Baseball: The World's Game

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Birmingham, winners of the Northern Conference crown twice in the prior three seasons, set a franchise record in 1994 at 110-52. The Bees had the best record in the EBF and earned a fourth consecutive British Isles Division. After missing the playoffs in four straight years, Amsterdam returned to the top spot in the Northwest Division at 100-62. The division had the wild card battle with Brussels (92-70) besting Rotterdam (88-74). The Beavers ended a two-year drought, while the Ravens’ missed the postseason for only the second time in a decade and saw a four-year streak stopped. At 91-71, Hamburg won the North Central Division for the first time since their 1990 pennant. Stockholm (84-78) and Copenhagen (83-79) were the closest competition, while Berlin’s playoff streak ended at three years as they fell below .500.

Copenhagen 1B Mattias Stole had an incredible sophomore season, winning Northern Conference MVP and setting world records along the way. The 24-year old Norwegian lefty had EBF’s fourth Triple Crown for a hitter with a staggering 75 home runs, 183 RBI, and .376 average. Within EBF, this beat Sean Houston’s record-setting 1984 efforts of 72 home runs and 167 RBI. This also set a world record for RBI and was one short of Valor Melo’s 76 home run mark in BSA. Stole’s 183 RBI is still the EBF record as of 2037 and was the world record until 2003. His 75 homers remains third as of 2037. Stole also led the conference in runs (136), hits (239), total bases (503), OBP (.418), slugging (.791), OPS (1.209), wRC+ (223), and WAR (10.8).

Meanwhile, Birmingham’s Lindsey Brampton secured a fourth consecutive Pitcher of the Year. He came close to a Triple Crown, but was second in ERA with a 24-4 record, 2.14 ERA, and 463 strikeouts. The 463 Ks was second-most in a EBF season, two behind his own mark of 465 the prior year. The 26-year old Englishman also led in WHIP (0.78), innings (273.1), quality starts (27), complete games (16), FIP- (49), and WAR (11.7).

In the opening round of the postseason, Birmingham outlasted Hamburg in a five game battle and Amsterdam swept divisional foe Brussels. It was the first Northern Conference Championship for the Anacondas since their 1980s dynasty run, while the Bees earned a shot at a third pennant in four years. Birmingham was successful in repeating as NC champs, although it took a seven-game war that saw the home team win all seven games. The Bees joined the Anacondas as the only Northern Conference franchises to win the pennant thrice in a four year stretch.



The top two teams in the Southern Conference battled for the Southwest Division title. After taking the wild card last year, Barcelona finished first at 101-61 for their first division title since their 1979 European Championship. Lisbon was close behind at 97-65 and extended its playoff streak to four seasons.

Meanwhile, the two massive division title streaks both came to a close. Defending European Champion Zurich had its incredible 21-year stranglehold on the South Central Division thwarted by Rome. The Red Wolves took it at 86-76, beating the Mountaineers by two games. It was Rome’s second playoff spot in four years, taking a wild card in 1991. In the Southeast Division, Munich’s 11-year run was stopped by Zagreb. The Gulls ended a 15-year playoff drought with an 89-73 mark. The Mavericks were two behind and Athens was four back.

Lisbon took the top honors with CF Willy Fierro winning Southern Conference MVP. It was the second MVP for the 29-year old Spaniard, who also won it back in 1989. Fierro led the SC in runs (132), total bases (407), triple slash (.342/.409/.689), OPS (1.098), wRC+ (1920, and WAR (12.7). He also smacked 49 home runs with 130 RBI. His Clippers teammate Daniel Ramires won Pitcher of the Year. Nicknamed “Buddy,” the 31-year old Portuguese righty was in his fourth year with Lisbon. He led in wins (25-10), innings (303), strikeouts (313), complete games (16), and WAR (9.3). His 303 innings tied the EBF single-season record, which stills stands as of 2037. Ramires also had a 3.27 ERA.

Barcelona survived in a five game first round battle with Rome, while Zagreb ousted Lisbon 3-1. It had been a long while since either had been to the Southern Conference Championship with the Bengals’ last berth being 1979 and the Gulls’ being 1975. The finale needed all seven games as well as extra innings in game seven. In the tenth inning of a wild affair, 1B Lionel Wackerlin had the walk off RBI single to win it 11-10 for Barcelona. It was the fifth pennant for the Bengals (1950, 59, 64, 79, 94).



After winning their first European Championship in 1991, Birmingham lost a heartbreaker in 1993 to Zurich with game seven decided 3-2 in 10 innings. The Bees bounced back in 1994, besting Barcelona 4-2 in the 45^th European Championship. Veteran slugger Sean Houston was EBF finals MVP and conference finals MVP, as the 35-year old Scot had 34 hits, 13 runs, 6 home runs, and 12 RBI in 18 playoff starts. The 34 hits was a playoff record which would only get passed once in 2015.



Other notes: Birmingham’s win was also the third ring for RF Jacob “Rowdy” Ronnberg, who had won two as Marseille’s star in the 1980s. The 38-year old had signed with the Bees in the offseason and had his last great season, although he still played two more years. In 1994, Ronnberg became the first EBF batter to reach 2000 runs scored. He also passed Sauncho Fiero as EBF’s hit king, finishing the season with 3460. Ronnberg remained both the EBF hit king and runs leader until 2015.

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After being both the wild card and BLCS runner-up in the prior two seasons, Medellin had the Bolivar League’s best record in 1994. At 106-56, the Mutiny won the Colombia-Ecuador Division and had the top mark in Beisbol Sudamerica. Quito finished 96-66 to take the wild card by a wide margin, ending a three-year playoff drought. Bogota dropped to 83-79 and saw its three-year postseason streak snapped. In the Peru-Bolivia Division, defending BL champ Lima cruised to the title at 101-61. The Lobos have BSA’s longest active playoff streak at seven seasons and won their sixth division title in that stretch. The Venezuela Division had Maracaibo first at 87-75, ending their own three-year playoff drought. Ciudad Guayana, who had controlled the division in recent years, fell to a lousy 73-89. That was the Giants’ first losing season in a decade.

Leading Medellin’s effort was Bolivar League MVP Kasim Mati. The 27-year old Guyanese left fielder had a .315/.369/.568 slash with 7.6 WAR, 31 home runs, and 110 RBI. After taking Rookie of the Year the prior season, Quito’s P.J. Sifuentes picked up Pitcher of the Year. The Ecuadoran righty led in wins (24-5), ERA (1.84), quality starts (32), FIP- (53), and WAR (11.8). He was second in strikeouts with 333 Ks over 293.1 innings.



Quito upset their divisional foe Medellin 3-1 in the divisional series, while Lima survived in five over Maracaibo. It was the Thunderbolts’ first Bolivar League Championship Series berth since their 1983 pennant, while it was the fourth in five years for the Lobos. Quito denied Lima from repeating again, as the Thunderbolts took the BLCS convincingly 4-1. The Thunderbolts now have six BL pennants (1963-65, 81, 83, 94).

Defending Copa Sudamerica winner Sao Paulo had the Southern Cone League’s best record at 97-65. It was their sixth Southeast Division title in seven years, finishing 10 ahead of Rio de Janeiro. In the South Central Division, Santiago (90-72) took it for the fourth time in five years. Meanwhile, the North Division race was incredibly intense. Fortaleza was first at 92-70, ending a four-year playoff drought. Brasilia was one back (91-71) with both Recife and Salvador two back (90-72). This did earn the Bearcats the wild card and their first playoff appearance in 22 years.

Fortaleza lead-off man Caco Gallegos won his first Southern Cone League MVP. The 30-year old Colombian switch hitting first baseman led the league in runs (119), hits (253), doubles (55), triples (37), total bases (391), average (.383), OBP (.406), OPS (.997), and wRC+ (201). Gallegos’ 253 hits was second-most in a BSA season behind his own 257 in 1989. His 55 doubles fell one short of Jamie Scagliotti’s 1952 record. Sao Paulo’s Andres Ramirez won his fourth Pitcher of the Year award, putting him in rare company. The 30-year old Bolivian led in ERA (1.97), quality starts (31), and WAR (7.4). He added a 21-8 record over 278 innings with 319 strikeouts.

Both Divisional Series matchups went all five games. Brasilia upset defending champ Sao Paulo, while Fortaleza outlasted Santiago. For the Bearcats, this was their first Southern Cone League Championship berth since 1971, while it was the first since 1987 for the Foxes. Fortaleza rolled to a 4-1 win over Brasilia to secure a seventh pennant (1932, 40, 65, 67, 72, 78, 94).



Quito and Fortaleza had met once before in Copa Sudamerica. Back in 1965, the Thunderbolts won their only Cup in a series that saw them start ahead 3-0, lose the next three games, then take game seven. Amazingly, the 1994 edition followed that exact same script. Quito claimed the first three games of the 64^th Copa Sudamerica, then dropped games four, five, and six. The Thunderbolts edged the Foxes in game seven to take the title. Casimiro Guzman was an unexpected hero as finals MVP, as the Paraguayan second baseman would post negative WAR over an eight year career. He was a full-time starter in the playoffs after starting 53 games in the regular season, posting 19 hits, 7 runs, 3 doubles, 3 triples, 1 homer, and 8 RBI. Guzman managed to have 0.7 WAR in the playoffs alone; his best season was 0.4.



Other notes: 1994 had the 44^th and 45^th BSA Perfect Games. On June 3, Brasilia’s Juary Varicoes fanned six against Valencia. Then on August 28, Shepherd Fortenberry of Bogota did it with 13 Ks over Quito. 2B Kip Flores won his tenth Silver Slugger while 3B Dyjan Rondo won his ninth.

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Two-time defending East Asia Baseball champion Kitakyushu again had the best record in the Japan League. The Kodiaks finished 103-59 to secure a fifth consecutive West Division title. They impressively pulled this off despite Fukuoka going 96-66 and Hiroshima at 94-68. Because the JL only sees division champs advance, that left the Frogs and Hammerheads out of the playoffs despite having the second and third best overall record in the league. Tokyo took the Capital Division for the third successive season at 93-69. Kobe grabbed the Central Division at 90-72, topping defending division winner Kyoto by five games. In the North Division, Sapporo ended a four-year playoff drought with a 90-72 mark. Last year’s division winner Sendai was six games back. Niigata, the JL champ with 106 wins only three years earlier, bottomed out at 68 wins.

Veteran slugger Tsukasa Kato had a historic season for Kitakyushu, winning Japan League MVP. Kato had joined the Kodiaks in 1991on a massive seven-year, $10,240,000 deal after eight years with Hiroshima and a MVP season in 1987. In 1994, Kato became the new EAB home run king, smacking 72 dingers. This passed Carl Valdes’ top mark of 71 in 1972. Kato remarkably also led in home runs for the eighth time in his career and had his fifth season with 60+ bombs. The left-handed first baseman also led in RBI (129), walks (67), total bases (372), slugging (.658), OPS (.985), wRC+ (204), and WAR (8.1). Pitcher of the Year also went to Kitakyushu as Yutaka Kobayashi earned it for the first time. The 29-year old righty led in WHIP (0.86) and posted a 20-5 record, 2.00 ERA, 242.2 innings, 269 strikeouts, and 7.5 WAR.

The Kodiaks were taken to the brink in the first round of the playoffs, but survived 3-2 over Sapporo to earn a fifth consecutive Japan League Championship Series berth. Kobe clobbered Tokyo with a sweep, giving the Blaze their first JLCS berth since winning the 1984 pennant. Kobe couldn’t compete with the Kodiaks, who completed the three-peat bid in only five games. It is the sixth pennant for Kitakyushu, who joined Hiroshima (1968-70) and Sapporo (1949-51) as the only franchise to win three consecutive Japan League crowns.



Yongin snapped a six-year playoff drought and had the Korea League’s best record in 1994 at 103-59. This was a franchise record for the Gold Sox, getting their first South Division title since taking the pennant in 1985. They had fierce competition with both Ulsan and Busan finishing the regular season at 99-63. A tiebreaker game gave the Swallows the first wild card and the Blue Jays the second one. Both teams also ended notable playoff droughts with Ulsan’s dating back to 1987 and Busan’s to 1983. Defending KL champ Gwangju’s playoff streak ended at four as they finished 88-74. In the North Division, Suwon (100-62) earned three postseason spots in a row. Pyongyang was their closest competitor at 94-68, falling six short of the division and five from the wild card. Goyang at 84-78 also had their postseason streak end at three seasons. Bucheon, who was the KLCS runner-up in 1993, limped to a lousy 71-91 record.

Korea League MVP was Ulsan first baseman Byung-Tak Wie. Nicknamed “Penguin,” the 24-year old lefty led the KL with a 1.045 OPS and posted 8.2 WAR, 46 home runs, 116 RBI, and a .339 average. Ha-Ram Lee won his third Pitcher of the Year award. He started the season with a terrible Incheon squad, but was traded for five prospects in July to Busan. The combined effort for the 28-year old lefty saw a league-best 348 strikeouts and 0.91 WHIP. Lee also had 8.5 WAR over 257.1 innings with a 2.87 ERA and 16-14 record.

