.

El Paso’s Harry Marx went 7-7 on July 12 against Houston, becoming the fifth in MLB history with a seven-hit game. Through the 2029 season, a seven-hit game has happened only 18 times in all of pro baseball history. El Paso finished 63-99 and had an all-time awful pitching staff. The Prairie Dogs set MLB all-time worsts in team ERA (5.98) and earned runs allowed (950). Their 1026 runs given up ranked second worst behind 1921 San Antonio at 1033. El Paso also had a 10.98 H/9, ranking third worst in MLB’s 129 year history.

MLB’s 34^th Perfect Game came on August 31 from Oakland’s Ronaldo Zellweger with six strikeouts against Las Vegas. In other pitching milestones, Adrian Coe, Austin Bradley, and Rowney Simpson all reached 3000 career strikeouts. 99 MLB aces have reached the mark.

Mike Rojas became the 39^th member of the 600 home run club. Mathis Vezina, Jan Rychtr, and Ben Conlee made the 500 home run club grow to 114 members. Rojas, Ric Ransom, Sam Harpster, and Fred Hynes reached 1500 career RBI, a mark met by 129 MLB sluggers. Peter Schon became the 119^th to 1500 runs scored. C Gavin Jacobs won his 7^th Silver Slugger.

Major League Baseball’s scoring was up in the 2020s from the prior three decades, but was more in-line to what it had been for most of its history prior. The National Association (sans DH) had its league ERA grow from 3.41 in the 2010s to 3.74 in the 2020s. The batting average went up from .240 to .251 for the decade. The American Association (with DH) had the ERA increase from 3.84 to 4.15 and batting average from .251 to .259.

Worth noting that the rule changes to increase scoring came mid-decade. Both set single-season highs for ERA with the AA at 4.46 in 2027 and NA at 4.07 in 2029. For the decade, the National Association graded as an average scoring league on the historical scale and the American Association was above average to high.

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The 2029 Baseball Grand Championship was the 20^th edition of the event and was hosted in Marseille, France. The defending Grand Champion Ottawa and the 2026-27 champ San Diego returned to the field representing MLB. The 2029 BGC also saw an expansion from 20 teams to 22 teams, meaning each squad would play 21 games.

Previously, the leagues with two auto-bids were MLB, CABA, EAB, BSA, and EBF. The other leagues would get one auto-bid, leaving one at-large spot going to the best runner-up from the one-bid leagues. The expansion made it so there were now three at-large spots.

For 2029, the auto-bids had CABA’s Ecatepec and Honduras, EAB’s Busan and Niigata, BSA’s Belo Horizonte and Arequipa, EBF’s Kharkiv and Zagreb, EPB’s Volgograd, OBA’s Sydney, APB’s Taoyuan, CLB’s Shenyang, WAB’s Dakar, SAB’s Delhi, ABF’s Baku, ALB’s Damascus, and AAB’s Brazzaville. Getting the at-large spots were AAB’s Cape Town, ALB’s Muscat, and SAB’s Mandalay.

The 2029 event was one of the most competitive to date with three teams tied for first at 14-7. Three others were only one back at 13-8 and another three teams went 12-9. At the top was reigning champ Ottawa, Kharkiv, and Cape Town. The Cowboys had defeated Ottawa 4-3 on November 7 and topped Kharkiv 9-2 on November 16, giving Cape Town the tiebreaker for the #1 spot.



Cape Town was the second African Association of Baseball team to win, joining Johannesburg from 2015. Like the Jackalopes, the Cowboys did it as an at-large team. This also made South Africa the second country to have multiple Grand Champions along with the United States. Cape Town only had a +12 run differential, but got by on winning low scoring games. Their pitching staff set an event record with 5.26 hits per nine innings. Cowboys ace Bekele Ayalew led the staff with 1.9 WAR, posting a 1.43 ERA and 47 Ks over 37.2 innings.



Kharkiv had defeated Ottawa 5-4 on 11/5, giving the Killer Bees second place and the Elks third. For back-to-back seasons, an EBF team took second place. Kharkiv was the top scoring team with 115 runs, although Ottawa narrowly had a better run differential (+39 versus +38). The Killer Bees’ mark was the second-most runs in BGC history behind Lusaka’s 116 from 2025. The Elks allowed the fewest runs in the event at 62.

Arequipa, Muscat, and Sydney were each at 13-8 with the tiebreakers placing the Snakes fourth, Arrows fifth, and Threshers sixth. Sydney earned repeat top four finishes, having gotten third in 2028. Of the 12-9 teams, the tiebreakers placed Baku seventh, Honduras eighth, and San Diego ninth. Rounding off the teams with winning records were Damascus and Niigata at 11-10.

Five teams finished 10-11; Belo Horizonte, Mandalay, Shenyang, Taoyuan, and Volgograd. Ecatepec was alone in 17^th at 9-12 and Delhi was 18^th at 8-13. Busan and Zagreb both were 7-14, Dakar was 6-15, and Brazzaville brought up the rear at 5-16.

Taking Tournament MVP was Taoyuan’s Wei-Yin Wang, the 2026 Taiwan-Philippine Association MVP. The 29-year old Taiwanese first baseman had 18 hits, 16 runs, 4 doubles, 8 home runs, 16 RBI, and 0.9 WAR. He was a somewhat odd choice considering there were others with seemingly more impressive statistics.

Among them was Kharkiv’s Yevgeni Gromov, who tied the BGC record for runs scored with 22. He also tied the record for WAR by a position player with 2.31, previously hit by Mike Rojas in 2020. Gromov and Baku’s Artyom Masharipov both had 15 home runs, a mark only hit previously by five others. Masharipov also had 29 RBI, tied for the second-most in BGC history.

Best Pitcher went to Ottawa’s Mbongeni Smith, a 31-year old South African who came to the Elks in 2029 after eight years with AAB’s Kinshasa. Smith was 3-0 in four starts with a 0.76 ERA over 23.2 innings, 29 strikeouts, and 1.2 WAR. The two extra games allowed Sydney’s Max Forrester to set a record for innings with 51.1. Muscat’s Younis Nouri struck out 64 batters, tying the mark set by Israel Montague in 2025. Relievers Ju-Hwan Kang and Jong-Hwan Park set the record with 14 appearances each.

Other notes: BGC’s 11^th no-hitter came from Mandalay’s Zahir Saleem on November 19 with 14 strikeouts and three walks against Busan. Shenyang’s pitching set a record with 1.65 BB/9.

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Major League Baseball’s 2030 Hall of Fame class had three first ballot selections, co-headlined by former Omaha stars IF Graham Gregor (98.8%) and LF/DH Killian Fruechte (98.4%). SP Sunny Williams joined them at a rock solid 77.8%. CL Tyler Sattler was the best returner at 63.0% on his second ballot, just missing the 66% requirement. Fellow CL Etzel Urban got 60.7% for his third try. Also above 50% was C Dominick Hennessy with 57.2% for his second ballot, LF Lorenzen Campbell at 54.1% in his second attempt, and CL Stevie Ray Thornton debuting at 52.5%.



Dropped after ten failed ballots was OF Errol Jordan, who had a 16-year career between Cincinnati and San Diego. He peaked at 39.2% in his penultimate ballot before ending at a low of 13.2%. Jordan was a master at drawing walks, leading the league seven times and eight times in OBP. He had 2443 hits, 1410 runs, 343 doubles, 183 triples, 128 home runs, 841 RBI, 1574 walks, 717 strikeouts, 719 steals, .305/.419/.442 slash, 150 wRC+, and 66.6 WAR.

As of 2037, Jordan ranks 11^th in walks and 4^th in OBP among qualifying players, but it was always tough for leadoff guys to get noticed with voters loving power stats. Jordan was also a terrible fielder and didn’t have any Silver Sluggers. Still, he was one of MLB’s better leadoff guys and a big part of San Diego’s playoff success, including winning World Series MVP in 2007.

SP Archer Calloway fell off the ballot, debuting at 21.9% and ending with only 5.1%. He had a 14-year career almost exclusively with Austin and won Pitcher of the Year in both 2006 and 2011. Big injuries ultimately limited his longevity, finishing with a 169-118 record, 3.23 ERA, 2637 innings, 2439 strikeouts, 608 walks, 118 ERA+, and 59.1 WAR. Calloway needed a few more years to get the accumulations up and was perhaps overlooked being on some weaker Amigos teams. Still, few guys can say they won POTY twice.



Graham “Handyman” Gregor – Infield – Omaha Hawks – 98.8% First Ballot

Graham Gregor was a 6’2’’, 200 pound right-handed infielder from Grand Forks, North Dakota; the state’s third-largest city with around 59,000 inhabitants. Gregor became best known for his remarkable longevity, playing 25 seasons and remaining a strong contributor into his 40s. He played for seven teams in his lengthy run and became beloved by the fans at each stop. The nickname “Handyman” came from his steady contributions.

Gregor was a five-star rated player in his prime and was a fantastic contact hitter against both sides. He also had a rock solid eye for drawing walks and avoiding strikeouts. Gregor had reliable power in his bat with 35 home runs, 25 doubles, and 8 triples across his 162 game average. His power was never league leading, but he still smacked 40+ home runs in four seasons. Gregor also graded as a reliably average baserunner.

Defensively, Gregor bounced around the infield throughout his career and could go wherever needed. About half of his starts came at third base, where he graded as below average but passable. Gregor started around 30% of his games at first and was excellent there, winning two Gold Gloves. He also played some second base, but struggled in that spot. That versatility though helped prolong Gregor’s career despite dealing with recurring back and knee troubles.

Gregor attended Arizona State, playing 146 games in three years with 168 hits, 102 runs, 24 doubles, 41 home runs, 99 RBI, 64 walks, .302/.381/.577 slash, and 8.1 WAR. He won a Silver Slugger as a sophomore and was third in NCAA MVP voting. Gregor was a hot prospect for the 1999 MLB Draft and was picked #3 overall by Omaha. He was a full-time starter and a stud right away, winning 2000 Rookie of the Year.

In 2011, Gregor won his first Silver Slugger and Gold Glove at first base and took second in MVP voting, leading the National Association with 213 hits. He also had 9.6 WAR, 106 runs, 43 home runs, and 1.018 OPS. It was one of four seasons with an OPS above one and one of three with 100+ runs scored. Gregor won his second Slugger in 2003 at third base and his second Gold Glove at 1B in 2007.

Gregor’s stats were impressive, but not jaw dropping. It was also hard to earn attention as Omaha was a bottom-tier franchise during his tenure, averaging 73.3 wins per season. Gregor committed after the 2004 season to the Hawks with an eight-year, $79 million extension. 2005 would be his lone setback in Omaha as a torn meniscus knocked him out nearly the entire season.

In January 2005, Gregor had one of his career highlights as MVP of the World Baseball Championship for the United States, who swept Italy in the finale. For the event, Gregor had 22 starts, 28 hits, 19 runs, 6 doubles, 10 home runs, 27 RBI, 1.158 OPS, and 1.8 WAR. His run with the American squad helped make Gregor a beloved superstar nationwide despite starting in the small market of Omaha.

Gregor was also second in 2007’s WBC MVP voting and helped lead the US to world titles in 2003, 05, 07, 08, 10, 11, and 14. He played 229 WBC games from 2002-14 and posted 252 hits, 159 runs, 32 doubles, 6 triples, 67 home runs, 179 RBI, 100 walks, .283/.370/.558 slash, and 9.8 WAR. As of 2037, Gregor ranks 14^th in hits, 17^th in runs, 32^nd in homers, 12^th in RBI, and 43^rd in WAR among position players in the WBC.