Yongin rolled Busan with a first round sweep, while Ulsan upset Suwon in a 3-2 battle. Neither team had been back to the Korea League Championship Series since their 1985 and 1987 KLCS encounters against each other. The Gold Sox had won in 1985, while the Swallows took it in 1987. For the 1994 meeting, Yongin defeated Ulsan 4-2 for the franchise’s fourth pennant.



In the 74^th East Asian Championship, Kitakyushu made history with their 4-2 victory over Yongin to complete the overall title three-peat. Fittingly, the new single-season home run king Tsukasa Kato also won both finals MVP and JLCS MVP. In 16 playoff games, Kato had 16 hits, 13 runs, 9 home runs, and 15 RBI. The nine homers was one short of the single postseason record. Kato also joined rare company as a two-time finals MVP, having also done it in 1992.



Kitakyushu’s run would go down as one of EAB’s all-time dynasties. They were only the second team to win three consecutive rings in EAB, joining Pyongyang (who won four from 1965-68). It wouldn’t be until Hamamatsu from 2034-36 that EAB would see another three-peat. Kodiaks fans would long for the early 1990s, as they wouldn’t win another pennant in the next 40 years.

Other notes: Hiroshima as a team stole 407 bases, which was the Japan League record until 2012. Yongin’s Si-Hun Lee had 241 hits and a .393 batting average. Both marks were second-best in an EAB season behind his own .411 average and 252 hits the prior season. Lee also had a 37-game hit streak, the fifth longest in EAB history. Shoji Ohbiki became the 15^th member of the 3000 hit club. Ju-Kan Yoo became the 24^th batter to 600 home runs. Woo-Hong Ryu became the 13^th to 4000 strikeouts. CF Yuma Akasaka won his ninth Silver Slugger.

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For the fifth year in a row, the best record in the Mexican League went to Monterrey. The four-time defending league champ Matadors won the North Division at 105-57, extending their playoff streak to seven seasons. Monterrey also had the most runs (803) and fewest allowed (553) in the ML. Tijuana was five back at 100-62 to secure a third straight wild card. In the South Division, Ecatepec and Guadalajara tied for the top spot at 88-74, while Leon was two back. The Explosion won the tiebreaker game over the Hellhounds to secure repeat division titles.

Tijuana 3B Jacky Castillo was a repeat Mexican League MVP winner. The 27-year old lefty led in home runs (61), slugging (.670), and WAR (9.7). He added 108 runs, 117 RBI, and a .309 average. The Toros also had Pitcher of the Year from second-year rising star Jeraldo Gonzalez. The 22-year old led in ERA (2.43) and wins (20-11), while adding 225 strikeouts over 259.2 innings with 4.6 WAR.

In the wild card round, Ecatepec topped Tijuana to earn repeat appearances in the Mexican League Championship Series. The Explosion would then stun Monterrey and deny their bid for a fifth consecutive pennant. Ecatepec won the MLCS 4-2 for their first pennant since 1975 and seventh overall.



The battle for the top record in the Caribbean League was also the battle for first in the Continental Division. Defending CABA champion Honduras and Salvador both finished the regular season tied at 100-62. The Stallions won the one game playoff to take the division for the second time in three years. The Horsemen were still the wild card, earning a fifth playoff appearance in seven years. Guatemala, a wild card last year, was still 10 games away despite a solid 90-72 season. In the Island Division, Santo Domingo reclaimed the throne at 96-66. The Dolphins secured their fifth playoff spot in six years and their 11^th since 1981. Havana was second, finishing four games back. Trinidad, winners of 106 games in 1993, dropped to fifth at 82-80.

Santo Domingo CF Hugh Boerboom won his second Caribbean League MVP, having also earned the honor in 1991. The 31-year old Aruban led the CL with 55 home runs, 386 total bases, .644 slugging, and 173 wRC+. He added a .317 average, 6.7 WAR, and 115 RBI. Salvador’s Benito Bertran was Pitcher of the Year for the second time in three years. The 26-year old Honduran righty won the ERA title (2.43) and led in WHIP (0.96), quality starts (25), and WAR (7.3). Bertran also had 216 strikeouts in 278.1 innings with a 17-8 record.

Santo Domingo used home field advantage in the wild card round to sweep the defending champ Honduras. For the Dolphins, this would mark the eighth time in 14 years that they played in the Caribbean League Championship Series. They had lost their last three appearances, while Salvador had similar rough luck. The Stallions had earned six CLCS berths since 1978, but had lost their lost five tries. Salvador succeeded in snapping their struggles, taking the pennant 4-1 over Santo Domingo. The Stallions now have six titles to their name.



The 84^th Central American Baseball Association Championship was not the first meeting between Ecatepec and Salvador. All the way back in 1931, the Explosion edged the Stallions in seven games. The 1994 edition was also a seven game classic and even more dramatic. In game seven, rookie LF Heathcliffe Davis etched his name into history. He had only three starts all season and was 0-7 in his postseason pinch hit opportunities. In Davis’ eighth try; he got the walkoff RBI single to give Salvador both the 4-3 win in the game and the 4-3 series win. Inigo Polanco was finals MVP, posting 16 hits, 8 runs, 3 doubles, 3 home runs, 9 RBI, and 8 stolen bases in 12 playoff starts. It was the fourth CABA title for Salvador, who also won in 1915, 1966, and 1965.



Other notes: Ruben Chavez became the ninth CABA batter to score 1500 career runs.

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The Lower Midwest Division saw a tie for the top record in the National Association as both Columbus and Indianapolis finished 98-64. In a one-game tiebreaker, the Chargers beat the Racers to earn the first round bye. It was the first playoff berth since 1977 for Columbus and their first division win since 1986. For Indy, they were the first wild card and ended a five-year playoff drought. Cleveland won the Upper Midwest Division at 98-64 to take the other bye. The Cobras got back-to-back playoff berths, but their first division title in a decade. Buffalo hadn’t been a playoff team since 1977, but the Blue Sox took the Northeast Division at 94-68. In the East, New York finished first at 91-71. The Yankees now have a four-year playoff streak with five berths in six years.

In the battle for the second wild card, Wichita came out on top of at90-72. This was the first playoff berth for the Wasps since joining the NA in 1982. Detroit was one behind at 89-73, followed by St. Louis (88-74), Chicago (87-75), Ottawa (86-76), and Pittsburgh (85-77). Defending NA champ Toronto dropped to 83-79. Quebec City and Virginia Beach, both division winners last year, plummeted to 74 and 79 wins, respectively.

Washington was 77-85 for back-to-back seasons, but their right fielder Nathaniel D’Attilo became a repeat National Association MVP. The 24-year old lefty led in walks (86), OBP (.446), slugging (.650), OPS (1.095), wRC+ (231), and WAR (9.8). D’Attilo added 43 home runs and a .359 average.

Boston was right at .500, but they boasted Pitcher of the Year Samuel Raimundes. The 26-year old righty led in WAR (10.6), quality starts (30), complete games (18), shutouts (7), and innings (285.2). Raimundes added 294 strikeouts, a 2.30 ERA, and 21-7 record. That effort beat out Chicago’s Qazi Khwaja for the award despite Khwaja becoming only the sixth MLB pitcher to earn a Triple Crown and the first since 1974. The 26-year old Pakistan had come to the Cubs on a six-year, $19,280,000 deal after a great run with ABF’s Karachi. Khwaja had a 22-9 record, 1.99 ERA, and 296 strikeouts over 281 innings with 7.7 WAR. Still, Raimundes had the WAR advantage and also won a Silver Slugger at pitcher, allowing him to take the honor over Khwaja. As of 2037, MLB hasn’t seen another Triple Crown pitcher.

Indianapolis ousted New York 2-1 and Buffalo swept Wichita 2-0 in the first round of the playoffs. Both top seeds prevailed in round two as Columbus survived in five against their division foe Indy, while Cleveland swept Buffalo. It was the first National Association Championship Series for the Cobras since 1973 and the first since 1969 for the Chargers. It was also the first NACS to feature two Ohio teams. Cleveland defeated Columbus 4-2 for their first pennant in 67 years. It was the Cobras’ third, as their other wins were 1922 and 1927.



Two-time defending American Association champion Calgary finished at 106-56, earning a third consecutive Northwest Division, third top seed, and third 100+ win season. The other bye went to Albuquerque at 98-68, ending a six-year playoff drought. The Isotopes won the Southwest Division for the first-time post alignment with their last first place coming back in 1972. In the Southeast Division, Atlanta (94-68) was first for the eighth consecutive season. This set the MLB record for consecutive division titles and gave them the second longest playoff streak behind Ottawa’s ten-year run from 1932-41.

In the wild card race, 92-70 San Francisco took the first spot to earn repeat wild cards. Edmonton and Phoenix tied for the second spot at 91-71 with the next closest competitors being Tampa (87-75) and Seattle (85-77). The Firebirds beat the Eels in the tiebreaker game, ending a four-year playoff drought for Phoenix. Denver, the AACS runner-up last year, dropped to .500. In the weak South Central Division, New Orleans earned a repeat title at 86-76. The Mudcats were three better than both Dallas and San Antonio; while Memphis and Houston were five back.

Calgary claimed the top awards, both with first-time winners. Third-year LF Hendrix Landry was MVP as the Red Deer, Alberta native led in doubles (42), total bases (375), slugging (.620), OPS (1.005), and wRC+ (163). Landry added 39 home runs, 123 RBI, a .314 average, and 8.7 WAR. Fabian Kulik was the Pitcher of the Year, bouncing back from a ruptured finger tendon that cost him almost all of 1993. The 25-year old Polish lefty led in wins at 26-4, as well as FIP- (59), and WAR (10.5). Kulik added a 2.62 ERA over 285.1 innings with 272 strikeouts. Sadly, he would rupture his UCL the next season and struggled with injuries for the remainder of his run.

San Francisco downed New Orleans 2-0 and Atlanta topped Phoenix 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs. Both the Gold Rush and Aces carried their momentum into second round upsets. SF shocked defending champ Calgary 3-1, while Atlanta outlasted Albuquerque 4-2. It was San Francisco’s first American Association Championship Series berth since their 1984 pennant. For the Aces, this was their fifth appearance in their division title streak. Atlanta would be snake bitten again though with the Gold Rush winning the AACS 4-3. The Aces went 0-5 during their playoff streak and saw their window end here, as they wouldn’t make it back until 2036. It is SF’s sixth pennant (1921, 24, 29, 50, 84, 94)



In the 94^th World Series, San Francisco defeated Cleveland 4-1 to give the Gold Rush their third ring (1921, 1950, 1994). Catcher Luca Adams was the World Series MVP as the 25-year old righty had 27 hits, 12 runs, 6 doubles, 3 home runs, and 10 RBI in 18 playoff starts.



Other notes: Bentley Wade became the 11^th MLB batter to reach 3500 career hits. He would play only one more season and finish with 3548 hits, retiring 11^th. Wade is still 13^th as of 2037. T.J. Nakabayashi became the 20^th MLB pitcher to reach 3500 career strikeouts.

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The 1995 Major League Baseball Hall of Fame class was an impressive one with three players receiving above 95% on their opening ballot. RF Will Brenneisen (99.1%), LF Connor Neumeyer (98.5%) and SP Jonah Mors (96.9%) each earned their spots into the HOF. Closer Devin Ivey almost joined him in his debut, but was just short at 62.2%. LF Aiden Hertelin also had a respectable first ballot at 59.4%. The only player above 50% that was a returner was 1B Kymani Massey, taking 56.9% in his third attempt.



Russ Spratt was the lone player to fall off the ballot following ten failed tries. He was hurt by the usual anti-catcher bias of the voters, although having only a 13-year career lowered his accumulations too. Exclusively with Chicago, he had seven Silver Sluggers, 1717 hits, 755 runs, 288 doubles, 177 home runs, 754 RBI, a .310/.374/.465 slash and 62.1 WAR. As he fell off the ballot, he was eighth in WAR among catchers, Spratt got as close at 60.8% in his ninth ballot, but ended at 47.4% after bouncing around between the 45-55% range. He declined too soon to reach the tallies that might have gotten him across the line.



Will Brenneisen – Right Field – Tampa Thunderbirds – 99.1% First Ballot

Will Brenneisen was a 6’0’’, 200 pound left-handed right fielder from Covington, Louisiana; a small city of around 11,000 people within the New Orleans metropolitan area. Brenneisen was a great contact hitter with a very strong bat, averaging around 40 home runs and 30 doubles per 162 games. He was decent at drawing walks and very solid at avoiding strikeouts. Brenneisen was an intelligent baserunner, but his speed was mediocre. He played almost exclusively in right field and was viewed as above average overall with a great arm, but iffy range. Brenneisen did make a few starts in center, but struggled there from his lack of range. He was very durable for the majority of his career and was one of the most popular players of the era.

Brenneisen’s college career at Oklahoma included a Silver Slugger in his junior year. In 146 games as a Sooner, he had 150 hits, 91 runs, 27 doubles, 41 home runs, 92 RBI, and 6.3 WAR with a .266/.342/.535 slash. In the 1971 MLB Draft, he was picked 17^th overall by Tampa. Brenneisen was a full-time starter immediately for the Thunderbolts as a designated hitter and had one of the all-time great rookie campaigns. In his debut, he led the American Association in home runs (55), RBI (132), and total bases (385), while adding a .342 average and 7.5 WAR. This earned him both Rookie of the Year and his first of seven Silver Sluggers.

Brenneisen led in homers and RBI again in 1973, but saw his overall productivity drop. In 1974, he led in runs (120), total bases (373), OPS (1.067) and posted 8.3 WAR. This earned him his lone MVP and a second Silver Slugger. Brenneisen would miss two months in 1975 with a torn ligament in his thumb, which was ultimately the only major injury he had in his storied Tampa tenure.

The Thunderbirds ended their postseason drought with appearances in 1976 and 1977, although both years they were ousted in round two. In 1978, Brenneisen led in home runs for the third time (53) and added an impressive 168 RBI; which was the third-best MLB season to that point. This got him second in MVP voting, his final time as a finalist. His seven Silver Sluggers came in 1972, 74, 76, 77, 78, 79, and 83. Tampa would lock Brenneisen up in the spring of 1977 on an eight-year, $7,150,000 extension.

As the 1980s dawned, Brenneisen wouldn’t be a league leader ever again. Still, for the life of that extension he could generally be counted on for around 35-40 home runs and 100+ RBI in the middle of the lineup. Tampa made the playoffs a few more times in the early 1980s winning weak divisions, but they never got out of the first round. Brenneisen’s playoff numbers were fine with 22 hits, 10 runs, 7 home runs, and 19 RBI in 18 starts. However, he ultimately never had a chance to play beyond the second round.

His contract ran out after the 1985 season and it was mutually agreed to part ways. For his Tampa career, Brenneisen had 2351 hits, 1336 runs, 380 doubles, 568 home runs, 1635 RBI, a .296/.350/.565 slash and 76.5 WAR. He was beloved by Thunderbirds fans and his #20 would be retired only a few years later. At age 35 though, Brenneisen was a free agent for the 1986 season. Minneapolis was the buyer, signing him to a four-year, $5,340,000 deal.

Brenneisen’s numbers with the Moose were similar to his later Tampa years. Still worthy of a starting spot, but not outstanding. With Minneapolis, he became the 16^th member of the 600 home run club. As a Moose, Brenneisen had 430 hits, 218 runs, 89 home runs, 251 RBI, and 10.2 WAR. Some thought he might try to chase the power records, but his production faded. Entering the final year of his Minneapolis deal, the Moose traded him to Indianapolis. Brenneisen was unimpressive in his limited time with the Racers, who cut him in May 1989. After going unsigned for the remainder of the year, Brenneisen retired at age 38.

Brenneisen’s stat line was 2792 hits, 1558 runs, 457 doubles, 658 home runs, 1893 RBI, a .291/.342/.550, 142 wRC+, and 86.9 WAR. His amazing rookie season made him a star, although he only showed brief flashes of that peak. Still, Brenneisen’s reliable power placed him ninth in home runs and eighth in RBI at induction, making him a virtual lock. He received 99.1% to lead off the impressive 1995 MLB Hall of Fame class.



Connor Neumeyer – Left Field – Pittsburgh Pirates – 98.5% First Ballot

Connor Neumeyer was a 6’4’’, 200 pound left-handed left fielder from Erie, Pennsylvania; a city with around 90,000 on the south shore of Lake Erie. Neumeyer was an outstanding contact hitter, one of the best at avoiding strikeouts, and was solid at drawing walks. He also hit for very good power, averaging around 35-40 doubles/triples and around 35-40 home runs per year. Neumeyer was also quite quick and was a very intelligent baserunner. He was a career left fielder and was considered good to great defensively. Neumeyer was also a team captain and became one of the most beloved and well respected players of his generation.

Much of that admiration came not from his MLB career, but from his time playing for Team America in the World Baseball Championship. He was sometimes looked at as “Captain America,” for his role on the squad. In his first WBC in 1972, Neumeyer won Tournament MVP and set then-records for home runs (20), RBI (40), runs (33), WAR (3.48), and total bases (126). It was also the first of 10 World Championship rings Neumeyer earned for the United States from 1972-89.

In 1975, Neumeyer became only the fourth player to win WBC Tournament MVP twice. In 1976, he won his third and in 1984, his fourth. As of 2037, no other player has won it more than twice. Neumeyer was prolific on the world stage and went back-and-forth with the Philippines’ Jimmy Caliw in the later years up the all-time WBC leaderboards. At retirement, Neumeyer played 296 WBC games with 284 starts and posted 330 hits, 241 runs, 54 doubles, 111 home runs, 265 RBI, 133 walks, 135 stolen bases, a .315/.394/.690 slash, 209 wRC+, and 20.9 WAR. At retirement, Neumeyer was the WBC’s all-time leader in runs, hits, doubles, RBI, and WAR. He was also second in home runs and third in RBI. As of 2037, he still has the most RBI and remains in the top five in each of the other stats.

While being best known for his WBC endeavors, Neumeyer certainly had an excellent Major League Baseball career as well. He attended Ball State University and earned a Gold Glove in his junior season. In his three years in Muncie, Neumeyer had 128 games, 174 hits, 101 runs, 36 doubles, 26 home runs, 99 RBI, a .334/.376/.560 slash, 174 wRC+, and 7.4 WAR. In the 1969 MLB Draft, he was picked 36^th overall by Pittsburgh. He debuted in 1970 and did show some promise, although he was only using sparingly as a rookie. Neumeyer became a full-time starter the next season and was a starter when healthy for the next two decades.

Neumeyer’s sophomore season was a coming out party, as he led the National Association in hits, batting average, OPS, and WAR. He became a rare second-year player to win MVP and grabbed his first of nine Silver Sluggers. The Pirates also made the playoffs, although they suffered a first round defeat. Back spasms cost Neumeyer a chunk of 1972, but he helped Pittsburgh make it to the NACS for the first time in a decade. Despite his strong effort, the Pirates were defeated by Montreal.

Pittsburgh would end up in the mid-tier outside the playoffs for the reset of Neumeyer’s tenure. Still, he was excellent as he led the NA in OPS four times, slugging six times, average twice, OBP twice, wRC+ six times, and WAR five times. Neumeyer won two more MVPS as a Pirate in 1973 and 1974, while taking third in both 1975 and 1978. He won six Silver Sluggers (71, 73-76, 78). Neumeyer would be beloved in the Steel City, even though his tenure was only eight seasons. His #32 would be retired in 1991 and his final Pittsburgh stats saw 1465 hits, 826 runs, 224 doubles, 293 home runs, 787 RBI, a .335/.398/.617 slash, and 68.4 WAR.

The Pirates were committed to Neumeyer as the face of the franchise, giving him an eight-year, $4,424,000 extension after the 1974 season. He wanted to make it work too for a squad less than two hours from his hometown of Erie. But after lackluster play from Pittsburgh and little reason for optimism after a 75-87 mark in 1978, Neumeyer opted out of the remaining part of his contract. This made him a highly prized free agent age only age 29. He ended up signing an eight-year, $6,470,000 deal with Baltimore.

As an Oriole, Neumeyer won Silver Sluggers in 1979 and 1982, as well as each of his four Gold Gloves from 1979-82. He led in slugging in 1982, but that was his last time as a league leader. Still, Neumeyer was regularly hitting above .300 with 30+ homers when healthy. The trouble was, small injuries knocked him out for bits of 1981 and 1982. Baltimore was mid when he arrived, although they did finally snap a playoff drought in 1982.

The Orioles would start a playoff streak from there, but Neumeyer wouldn’t stay around for it. He decided to opt out again after the 1982 season, becoming a free agent now at age 33. In four seasons with Baltimore, Neumeyer had 640 hits, 385 runs, 103 doubles, 124 home runs, 354 RBI, a .330/.386/.599 slash, 186 wRC+, and 29.6 WAR. This time, he inked a five-year, $5,480,000 deal with St. Louis. The Cardinals had just won the 1982 World Series and Neumeyer hoped this might be his shot to get a ring.

Neumeyer played all five years of the deal with the Cardinals, although age did start to catch up some. His lone award would be a Silver Slugger in the 1984 season. Various injuries again kept him from full seasons, but his overall value was still undeniable. St. Louis wasn’t bad in this run, but they only made the playoffs once with a second round exit in 1984. That would be the final time Neumeyer played in the MLB postseason, posting 36 hits, 20 runs, 12 home runs, and 2.1 WAR over 26 career playoff starts.

For the Cardinals tenure, Neumeyer had 705 hits, 420 runs, 132 home runs, 392 RBI, a .316/.377/.562 slash, and 31.4 WAR. Now 38 years old, he would spend 1988 in Toronto and 1989 with Virginia Beach. Neumeyer was still respectable with the Timberwolves, but he found himself only a part-time starter with the Vikings. While there, he became the 45^th MLB batter to reach 3000 career hits.

The now 40 year old Neumeyer still wanted to play in 1990, but MLB teams felt he was washed. He ended up in an unusual landing spot for a guy renowned as the star of the US national team for so long. Neumeyer moved to the Soviet Union, more specifically Belarus, and signed with EPB’s Minsk. A strained hamstring cost him two months and he wasn’t anything special when healthy. Neumeyer missed the playoffs to injury, but did get a ring as the Miners won the Soviet Series. Neumeyer still wasn’t ready to call it quits, but realized it was time after going unsigned in 1991. He officially retired at age 42.

For his MLB career, Neumeyer had 3037 hits, 1754 runs, 448 doubles, 126 triples, 585 home runs, 1643 RBI, 927 walks, 624 stolen bases, a .326/.387/.589 slash, 184 wRC+, and 135.5 WAR. At induction, he had the second most batting WAR of any MLB player behind only home run king Elijah Cashman’s 136.6. His .976 OPS was also second only to Cashman among Hall of Famers at induction. As of 2037, Neumeyer is still sixth in the WAR list. He was the first player to hit 500+ home runs and steal 600+ bases. He was a guy that could do it all and was an American hero for his WBC exploits, becoming a beloved MLB icon even if his pro teams never made the deep push. Neumeyer was an obvious inner-circle selection, getting the nod at 98.5%.



Jonah “Toro” Mors – Starting Pitcher – Las Vegas Vipers – 96.9% First Ballot

Jonah Mors was a 5’9’’, 160 pound right-handed pitcher from Greeley, Colorado; a city with around 108,000 in the north central part of the state. His tenacity despite his small frame for a pitcher earned him the nickname “Toro (bull).” Mors threw fire with 99-101 mph peak velocity and had a combination of great stuff and movement with quite good control. He had a good fastball and curveball along with an excellent changeup and strong splitter. Mors had great stamina and durability for most of his career, although his body broke down in his mid 30s. He was intelligent and a hard worker, becoming one of the most endearing pitchers of the era.

Mors went to Ohio University and was third in NCAA Pitcher of the Year voting in his junior season. In 40 college starts, he had a 2.28 ERA, 19-16 record, 311.1 innings, 347 strikeouts, and 11.0 WAR. In the 1974 MLB Draft, Mors was picked 18^th by Las Vegas. The Vipers were coming off a stretch of seven consecutive losing seasons, but Mors helped turn things around as their ace. He would be mostly a reliever in his rookie year with middling production, but he moved to the rotation from 1976 onward.

Las Vegas ended their playoff drought in 1976 and began an American Association dynasty, winning the World Series. Mors had a strong postseason with a 2.20 ERA over 41 playoff innings and 27 strikeouts. The next year, he led the AA in WAR for the first time, something he’d do five times with the Vipers. Mors led the AA in both ERA and wins in both 1978 and 1981. He also led in WIHP twice, quality starts thrice, and FIP- five times. Mors started to rack up awards, becoming only the seventh pitcher in MLB history to win Pitcher of the Year four times. He took the honor in 1978, 79, 81, and 82. Mors was also third in both 1977 and 1980.

His later postseason appearances were more of a mixed bag, but Mors did post a 3.22 ERA, 11-4 record, with 116 strikeouts and 3.6 WAR over 162 playoff innings for Las Vegas. The Vipers made the playoffs six times in his tenure with AA pennants in 1976, 78, and 79; along with World Series rings in 1976 and 1979. Mors also won five world titles over nine editions of the World Baseball Championship with the American team. He posted a 22-7 record, 3.39 ERA, 247 innings, 336 strikeouts, and 7.9 WAR in the WBC.