With the arrival of Gregor’s Hall of Fame classmate Killian Fruechte, Omaha seemed to possibly be on the way up. In 2008, the Hawks were 82-80, their first winning season since 1992. To their disappointment though, Gregor opted out of his contract that winter, becoming a free agent for the first time at age 29. Certainly fans were sad to see him go, but he remained a beloved figure for years to come across Nebraska.

For Omaha, Gregor had 1280 games, 1480 hits, 735 runs, 206 doubles, 58 triples, 260 home runs, 737 RBI, 481 walks, 141 steals, .314/.383/.547 slash, 182 wRC+, and 60.4 WAR. It was his longest tenure by a good margin and he would be inducted in Hawks red. Omaha also eventually retired his #11 uniform for his efforts over nine years.

Gregor signed an eight-year, $144,800,000 deal with Las Vegas. His Vipers debut was his finest season, winning his lone MVP and third Silver Slugger. Gregor led the American Association in the triple slash (.361/.416/.707), OPS (1.123), wRC+ (204), WAR (10.2), total bases (429), and hits (219). His hits, average, wRC+, total bases, and WAR would be career bests as would his 119 runs, 50 homers, 128 RBI, 30 doubles, and 15 triples. Las Vegas ended an eight-year playoff drought and won the Southwest Division, but was ousted in the second round of the playoffs.

The Vipers had another round two exit in 2010, then spent the next few years above .500 but just outside of the playoffs. Gregor missed the 2010 playoff run and much of the season with strained abdominal muscles. A strained oblique kept him out much of 2011. Gregor was healthy in 2012 and won his fourth Silver Slugger, his only one as a second baseman.

With Las Vegas, Gregor played 526 games with 612 hits, 318 runs, 83 doubles, 128 homers, 352 RBI, .309/.370/.581 slash, 162 wRC+, and 23.6 WAR. He opted out of his deal after the fourth season, heading back to free agency for 2013 at age 33. Gregor inked a five-year, $128 million deal with San Francisco. After a respectable 2013, Gregor returned to the national conversation with a strong 2014.

Despite missing part of the spring to a fractured fibula, Gregor posted 47 home runs, 110 RBI, and 9.9 WAR. He led in the triple slash (.345/.424/.728) with career bests in OBP, slugging, OPS (1.154), and wRC+ (200). Gregor again led in slugging, OPS, and wRC+ in 2015. The Gold Rush were still just outside of the playoffs at this point, missing out by one win in 2015 at 96-66. That gave them a 16-year drought, one of the longer ones in franchise history.

San Francisco broke through at 100-62 in 2016, but lost in the second round. In 2017, the Gold Rush took the top seed at 107-55 and won their first pennant since 1994, falling in the World Series to Boston. Elbow issues kept Gregor out much of the regular season. In the playoff run, he was unremarkable with 15 hits, 7 runs, .749 OPS, and 0.3 WAR over 14 starts.

However, the 38-year old Gregor had one of his finest efforts in the Baseball Grand Championship. In 19 starts, he had 23 hits, 19 runs, 15 home runs, 23 RBI, .329/.427/.986 slash, 1.413 OPS, 281 wRC+, and 2.2 WAR. San Francisco finished 11-8, one of five teams tied for fourth and one game off the first place slot. As of 2037, Gregor is one of only 10 to hit 15+ homers in the event and one of 16 qualifiers with an OPS above 1.400.

That also capped his five year run in San Francisco on a positive note. Over 646 games, Gregor had 715 hits, 387 runs, 105 doubles, 34 triples, 168 home runs, 439 RBI, .306/.386/.595 slash, 163 wRC+, and 32.3 WAR. The next stop was a two-year deal at $43,200,000 with Detroit. He had just one year with the Tigers, who lost in the second round of the playoffs. In 128 games, Gregor at age 39 still posted 6.5 WAR and .905 OPS.

Gregor signed for two years and $41,200,000 with Austin and won a Silver Slugger in 2020 at third base. In 258 games, Gregor had 272 hits, 184 runs, 42 doubles, 65 homers, 174 RBI, 120 walks, .306/.396/.594 slash, 169 wRC+, and 13.8 WAR. The Amigos remained in the middle tier during his tenure. Those were strong numbers for anyone though and were especially impressive from a guy now in his 40s.

The longevity also placed Gregor into the 3000 hit and 600 home run clubs with Austin. For 2021, he signed a one-year, $20,400,000 deal with Chicago and won his seventh Silver Slugger, an award rarely given to a 42-year old. Gregor had 36 homers, 119 RBI, .949 OPS, and 7.3 WAR. The Cubs were a wild card, but lost in the first round.

For 2022, Gregor inked a one-year, $22 million deal with St. Louis. Numerous injuries limited him to only 67 games and 2.1 WAR. The final stop was Atlanta with a three-year, $60,000,000 deal. Gregor stayed largely healthy in two seasons with the Aces, but his production was merely average by this point. In 276 games, he had 236 hits, 136 runs, 28 homers, 105 RBI, .245/.333/.385 slash, 100 wRC+, and 1.8 WAR.

2023 was his last playoff trip, going 0-5 as a pinch hitter as Atlanta lost in the second round. Gregor’s playoff numbers were underwhelming but over a limited sample size with 33 games, 30 hits, 16 runs, 6 doubles, 4 home runs, 11 RBI, .270/.357/.450 slash, 126 wRC+, and 0.8 WAR. Any critic who tries to downplay Gregor for playoff results usually gets shouted down with his Baseball Grand Championship and World Baseball Championship stats.

Gregor in his final years became the 12^th MLB batter to 3500 hits, the 9^th to 700 home runs, and the 6^th to 2000 RBI. Some thought he might chase all-time marks, but age had finally caught up to him by his Atlanta run. Gregor retired after the 2024 season as one of the very few to play in MLB at age 45.

The final tallies had 3328 games, 3666 hits, 1956 runs, 507 doubles, 159 triples, 718 home runs, 2007 RBI, 1310 walks, 1660 strikeouts, 297 steals, .304/.378/.551 slash, 166 wRC+, and 148.0 WAR. As of 2037, Gregor is 3^rd in games played, 7^th in runs, 4^th in hits, 4^th in total bases (6645), 29^th in singles (2282), 33^rd in doubles, 12^th in home runs, 10^th in RBI, 36^th in walks, and 2^nd in WAR among position players. Among all MLB players, Gregor is third in WAR behind CF Morgan Short (170.5) and SP Ned Giles (151.7). His .929 OPS is 71^st among MLB batters with 3000+ plate appearances.

On the world leaderboards, Gregor is 22^nd in games, 48^th in runs, 30^th in hits, and 55^th in WAR among all players ever. He has the second-most WAR of any American behind only Short. Gregor certainly is an inner-circle level Hall of Famer and one of the true beloved immortals of the game.

However, it is a fierce debate as to how high you’d rank Gregor among MLB’s top position players. His tallies are outstanding with stellar longevity, but he didn’t have the huge dominance or playoff runs of some of the other legends. It comes down to how much one values peak and accolades compared to longevity and consistency. Many would place Gregor in the top five, but some slide him out of the top ten. In any event, Gregor co-headlined the three-player 2030 class for Major League Baseball at 98.8%.

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Killian Fruechte – Left Field/Designated Hitter – Omaha Hawks – 98.4% First Ballot

Killian Fruechte was a 6’6’’, 200 pound left-handed left fielder from Rowland Heights, California; a city of 48,000 people in Los Angeles County. At his peak, many scouts graded Fruechte as a perfect 10/10 for contact, power and eye. He was absolutely obscene facing right-handed pitching with a career 1.084 OPS and 213wRC+. Facing lefties, Fruechte still had a quite good .781 OPS and 132 wRC+. Few players ever in any world league could mash righties quite like Fruechte.

Fruechte’s power was heavily concentrated on homers with 48 per his 162 game average compared to only 16 doubles and 5 triples. He only had 20+ doubles in three seasons, but had 40+ homers 10 times and 50+ dingers thrice. Unlike many power hitters, Fruechte was excellent at avoiding strikeouts with a career 7.2% K rate. He’s one of only five Hall of Famers in baseball history to have 700+ career homers with fewer than 1000 career strikeouts.

Despite Fruechte’s long frame, he was very quick on the basepaths, although his baserunning instincts were subpar. In the front end of his career, Fruechte played left field and was a below average but serviceable defender. He was primarily a designated hitter and occasional outfielder once he moved to the American Association. Fruechte had about 2/3 of his career starts in left. His durability was decent over a 19-year career, but he did miss games here and there to smaller injuries.

Certainly with that impressive bat, Fruechte quickly became one of baseball’s biggest superstars. However, he wasn’t a five-star prospect in his early days. Fruechte played collegiately at East Carolina and was very underwhelming. As a three-year starter, he had 144 games, 119 hits, 63 runs, 12 doubles, 5 triples, 15 home runs, 63 RBI, .228/.300/.357 slash, 105 wRC+, and 2.8 WAR. At that point, most scouts pegged Fruechte as a fringe major leaguer.

In the 2004 MLB Draft, Fruechte was a fifth round selection by Omaha, 245^th overall. Only three players in MLB history were drafted later and made MLB’s HOF. In minor league Lincoln, Fruechte had a decent showing as a part-time starter in 2005. He made his Hawks debut in 2006 with 77 games, .827 OPS, and 1.5 WAR.

That winter, he got eye surgery to improve his vision. That along with focused training and an improved diet and workout routine, Fruechte seemingly transformed overnight into a stud. He went from a guy scouts rated a two-star prospect out of college to a five-star talent. Fruechte was a full-time starter in 2007 and won his first Silver Slugger with his first of eight straight seasons worth 8+ WAR. 2008 would start a ten-year streak of seasons with an OPS above one.

In 2009, Fruechte won his first MVP and second Slugger, leading the National Association in hits (213), runs (125), home runs (53), total bases (400), triple slash (.356/.430/.668), OPS (1.098), wRC+ (226), and WAR (10.7). This year had his career best in average and hits. Fruechte won another Slugger in 2010 and was third in MVP voting, leading again in OBP. That winter, Omaha signed him to an eight-year, $121,400,000 contract extension. He seemed like the hope for the Hawks to end a playoff drought dating back to 1986.

Fruechte won another Slugger and was third again in 2011’s MVP voting. Then in 2012, he won his second MVP and a Slugger with one of the all-time great seasons. Fruechte became the new single-season home run king in MLB with 67, a mark that wouldn’t be passed until 2028. He also had only the seventh-ever Triple Crown season by an MLB batter.

He had league bests in runs (133), homers (67), RBI (138), total bases (426), triple slash (.340/.432/.747), OPS (1.179), wRC+ (268), and WAR (13.0). The WAR mark set a MLB record and Fruechte remains the only MLB player as of 2037 to have 13+ WAR in a season. The effort was the third-best qualifying OPS in MLB at the time and ranks seventh as of 2037. Still, Omaha was a mere 82-80 for the season.

Fruechte was second in 2013’s MVP voting and won his sixth Slugger, leading again in OBP, slugging, OPS, wRC+, and WAR. The tallies were slightly lower having missed a month to back spasms in the spring. Omaha finally broke through this year for a division title at 94-68. The Hawks made the NACS, but was defeated by Philadelphia. Fruechte held up his end in his only playoff trip with Omaha, posting 0.9 WAR and 1.070 OPS over 13 starts.