After the 1978 season, Mors signed a seven-year, $5,342,000 contract extension with Las Vegas. By the time he was on the last year of that deal, the Vipers’ window had seemingly closed and a rebuild was in order. Mors decided to decline his contract option, becoming a free agent for the first time at age 31. For his LV tenure, Mors had a 176-98 record, 2.90 ERA, 2554.2 innings, 2171 strikeouts, and 72.5 WAR. He’d remain one of the franchise’s most popular icons for years after and his #31 uniform would be retired at the end of his career.

San Francisco was the American Association champ in 1984 and they wanted to try to build a dynasty run. The Gold Rush signed Mors to a five-year, $7,000,000 deal. He was still quite good in his first two seasons, although SF was one-and-done in the 1985 playoffs and missed the field in 1986. 1987 saw Mors look rather pedestrian for the first time with his season ending due to bone chips in his elbow.

Mors’ smaller frame began to break down at this point. Eight starts into the 1988 season, he suffered a torn rotator cuff that put him out for 14 months. Mors battled back and returned to the Gold Rush in the summer of 1989. After seven weak starts, he tore his rotator cuff again This was a career-ender, knocking Mors out of the game at age 36. For the San Francisco run, he had a 56-43 record, 3.51 ERA, 876.1 innings, 645 strikeouts, and 19.3 WAR.

For his career, Mors had a 232-141 record, 3.06 ERA, 3431 innings, 2816 strikeouts, 758 walks, 284/424 quality starts, 216 complete games, 75 FIP-, and 91.8 WAR. The injuries kept him from getting the accumulations to be at the top of leaderboards, but his prime was among the finest ever by a MLB pitcher. Plus, Mors was beloved and an essential part of Las Vegas’ late 1970s title runs. He was an easy choice at 96.9% to round out the very impressive 1995 MLB Hall of Fame class.

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The 1995 Central American Baseball Association Hall of Fame class was one of the most impressive of all time. Four first-ballot selections were made with each getting in with more than 90% of the vote. SP Junior Vergara (99.4%) led the way, joined by SP Luis Feliz Brea (99.1%), 3B Kenedy Ortiz (98.2%), and CF Mario Bueno (91.0%). No other player was above 50% with the best returner being catcher Hansel Morel with 46.7% on his fifth ballot. No players were dropped after ten failed ballots.



Junior “Paydirt” Vergara – Starting Pitcher – Puebla Pumas – 99.4% First Ballot

Junior Vergara was a 5’11’’, 200 pound left handed starting pitcher from Axochiapan, a small city with around 39,000 people in the south central Mexican state of Morelos. Vergara had legendary stuff with outstanding control and good movement. His velocity peaked at 98-100 mph with five pitches that could beat you: fastball, slider, sinker, splitter, and knuckle curve. Vergara was incredibly intelligent and knew when to throw the right pitch, making him one of the most dominant pitchers ever. His skill and work ethic helped make him one of the most beloved pitchers in Mexican baseball history.

Vergara’s excellence was noted even in his amateur days, making him a prized prospect ahead of CABA’s 1975 Draft. Puebla grabbed him with the #2 overall pick and his entire CABA career would be as a Puma. Vergara was a full-time starter immediately and was respectable right away, taking third in Rookie of the Year voting in 1976. By his third season, Vergara had emerged as a true ace, leading in ERA and WHIP for the first time. He took second in Pitcher of the Year voting, hurt by a poor record from lousy run support.

From 1979-85, Vergara won seven consecutive Mexican League Pitcher of the Year awards, joining the legendary Ulices Montero as the only CABA pitchers to win it seven times. In this stretch, Vergara led the ML all seven years in strikeouts, WHIP, FIP-, and WAR. He also led in wins and ERA both five times and K/BB five time. Vergara earned Triple Crowns in 1979, 1980, 1981, and 1983. He was also regularly in the MVP conversation, taking third in 1979, third in 1982, second in 1983, and third in 1984. He also took his talents to the world stage for Mexico in the World Baseball Championship. From 1978-90, he had a 20-4 WBC record, 2.06 ERA, 218.2 innings, 310 strikeouts, and 9.0 WAR.

Puebla would be a regular team above .500 during Vergara’s reign, but the Pumas couldn’t get over the ump. They made the playoffs in 1982 and 1984, but were ousted both times in the MLCS. Puebla locked him up to a seven-year, $5,000,000 extension during the 1982 season. Vergara’s dominance carried into his 30s, posting a career-best 433 strikeouts in 1985. That was the third most Ks in a season and the first 400+ season in CABA since the 1920s. That season also had a career best in WHIP (0.67) and a staggering 13.7 WAR. The WAR mark was also the third-best season in CABA pitching history.

Vergara’s first major setback would come in the final week of spring training 1986. The 32-year old suffered a torn UCL, knocking him out for 12 months. Many pitchers are never the same after such an injury and it was an open question on how Vergara would look after missing the entire 1986 campaign. Amazingly, he didn’t seem to lose a beat.

In 1987 and 1988, Vergara again led the Mexican League in WAR, ERA, WHIP, and K/BB. He also led in wins and strikeouts in 1988 to secure an unprecedented fifth Triple Crown. As of 2037, he’s the only pitcher in any world league to reach this distinction. 1987 was his eighth Pitcher of the Year with a second place in MVP voting. 1988 would be his ninth Pitcher of the Year and his first league MVP. Vergara joined BSA’s Lazaro Rodriguez as the only pitchers in any world league to win POTY nine times at this point.

Puebla made the MLCS again in 1987, but yet again couldn’t advance further. It certainly wasn’t Vergara’s fault, as he had a 1.92 ERA in 51.2 playoff innings for the Pumas with 78 strikeouts and 2.5 WAR. 1989 would be his weakest season in some time, although his 6.9 WAR was still great by normal pitcher standards. Vergara finished third in Pitcher of the Year voting, but found himself at a crossroads. The Pumas dropped to .500 and contemplated going for the full rebuild.

Ultimately, Puebla would part ways with Vergara, making him a free agent for the first time at age 36. Certainly he was still absolutely beloved and his #2 uniform would soon be retired. CABA teams were interested, but so were MLB teams with bigger checkbooks. Vergara would sign a two-year, $3,520,000 deal with Los Angeles. The Angels had just ended a playoff drought and were hoping to be a contender into the 1990s.

Vergara had a good MLB debut, leading the American Association in complete games (22) and posting 6.6 WAR. Los Angeles won the AA pennant, falling in the World Series to Virginia Beach. Vergara was surprisingly lousy in the playoffs thought with a 5.30 ERA in 35.2 innings. In 1991, he looked pedestrian for the first time in his career. A hamstring strain also cost him a chunk of the season. Between the two years with the Angels, Vergara had a 3.24 ERA over 395 innings with 242 strikeouts and 6.6 WAR. He was unsigned in 1992 with the exception of one start in minor league Tulsa that September. Vergara realized his reign was over, retiring at age 39.

For his Puebla run, Vergara had a 240-99 record, 1.90 ERA, 3264 innings, 4532 strikeouts, 406 walks, a 11.2 K/BB, 325/385 quality starts, 150 complete games, 58 shutouts, 54 FIP-, and 123.7 WAR. Despite having the third most shutouts in CABA history, Vergara somehow never had a no-hitter. He didn’t have quite the longevity to be at the very top of the accumulations, but he was still third in strikeouts and second in pitching WAR at induction. Despite being 12^th in wins at induction, he is the only HOF starter as of 2037 in CABA to have a winning percentage greater than 70%. Vergara’s 1.90 ERA is still second-best among HOF starters. He was undoubtedly THE CABA pitcher of the 1970 and 1980s and any top five all-time CABA pitcher conversations have Vergara mentioned prominently. His 99.4% percentage appropriately puts him at the front of the loaded 1995 class.



Luis Feliz Brea – Starting Pitcher – Jamaica Jazz – 99.1% First Ballot

Luis Feliz Brea was a 6’0’’, 205 pound right-handed pitcher from La Herradura, a small town of around 3,000 people located 50 minutes southwest of Panama City. Brea was a well-rounded pitcher with very good stuff, movement, and control. He improved his movement and control in later years as his stuff and velocity declined. In his prime, Brea’s fastball regularly hit the 98-100 mph range. He had an outstanding curveball as well as a decent slider and changeup. Brea had good stamina and was very durable, pitching 195+ innings in each of his 16 pro seasons.

At a camp in Panama City in the summer of 1967, a teenaged Brea was spotted and signed by a scout from Jamaica. He spent six years in the Jazz’ developmental system before debuting in 1974 at age 22. He was a full-time starter for his entire run in Kingston. Brea’s second season saw him lead the Caribbean League for strikeouts for the only time in his career. It was also his first of three seasons leading the league in WAR. Brea also led once in wins, ERA, innings, and WHIP.

Brea didn’t light up the leaderboards like his Hall of Fame classmate junior Vergara, but he was consistently very good for a long while. He took second in Pitcher of the Year voting in 1977, which led to a five-year, $1,910,000 extension that winter. 1978 saw the Jazz end a decade-long playoff drought. They were ousted in the wild card round, although Brea’s lone playoff start was a shutout. Brea was third in 1979 Pitcher of the Year voting. He also pitched great for his native panama from 1975-89 in the World Baseball Championship. He tossed 227 WBC innings with an 18-7 record, 2.66 ERA, 265 strikeouts, and 7.2 WAR.

1980 was a banner year for many reasons. Brea won his first Pitcher of the Year and led in ERA for the only time in his career. The Jazz also went all the way and won the CABA Championship, although Brea’s personal stats were a mixed bag with a 3-1 record over 30.2 innings, but 4.11 ERA. Jamaica made the playoffs again the next two seasons, but wouldn’t get beyond the CLCS. For his postseason career, Brea had a 3.82 ERA over 70.2 innings with 75 strikeouts and 2.5 WAR. He took second in 1981 Pitcher of the Year voting.

Before the 1982 season, the 30-year old Brea was signed to a seven-year, $3,206,000 extension. He was second in 1982 Pitcher of the Year voting, then won the award for the second time in 1983. Brea was a finalist one more time, taking second in 1984. He remained steady and solid throughout the 1980s, although Jamaica fell towards the bottom of the standings by the midpoint of the decade.

1989 was the final year of his extension and Jamaica had just come off of four consecutive seasons with fewer than 70 wins. The team decided to trade Brea to Havana to get four prospects. He still remained well liked by Jazz fans and his #24 uniform would quickly be retired. Brea’s velocity dropped by this point and his one year with the Hurricanes was easily the weakest of his career. He did hit two major milestones in Cuba, becoming the 10^th CABA pitcher to 4000 strikeouts and the seventh to 250 wins. Brea retired that winter at age 38.

Brea’s stats saw a 251-176 record, 2.79 ERA, 4023.1 innings, 4125 strikeouts, 624 walks, 370/517 quality starts, 126 complete games, 74 FIP-, and 107.6 WAR. His excellence gets overshadowed by playing in the same era as Vergara, but Brea at induction was fourth in pitching WAR. As of 2037, he’s still seventh best on that list. He sustained an stellar career almost quietly. The voters didn’t miss Brea’s contributions and gave him the inner-circle level nod with 99.1%.

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Kenedy Ortiz – Third Base – Merida Mean Green – 98.2% First Ballot

Kenedy Ortiz was a 5’10’’, 200 pound right-handed third baseman from the Colombian capital Bogota. Ortiz was renowned for his longevity, tireless work ethic, and his great eye. He led his league in walks drawn six times over his career. Ortiz also was a respectable contact hitter with a very good pop in his bat. He averaged around 30-35 doubles/triples and around 25-30 home runs per season. Early in his run, Ortiz was also pretty quick and was known as a very intelligent baserunner. He was a career third baseman with an impressive 3143 starts at the position while posting very good defense.

Ortiz was spotted as a 16-year old amateur as a showcase in Bogota that had scouts from Mexico in attendance. He became a rare South American to play for CABA and not Beisbol Sudamerica, signing a developmental deal with Merida. His entire 15-year CABA run came with the Mean Green, officially debuting at age 20 in 1970 with a few pinch hit appearances. Ortiz was a full-time starter in 1971 and played 125+ games every season for the next 23 years.

Ortiz was third in Rookie of the Year voting in 1971 and was considered a good starter in his first few years. He wasn’t viewed as elite until the mid 1970s, winning his first of nine Silver Sluggers in 1975. Ortiz also won the award in 76, 77, 79, 80, 81, 82, 84, and 85. His defense also drew accolades, winning the Gold Glove in 1981, 82, 83, and 84. Although he played in Mexico, Ortiz would return home to Colombia for the World Baseball Championship. From 1972-93, he had 215 games, 203 starts, 177 hits, 126 runs, 47 home runs, 108 RBI, 154 walks, a .249/.398/.485 slash, and 9.5 WAR. As of 2037, he is seventh all-time in walks drawn for the WBC.