Although he rarely got the chance to play the big games in MLB, Fruechte delivered plenty in the World Baseball Championship for the United States. He won MVP in 2010 with 32 hits, 23 runs, 11 homers, 29 RBI, and 2.1 WAR over 23 starts. Fruechte was second in MVP voting in 2017 and was part of world title winning American teams in 2007, 08, 10, 11, 14, 17, and 20.

In 226 WBC games, Fruechte had 219 hits, 171 runs, 29 doubles, 6 triples, 65 home runs, 153 RBI, 149 walks, 92 steals, .289/.409/.600 slash, 186 wRC+, and 11.9 WAR. As of 2037, Fruechte ranks 13^th in runs, 18^th in hits, 36^th in homers, 19^th in RBI, 8^th in walks, and 15^th in WAR among position players. Fruechte’s efforts here helped make him a beloved American baseball superstar despite rarely seeing the national stage with Omaha or beyond.

After their 2013 NACS defeat, Omaha fell one game short of the wild card in 2014 at 91-71. Fruechte again won a Slugger and was second in MVP voting, posting his third 10+ WAR season. He was halfway through his Hawks deal, but decided to opt out and leave for free agency at age 30. It was dejecting in Nebraska, as Omaha fans realized that almost certainly meant the end of any competitive hopes.

Still, Fruechte remained a beloved figure in Omaha for many years to come. He played 1283 games for the Hawks with 1476 hits, 878 runs, 147 doubles, 381 home runs, 892 RBI, 693 walks, 226 steals, .328/.418/.634 slash, 222 wRC+, and 77.6 WAR. Fruechte’s #14 uniform would be retired at the end of his career. His departure certainly paid off financially with a seven-year, $179,400,000 deal with San Diego.

Fruechte ran into some trouble initially with a torn labrum costing him the second half of 2015. He bounced back in 2016 with his third MVP, leading the American Association with 55 homers, .621 OPS, and a career-best 138 runs. This was also his lone Silver Slugger as a DH. Fruechte picked up one more in LF in 2019 to have nine for his career.

He led in OBP and wRC+ in 2017 and remained strong, but Fruechte never reached his Omaha peaks again. Various injuries played a role in this, especially with his back. Although San Diego would have an all-time dynasty run in the 2020s, Fruechte’s tenure was during a downturn for the franchise. Although rarely outright terrible, the Seals missed the playoffs from 2011-22, averaging 80 wins per season.

With San Diego in seven seasons, Fruechte played 822 games with 945 hits, 653 runs, 72 doubles, 275 home runs, 590 RBI, .307/.395/.618 slash, 176 wRC+, and 40.2 WAR. The deal expired heading towards his age 38 season of 2022. Fruechte still had buyers and signed a three-year, $69 million deal with New Orleans. The Mudcats had won the 2021 World Series with an all-time team at 112-50. New Orleans wanted some depth and Fruechte hoped he could finally get some playoff appearances.

Fruechte stayed healthy with the Mudcats, but was merely a good starter in his first two years. They missed the playoffs in 2022 and 2024 and suffered a second round exit in 2023. Despite Fruechte’s brilliance, he played 16 career playoff games in two seasons. In 2023, Fruechte became the 7^th member of the 700 home run club. He and Isaac Cox joined the club about a month apart with many wondering if they both would pass the all-time top mark of 758 owned by Cody Lim.

Cox blew by that mark, but Fruechte fell off sharply in 2024. He was reduced to a part-time role with only 9 homers, 0.3 WAR, and .671 OPS in 71 games. Fruechte retired that winter at age 40 and finished in New Orleans with 376 games, 315 hits, 213 runs, 29 doubles, 83 home runs, 185 RBI, .245/.349/.471 slash, 129 wRC+, and 6.7 WAR.

Fruechte finished with 2481 games, 2736 hits, 1744 runs, 248 doubles, 82 triples, 739 home runs, 1667 RBI, 1340 walks, 739 strikeouts, 419 steals, .309/.400/.605 slash, 1.005 OPS, 192 wRC+, and 124.5 WAR. As of 2037, Fruechte ranks 10^th in homers, 38^th in runs, 48^th in total bases (5365), 68^th in RBI, 31^st in walks, and 14^th in WAR among position players.

His OPS ranks 10^th among all batters with 3000+ plate appearances in MLB as of 2037, although Fruechte is the only retired player to be above 1.000. He also ranks 12^th in OBP and 18^th in slugging. Fruechte didn’t have the longevity to make the world leaderboards in the counting stats, but he’s among the most efficient bats ever.

Fruechte’s 192 wRC+ is 21^st among all world Hall of Famers as of 2037. He also ranks 38^th in OPS and 38^th in OBP among that group. It is a short list of those with a career OPS above 1.000 and OBP above .400. Fruechte’s stats against RHP specifically are nearly unfathomable and he has to be in the conversation for best batters ever against righties.

He was an obvious inner-circle Hall of Famer and co-headliner for Major League Baseball’s 2030 class at 98.4%. Fruechte’s exact spot in the all-time rankings is tough to sort out though for MLB scholars. His hitting efficiency was certainly upper-echelon, but Fruechte didn’t have team successes. Spending notable time as a DH and subpar fielding keeps him out of some top 10 lists even if he was a top ten bat. Fruechte is certainly one of MLB’s immortals and beloved stars in any event.



Sunny Williams – Starting Pitcher – Orlando Orcas – 77.8% First Ballot

Sunny Williams was a 6’2’’, 195 pound left-handed pitcher from Wake Forest, North Carolina; a town of 47,000 people best known as the original home of the eponymous university. Williams had very strong stuff and control along with average movement. His velocity peaked in the 97-99 mph range with a three-pitch arsenal of curveball, cutter, and splitter. Williams’ ability to change speeds made him one of the better strikeout pitchers of his era.

For most of his career, Williams had rock solid stamina and durability. He tossed 260+ innings each year from 2009-19. Williams was good at holding runners, but graded as weak defensively otherwise. He provided very steady production and was perhaps one of the more overlooked aces of his era in MLB.

Williams thrived in three years of college for Vanderbilt with a 21-14 record, 2.30 ERA, 300.2 innings, 314 strikeouts, 73 walks, 139 ERA+, and 10.7 WAR. In the 2007 MLB Draft, Williams went 17^th overall to Orlando. He was a full-timer immediately and had 5+ WAR in each of his first eight seasons. Williams wasn’t overwhelmingly dominant though and never was a Pitcher of the Year finalist. Being on mostly mid Orcas teams didn’t get him attention either, as they never made the playoffs during his tenure.

The biggest highlights included leading the American Association with 259 strikeouts in 2012, a career high. 2013 was Williams’ best by WAR (7.8) and saw him lead in innings with 283.2. His best ERA was 2.95 in his second season of 2009. Williams had signed a six-year, $68 million extension with Orlando after the 2011 season.

In total for Orlando, Williams had a 152-128 record, 3.11 ERA, 2595.1 innings, 2198 strikeouts, 608 walks, 121 ERA+, and 59.9 WAR. He was there close to a full decade and got his #27 uniform retired by the Orcas at the end of his career. Williams’ deal was coming due in 2017 with Orlando being stuck around .500. In mid July 2017, the Orcas traded Williams to Salt Lake City for prospects LF Pat Heisey and C Kevin Vargas. Both did start for a few years for the Orcas with Hesiey putting up passable stats over a decade.

The Loons wanted Williams long-term and only nine days after the trade gave him a seven-year, $108,600,000 extension. SLC was trying to dethrone Seattle in the Northwest Division and just missed the cut in 2017. The Loons couldn’t get a division title, but did earn wild cards from 2018-20. They never got further than the second round. In his 35.1 career playoff innings, Williams had a solid 2.80 ERA, 2-1 record, 43 strikeouts, and 1.9 WAR.

Williams’ overall production with SLC wasn’t as strong as his Orlando peaks, but he still was a solid part of the rotation and thrice had 5+ WAR seasons. 2021 had Williams’ first injury issues as a herniated disc kept him out for the first half of the year. Additional back spasms kept Williams out for about two months in 2023. Still, that year Williams became the 28^th pitcher in MLB history to reach 3500 career strikeouts.

In 2024, Williams became the 46^th MLB pitcher to reach 250 wins. By this point, Salt Lake City had settled into the middle of the standings. Williams was still a reliable innings eater in the last year of his contract, but disaster struck with a torn rotator cuff in the final week of the season. Doctors gave him a 13 month recovery time, meaning he’d miss all of 2025 in a best case scenario.

With the Loons, Williams had a 101-81 record, 3.67 ERA, 1666.1 innings, 1501 strikeouts, 302 walks, 106 ERA+, and 35.9 WAR. Williams wanted to pick again and rehabbed throughout 2025. Winnipeg signed him to a deal in August 2025, but he never saw the field. Williams opted to retire that winter at age 38.

Williams ended with a 253-209 record, 3.33 ERA, 4261.2 innings, 3699 strikeouts, 910 walks, 331/524 quality starts, 271 complete games, 42 shutouts, 114 ERA+, 83 FIP-, and 95.8 WAR. As of 2037, Williams ranks 43^rd in wins, 50^th in innings, 15^th in complete games, 62^nd in shutouts, 20^th in strikeouts, and 36^th in WAR among pitchers.

He was never viewed as a top three pitcher in his career, but Williams quietly had remarkably steady innings and production. Many Hall of Fame voters were somewhat surprised to find Williams accumulations were so high. He hit plenty of benchmarks even without the big awards or playoff success. Williams received 77.8% for a first ballot nod to cap off a three-player 2030 class for Major League Baseball.

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Three outfielders earned first ballot inductions for 2030 into the Central American Baseball Association Hall of Fame. LF Clayton Morgan and RF Americo Negron were co-headliners at 92.8% and 89.8%, respectively. RF Lucas Martinez debuted at 73.4% to narrowly breach the 66% induction requirement. The best returner was 1B Hasan Alvizo with 57.5% for his sixth ballot. No one else was above 50% and no players were dropped after ten failed ballots.



Clayton Morgan – Left Field – Bahamas Buccaneers – 92.8% First Ballot

Clayton Morgan was a 6’2’’, 195 pound left-handed left fielder from the capital of Jamaica, Kingston. Morgan was a well-rounded batter with good-to-great contact and power along with a respectable eye for walks. While he was never a league-leader, Morgan’s power was remarkably consistent with 10 seasons with 40+ home runs. He had a 162 game average of 45 dingers, 24 doubles, and 9 triples.

Morgan was notably stronger facing right-handed pitchers (1.022 OPS, 169 wRC+) but was by no means bad against lefties (.839 OPS, 127 wRC+). His speed was merely above average, but Morgan was a skilled baserunner. He was a career left fielder and graded as a below average defender, but he was plenty passable with his bat. Morgan’s durability was fairly good and he was known for an incredible work ethic, loyalty, and selflessness. He was a huge fan favorite and became a beloved megastar throughout the region.

In the 2008 CABA Draft, Morgan was picked 10^th overall by Bahamas. He played 120 games and started 104 as a rookie with promising results, taking second in 2009’s Rookie of the Year voting. 2010 would start of a stretch of six straight seasons with 6+ WAR, 40+ home runs, and 1.000+ OPS for the Buccaneers. Each of Morgan’s Silver Sluggers came with Bahamas (2011, 13, 14, 15).

Morgan’s sophomore season saw him hit for the cycle twice, a feat only achieved four other times in the same CABA season as of 2037. His lone MVP win came in 2013, leading the Caribbean League in total bases (429), OBP (.432), wRC+ (209), and WAR (10.0). Those were career highs, as was Morgan’s 219 hits, 56 home runs, 50 stolen bases, .372 average, .728 slugging, and 1.160 OPS.