Merida had historically been a bottom-tier franchise, although they started to sit more towards the middle of the standings with Ortiz. The Mean Green locked him up to an eight-year, $2,944,000 extension after the 1974 season. Merida ended a 30-year playoff drought in 1977, falling in the Mexican League Championship Series to Torreon. They made the playoffs twice more in Ortiz’s run, although they fell both times in the wild card round.

Ortiz was racking up accolades regardless. He led the ML in WAR six times, wRC+ three times, OPS four times, OBP four times, slugging three times, walks five times, RBI twice, runs thrice, doubles once, and total bases once. Ortiz would be a four-time Mexican League MVP, taking the award in 1976, 79, 81, and 82. He also took second in 1977 and third in 1980.

Ortiz was committed to Merida, signing another four-year extension worth $1,768,000 in mid 1982. Still, he couldn’t make them the contender he hoped and they were back below .500 by mid decade. Looking to rebuild, the Mean Green bought out his contract, making him a free agent at age 36 for the 1986 season. His #1 uniform would get retired when his playing career ended.

For his CABA run, Ortiz had 2269 hits, 1294 runs, 415 doubles, 118 triples, 382 home runs, 1216 RBI, 1080 walks, 526 stolen bases, .291/.379/.522 slash, 172 wRC+, and 124.4 WAR. He was the WARlord among CABA third basemen, although he’d get passed twice in the later years. When he left CABA, he was eighth in offensive WAR and still sits 13^th as of 2037. Ortiz was also the tenth to reach 1000 career walks drawn. He was obviously the premiere third baseman of his era and is on the short list when talking the all-time CABA greats at the position. Ortiz was well deserving of his 98.2% to join the stacked 1995 Hall of Fame class.

However, he still had almost another whole decade of baseball left with impressive longevity that put Ortiz in the short list for the best 3B in any league. He went to MLB in 1986 on a two-year, $2,540,000 deal with Cleveland. Ortiz led the National Association in WAR in his Cobras debut, although he didn’t earn any awards. He had two very good seasons with mid Cobras teams, posting 273 hits, 179 runs, 56 home runs, and 14.6 WAR. A free agent again at age 38, he signed a three-year, $5,760,000 deal with Charlotte.

Ortiz’s power and speed were slipping by this point, but he still was a very solid starter for three seasons with the Canaries. His ability to draw walks and still field boosted his true value. With Charlotte, he had 423 hits, 254 runs, 90 home runs, 277 RBI, a .252/.343/.456 slash, and 15.3 WAR. Now 41 years old, Ortiz seemed ageless. St. Louis signed him to a three-year, $6,480,000 contract.

His first two seasons with the Cardinals maintained his same steady production, although he began to slip in year three and was relegated to a part-time role. Ortiz got to play his first playoff games in a decade with the Cardinals, although they didn’t go far. He signed a three-year, $8,040,000 extension after the 1992 season; unprecedented for a player his age. After his iffy 1993, he had trouble finding a role in 1994. St. Louis cut him in May and he went unsigned the rest of the year. With the Cardinals, Ortiz had 12.1 WAR, 335 hits, 229 runs, 61 home runs, and 185 RBI.

Ortiz was one of a very select group to play at age 44 or older, officially retiring in the winter of 1994 at age 45. For his MLB tenure, he had 1031 hits, 662 runs, 161 doubles, 207 home runs, 628 RBI, a .250/.355/.449 slash, 135 wRC+, and 42.0 WAR. A very impressive line considering that started at age 36.

For his full pro career, he had 3300 hits, 1956 runs, 576 doubles, 136 triples, 589 home runs, 1844 RBI, 1726 walks, 571 stolen bases, a .277/.371/.497 slash, 159 wRC, and 166.5 WAR. Had he stayed in CABA his whole run, Ortiz may feature more prominently in the GOAT-level conversations. Those who understand the value of defense and walks especially sing his praises, but being stuck on mostly bad teams means Ortiz can be overlooked. In the 1970s and 1980s though, there may not have been a third baseman more consistently excellent in the world than Kenedy Ortiz.



Mario Bueno – Center/Right Field – Leon Lions – 91.0% First Ballot

Mario Bueno was a 5’11’’, 200 pound left-handed outfielder from Texmelucan, a Mexican city with around 155,000 in the state of Puebla. Bueno’s great attribute was his gap power, as he regularly hit around 25 doubles and another 20 triples per season. Bueno often legged out extra bases with exceptional speed and baserunning instincts. He could also go deep, usually hitting around 25-30 home runs each season. Bueno was a respectable contact hitter, although his ability to draw walks and avoid strikeouts was subpar.

Bueno was a true ironman, starting 140+ games in all but his final season. He was very popular and well respected as a team captain and leader. Defensively, he made about 2/3s of his starts in center field with the rest generally in right. Bueno was an average center fielder in his younger days, but graded out negatively for his career with a lack of range in his 30s. He did grade out as a strong defender in right, although he didn’t win any awards.

Bueno was one of the top Mexican baseball amateur prospects entering the 1971 CABA Draft. Leon selected him with the 4^th overall pick and he would spend the next decade as a full-time starter for the Lions. Bueno had a strong debut season worth 6.4 WAR, earning 1972 Rookie of the Year honors. 1973 would begin a run as a starter in the World Baseball Championship for Mexico. Bueno had 163 games played from 1971-88, posting 125 hits, 76 runs, 28 home runs, 69 RBI, and 2.9 WAR. He earned a world title ring as part of the 1978 Mexican squad.

Bueno played a big role it getting Leon back into contention. The Lions snapped a seven-year playoff drought in 1973 and would earn five playoff berths from 1973-79. The Lions twice made the MLCS, but couldn’t claim a pennant. Some fans criticized Bueno for poor playoff numbers, as he had only 19 hits, a .232/.256/463 slash, and 0.2 WAR in 22 playoff starts. Leon was convinced he was an important asset though, signing him to an eight-year, $2,392,000 extension after the 1974 season.

Bueno’s only time leading the league with Leon was in 1974 in runs and triples. Still, he posted more than 5.5 WAR in each season with the Lions and had 8+ WAR six times. He never won MVP, but took second in 1976 voting and third in 1977. Six of his eight career Silver Sluggers came as a Lion (1975, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81). The franchise would later retire his #53 uniform as Bueno posted 1786 hits, 963 runs, 256 doubles, 202 triples, 284 home runs, 893 RBI, 657 stolen bases, a .301/.336/.555 slash, 167 wRC+, and 82.6 WAR.

Leon had fallen below .500 to start the 1980s and decided they needed to completely blow things up. Bueno had one year left on his deal in 1982 and he would get traded one month into the season. The Lions sent him to Ecatepec for three prospects. The Explosion made it clear that they wanted more than a rental and a week after the trade, they signed him to a five-year, $2,346,000 deal.

The run ultimately lasted eight seasons in Ecatepec and while he didn’t reach his Leon peaks, Bueno still reguarlly was worth 5+ WAR in the first of his six seasons there. He would lead the ML in triples thrice, runs once, and RBI once. Bueno earned two additional Silver Sluggers in 1985 and 1987, finishing his career with eight. The Explosion made the playoffs thrice from 1986-88, although they fell each time in the wild card. Bueno didn’t shake his reputation as someone who struggled in the playoffs, posting a .175/.233/.325 slash in 11 starts.

In 1988, his league-best 20 triples got him to 368 for his career, which passed Javier De Los Santos all-time mark of 363. Bueno would be relegated to a bench role largely in his last year, but did end up with 377 triples. This remained the CABA record until finally passed in the late 2020s by Jarek Wilson-Smith. In his last year, his 13 stolen bases also allowed him to pass Aitor Portillo (1067) as the CABA leader in steals at 1070. Bueno was unsigned in 1990 and opted to retire that winter at age 40. With Ecatepec, he had 1194 hits, 690 runs, 181 doubles, 175 triples, 194 home runs, 667 RBI, 413 stolen bases, a .274/.308/.530 slash, and 43.5 WAR.

For his career, Bueno had 2980 hits, 1653 runs, 437 doubles, 377 triples, 478 home runs, 1560 RBI, 1070 stolen bases, a .289/.324/.544 slash, 161 wRC+, and 126.1 WAR. He was the first in CABA history to have 1000+ stolen bases and also 400+ home runs. As of 2037, he’s still third all-time in steals and second in triples. His WAR was also eighth best among position players at induction and still ranks 12^th as of 2037. Bueno’s unique combo of gap power and speed made him almost a sneaky-good player. At 91.0%, he was the fourth and final member of the remarkable 1995 CABA Hall of Fame class.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

Two players earned a first ballot addition into the East Asia Baseball Hall of Fame in 1995. LF/DH My-Sung Lim received 89.1% and pitcher Eun-Chan Uhm was just behind at 88.5%. No one else on the EAB ballot cracked 50%. The best returner was SP Hisataka Otsuka at 49.1% for his fourth try.



3B/DH Ha-Rang Pan was the lone player dropped after ten failed ballots. He had a 21-year career with six teams and won MVP and Silver Slugger in 1970, but he lacked other accolades. Still, Pen’s accumulations were 3157 hits, 1411 runs, 585 doubles, 314 home runs, 1460 RBI, 1138 walks, a .285/.351/.435 slash, and 67.8 WAR. Prior to him, every other player to get 3000 hits in EAB earned induction. As of 2037, he has the most hits of any player who fell off the ballot after ten tries. His poor defense and lack of home runs for a DH ultimately kept him out. Pan peaked at 43.6% in his second ballot before plummeting to 10.4% at the end.



My-Sung Lim – Left Field/Designated Hitter – Incheon Inferno – 89,1% First Ballot

My-Sung Lim was a 6’5’’, 200 pound right-handed left fielder from Jinju, South Korea; a city of around 345,000 in South Gyeongsang Province. Lim was a fairly well-rounded hitter with a solid ability at contract, power, and drawing walks. While not generally a prolific home run hitter, he reliably got you around 35 per season plus around 25 doubles. Lim’s speed was subpar and he lacked range, posting mediocre defensive results in left field. He made around 3/5s of his starts there with most of the rest as a DH and a rare appearance at first.

Lim’s greatest assets were his excellent leadership and durability. He was a team captain and one of the most respected guys in the clubhouse. Lim was a true ironman, starting in 137+ games in every season minus his rookie year and final campaign. As a teenager, he was noticed and signed as an amateur in early 1966 by Incheon. Lim debuted at age 21 in 1970 with a couple pinch hit spots. He became a full-time starter the next year for the Inferno and held a spot consistently for the next 13 years with them.

Lim’s second season was perhaps his most notable as it was his only time as the league leader in home runs. He smacked 52 homers and led the Korea League with 362 total bases. This earned Lim his first Silver Slugger as a DH. He won another the next year and took third in MVP voting, leading the league with a career-best 133 RBI. These would be his only times as a league leader in his career. Lim would earn Silver Slugger twice more in 1975 and 1984. Wanting to lock him up, he signed a five-year, $1,228,000 extension after the 1972 campaign. In summer 1977, Incheon gave him another seven years worth $2,940,000.

Incheon won 103 games in 1973, but lost in the first round of the playoffs. They finished in the 90 win range the next four seasons, but couldn’t make the playoffs. The Inferno would become a bottom tier team for the rest of Lim’s tenure, but he kept chugging. In his later years, he also played for South Korea in the World Baseball Championship. Lim had 34 games but only 13 starts from 1981-87 with 13 hits, 14 runs, 7 home runs, and 9 RBI.

Entering the 1984 season, the now 35-year old Lim was entering the final year of his deal. Kitakyushu was interested, as they were trying to get over the playoff hump after numerous first round exits. Incheon received young 2B Seizo Ueda and 1B Bunjiro Yaguchi in the deal. Lim had a career resurgence, winning his fourth Silver Slugger and earning 40 homers for the third time. The Kodiaks again fell in the first round and Lim became a free agent for the first time at age 36.

The old captain still had a fondness for Incheon and went back to the Inferno on a three-year, $2,340,000 deal. Lim ultimately had two more solid seasons for Incheon, finishing with 2461 hits, 1366 runs, 392 doubles, 545 home runs, 1481 RBI, 1036 walks, a .284/.360/.530 slash, and 68.1 WAR between the two stints. Lim would remain very popular and later see his #12 uniform retired.

The Inferno were a lousy 62-100 in 1987, although they did bounce back with a playoff spot the next year. Lim wouldn’t be there for it, as he was traded to Daejeon for four prospects. His 600th home run and 1500th run both came in his lone season with the Ducks. In the game he crossed 1500 runs, he had three homers against Gwangju. Daejeon didn’t keep him after that and he signed his final contract in a two-year, $1,800,000 deal with Goyang.

Lim’s value was starting to diminish and he was moved to a bench role in his second year. The Green Sox did make the KLCS in 1988 an Lim had a nice run with 4 homers, 10 hits, 7 runs, and 12 RBI in 10 starts. Goyang would fall to Jeonju and Lim wouldn’t see another playoff game. He went unsigned in 1990 and finally had to retire at age 42 that winter.

Lim’s final stats: 2983 hits, 1648 runs, 472 doubles, 655 home runs, 1784 RBI, 1259 walks, a .281/.357/.524 slash, 141 wRC+, and 80.7 WAR. He almost quietly hit a number of major milestones as the 15th EAB batter to 1500 runs scored, the 24th to 1500 RBI, and the 21st to 600 home runs. He also was tantalizingly close to being the 11th to 3000 hits. Many voters were surprised about how impressive his totals were, considering he was at times overlooked being on some weak Incheon teams. Regardless, Lim was still a pretty easy choice and earned the first ballot nod with 89.1%.



Eun-Chan Uhm – Starting Pitcher – Daejeon Ducks – 88.5% First Ballot

Eun-Chan Uhm was a 6’0’’, 185 pound left handed pitcher from the capital of South Korea, Seoul. Uhm had solid stuff with good movement, although his control was below average. He had 97-99 mph peak velocity on a cut fastball that he mixed with a slider, forkball, and changeup. Uhm was great at holding runners and was usually healthy, although he didn’t go the distance in games as frequently as most aces in EAB.

Uhm was a rare draft pick coming out of high school, drawing a lot of eyes for his success at Woosung High School. In the 1972 EAB Draft, Daejeon picked him seventh overall. After two seasons in their developmental academy, Uhm debuted with 121.2 innings in 1975 at age 21. He showed potential, and became a full-time starter after that. At the end of the 1976 season, he suffered a partially torn labrum, but he was ultimately back ready to go by April. Uhm was respectable in these first few seasons, but didn’t emerge as a true ace until the 1980s.

1980 saw his only ERA title with 2.68. He also had a career-best 285 strikeouts, although he finished second in Pitcher of the Year voting. Uhm led in FIP- four times and was the WARlord in 1986 at 8.5, but otherwise he was never at the top of the leaderboard. Still, he was on the cusp of Pitcher of the Year with a second in 1981, third in 1982 and 1983, and seconds again in 1984 and 1985. In 1986, Uhm finally won the top honor with a career best 2.32 ERA. He also had a no-hitter in 1983 with four strikeouts and two walks versus Daegu.

Daejeon signed Uhm to a six-year, $3,144,000 extension in August 1981. Prior to his arrival, the Ducks had been a bottom feeder with only two playoff appearances in their first 59 seasons. With Uhm as the ace, they won seven division titles in a decade from 1979-88. The problem was that Daejeon seemed to be cursed. All of those years except for 1984, they were ousted in the first round. 1984 saw a Korea League Championship Series berth, but defeat to Yongin. Ahm was perfectly fine in his playoff innings though with a 2.72 ERA over 43 innings, 44 strikeouts, and 1.0 WAR. During Daejeon’s prime run, Uhm also made some appearances in the World Baseball Championship. For South Korea from 1979-86, Uhm had a 1.87 ERA in 43.1 innings with a nice 69 strikeouts and 2.0 WAR.

Daejeon had a franchise record 111-51 mark in 1986, although Uhm missed the playoffs on a torn back muscle. Still, he signed a five-year, $4,540,000 extension the next spring. 1988 would be the Ducks’ last playoff run of his tenure, but he missed the end of that season to injury also. 1989 saw bone chips in his elbow knocking him out the final three months of the season. With injuries piling up and weakening production in these years, Uhm opted to retire at only age 35. Immediately, the Ducks decided to retire his #17 uniform.

Uhm’s final stats: 225-115 record, 2.95 ERA, 3141.2 innings, 3361 strikeouts, 796 walks, 266/431 quality starts, 75 FIP-, and 82.0 WAR. Although Daejeon struggled in the playoffs, Uhm helped make them relevant for the first sustained time. While not at the tip-top of the leaderboards, he quietly built up stats that certainly weren’t out of place among the other starters to get in. The voters gave Uhm 88.5% in his debut ballot to round out the solid two-player class of 1995.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

Pitcher Luis Vasquez Jr. was the lone inductee into Beisbol Sudamerica’s Hall of Fame in 1995. The voters felt he was a slam dunk, earning 95.3% in his debut. Fellow pitcher Robinson Moreira was close on his sixth try at 60.5%, but still short of the 66% requirement. Also above 50% were RF Jasper Saucedo at 57.7% in his fifth ballot and 3B Saul Puerta at 53.0% for his seventh.



The one player dropped after ten ballots was pitcher Sebastian Cruz, who ended at only 7.5% and peaked at 29.2% on his second try. He bounced around between BSA, MLB, and EPB in a respectable 17 year career. In BSA, he primarily played for his hometown team Santiago and posted a 176-118 record, 2.88 ERA, 2802.2 innings, 2353 strikeouts, 91 FIP-, and 47.1 WAR. A nice career, but not dominant or one worthy of more than a Hall of Very Good nod.



Luis Vasquez Jr. – Starting Pitcher – Valencia Velocity – 95.3% First Ballot

Luis Vasquez Jr. was a 6’1’’, 205 pound right handed pitcher from Catia La Mar, a port city of around 85,000 on the north central coast of Venezuela. His father, Luis Sr., was a journeyman outfielder from 1950-62 with 702 games and 234 starts between Caracas and CABA’s Leon. His father got him into the game from a very young age and Luis Jr. found that pitching was going to be his calling.

Vasquez was a fireballer with a 99-101 mph peak velocity. Still, he had very good movement and excellent control while boasting great stuff with an arsenal of fastball, curveball, screwball, splitter. His stamina was decent enough and although he had minor injury issues sporadically, you could usually count on a full or close to full load from him. Vasquez was also a good leader and became a popular figure with fans and teammates.

Vasquez was picked third in the 1971 BSA Draft by Valencia and he’d spend his entire South American career with the Velocity. He was thrown into the rotation full time as a rookie, although various injuries cost him about half of his rookie year. Still, Vasquez showed his impressive potential. Alongside Lazaro Rodriguez, Valencia was poised to have the finest pitching staff in BSA. Despite how good he ended up being, Vasquez very much was the Robin to Rodriguez’s Batman.

Vasquez would take second in Pitcher of the Year voting in his second season, leading the Bolivar League in K/BB and FIP- in 1973. He also had the best ERA and FIP in 1974. Vasquez wouldn’t be a league leader generally though and never won Pitcher of the Year, largely due to his teammate Rodriguez getting nine of them. Vasquez had 12 seasons worth 6+ WAR and six worth 8+ WAR. He was a perennial finalist for POTY, taking second in 1973, 74, 75, and 85; while grabbing third in 1976, 77, 83, and 84.

Valencia put together their Bolivar League dynasty from 1974-78 with five consecutive pennants. The Velocity also took Copa Sudamerica in 1977 and 1978. Vasquez was outstanding in the playoffs with an 8-1 record over 104.2 innings with a 2.32 ERA, 139 strikeouts, and 4.4 WAR. He also was solid for Venezuela in the World Baseball Championship. From 1972-87, he had 200.2 WBC innings with a 3.09 ER, 243 strikeouts, 12-13 record, and 6.4 WAR. Vasquez also took WBC’s Best Pitcher in 1985 with 10.2 scoreless innings.

Vasquez received a four-year contract extension worth $2,640,000 after the 1980 season and continued putting up the same reliable production. Valencia remained good, but just outside of the postseason after their last title in 1978. Vasquez’s last year of the main run saw a 9.6 WAR effort, the second-best season of his career. His contract was up and at age 35, he entered free agency for the first time. MLB’s Baltimore Orioles gave him a three-year, $3,720,000 deal to bring him stateside.

Vasquez had an excellent MLB debut, leading the National Association in WHIP. He almost finally earned that elusive Pitcher of the Year now that he didn’t share a league with Rodriguez, but the voters placed him second. Baltimore made it to the NACS, but were dispatched by Toronto. Vasquez was pitching well again in 1986, but a partially torn labrum knocked him out for the summer. He did get back for the playoffs, although the Orioles were upset in the second round. Vasquez had five solid playoff starts in Baltimore with a 2.06 ERA over 35 innings.

In June 1987, Vasquez had a significant setback with a torn rotator cuff, putting him out of commission for 13 months. This ended his Baltimore tenure with a 42-11 record, 2.40 ERA, 498.1 innings, 353 strikeouts, and 13.0 WAR. St. Louis gave him a chance with a two-year deal, but his velocity was tanked from the injury. Vasquez managed only 34 innings that fall and was cut by the Cardinals in February 1989.

Wanting to still player, Vasquez returned to Valencia on a one-year, $990,000 deal. He was used only as a reliever and was unremarkable in that role over 34 innings. Vasquez realized it was time to call it quits, retiring that winter at age 40. The Velocity immediately retired his #9 uniform. For his combined pro career, Vasquez had a 251-124 record, 2.68 ERA, 3538 innings, 3890 strikeouts, 502 walks, 289/442 quality starts, 65 FIP-, and 112.1 WAR.

For his Beisbol Sudamerica and Valencia run, Vasquez had a 208-109 record, 2.70 ERA, 3005.2 innings, 3522 strikeouts, 413 walks, 244/370 quality starts, 63 FIP-, and 98.6 WAR. He would have been the best pitcher on just about any other BSA staff and probably a multiple-time Pitcher of the Year, but Vasquez was very much the Scottie Pippen to Lazaro Rodriguez’s Michael Jordan. Still, he was a critical part of the Valencia dynasty and the voters recognized his greatness. Vasquez received 95.3% of the vote to enter the Hall of Fame as the lone inductee in 1995.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

The European Baseball Federation had a three player Hall of Fame class for 1995. Two were no-doubt first ballot guys with pitcher Greg Saint-Pierre at 98.9% and SS Christophoros Zarkadis at 98.2%. Pitcher Torger Thelin joined them, finally crossing the 66% threshold on his seventh ballot with 73.1%. No other players were above 50%.



One player was dropped after ten ballots in LF Graeme McNay, who ended at 4.7% after a peak of 22.9%. He had five Silver Sluggers and an MVP in seven seasons with Glasgow, but he left for an unremarkable MLB tenure after that. McNay’s EBF totals had 1192 hits, 601 runs, 276 home runs, 675 RBI, a .305/.356/.574 slash, and 43.2 WAR. His combined 65.9 WAR, 2449 hits, and 535 homers might have gotten him more of a look, but he just didn’t stick around enough to be deserving of the nod.



Greg Saint-Pierre – Starting Pitcher – Luxembourg Lancers – 98.9% First Ballot

Greg Saint-Pierre was a 6’8’’, 200 pound left-handed pitcher from Pujuat, a commune of around 4,000 people in southeastern France. The lanky lefty threw fire with a 99-101 mph fastball and was known for excellent stuff, solid control, and respectable movement. Saint-Pierre’s fastball-changeup combo was devastating, while he also mixed in a slider and curveball. He had great stamina and was viewed as an ironman, posting a 16-year urn with 240+ innings each season. Saint-Pierre was also terrific at holding runners, using that long frame for an excellent pickoff move.

Despite his humble origins, Saint-Pierre drew attention as a teenager. A scout from Luxembourg gave him a developmental deal in May 1966. Saint-Pierre debuted in 1971 at age 21 and was okay in 106 innings. He flashed tremendous potential though in the playoffs, as the Lancers posted a surprise run to their first European Championship. Saint-Pierre had a 1.17 ERA and 2-0 record over 15.1 playoff innings. He was a full-time starter after that, although his second year was still shaky. Saint-Pierre put it all together though in 1973 and was a bona fide ace from there onward.

With Luxembourg, Saint-Pierre led the Northern Conference in wins twice, ERA thrice, innings twice, strikeouts five times, WHIP three times, K/BB four times, quality starts five times, complete games once, and WAR twice. He had an 11-year streak of seasons worth 7+ WAR and posted above 9+ WAR four times. In 1975, Saint-Pierre had the first Triple Crown season for an EBF pitcher since 1961, going 26-3 with a 1.45 ERA and 361 strikeouts. The 1.45 ERA stands as the fourth-best season ever as of 2037 by an EBF starter. That effort earned Saint-Pierre his first Pitcher of the Year as well as an MVP.

Saint-Pierre was Pitcher of the Year twice more, taking it in 1976 and 1981. He also earned a third place in 1980 and a second in 1982 with Luxembourg. On August 21, 1979, Saint-Pierre hurled a perfect game with 10 strikeouts against Brussels. On June 22, he added a 12 strikeout no-hitter against Copenhagen. Saint-Pierre also was excellent for his native France in the World Baseball Championship. From 1972-88, he had 262.2 innings with a 22-8 record, 2.57 ERA, 352 strikeouts, and 8.5 WAR.