Despite his individual successes, Bahamas remained a bottom-tier franchise in his tenure and averaged only 69.8 wins per season. They also weren’t in a position to be big spenders, sending Morgan to free agency when he was eligible for 2016 at age 29. With the Buccaneers, Morgan had 1074 games, 1321 hits, 716 runs, 165 doubles, 67 triples, 308 home runs, 715 RBI, 377 walks, 259 steals, .334/.393/.643 slash, 170 wRC+, and 50.2 WAR.

Morgan joined Puebla on a seven-year, $97,900,000 deal. He had an immediate setback with a ruptured finger tendon costing him most of the first half in 2016. Morgan missed small bits of 2017 and 2018, but delivered consistent production with the Pumas. He had three seasons with 6+ WAR, 1.000+ OPS, and 40+ homers.

Puebla was in the middle tier when Morgan arrived and stayed there his first few years. The Pumas had a sharp drop to 67-95 in 2018, but had an unexpected bounce back in 2019 at 92-70. They won the South Division and earned their first Mexican League pennant since 1949. Puebla would be thwarted in the CABA Championship by Havana.

This was Morgan’s only career postseason trip with unremarkable stats, posting 11 hits, 5 runs, 1 homer, 4 RBI, .675 OPS, 88 wRC+, and 0.1 WAR in 11 starts. However, he was excellent in the Baseball Grand Championship in 19 games with 17 hits, 13 home runs, 20 RBI, 15 runs, 1.219 OPS, 221 wRC+, and 1.5 WAR. The Pumas finished 11-8 in a tie for fifth place.

In five seasons for Puebla, Morgan had 636 games, 763 hits, 452 runs, 104 doubles, 186 home runs, 489 RBI, 100 steals, .318/.363/.629 slash, 171 wRC+, and 29.1 WAR. He opted out of the remaining two years of the deal, becoming a free agent again for 2021 at age 34. Morgan ended up joining Costa Rica on a five-year, $57 million deal.

Later in his career, Morgan played for his native Jamaica in the World Baseball Championship. The island hadn’t qualified for the event from 2006-20, but made it back with the expanded field from 2021 onward. From 2021-25, Morgan played 46 games with 38 hits, 26 runs, 8 doubles, 13 home runs, 20 RBI, .229/.301/.524 slash, and 1.4 WAR.

When he joined Costa Rica, the Rays were fresh off a defeat in the Caribbean League Championship Series. They peaked there, dropping to just below .500 in 2021 and to rock bottom after that. Morgan had a solid debut season in 2021, but also began his own sharp decline. With Costa Rica, he was able to cross the 600 home run, 2500 hit, 1500 RBI, and 1500 run thresholds.

For the Rays in four seasons, Morgan had 594 games, 544 hits, 333 runs, 71 doubles, 21 triples, 142 home runs, 308 RBI, .263/.327/.523 slash, 124 wRC+, and 10.2 WAR. He was let go for 2025 and wanted to play somewhere, but an aging veteran who was close to replacement level didn’t attract any suitors. Morgan played in that year’s WBC and retired in the winter shortly after his 39^th birthday.

Morgan’s final totals saw 2304 games, 2628 hits, 1501 runs, 340 doubles, 129 triples, 636 home runs, 1512 RBI, 736 walks, 1551 strikeouts, 440 steals, .312/.368/.610 slash, 159 wRC+, and 89.5 WAR. As of 2037, Morgan ranks 95^th in games, 52^nd in hits, 28^th in runs, 28^th in total bases (5134), 21^st in home runs, 43^rd in RBI, 64^th in walks, and 53^rd in WAR among position players.

Among CABA batters with 3000+ plate appearances, Morgan’s .978 OPS ranks 33^rd. He ranks 35^th in slugging and 87^th in OBP. He wasn’t overwhelmingly dominant enough to be an inner-circle level Hall of Famer, but Morgan’s career was plenty great to make him a first ballot lock at 92.8%. He often is cited as a top five player to come out of Jamaica and co-headlined the 2030 class for the Central American Baseball Association.

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Americo Negron – Right Field – Panama Parrots – 89.8% First Ballot

Americo Negron is a 6’5’’, 200 pound right-handed right fielder from Almolonga, Guatemala; a town of 17,000 people known as the “Vegetable Basket of the Americas.” Negron had rock solid contract and power against both sides and regularly got you extra base hits with a 162 game average of 37 home runs, 35 doubles, and 12 triples.

He was better than most at drawing walks, but below average at avoiding strikeouts. Negron also had delightfully average speed and baserunning chops. His biggest flaw was abysmal defense as a career right fielder. About ¼ of his career starts were as a designated hitter. The steady bat was worth putting up with bad glove work in many cases. Negron had mostly good durability in a 19-year career and was considered one of the smarter guys in the clubhouse.

Negron went sixth overall in the 2006 CABA Draft to Panama. He wasn’t quite ready and spent much of 2007-09 in the developmental system. Negron started 44 games between 2008-09 specifically, but struggled in his limited use. He became a full-timer in 2010 with respectable results. Negron then put things together in 2001, leading the Caribbean League with 140 RBI to earn his first Silver Slugger. That was his career best for RBI and home runs with 46.

After the 2011 campaign, the Parrots inked Negron to an eight-year, $69,300,000 extension. He became a reliable force in the lineup, winning additional Sluggers from 2012-15 and from 2017-18, all in right field. Negron never won MVP, but was third in 2014 and second in 2018. He led with 208 hits in 2014, a season that had his career bests in OPS (1.068) and WAR (7.9). In 2018, Negron led in runs (123), slugging (.655), OPS (1.044), and wRC+ (186).

Panama historically was a bottom rung team amongst a tough Continental Division. Negron did help them become competitive in the 2010s, averaging 86.7 wins per season in his starting seasons. The Parrots’ best run was a division title and CLCS defeat in 2013 to Santo Domingo. Their other playoff berths were wild cards and first round exits in 2012 and 2015. Negron was strong in 2013 specifically and had a .988 OPS over 14 playoff starts with the Parrots.

For Panama, Negron had 1463 games, 1727 hits, 961 runs, 276 doubles, 103 triples, 340 home runs, 982 RBI, 167 steals, .318/.363/.595 slash, 158 wRC+, and 49.0 WAR. He declined the contract option and left for free agency after the 2018 campaign at age 32. Negron remained popular with Parrots fans and his #9 uniform would eventually be retired.

He was also popular in his native Guatemala, although he only played in the 2011, 2013, and 2014 editions of the World Baseball Championship. Negron did have an important role in the Guatemalans’ fourth place finish in 2013, picking up 23 hits, 17 runs, 7 doubles, 2 triples, 5 homers, 16 RBI, and 1.059 OPS in 2013 games. Negron stayed in the Caribbean League but moved to the islands for his second squad on a six-year, $81,600,000 deal with Puerto Rico.

Negron was solid in his first three years with the Pelicans, although lost significant time in 2019 between a strained biceps and torn back muscle. His best effort was 2021, which earned a Silver Slugger as a DH for the eighth total of his career. Puerto Rico broke through that year to end a seven-year playoff drought, winning their first Caribbean League pennant since 1956. They were denied the CABA Championship by Tijuana.

Stunningly, Negron was terrible in the postseason run with a .153/.190/.186 slash and -0.8 WAR over 16 starts. He did redeem himself with a respectable Baseball Grand Championship for a .257/.312/.600 slash, 18 hits, 10 runs, 6 homers, 15 RBI, and 0.6 WAR over 18 starts. Puerto Rico was near the middle of the standings at 9-10. They hovered around .500 for the rest of Negron’s tenure.

Negron missed two months in 2022 to a broken hand. He was unremarkable in 2023, but bounced back with a respectable final season in 2024. For the Pelicans, Negron had 831 games, 939 hits, 522 runs, 160 doubles, 69 triples, 181 home runs, 560 RBI, .298/.350/.565 slash, 142 wRC+, and 22.4 WAR. While there, he crossed the 500 home run, 2500, and 1500 RBI milestones.

CABA teams were no longer interested in the now 38-year old Negron by 2025. He opened up an international job search and landed in the Ivory Coast on a two-year, $11,400,000 deal with Bouake of West African Baseball. Negron was an okay starter in 2025, but struggled and was benched in 2026. Over 231 games for the Blood Hawks, Negron had a .253/.322/.450 slash, 96 wRC+, and 0.5 WAR. He retired from professional baseball after the 2026 season just after his 40^th birthday.

In CABA, Negron played 2294 games with 2666 hits, 1483 runs, 436 doubles, 172 triples, 521 home runs, 1542 RBI, 653 walks, 1804 strikeouts, 275 steals, .311/.359/.584 slash, 152 wRC+, and 71.4 WAR. As of 2037, Negron ranks 98^th in games, 44^th in hits, 31^st in runs, 44^th in doubles, 61^st in home runs, 38^th in RBI, and 33^rd in total bases (5009). His .942 OPS is 72^nd among CABA batters with 3000+ plate appearances and he ranks 66^th in slugging. However, he was outside of the top 100 for WAR.

Like his Hall of Fame classmates, Negron wouldn’t slot into the inner circle. But when your league has a century of history and you’re top 50 in hits, runs, and RBI; you’re hard to deny. Negron was the top hitting right fielder for around a decade in the Caribbean League and as such earned a first ballot nod at 89.8% to co-headline for 2030’s class for the Central American Baseball Association.



Lucas Martinez – Right Field – San Luis Potosi Potros – 73.4% First Ballot

Lucas Martinez was a 6’2’’, 190 pound outfielder from Puga, Mexico; a town of around 8,000 in the west-central coastal state of Nayarit. Martinez’s biggest strengths were reliable home run power and a strong eye for walks. He was above average at best for contact and subpar at avoiding strikeouts. Martinez made his hit counts though with ten seasons of 40+ home runs. His 162 game average got you 42 homers, 23 doubles, and 3 triples.

Martinez was better against right-handed pitching, but was solid against both sides. His baserunning instincts were good, but he was cartoonishly slow. This also meant his range was putrid in the outfield. Martinez made about 80% of his starts in right field with most of the rest in left. He graded as a terrible defender despite having an absolute cannon arm due to poor range and glove work.

He had a couple big injuries in his 20s, but stayed mostly healthy in his 30s and put together a 17-year career. Martinez was appreciated by teammates and fans for fierce loyalty, but he was criticized for a lackluster work ethic. Still, Martinez became the first star player and Hall of Famer for San Luis Potosi, who joined the Mexican League in the 2003 expansion.

The Potros picked Martinez third in the 2007 CABA Draft and made him a full-time starter right away, although he lost three weeks of his rookie year to a sprained ankle. In his third year, Martinez led the league with a career high 74 walks and had his first of four seasons above 6+ WAR. 2011 was a big setback with a broken hand in late April. Not only did he lose much of the season, but he struggled upon returning.

Martinez bounced back in 2012 with 47 home runs, .978 OPS, and 7.5 WAR. In 2013, a fractured ankle in spring training kept him out most of the first half. Upon returning, Martinez was on pace for an MVP 2013 season with 1.113 OPS, 5.5 WAR, and 37 home runs. San Luis Potosi also earned their first-ever playoff berth or winning season in 2013, but lost in the first round. The Potros were cautious with Martinez’s injury history and extended him in the offseason for only three years and $41,700,000.

He stayed generally healthy over the next decade and hit 40+ home runs with 100+ RBI in all but one season from 2014-22. SLP gave him the big extension in January 2016 at $98,600,000 over six years. Martinez wasn’t in awards conversations though apart from his lone Silver Slugger in 2018. Still, he was a reliable slugger in the middle of the Potros lineup.

San Luis Potosi was above .500 from 2013-19 and had wild cards in 2013, 15, and 18. However, they never got beyond the first round. In his eight playoff starts, Martinez had .935 OPS and 0.4 WAR. He did play for Mexico in nine editions of the World Baseball Championship from 2013-24. In 87 games and 65 starts, Martinez had 49 hits, 39 runs, 10 doubles, 19 home runs, 36 RBI, .208/.331/.492 slash, and 2.5 WAR. Martinez was notably a starter for Mexico’s 2015 runner-up finish to the Philippines.

He remained steady into his mid 30s, but San Luis Potosi regressed hard as the 2020s began, bottoming out with an abysmal 52-110 in 2022. This was Martinez’s final season and they mutually agreed to part ways, making Martinez a free agent for the first time at age 38. For the Potros, he had 2148 games, 2231 hits, 126 runs, 309 doubles, 593 home runs, 1441 RBI, .290/.356/.572 slash, 157 wRC+, and 73.1 WAR. Martinez’s #14 uniform would be the first number retired by SLP.

Martinez had posted 5.6 WAR, .945 OPS, and 46 homers in his final season, meaning he had plenty of interest. Even Major League Baseball teams took notice and Martinez took his talents to Texas on a two-year, $34 million deal with Dallas. He only played one year for the Dalmatians with okay production, posting 127 games, 18 homers, .740 OPS, 106 wRC+, and 1.1 WAR.

In 2024, Martinez returned to CABA and signed a two-year, $12,200,000 deal with Costa Rica. The run allowed him to reach 600 CABA home runs, the 22^nd to do so. Unfortunately, 2024 was a disaster otherwise with -1.6 WAR and .629 OPS over 149 games. Martinez retired that winter at age 40.

Martinez in CABA finished with 2297 games, 2343 hits, 1306 runs, 325 doubles, 38 triples, 606 home runs, 1483 RBI, 801 walks, 2025 strikeouts, .287/.351/.558 slash, 152 wRC+, and 71.5 WAR. As of 2037, Martinez is 97^th in games, 99^th in hits, 74^th in runs, 26^th in home runs, 51^st in RBI, and 65^th in total bases (4564). He doesn’t crack the top 100 for WAR or OPS.

Some voters weren’t entirely sold on Martinez’s all-around resume, especially with the lack of big awards and black ink. For many others, 600 home runs alone were enough, although recently David Jack had become the first CABA slugger to get dropped from the ballot despite 600 dingers. Being the first star to help a new franchise grow also worked well in Martinez’s favor. He crossed the 66% requirement at 73.4% for a first ballot selection to cap off a solid three-player 2030 Hall of Fame class for the Central American Baseball Association.

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2B/3B Ryuichi Sawa was East Asia Baseball’s lone Hall of Famer for 2030, crossing the 66% requirement on his second ballot at 72.8%. The best debut was CL Sadaharu Chiba who just missed at 64.4%. Three other returners were above 50% with 1B Kyu-Seong Lee at 56.7% on his fifth ballot, C Ha-Jun Au at 55.4% on his fourth go, and CL Geon-U Kang with 53.9% with his fifth ballot.



The one player dropped after ten ballots was CL Kyung-Bok Jung, who had a 19-year career between both EAB and WAB with nine teams. He had one Reliever of the Year with Sendai in 2003 and was the closer for Seoul’s 2005 championship team. In EAB, Jung had 291 saves, 2.62 ERA, 1135.1 innings, 1329 strikeouts, 296 walks, 137 ERA+, and 30.3 WAR. Jung had more innings than a lot of eligible choices, but lacked the overwhelming dominance of the previous HOF picks. He got as high as 49.1% on his second ballot before ending with a mere 7.7%.



Ryuichi “Bulldog” Sawa – Second/Third Base – Hiroshima Hammerheads – 72.8% Second Ballot

Ryuichi Sawa was a 6’1’’, 200 pound left-handed hitting second and third baseman from Ebina, Japan; a city of 141,000 in the Kanagawa Prefecture. Sawa was a great contact hitter with a steady pop in his bat. He wasn’t one to produce prolific stats, but his 162 game average still got you a nice 29 home runs, 28 doubles, and 6 triples. Sawa was solid at avoiding strikeouts, but rarely drew walks.

His strength was most noticeable against right-handed pitching (.910 OPS, 174 wRC+) compared to against lefties (.791 OPS, 138 wRC+). Sawa’s baserunning ability was excellent and made him a threat even with below average speed. Defensively, he went back and forth between second and third base with around 70% of his starts at second. Sawa graded as a poor defender at either spot, although his metrics were stronger at third base.

Still, Sawa’s bat definitely deserved a spot in the lineup and you rarely found someone that strong offensively who could play a somewhat passable 2B. His durability held up fairly well over a 19 season run. Sawa was also an absolute gem of a human being and a phenomenal captain. His character was above reproach and he became one of the most universally respected figures of Japanese baseball. Sawa’s grit led to the affectionate nickname “Bulldog.”

In June 2001, Sawa signed a developmental deal with Kumamoto. He made his debut in 2005 at age 20 and looked solid with 2.9 WAR and .931 OPS over 107 games and 42 starts. Sawa earned a full-time starting gig after that. With the Monsters, he won Silver Sluggers in 2007 and 2009 at second base and 2010 at third.

2007 was Sawa’s first of four seasons worth 7+ WAR and saw him hit for the cycle. He won a batting title with a career-best .339 average in 2009 and also set career highs in WAR (8.0), OBP (.381), slugging (.600), and OPS (.981). Sawa led the Japan League with 123 RBI, also a career best. Kumamoto was generally competitive during his tenure with playoff trips in 2010 and 2011.

In 2010, the Monsters lost in the JLCS to Kyoto with Sawa posting 0.2 WAR over six playoff starts. He missed part of that post season to a sprained ankle. He surprisingly didn’t play in 2011 as Kumamoto took the top seed at 100-62, but was upset in the first round by Sapporo. Sawa ultimately decided not to re-sign after that, leaving for free agency at age 27.

With Kumamoto, Sawa had 962 games, 1062 hits, 459 runs, 183 doubles, 48 triples, 156 home runs, 529 RBI, 177 steals, .321/.352/.547 slash, 168 wRC+, and 40.9 WAR. His next stop was his signature run, signing an eight-year, $124,200,000 deal with Hiroshima. Sawa helped lead the Hammerheads to a seven-year streak of West Division titles from 2012-18. He won Silver Sluggers (all at 2B) in 2013, 16, 17, and 18).

Hiroshima repeated as Japan League in 2012-13, but couldn’t get by Goyang in 2012 or Daegu in 2013 for the EAB Championship. The Hammerheads finished 9-10 in the 2012 Baseball Grand Championship and 6-13 in 2013. Sawa was particularly strong in the 2012 playoff run and won MVP of the JLCS. 2013 was his lone season as a league MVP finalist, taking second.

In August 2014, Sawa suffered a torn PCL that knocked him out nine months. He bounced back impressively from that, but Hiroshima ran into a playoff roadblock. From 2014-17, their season ended each time in the JLCS. 2018 had their best record of the streak at 102-60, but they were upset in the first round. While there was some frustration from fans for the failure to get over that final hump, you certainly couldn’t blame Sawa.

In 46 playoff starts for the Hammerheads, Sawa had a .328/.357/.644 slash, 213 wRC+, 3.2 WAR, 58 hits, 37 runs, 10 doubles, 14 home runs, and 27 RBI. He was also 2017 JLCS MVP even in defeat. Sawa had been middling in the 2012 BGC with a .702 OPS and 0.1 WAR in 19 games, but fared better in 2013 with .847 OPS and 0.7 WAR. Sawa’s overall contributions and leadership in eight years with Hiroshima led to his #8 uniform eventually getting retired.

Sawa’s run with Hiroshima had an ugly end with early season struggles followed by a broken kneecap in the autumn. His future was now in doubt heading back to gree agency at age 35. For the Hammerheads, Sawa played 1068 games with 1239 hits, 611 runs, 172 doubles, 228 home runs, 650 RBI, 128 steals, .309/.336/.540 slash, 167 wRC+, and 44.0 WAR.

Kyoto gave Sawa a shot for three years and $18,900,000, a hefty pay cut from his peak. He was a bench piece in 2020 with merely okay results. Sawa had a resurgence though in 2021 despite losing six weeks to a strained PCL. In 113 games and 108 starts, Sawa posted 6.6 WAR, .972 OPS, and 196 wRC+. This high level of play allowed Kyoto to end a six-year playoff drought and take the top seed at 105-57.

The Kamikaze went all the way, winning the EAB Championship over Changwon. Sawa had another strong playoff performance in 18 starts with 23 hits, 10 runs, 5 home runs, 10 RBI, .853 OPS, and 0.8 WAR. His performance was lackluster in the Baseball Grand Championship with .635 OPS and 0.1 WAR in 18 starts as Kyoto finished 10-9.

Unfortunately, Sawa missed almost all of 2022 between a torn calf muscle and torn meniscus. Still, the signing was a success since he helped Kyoto to their 2021 title. In 234 games and 138 starts, Sawa had 204 hits, 93 runs, 44 doubles, 12 triples, 28 homers, 105 RBI, .311/.339/.543 slash, 165 wRC+, and 7.2 WAR.

His body was starting to break down, but Sawa wasn’t ready to call it quits yet. Tokyo gave him a one-year deal for 2023 which saw only 95 games and 39 starts with more injuries. Sawa was unimpressive with .681 OPS, 97 wRC+, and 0.6 WAR for the Tides. He opted to retire that winter at age 39.

Sawa ended with 2359 games, 2554 hits, 1183 runs, 408 doubles, 94 triples, 419 home runs, 1309 RBI, 283 walks, 1099 strikeouts, 311 steals, .313/.341/.540 slash, 166 wRC+, and 92.6 WAR. As of 2037, Sawa ranks 92^nd in hits and 61^st in WAR among position players, but he doesn’t crack the top 100 in any other counting stat.

Some voters felt his tallies simply weren’t high enough. That and a lack of black ink placed him in the “Hall of Pretty Good” for some voters. But Sawa certainly had supporters, especially for his big time playoff numbers and role in pennants for both
Hiroshima and Kyoto. Not many guys had seven Silver Sluggers and he ranked 7^th in WAR specifically accrued at second base (70.46).

Perhaps most important were Sawa’s leadership and high character; intangibles that were hard to quantify. He missed the cut in his 2029 ballot debut at 62.5%. With no locks debuting in 2030, Sawa got the bump across the 66% line with 72.8%. He earned his spot as a second ballot selection as East Asia Baseball’s lone Hall of Famer for the 2030 class.

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Beisbol Sudamerica had an impressive 2030 Hall of Fame class with four men making it on their first ballot. SP Sebastian Marquez was the headliner at 98.9% and was joined by SP Benicio Palacio (91.4%), 2B Oscar Valdivia (87.4%), and LF Rico Ortega (78.4%). Two other debuts were above 50%, but short of the 66% induction line with closers Bobby Santos (58.6%) and Luciano Lozano (51.7%). 2B Franklin Chapman was the top returner with 47.4% for his second ballot. No players were dropped after ten failed ballots.



Sebastian “Crab” Marquez – Starting Pitcher – Barquisimeto Black Cats – 98.9% First Ballot

Sebastian Marquez was a 6’8’’, 200 pound right-handed starting pitcher from Santa Teresa, a city of around 261,000 in north-central Venezuela. He had the nickname “Crab” as his long arms and unique delivery reminded some of a crab walk. Marquez was well rounded with good-to-great stuff, control, and movement. His control especially was consistently strong, making him one of the toughest arms to face of his era.