Luxembourg was committed to Saint-Pierre with a seven-year, $3,428,000 extension before the 1977 season. The Lancers fell off to 67 wins right after their surprise 1971 title run and typically were a bottom or mid-level team. They would make the playoffs in 1975, 1981, and 1982 while Saint-Pierre was there. In 1981, they won the conference title, falling in the European Championship to Marseille. Saint-Pierre had great playoff numbers over 92.2 innings with a 2.23 ERA, 115 strikeouts, and 2.2 WAR.

In his final season with Luxembourg in 1983, Saint-Pierre earned his 200^th career win and 4000^th strikeout. It looked like he might have a shot to get to the top of the leaderboards in the coming years, but Saint-Pierre instead opted to leave Europe. He declined his contract option with the Lancers and became a free agent for the first time at age 34. Luxembourg fans were disappointed, but understanding. Saint-Pierre remained a very popular figure and his #20 uniform would be retired at the end of his career.

Saint-Pierre made his way to MLB and Canada, signing a four-year, $4,160,000 contract with defending American Association champion Calgary. He had an incredible debut with the Cheetahs, leading the AA in WAR (10.1) and taking second in Pitcher of the Year voting. Calgary was a division champ, but lost in the AACS to San Francisco. Saint-Pierre had a 2.82 ERA over 22.1 playoff innings. It would be his final time pitching in a postseason.

Hitters figured him out a bit in his second MLB season, although he still provided plenty of innings. To the shock of Saint-Pierre and much of the MLB community, Calgary straight up released him in August 1985. Philadelphia picked him up to finish out the campaign. Now 36 years old, Saint-Pierre signed a three-year, $4,140,000 deal with New York. He pitched two solid seasons with the Yankees, but was then moved out of the rotation in his third year. In the pinstripes, Saint-Pierre had a 33-36 record, 3.19 ERA, 640.2 innings, 473 strikeouts, and 12.1 WAR.

For 1989, Toronto seemed convinced still had value with a three-year, $5,140,000 deal. The Timberwolves were underwhelmed by Saint-Pierre in spring training and cut him after only six innings. For his MLB career, he had a 72-55 record, 3.15 ERA, 1192 innings, 930 strikeouts, and 28.9 WAR. Saint-Pierre returned home to southern France and signed with Marseille, although he only saw 31.1 innings mostly in relief. He decided to retire at age 39 after the 1989 campaign.

For his full pro career, Saint-Pierre had a 282-199 record, 2.63 ERA, 4597 innings, 4992 strikeouts, 730 walks, 430/574 quality starts, 73 FIP-, and 126.1 WAR. For just EBF (and almost entirely with Luxembourg), Saint-Pierre had a 210-144 record, 2.45 ERA, 3405 innings, 4062 strikeouts, 504 walks, 331/421 quality starts, 70 FIP-, and 97.2 WAR. His Lancers resume was plenty strong on its own merits, although some wondered if he would’ve gotten more mention in the all-timer conversations had he played his whole career in Europe. Regardless, Saint-Pierre was an easy choice for the voters with a first ballot 98.9% induction.



Christophoros “Iron Horse” Zarkadis – Infielder – Belgrade Bruisers – 98.2% First Ballot

Christophoros Zarkadis was a 5’10’’, 190 pound right-handed infielder from Andravida, a town of 4,300 on southwest Greece’s Peloponnese peninsula. He was nicknamed “Iron Horse,” which was fitting for such a hardnosed and tenured star. Zarkadis was a beloved figure in European baseball, considered one of the all-time great captains and leaders. He was renowned for his leadership, work ethic, and intelligence. Few players earned greater respect throughout their career than Zarkadis.

On the diamond, Zarkadis was a prolific home run hitter with great contact skills. He was also solid at drawing walks, although his strikeout rate was middling. Zarkadis was good for 40+ home runs per season regularly along with another 30 or so doubles/triples. In his younger days, he also had very good speed with terrific baserunning instincts. The Iron Horse was versatile in the infield, making about half of his starts at shortstop, a 1/3 or so at third base, and the rest at second. Zarkadis’ best stats were at second base, although he graded out for his career as just below average defensively overall. His incredibly reliable bat though was far better than just about anyone else who could play the infield competently.

Zarkadis left Greece to play collegiate baseball in England at the University of Oxford. He quickly became the top prospect entering the 1970 EBF Draft. Belgrade had the first overall pick and brought Zarkadis to Serbia, where he’d play his entire European career. Zarkadis did regularly get home to Greece though for the World Baseball Championship. From 1972-92, he had 180 WBC games with 174 hits, 132 runs, 23 doubles, 63 home runs, 129 RBI, a .269/.378/.978 slash, and 9.7 WAR.

Zarkadis was a full-time starter immediately for Belgrade, although he had issues with strikeouts and limited power in his first two seasons. He still was second in 1971 Rookie of the Year voting. By his third season, Zarkadis corrected his flaws and posted a remarkable year, leading the Southern Conference in home runs, RBI, OPS, and WAR. Somehow, this only got him a second place in MVP voting, along with his first of 11 Silver Sluggers. Over his career in Belgrade, Zarkadis led the Southern Conference in home runs four times, runs once, total bases once, OBP once, slugging and OPS once, wRC+ twice, and WAR thrice. Still, he remarkably posted six seasons worth 10+ WAR and had 5.5+ WAR in every season with the Bruisers sans his rookie year.

Zarkadis collected just about every award in 1974. His 12.1 WAR and 141 RBI earned him his first MVP and a Silver Slugger. Belgrade ended a decade-long playoff drought and claimed its first-ever European Championship. Zarkadis was an absolute beast in the postseason, winning conference championship MVP and finals MVP. In 16 playoff starts, he had a .426/.464/.902 slash with 2.2 WAR, 26 hits, 13 runs, 7 home runs, and 18 RBI. That run alone forever made him a legend in the Balkans.

Belgrade made the playoffs again the next two years, then retreated to the middle of the standings for a few seasons. The Bruisers made the Southern Conference finals in 1976, then again in both 1981 and 1982, but they were denied each time. Zarkadis’ playoff numbers for his career though were excellent with 60 hits, 30 runs, 18 home runs, 40 RBI, a .312/.369/.661 slash, and 3.8 WAR over 50 starts.

Even when the Bruisers weren’t in the title mix, Zarkadis was racking up accolades. 1976 saw career bests in runs (133), homers (63), and WAR (12.2), earning Zarkadis his second MVP. He finished third in 1975, 1980, and 1981; while taking second in 1982. Zarkadis had 11 Silver Sluggers split between his stops in the infield. He won six as a shortstop (1973, 74, 81, 82, 87, 88), four at third base (1976, 80, 84, 85), and one at second base in 1977.

In April 1976, Zarkadis signed an eight-year, $3,992,000 contract extension with Belgrade and he added another four years for $2,960,000 after the 1983 season. Zarkadis continued on as the team captain and carried on his signature stellar production. He had sporadic smaller injuries and his speed and range fell off into his 30s, but Zarkadis still maintained his stellar bat through it all. He started hitting milestones, becoming the second to 700 home runs, the second to 1500 runs scored, the fifth to 1500 RBI, and the second to 3000 hits.

In late 1987, Zarkadis passed Gabriel Staudt’s 701 home runs to become EBF’s new all-time king. He also passed him for the runs lead, most RBI, and became EBF’s all-time WARlord. His hold on these spots would be gone by the end of the 1990s because of guys like Jacob Ronnberg, Jack Kennedy, and Sean Houston. But Zarkadis would still hold a prominent spot on the leaderboards even against guys from a higher offense environment of EBF.

Zarkadis would hit free agency for the first time at age 41 in 1990. He and Belgrade respectfully agreed to part ways and the Iron Horse would have his #38 uniform shortly retired. Zarkadis’ last year with the Bruisers was still very good, so MLB’s Oakland Owls gave him a two-year, $4,240,000 deal. While still a fine leader, Zarkadis was delightfully average in his Oakland tenure. He went unsigned in 1992 and retired at age 43. For his entire pro career, Zarkadis had 3309 hits, 1971 runs, 404 doubles, 841 home runs, 2014 RBI, a .301/.369/.593 slash, and 165.5 WAR.

For his EBF/Belgrade run, Zarkadis finished with 3094 hits, 1831 runs, 378 doubles, 142 triples, 795 home runs, 1903 RBI, 942 walks, 560 stolen bases, a .307/.373/.609 slash, 179 wRC+, and 164.0 WAR. As of 2037, Zarkadis still sits third in hitting WAR, fifth in EBF home runs, 11^th in RBI, 11^th in runs, and 14^th in hits. The Iron Horse was undoubtedly an inner-circle player for European baseball and an inner-circle level man. That he only received 98.2% on the 1995 voting is too low.

editor’s note: the reason some years show up as “BEL” and some as “BLG is because I realized I accidentally gave “BEL” to both Belgrade and Belfast. I changed Belgrade to BLG once I noticed.



Torger Thelin – Starting Pitcher – Lisbon Clippers – 73.1% Seventh Ballot

Torger Thelin was a 5’10’’, 195 pound right-handed pitcher from Astorp, a town of around 9,400 inhabitants in southern Sweden. Thelin was known for having pinpoint control along with above average stuff and movement. His fastball hit the 97-99 mph range and he mixed it with a curveball and changeup. Thelin was very durable and consistently offered a full season’s worth of starts, although his stamina was weak compared to most other starters. He was an intelligent pitcher, able to pick his spots to make up for not having overpowering stuff.

Thelin was noticed by a scout from Lisbon as a teenage amateur in 1964. He signed a developmental deal and left Sweden for Portugal. He officially debuted with six relief appearances in 1968 at age 21. Thelin earned a spot on the rotation in 1969 and remained a starter for the Clippers for 14 years. He quietly put up consistently steady production during that time. He didn’t draw much international attention, never placing in the top three in Pitcher of the Year voting. His only time as a league leader came with 21 wins and 29 quality starts in 1974.

In his first full season, Lisbon made it to the Southern Conference Championship but lost to Vienna. A young Thelin struggled with a 5.73 ERA in 11 innings. The Clippers made it back to the playoffs from 1976-78 and in 1980. All but 1977 saw a first round exit, while 1977 saw a conference finals defeat to Seville. For his playoff career, Thelin was solid in the later starts with a 2.32 ERA over 42.2 innings. He also pitched for his native Sweden from 1970-83 in the World Baseball Championship. Thelin had very mid results with a 3.86 ERA over 142.1 innings, 5-10 record, 174 strikeouts, and 3.1 WAR.

Thelin’s finest moment came on September 12, 1974 with a no-hitter against Zurich with 8 strikeouts and one walk. Earlier that year, he had signed a five-year, $1,694,000 extension with the Clippers. Thelin added another four-year, $1,728,000 extension during the 1979 campaign. His production would drop a bit in his final year with Lisbon in 1982 and the team bought out the remainder of his deal. Thelin decided to go to his homeland and signed with Stockholm, but he struggled in his one season with the Swordsmen. He oddly ended up in Mexico with Ecatepec in 1984 with 10 innings of relief. Thelin was signed by Juarez for 1985, but never saw the field. He retired that winter at age 39.

For his EBF career, Thelin had a 2.98 ERA, 220-151 record, 3372 innings, 3217 strikeouts, 545 walks, 333/471 quality starts, 85 FIP-, and a nice 69.0 WAR. At first thought, with his lack of accolades and big stats, most voters were dismissive. However, many were surprised that his final stats were comparable or better than some others that had made it into EBF’s Hall of Fame at the bottom-end of the pitching leaderboards. Thelin debuted at 47.9%, then came close with 61.0% in 1991 and 65.0% in 1993. He plummeted to a low of 41.4%, making many figure he was destined for exclusion. Surprisingly perhaps, Thelin got a big boost to 73.1% to earn induction on his seventh ballot, rounding out the 1995 class.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

Eurasian Professional Baseball came close to having back-to-back years with no Hall of Fame inductees. Closer Maksym Badlo barely crossed the threshold of 66% to get in as the lone 1995 inductee. On his second ballot, Badlo had a nice 69%. LF Emin Ismayilov barely missed joining him with 64.9% for his fifth ballot. Three others were above 50% with 1B Bartlomiej Tarka at 55.6% on his sixth attempt, SP Yevhen Selin at 55.2% for his second go, and 1B Ilkin Hasanov at 53.4% for his third ballot. The best debuting player was SS Maksim Shantanov at only 40.3%.



Dropped after ten ballots was closer Marius Patrascu, who had a 16-year career between EPB and MLB. He won Reliever of the Year twice in EPB and posted 302 saves, a 1.72 ERA, 895 innings, 1363 strikeouts, and 39.8 WAR. He actually had more saves than Badlo who got in in 1995 and might have made the cut had he stayed a few more years in EPB. Patrascu peaked at 54.0% on his second ballot and ended at 39.9%.