Marquez’s strongest pitch was an impressive 97-99 mph fastball, but he also had a slider, forkball, changeup, and knuckle curve in the arsenal. He was especially strong facing right-handed batters with a career 2.50 ERA and 59 FIP- compared to a 3.10 ERA and 92 FIP- against lefties. Marquez had strong stamina and durability in his 20s, but ran into some injury woes in his 30s. His defense and ability to hold runners both graded as subpar.

He quickly emerged as one of Venezuela’s most promising young pitchers and signed a developmental deal in March 2004 with Barquisimeto. Marquez debuted in 2007 at age 21 but struggled in 24.2 relief innings. He was used in 128.1 innings the next year and had a quality start in the playoffs. The Black Cats lost in the first round of the playoffs, but started a seven-year playoff streak.

Marquez was a full-time starter in 2009 and delivered with the Bolivar League’s best ERA (2.60) and WAR (7.8), earning Pitcher of the Year. It was the first of nine straight seasons with 7+ WAR and an ERA below three. Marquez repeated as POTY with another ERA title (2.31) in 2010. Both of these years, Barquisimeto was eliminated in the first round.

The Black Cats took the top seed in 2011 at 107-55, but fell to Valencia in the BLCS. They made the playoffs again from 2012-14 and in 2016, but never got beyond the divisional series. You couldn’t blame Marquez for their playoff failings as he had a 2.03 ERA over 12 starts, 5-4 record, 88.2 innings, 104 strikeouts, 196 ERA+, and 3.5 WAR.

Marquez’s strikeout numbers grew in his late 20s and early 30s, leading the league with 300+ Ks in 2012, 14, 15, and 17. He won additional ERA titles in 2015 and 2016 and was the WARlord in 2013 and 2017. Marquez’s best ERA in BSA was 2.19 in 2015, while his top WAR was 9.1 in 2017 and his highest strikeout total was 313 in 2014.

He continued to rack up Pitcher of the Year honors, winning five straight from 2012-16 and finishing second in 2017. Marquez became the fourth in Beisbol Sudamerica history to win the award seven times, joining the legendary likes of Mohamed Ramos, Laurenco Cedillo, and Lazaro Rodriguez. Rodriguez was the only other one to win five consecutively in his career.

Marquez signed a six-year, $68,200,000 extension with Barquisimeto in April 2014. The Black Cats started a streak of sub .500 seasons in 2017 though with rebuild becoming a possibility. In June 2018, Marquez had his first major injury setback with biceps tendinitis costing him three months. That winter, he opted out of the remainder of his contract, entering free agency at age 32.

With Barquisimeto, Marquez had a 193-79 record, 2.57 ERA, 2519.1 innings, 2746 strikeouts, 356 walks, 110 complete games, 34 shutouts, 155 ERA+, and 78.2 WAR. It was an easy decision for the Black Cats to retire Marquez’s #26 uniform at the end of his career. His dominance had drown international attention and he had suitors from multiple leagues.

On top of his BSA dominance, Marquez had been impressive on the World Baseball Championship stage for Venezuela. From 2009-23, he had a 2.27 ERA over 230.1 innings, 10-12 record, 292 strikeouts, 51 walks, 162 ERA+, and 7.6 WAR. In 2016, the Venezuelans were runner-up to China with Marquez posting a 2.21 ERA over 36.2 innings and 43 strikeouts in the event.

Marquez signed a five-year, $105 million deal with Major League Baseball’s St. Louis. He looked rock solid in his initial MLB starts, but saw a big setback with a fractured coracoid bone in his shoulder knocking him out from early June onward. Marquez had a few smaller injuries in 2020, but led the National Association with 0.77 WHIP and posted a 2.01 ERA and 6.1 WAR. Marquez’s lone playoff start for the Cardinals was a quality one, but they lost in the first round. They were stuck in the middle tier for the rest of his run.

2021 was respectable, but 2022 was a slog with a bone spur in his elbow knocking him out much of the year. Marquez was mostly healthy in 2023, but his production was below average at this point. For the Cardinals, Marquez had a 38-36 record, 2.88 ERA, 770.2 innings, 623 strikeouts, 118 ERA+, and 15.2 WAR. He was mostly effective when healthy for St. Louis, but didn’t quite live up to the hype that seven Pitcher of the Year awards create.

Now 38-years old, Marquez felt he still had something to offer and returned to the Bolivar League on a one-year, $5,800,000 deal with Santa Cruz. He was terrible over 93 innings with a 6.68 ERA, but did get to exactly 200 career BSA wins. Marquez did toss 3.1 scoreless innings in a playoff relief appearance with the Crawfish losing in the divisional series. Marquez retired that winter at age 38.

In Beisbol Sudamerica, Marquez had a 200-85 record, 2.71 ERA, 2612.1 innings, 2804 strikeouts, 371 walks, 221/316 quality starts, 110 complete games, 34 shutouts, 147 ERA+, 68 FIP-, and 78.8 WAR. As of 2037, Marquez ranks 71^st in wins, 48^th in shutouts, and 55^th in pitching WAR. For his combined pro career, Marquez had a 238-121 record, 2.75 ERA, 3383 innings, 3427 strikeouts, 503 walks, 139 ERA+, 73 FIP-, and 94.0 WAR.

The injuries kept Marquez from putting up the big accumulations reached by the top five level great aces. However, seven POTY wins and 200 wins would make any pitcher a deserved Hall of Fame lock. At 98.9%, Marquez headlined an impressive four-player 2030 class for Beisbol Sudamerica.



Benicio Palacio – Starting Pitcher – Callao Cats – 91.4% First Ballot

Benicio Palacio was a 6’0’’, 200 pound right-handed starting pitcher from San Miguel, Costa Rica; a small district of just under 5,000 people. Palacio had incredible control that graded as a 10/10 at his absolute peak. He also rock solid stuff and movement led by a fantastic 99-101 mph fastball. Palacio also had a strong splitter with an okay slider as a third option.

Palacio’s stamina was terrific and he had mostly good durability throughout an 18-year career. He had a good pickoff move, but graded as a weak defensive pitcher. Palacio was known as a team captain and strong leader in the clubhouse. That and a fierce fastball made Palacio one of the more popular pitchers of his era in Beisbol Sudamerica.

Costa Ricans and other Central American prospects were typically in CABA’s domain, although occasionally a few went south. Despite coming from humble beginnings, Palacio managed to catch the eye of a Peruvian scout for Callao, who signed him in November 2001 to a developmental deal. He officially debuted with one relief inning in 2006 at age 21.

Palacio earned a full-time rotation spot in 2007 and maintained that role through 2020 for Callao. His production was a mixed bag in the first two years, but Palacio emerged as a true face by 2009. He led the Bolivar League in innings pitched in both 2007 and 2009, taking second in Pitcher of the Year voting in the latter with a career-best 23-5 record.

In 2008, Callao ended a 40-year playoff drought, falling in the BLCS to Santa Cruz. The Cats emerged as a consistent contender with only winning seasons from 2008-18, earning nine playoff trips and five Peru-Bolivia division titles. Their playoff luck and Palacio’s stats were iffy initially with first round exits in 2010 and 2011, followed by a playoff miss in 2011. Palacio had a league and career best 8.7 WAR in 2010 with his top strikeout tally (269), taking third in Pitcher of the Year voting.

The Cats broke through in 2012, taking the top seed at 103-59 en route to a Copa Sudamerica win over Concepcion. Palacio had a 3.21 ERA and 30 Ks over 28 playoff innings. He then had a strong showing in the Baseball Grand Championship with a 1.84 ERA over 29.1 innings with 39 strikeouts and 1.3 WAR. Callao finished 8-11 for the event with Palacio getting third in BGC Best Pitcher voting.

Palacio was third in 2013’s Pitcher of the Year voting, although Callao missed the playoffs. They made it each year from 2014-18 and four times got to the divisional series at best. 2016 was the exception with another Copa Sudamerica run at 98-64, beating Rio de Janeiro in the final. Palacio had a 3.41 ERA over 37 innings in the playoffs and a 3.08 ERA over 38 innings in the BGC as the Cats again finished 8-11.

In March 2016, Callao inked Palacio to a five-year, $82,600,000 extension. He was third in 2016 and 2017’s Pitcher of the Year voting. In 2018, Palacio won the top honor finally at age 33 with his lone ERA title at 2.55. He had a sub-three ERA from 2016-18, but notably posted a subpar 3.99 ERA in both 2019 and 2020. Callao’s run came to a close in 2019 with their first losing season since 2007.

The Cats had won 109 games in 2017 and 102 in 2018, but lost both years in the divisional series. Palacio’s overall playoff starts with Callao weren’t bad, but weren’t amazing either. He had a 3.50 ERA over 128.2 innings, 5-8 record, 117 strikeouts, 115 ERA+, 95 FIP-, and 1.9 WAR. Still, Palacio was a popular player and an important part of two Cup wins and a decade of competitiveness. Callao retired Palacio’s #15 uniform at the end of his career.

Palacio executed his contract option for 2021, but the Cats were in rebuild mode at that point. In the offseason, Palacio was traded at age 36 to defending Copa Sudamerica winner Santiago for five prospects. With the Cats, Palacio had a 208-147 record, 3.32 ERA, 3304 innings, 3080 strikeouts, 379 walks, 121 ERA+, and 77.7 WAR.

His pro career now took him outside of Peru for the first time, although Palacio had still regularly gone home to Costa Rica for the World Baseball Championship. However, he struggled on that stage from 2007-24 with a 4.68 ERA over 223 innings, 5-20 record, 245 strikeouts, and 2.1 WAR.

Palacio’s one year in Chile was respectable with a 3.74 ERA, 228.2 innings, 193 strikeouts, and 4.5 WAR for Santiago. The Saints lost in the Southern Cone League Championship with Palacio posting a 3.50 ERA over 18 playoff innings. He was now a free agent for the first time at age 37 and opened up a worldwide job search. There was Major League Baseball interest and Palacio ended up with Las Vegas on a three-year, $30,100,000 deal.

A strained hamstring kept Palacio out for a good chunk of 2022. He was mediocre overall for the Vipers from 2022-23 with a 4.27 ERA over 272 innings, 178 strikeouts, 18-10 record, 91 ERA+, and 1.7 WAR. Las Vegas was a wild card in 2023, but Palacio wasn’t used in the postseason run. He didn’t meet the vesting criteria for the third year of the deal and was back to free agency for 2024 at age 39.

Palacio returned to BSA and found a one-year, $5,900,000 deal with Belo Horizonte. He had a rough spring with a terrible 5.88 ERA over 52 innings and eight starts. In early May, Palacio suffered a torn rotator cuff that ended his season. Even if he healed up, Palacio likely was cooked at this point anyway so he retired shortly after his 40^th birthday.

In Beisbol Sudamerica, Palacio had a 222-163 record, 3.38 ERA, 3584.2 innings, 3305 strikeouts, 419 walks, 255/431 quality starts, 164 complete games, 32 shutouts, 118 ERA+, 80 FIP-, and 82.3 WAR. As of 2037, Palacio is 38^th in wins, 43^rd in innings, 76^th in strikeouts, 40^th in complete games, 52^nd in shutouts, and 44^th in pitching WAR.

While his 2030 Hall of Fame classmate Sebastian Marquez was more dominant, Palacio did have him beat in accumulations and longevity. Most still place Marquez ahead of Palacio, but Palacio’s candidacy was very firm. He played a major role in two Copa Sudamerica wins and made Callao a regular contender for a decade. Palacio secured his first ballot slot at 91.4% as part of an impressive four-player class.

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Oscar Valdivia – Second Base – Quito Thunderbolts – 87.4% First Ballot

Oscar Valdivia was a 6’4’’, 195 pound right-handed second baseman from Guayaquil, Ecuador’s largest city. Valdivia was a well-rounded batter with good-to-great contract, eye, and power skills. He wasn’t going to lead the league in slugging, but his 162 game average gave you plenty of extra base hits with 29 home runs, 32 doubles, and 11 triples. Valdivia hit for average effectively against both sides and was rock solid at drawing walks, although his strikeout rate was merely okay.

In his prime, Valdivia had good speed along with excellent baserunning and base stealing abilities. He was a career second baseman and consistently provided good-to-great defense. Valdivia’s durability was mostly good over an 18-year career at a demanding position. He was also a team captain with excellent leadership, loyalty, and work ethic. Valdivia was one of the most respected players of his era and a favorite of Ecuadoran fans.

Valdivia wasn’t incredible at any one thing, but he was good at basically everything. It was also rare to find second basemen who could hit that well and still be a net positive defender. Valdivia grew up a Golds fans in Guayaquil, but he’d spend his entire career in the capital Quito. The Thunderbolts grabbed him 30^th overall in the 2006 BSA Draft. He started half of 2007 and took third in Rookie of the Year voting with his efforts.

He was a full-time starter from 2008 onwards, although he missed part of that year from a fractured finger. Valdivia also had a torn abdominal muscle in fall 2009, but he’d avoid big injuries for about a decade after that. Still, each year from 2008-19 was worth 5+ WAR. Valdivia had an OPS above one in eight seasons and had 7+ WAR from 2011-18. He won Silver Sluggers in 2010, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, and 21.

Valdivia never won MVP, but he was third in 2013 and 2014’s voting. He led the Bolivar League with 8.1 WAR in 2014 and with 8.3 in 2017. His career best was 9.3 in 2015, a year that also had his most runs scored (115). Valdivia led in walks in 2015-16 and led with a .419 OBP in 2017. Eight times he had an OBP above four and he hit above .300 from his rookie year through 2021. In March 2017, Quito gave Valdivia a five-year, $73,500,000 extension.

Despite his efforts, the 2010s were unremarkable for Quito. They were never outright bad and won 80+ games in all but two of Valdivia’s seasons. However, they were stuck in the middle tier and missed the playoffs from 2007-18. Valdivia stayed steadfast as they finally broke the drought in 2019 as a wild card, although they lost in the divisional round. 2020 saw a first round exit, followed by playoff misses from 2021-23.

Valdivia missed a chunk of 2020 to a strained rib cage muscle and parts of 2021 with knee and elbow issues. He was healthy in 2022 but struggled to .774 OPS and 2.3 WAR. Quito stayed loyal to their longtime captain and gave him a three-year, $47,800,000 extension that winter. Although he had very limited playoff opportunities, Valdivia did regularly play on the World Baseball Championship stage for his native Ecuador.

The Ecuadorans didn’t win a division title from 2008-24 with Valdivia, but he gave it his all. He played 152 games with 129 hits, 101 runs, 16 doubles, 6 triples, 39 home runs, 67 RBI, 80 walks, 43 steals, .240/.356/.509 slash, 150 wRC+, and 6.7 WAR. Valdivia was certainly one of the country’s most well respected figures in baseball.

Valdivia was merely passable in 2023 and was benched in 2024 after struggles, playing only 60 games with 37 starts. His leadership was still important from the bench as Quito almost out of nowhere had a franchise record 112-50 campaign. The Thunderbolts won Copa Sudamerica over Sao Paulo and Valdivia finally got Quito a ring after 18 years, even if he was 0-3 with three strikeouts as a playoff pinch hitter. Valdivia retired the day after the championship celebration and shortly after had his #14 uniform retired.

In total, Valdivia played 2424 games with 2834 hits, 1465 runs, 483 doubles, 164 triples, 434 home runs, 1414 RBI, 965 walks 1606 strikeouts, 845 steals, .324/.391/.566 slash, 148 wRC+, and 105.9 WAR. As of 2037, Valdivia is 84^th in games, 32^nd in hits, 34^th in runs, 39^th in total bases (4947), 22^nd in doubles, 58^th in RBI, 42^nd in steals, 22^nd in walks, and 26^th in WAR among position players. Among batters with 3000+ plate appearances, Valdivia is 23^rd in OBP and his .957 OPS is 64^th.

Despite those tallies, Valdivia is surprisingly under-rated and overlooked for being consistently good without any massive single year tallies. He ranks 5^th in WAR at second base, but often is rated below his contemporaries Antonio Arceo and Daniel Schafer, who both won Southern Cone League MVPs.

Valdivia also sometimes gets forgotten since Quito was aggressively mid during his prime years. Real ones know that Valdivia was legit and is on the short list for Beisbol Sudamerica’s top five at second base. He received 87.4% to take the third of four slots with the impressive 2030 Hall of Fame class.



Rico “Lippy” Ortega – Left Field – Trujillo Thoroughbreds – 78.4% First Ballot

Rico Ortega was a 6’0’’, 200 pound switch-hitting left fielder from Trujillo, Peru’s third most populous city. Ortega was a stellar contact hitter who was graded as a 10/10 at his peak by some scouts. He also had impressive power with a 162 game average of 44 home runs, 22 doubles, and 15 triples. Ortega was above average at drawing walks and had a decent strikeout rate relative to his peers.

Ortega was especially powerful facing right-handed arms with a career 1.092 OPS and 178 wRC+. His power was less pronounced against lefties, but he was still quite effective with a .895 OPS and 137 wRC+. Ortega’s baserunning skills and speed were average, but he was far from a liability. He primarily played left field and was a great defender, winning Gold Gloves in 2011 and 2012.

Additionally, Ortega was considered a good leader and he wasn’t selfish, making him a five-star recruit. On top of that, he could throw a great sinker, although he lacked a worthy second pitch with only a bad changeup on offer. That kept Ortega from being a true two-way guy, but he was quite good in limited relief use. The one downfall with Ortega would be durability issues with numerous injuries limiting him throughout a 16-year career.

When Ortega was growing up, his hometown Trujillo didn’t have a franchise. The city was angling for one and finally got their wish as part of the 2009 expansion. It couldn’t have been a more perfect fit that a hometown kid was a top prospect for their first-ever draft in 2008. The Thoroughbreds picked Ortega fourth overall and immediately made him the face of the new franchise.

Ortega delivered right away as 2009 Rookie of the Year. He was second in 2010’s MVP voting and third in 2011, while winning his first Silver Slugger and Gold Glove in 2011. 2010 had his career high for hits (202), and WAR (9.2), while 2011 saw his bests for home runs (51).

In 2012, Ortega got the awards sweep and won Bolivar League MVP by leading in the triple slash (.382/.436/.747), OPS (1.183), wRC+ (200), and WAR (8.7). This came despite missing April to a knee sprain, which would be the first of his injury issues. Ortega was third in 2013’s MVP voting and won another Slugger, leading again in slugging, OPS, wRC+, and WAR. 2014 would be a rough go, missing most of the season between a fractured ankle and knee sprain.

Like many expansion teams before them, Trujillo was terrible in their early years. Still, they were plenty satisfied with Ortega and gave him an eight-year, $82,860,000 extension after the 2014 season. He was popular in his home town and throughout Peru as he was a regular for his country in the World Baseball Championship.

From 2008-23, Ortega played 131 WBC games with 131 hits, 94 runs, 21 doubles, 8 triples, 43 home runs, 90 RBI, 43 steals, .289/.394/.656 slash, and 8.4 WAR. He had a 1.050 OPS in the WBC, one of only 62 guys to hit that effectively with at least 250 plate appearances. Ortega was an effective pitcher in the WBC with a 2.87 ERA over 37.2 innings, 41 strikeouts, and 1.0 WAR.

In 2012, Ortega won WBC Tournament MVP despite only playing seven games, posting an absurd triple slash of .556/.636/1.185 with a 1.822 OPS, 405 wRC+, and 1.4 WAR. That run included one of the few four home run games in WBC history in an encounter with the Czech Republic. Ortega also was third in 2013’s WBC MVP voting, although Peru never picked up a division title in his tenure.

Ortega remained very effective when healthy from 2015-18 with 5+ WAR and 1.000+ OPS each year. The trouble was each of those years he fell short of 110 starts due to various injuries, most commonly with his knee. Ortega lost almost all of 2019 with a fractured coracoid bone in his shoulder. But by then, Trujillo had finally put the pieces together to be a contender.

In 2018, the Thoroughbreds had their first playoff berth at 101-61, although they lost in the first round. Trujillo was 102-60 in 2019 and upset 117-win Caracas to win the Bolivar League title with Ortega winning BLCS MVP. Ortega had made it back for the playoffs with 17 hits, 10 runs, 3 doubles, 2 triples, 2 homers, .808 OPS, and 0.5 WAR over 14 starts. Trujillo would be denied by Recife in Copa Sudamerica, but they had impressively won their first pennant in only their 11^th season.

In the Baseball Grand Championship, the Thoroughbreds finished 9-10 with Ortega looking strong over 18 starts, posting 17 hits, 16 runs, 11 homers, 21 RBI, 12 walks, 1.274 OPS, and 1.6 WAR. That stat line earned Ortega Tournament MVP honors. This made Ortega the first player to own MVP honors in both the Baseball Grand Championship and the World Baseball Championship.

Trujillo won two more division titles in 2020-21, but were unable to win a playoff series. Ortega was fully healthy both years and won his second MVP in 2020, leading the league in slugging (.699), OPS (1.090), and wRC+ (187). He was good in 2021, but down from his usual production. Ortega had a sub .900 OPS for the first time in 2022 and lost a month to a fractured wrist. The Thoroughbreds just missed the playoffs, but still extended their longtime star for another two years and $20 million at age 37.

Ortega stayed healthy the next two years, but declined sharply and was relegated to only 94 games and 32 starts with subpar production. Trujillo also fell hard off a cliff and started a six-year run of 100+ loss seasons in 2024. Ortega was unsigned in 2025 and officially retired that winter shortly after turning 40. The Thoroughbreds quickly retired his #7 uniform to honor their first superstar and a hometown hero.

In total, Ortega had 1810 games, 2143 hits, 1160 runs, 241 doubles, 169 triples, 495 home runs, 1217 RBI, 572 walks, 1135 strikeouts, 453 steals, .336/.393/.659 slash, 171 wRC+, and 84.5 WAR. As of 2037, he ranks 74^th in home runs and 77^th in WAR among position players. The injuries greatly limited his final tallies and kept him out of the top 100 for most counting stats.

Ortega’s efficiency was stellar though and his 1.053 OPS and .659 slugging were first among all batters with 3000+ plate appearances at retirement. He still ranks 3^rd in OPS as of 2037 and his triple slash ranks 51^st/21^st/4^th. Among all of the world’s Hall of Famers as of 2037, Ortega is 8^th in OPS, 7^th in slugging, and 41^st in batting average.

Had he been able to stay healthy, Ortega might have been an inner-circle level inductee. Most voters felt his accomplishments even with the injuries were worthy with efficient hitting, two MVPs, and five Silver Sluggers. Ortega spent his whole career with his hometown team as they joined the league and helped them win their first pennant. At 78.4%, he was a first ballot selection to cap off an impressive four-player 2030 class for Beisbol Sudamerica.

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2030 saw two Hall of Fame additions for the European Baseball Federation, led by a slam dunk 98.7% debut for pitcher Luther Bowness. OF/1B Dylan Fitzpatrick joined him at 69.2% on his fourth ballot, scraping by the 66% requirement for induction. SP Lorenzo Rotella just missed at 64.5% on his fourth go.

Five other returners were above 50%. CF Joris Kostic got 56.3% on his seventh ballot, CL Stefan Sedlak had 53.8% on his ninth try, LF Marco Solis saw 53.1% in his second go, SP Stan Nyagin received 51.3% with his fifth ballot, and LF Emilson Patino had 50.3% on his fourth go. Apart from Bowness, no debuting players were above 25%. No players were dropped after ten failed ballots.



Luther “Tiger” Bowness – Starting Pitcher – Amsterdam Anacondas - 98.7% First Ballot

Luther Bowness was a 6’1’’, 175 pound right-handed starting pitcher from Worthing, England; a town of around 113,000 on the southern coast. Bowness had split English-Northern Irish heritage. His stuff was incredible and overpowering, graded as a 10/10 by many scouts at his peak. Bowness overwhelmed batters with pure stuff and he had solid movement. His control was above average at best, but he could usually work out of trouble.

Bowness had 99-101 mph peak velocity, but it was his exceptional changeup that got the most whiffs. He also had a sinker, curveball, and cutter with an extreme groundball tendency. Bowness’ stamina was quite good and he avoided injuries in the front end of his career. He had a good pickoff move but weak defense otherwise. Bowness was a hard worker and a fan favorite over a 17-year career with Amsterdam.

The Anacondas scouted and signed Bowness as a teenage amateur in February 2004. He spent most of eight years in their academy and debuted in 2008 at age 20, although he struggled over 48.1 innings. Bowness was a full-time starter with decent results in 2009, then settled into an ace role after that. He led the Northern Conference in WHIP for 2011 with a career best 0.92. Bowness led in both strikeouts and complete games in 2012-13.

2013 was his career best in Ks at 316, taking third in Pitcher of the Year voting. Amsterdam had been competitive from 2008-12, but had fallen just outside of the playoffs. 2013 started a five-year playoff streak with a 109-53 record, although they were second in the division to 115-win Dublin. The Anacondas won 105 in 2014 but again were a wild card. They lost in the first round both years and fell in the second round in 2015.

Bowness had emerged as the ace by this point and signed a five-year, $56,600,000 extension in September 2014. He took third in 2015’s Pitcher of the Year voting. In 2016, Amsterdam won the Northern Conference as a 96-66 wild card, falling to Zurich in the European Championship. Bowness had a strong postseason with a 4-1 record and 2.64 ERA over six starts, 44.1 innings, 56 strikeouts, and 1.1 WAR. He was merely okay with a 4.09 ERA over 33 innings with 53 Ks in the Baseball Grand Championship. The Anacondas finished at 10-9 in a tie for tenth.

Amsterdam remained in the playoff mix, but never made another deep run. They were a conference finalist to Dublin in 2020 and early exits in 2017, 19, 22, and 24. Bowness had strong playoff numbers overall with a 2.38 ERA over 98.1 innings, 7-3 record, 114 strikeouts, 26 walks, 160 ERA+, and 2.1 WAR.

Bowness also pitched for England in the World Baseball Championship from 2020-22 and in 2024 with a 2.07 ERA over 69.2 innings, 7-3 record, 111 strikeouts, and 2.8 WAR. England notably had a fourth place in 2022 with Bowness posting a 2.25 ERA over 28 innings with 46 strikeouts.

In May 2019, Bowness signed a five-year, $74,600,000 extension to stick with Amsterdam. 2020 would be his first major injury with a torn triceps costing him most of the first half. Bowness bounced back and won his lone Pitcher of the Year award in 2021 with conference bests in strikeouts (308) and WAR (8.2). He won his lone ERA title in 2022 with a career best 2.19, taking second in voting.

Bowness was certainly on pace in 2022 to win again, but a torn labrum in late August cost him the final weeks of the season. He opted out of his deal and tested free agency for a month, but the 35-year old ultimately returned to the Dutch capital on a three-year, $69,800,000 deal. Bowness was less dominant but still respectable in 2023, but a torn biceps kept him out roughly half of the year.

In 2024, Bowness’s production had dipped and he had a full-season career worst 4.09 ERA, although he was still worth 4.4 WAR. He became only the 11^th in EBF history to reach 4000 career strikeouts. He had plans to keep pitching until a second torn labrum in September 2024. Doctors made the decision for him and Bowness had to retire shortly after his 37^th birthday. Amsterdam quickly honored him by retiring his #2 uniform.

Bowness finished with a 223-142 record, 3.13 ERA, 3519.2 innings, 4041 strikeouts, 852 walks, 271/431 quality starts, 165 complete games, 25 shutouts, 122 ERA+, 76 FIP-, and 87.9 WAR. As of 2037, Bowness ranks 26^th in wins, 25^th in innings, 9^th in complete games, 51^st in shutouts, 12^th in strikeouts, and 18^th in WAR among pitchers. He also has a 10.33 K/9, ranking 53^rd among those with 1000+ career innings.

He probably falls just short of the “inner circle” level of Hall of Famers for the European Baseball Federation depending on how strict one’s definition is. But it was almost universally agreed that Bowness was well deserving of a spot. He received 98.7% to headline the two-player 2030 class for the European Baseball Federation.



Dylan Fitzpatrick – Outfield/First Base – Belfast Brewers – 69.2% Fourth Ballot

Dylan Fitzpatrick was a 6’0’’, 200 pound left-handed corner outfielder and first baseman from Galway, Ireland’s fourth most populous city with around 86,000 inhabitants. Fitzpatrick was best known for having steady home run power and a great eye for drawing walks. He was better than most at avoiding strikeouts and was a solid contact hitter against right-handed pitching.

Facing RHP, Fitzpatrick had a career 1.001 OPS and 175 wRC+ compared to a middling .716 OPS and 103 wRC+ against lefties. His power was more focused on dingers than the gap with a 162 game average of 36 homers, 22 doubles, and 9 triples. He could leg out extra bags here and there as Fitzpatrick was an excellent baserunner with good speed.

Fitzpatrick bounced around defensively in his career with half of his starts in right field, around 30% at first base, and most of the rest in left. He graded as a mediocre glove man at each, but you could do worse. Fitzpatrick’s durability was mostly good over a 15-year career. While he wasn’t disruptive, Fitzpatrick was viewed by teammates and coaches as a bit of a selfish loner.

He made the move to Northern Ireland after getting drafted 21^st in 2006 by Belfast. Fitzpatrick started much of 2007 with good results and became a full-time starter after that. In 2009, Fitzpatrick won a Silver Slugger (1B) and was second in MVP voting, leading the Northern Conference in walks (88), OBP (.432), slugging (.692), and OPS (1.124). Those would all be career bests as was his 121 runs, 193 hits, 49 home runs, 127 RBI, .344 average, and 10.6 WAR.

Fitzpatrick never replicated that season again, but he remained a quality starter with four more 5+ WAR seasons for Belfast. The Brewers were just above .500 to start the decade, but had fallen into relegation danger by 2013 at 64-98. Hoping to rebuild without getting demoted, Fitzpatrick was traded in the offseason to Leipzig for two relievers. Belfast didn’t expect Fitzpatrick to stay once he was eligible for free agency by 2016.

With Belfast, Fitzpatrick played 1042 games, 1084 hits, 655 runs, 154 doubles, 53 triples, 264 home runs, 676 RBI, 488 walks, 369 steals, .298/.381/.587 slash, 171 wRC+, and 43.6 WAR. He was generally popular with Brewers fans, but wasn’t impactful or tenured enough to really be considered a team legend. Still, it was his longest and most productive tenure by a healthy margin and Fitzpatrick was inducted in the tan and gold.

Although his most prominent pro tenure was in Northern Ireland, Fitzpatrick did regularly return home to the Republic of Ireland for the World Baseball Championship. From 2007-17, Fitzpatrick played 109 games with 91 hits, 69 runs, 17 doubles, 25 home runs, 37 RBI, 77 walks, 48 steals, .259/.399/.538 slash, and 5.4 WAR. In 2011, Ireland had their best-ever finish of third place with Fitzpatrick posting .942 OPS and 0.8 WAR in 19 starts.

Fitzpatrick had two good years for Leipzig and won his second Silver Slugger (RF) in 2015, leading that year with 86 walks. He also had 43 homers and a 1.007 OPS. The Lumberjacks stayed just below .500 as they acclimated to the top tier. Fitzpatrick made himself a hot property entering free agency at age 32 and earned a five-year, $86 million deal with Amsterdam.

His debut season was his best with 7.3 WAR and .979 OPS, helping Amsterdam win the Northern Conference pennant before falling to Zurich in the European Championship. In the playoffs, Fitzpatrick was decent in 17 starts with 13 hits, 10 runs, 2 triples, 3 home runs, 7 RBI, 15 walks, .819 OPS, and 0.4 WAWR. He was stronger in the Baseball Grand Championship as the Anacondas finished 10-9. In 18 starts, Fitzpatrick had 13 hits, 15 runs, 3 doubles, 7 homers, 10 RBI, 11 walks, .921 OPS, and 0.9 WAR.

Fitzpatrick remained a respectable starter from 2017-20 and led in walks for the third time in 2017. Amsterdam had a conference finals loss in 2020 along with a first round exit in 2017 and second round defeat in 2019. For his playoff career, Fitzpatrick had 33 games with 32 hits, 18 runs, 5 doubles, 4 triples, 5 home runs, 12 RBI, 17 walks, .256/.350/.480 slash, 123 wRC+, and 1.0 WAR.

In the 2020 playoffs, Fitzpatrick suffered a torn PCL with an expected 8-9 month recovery time. His contract was up, but Amsterdam gave him a qualifying offer for 2021. Fitzpatrick made it back for 80 games and 32 starts, but was unremarkable with .677 OPS and 0.2 WAR. Fitzpatrick wanted to still play for 2022, but no teams were interested, leading to his retirement that winter at age 39. For Amsterdam, Fitzpatrick played 836 games with 791 hits, 512 runs, 106 doubles, 53 tirples, 150 home runs, 411 RBI, 373 walks, 313 steals, .279/.363/.513 slash, 139 wRC+, and 23.5 WAR.

In total, Fitzpatrick played 2194 games with 2207 hits, 1375 runs, 295 doubles, 122 triples, 493 home runs, 1285 RBI, 1010 walks, 1127 strikeouts, 808 steals, .292/.375/.558 slash, 158 wRC+, and 80.7 WAR. As of 2037, Fitzpatrick ranks 89^th in games, 53^rd in runs, 73^rd in total bases (4225), 57^th in home runs, 78^th in RBI, 18^th in walks, 46^th in steals, and 80^th in WAR among position players.

Fitzpatrick’s resume was definitely borderline compared to other Hall of Famers. His accumulations were good, but not otherworldly. His black ink and awards were both limited and his best years came on forgettable Belfast teams. Fitzpatrick wasn’t viewed as a top five guy, but he was rock steady and helped Amsterdam win a pennant.

He missed the 66% requirement in his debut with 56.1% in 2027. Fitzpatrick stayed about the same at 55.6% in 2028, then got a slight bump to 61.5% in 2029. In 2030, Fitzpatrick had the benefit of no impactful debuts outside of his former teammate Luther Bowness. He got another slight bump just across the line at 69.2%. With that, Fitzpatrick was a fourth ballot selection to cap off the 2030 class for the European Baseball Federation.