Another reliever fell off after ten ballots in Artur Granovsky. He was basically Patrascu with a slightly weaker resume, playing 15 years between EPB and MLB and also getting two Reliever of the Year awards. Granovsky had 257 saves, 1.62 ERA, 699 innings, 1096 strikeouts, and 29.3 WAR. He got as high as 45.1% on his second ballot, but plummeted to only 7.8% by the end.



Maksym Badlo – Closer – Kharkiv Killer Bees – 69.0% Second Ballot

Maksym Badlo was a 5’9’’, 180 pound left-handed relief pitcher from Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. He had terrific stuff with a fastball/splitter combo with 96-98 mph velocity. It was difficult for batters to know which pitch was witch. Badlo had above average control with decent movement as well. He was a smart pitcher and knew when to pick his spots.

It was fairly clear that Badlo lacked the stamina or a deep enough arsenal to be a starting pitcher regularly. This cost him some attention as a prospect, but he was still known in Ukraine for having electric stuff. In the second round of the 1978 EPB Draft, Kharkiv picked Badlo with the 54th overall pick. Badlo was immediately a regularly used reliever as a rookie and took over the closer role by his second season. He would also make some starts for Ukraine in the World Baseball Championship. From 1980-93, he had 40 WBC appearances and 19 starts with a 10-9 record, 8 saves, 132.1 innings, 216 strikeouts, and 4.1 WAR.

In only his second season, Badlo emerged as the Reliever of the Year winner with 39 saves, a 0.54 ERA over 100.2 innings, and 6.4 WAR. This also earned him a third place in Pitcher of the Year voting. He was flawless in the Killer Bees’ playoff run, tossing 16 scoreless innings with six saves and 24 strikeouts. That was critical in Kharkiv earning their first-ever EPB Championship and forever earned Badlo a fond spot in the hearts of Killer Bees fans.

Kharkiv regularly competed in the early 1980s with four more playoff appearances and two more ELCS berths, although they wouldn’t get back to the final. Badlo remained excellent in the playoffs with a 0.53 ERA over 33.2 innings with 60 strikeouts. He won Reliever of the Year again in 1982, 83, and 86. Baldo was also third in 1983 Pitcher of the Year voting. He joined Hryhoriy Boychuk as EPB’s only four-time winners of Reliever of the Year. His 1983 was also notable with 103 innings, 40 saves, 193 strikeouts, and 8.3 WAR. The 8.3 WAR as of 2037 is the highest total in a season by any Reliever of the Year winner. He notably had a 42 game scorless streak from July 1985 to June 1986 and had a 35 inning scoreless streak in 1982.

Badlo finished 1987 with a second place in Reliever of the Year voting. At age 32, he became a free agent for the first time and had numerous big money offers. Badlo opted to leave Ukraine and signed a three-year, $4,920,000 deal with MLB’s Calgary. He would never be a full-time closer in his MLB run, usually stuck to a setup or back-end role. Badlo was decently effective in the small sample size, but just never seemed to catch on like he did with Kharkiv.

Calgary cut him early in the 1989 season and he then signed with Denver. His playoff excellence shined through in his one year with the Dragons, tossing 12 scoreless innings with 5 saves and 11 strikeouts. Badlo’s production helped Denver take the 1989 World Series. It would be his last time making it to the playoffs. Badlo played in 1990-91 with Tampa and 1992 with Nashville. Ottawa signed him in 1993, but cut him at the end of spring training. Badlo joined Cincinnati in April and retired that winter at age 38. For his MLB run, he had a 2.72 ERA over 235.1 innings with 205 strikeouts and 5.1 WAR.

For his EPB and Kharkiv run, Badlo had 277 saves and 337 shutdowns, 1.12 ERA, 712 innings, 1167 strikeouts to 141 walks, 20 FIP-, and 46.4 WAR. 300 saves wasn’t a hard barrier with EPB’s voters, but leaving for MLB and not upping the accumulations hurt him with many voters. However, Badlo’s 1.12 ERA as of 2037 is the lowest of any Hall of Fame inductee. His clutch playoff performances also had to be considered, even if his EPB tenure was only nine seasons. Badlo missed the cut barely with 65.6% in 1994, 1995 again had no big stars debuting, which allowed him win over just enough voters to cross the line at 69.0%. Thus, Badlo is the lone addition into the EPB Hall of Fame in 1995.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

Two first ballot selections were made for the 1995 Oceania Baseball Association Hall of Fame class. Pitcher Tarzan Rao was nearly unanimous with 99.3% and was joined by 1B Trent Atkins at 78.2%. No other players were above 50% with the top returner being RF Dede Hayati at 49.3% for his fourth ballot.



Dropped after ten ballots was starting pitcher Pierrot Wanapopo, who pitched 12 years with Adelaide. He peaked at 17.9% in his second ballot and ended at 17.9%. Wanapopo had a 164-113 record, 2.85 ERA, 2500 innings, 2416 strikeouts, and 35.3 WAR. A decent run, but hardly Hall worthy.



Tarzan Rao – Starting Pitcher – Adelaide Aardvarks – 99.3% First Ballot

Tarzan Rao was a 5’11’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Vila, the capital and largest city of Vanuatu. Rao had legendary stuff with excellent control and good movement. His fastball regularly was in the 99-101 mph range, but he had an impressive five pitch arsenal including a screwball, forkball, changeup, and cutter. Each of the pitches was equally potent, making Rao unhittable when he was one his game. He also had incredible stamina and regularly threw complete games. His only real flaw was poor defense and a lousy ability to hold runners, but you don’t need to hold many runners when you strike out most of them. Rao became beloved for his ability, but also because he was a standup guy with a great work ethic.

It wasn’t easy to get spotted in the small island nation of Vanuatu, but Rao’s potential was undeniable. An Australian scout from Adelaide discovered him and signed him at age 16 to a developmental contract in 1969. Rao would go onto spend his entire stellar career with the Aardvarks. He officially made his debut with seven relief appearances in 1974 at age 21. Rao also had two relief appearances in the Oceania Championship that year, earning a ring with Adelaide. Rao was a part-time starter in 1975, earning Rookie of the Year. He was then a full-time part of the rotation from 1976 onward.

Rao emerged as an ace by 1976 with a 7.2 WAR season, his first of 12 straight worth 7+. He took second in Pitcher of the Year voting and had a role in Adelaide’s 1970s dynasty. Rao struggled in his 1976 playoff starts with a 5.79 ERA, but had two stellar starts in 1977 with a 1.29 ERA over 14 innings. The Aardvarks won the title both years, taking three rings in four seasons. The franchise would be generally mid for the remainder of Rao’s run with no additional pennants. Ironically, his three titles with the team came in the weakest part of his career.

From 1978-87, Rao led the Australasia League in WAR each season and each season he posted 9.5+ or more. In this stretch, he also led in wins five times, ERA five times, innings pitched seven times, strikeouts eight times, WHIP seven times, K/BB seven times, quality starts four times, complete games seven times, shutout seven times, and FIP- eight times. Rao earned Triple Crowns thrice (1983, 1984, 1986) and delivered a level of pitching dominance not seen possibly in all of professional baseball history.

Rao picked up six Pitcher of the Year awards (1980, 81, 83, 84, 85 , 86). He took second in 1982 and was also an MVP finalist with a second in 1981 and a third in 1984. Rao had only one no-hitter in a 13 strikeout effort against Sydney on 7/16/85. Twice, he had 20 strikeout games, although both were in extra inning efforts.

In addition, Rao posted remarkable single-season totals. He broke Nathaniel Doloran’s single-season strikeout record of 497 with 524 Ks in 1983. This is not only still the OBA all-time record, but it is the second most in any world league only behind Mohamed Ramos’ 549 in Beisbol Sudamerica from 1936. As of 2037, Rao also has five of OBA’s top 15 strikeout seasons. His 349 innings pitched in 1981 and 1983 also tied the OBA and world record. These are tied for fourth as of 2037.

Rao also broke the old OBA record for WAR by a pitcher, which had been 14.2 by Zachary Nelson in 1968. Rao beat that mark thrice, first with 15.5 in 1984, 16.59 in 1984, and 14.4 in 1986. The 1984 mark also broke the OBA record for WAR by any player, as SS Jimmy Caliw had gotten 16.07 in 1976. This remains the OBA record and at the time, it was only the seventh season above 16+ WAR in any world league purely based on pitching.

Rao signed a seven-year, $1,888,000 extension in May 1978, staying loyal to Adelaide. Even though the team had been unremarkable during his most dominant seasons, he remained committed to the squad. In April 1985, Rao signed another five-year, $3,340,000 extension. He continued to dominate into 30s, even when he didn’t get support from the Aardvarks. Rao managed to lead in pitching WAR, strikeouts, and losses in 1987 with poor run support.

1988 was looking to be another great season and he would ultimately still lead in both ERA and WHIP. However, Rao missed more than half of the campaign between a torn triceps and a sprained ankle. He did manage to pass Nigel Chalmers’ 5144 strikeouts to become the OBA strikeout leader. When he reported in 1989, his velocity had noticeably dropped by 3-4 mph and his stuff looked pedestrian. Rao allowed the most home runs in the league and struggled to a 3.85 ERA and 89 FIP-.

Despite his struggles, his 19 wins allowed him to become OBA’s second 300 game winner. He finished one ahead of Nigel Chalmers’ 313 to become the leader in pitching wins. With those two milestones reached and not satisfied with being mediocre, Rao retired at age 37. Adelaide immediately retired his #5 uniform and Rao remained one of OBA’s most beloved and celebrated baseball icons for decades to come.

Rao’s final stats: 314-176 record, 2.36 ERA, 4695 innings, 5650 strikeouts, 582 walks, 436/561 quality starts, 274 complete games, 60 shutouts, 63 FIP-, and 154.9 WAR. At induction, he was the OBA all-time leader in wins, complete games, shutouts, strikeouts, and overall WAR. Rao would lose each of those spots from the incredible run from 2008-27 by Akira Brady and would also get passed by Timothy Manglona in shutouts and strikeouts. Brady would grab Rao’s claim for OBA’s GOAT pitcher for many, but Rao’s status as the best of his era and on the Mount Rushmore would be essentially undisputed. He helped put Vanuatu on the map for many in the region and played a role in eventually securing an expansion team in his home country. Rao received 99.3% of the vote in 1995 and very few pitchers in any world league ever could credibly claim to have been better.



Trent Atkins – First Base – Fiji Freedom – 78.2% First Ballot

Trent Atkins was a 6’2’’, 200 pound left-handed first baseman from Waipahu, Hawaii, a small city with around 43,000 people in Honolulu County. Atkins was a very good home run hitter who also had solid contact skills and a decent eye. He was reliably good for around 40 home runs and 25 doubles per year in his prime. Atkins was a very slow base runner and did strike out more than you’d like. He was exclusively a first baseman and graded out as reliably above average defensively. Atkins had great durability and was a scrappy sparkplug type player known for his work ethic and adaptability.

Atkins emerged as the top prospect coming out of Hawaii for the 1972 OBA Draft. Fiji selected him with the fourth overall pick, although they didn’t use him right away. He sat in developmental in 1973, then had mostly pinch hit appearances in 1974. 1975 was his first full season as a starter, a role he held for the Freedom for the next 13 years. Atkins also made some appearances for his native Hawaii, who was allowed to complete separate from the rest of the United States in the World Baseball Championship. Atkins played in eight WBCs from 1973-88 with 70 starts, 64 hits, 36 runs, 18 home runs, and 39 RBI.

It wasn’t always easy to get noticed playing for Fiji, who were arguably OBA’s worst franchise in its first few decades. Atkins got them to a couple winning seasons in the late 1970s with a peak of 89-73 in 1976. Despite his efforts, the Freedom never claimed the pennant and wouldn’t finally do it until 2002. Still, Atkins was a very popular player for his never ending hustle and became well liked throughout all of Oceania.

1978 was Atkins’ first elite season, leading the Pacific League in home runs (50) and RBI (10(0, as well as OBP, slugging, and OPS. He earned MVP and Silver Slugger honors for his efforts. Atkins would lead in homers and total bases three consecutive seasons from 1981-83, also leading in RBI twice in that stretch and again in 1984. 1983 also had the lead in OPS, helping him to his second MVP. Atkins was third in 1979 and second in 1982 MVP voting. He won Silver Slugger five times (1978, 81, 82, 83, 87) and also pulled off a Gold Glove in 1986.

Atkins stayed committed to Fiji despite the franchise’s struggles, inking an eight-year, $2,794,000 extension after the 1979 season. His power peaked with 53 home runs in 1983, although he still had four more seasons with 30+. While the Freedom were at least respectable in the 1970s, they were atrocious in the early 1980s, bottoming out at 47-115 in 1985. Atkins’ production did start to wane slightly as his contract ran out and Fiji let him enter free agency after the 1987 campaign at age 34.

Adelaide signed Atkins to a one-year deal just before spring training 1988. He was very middling in his half season with the Aardvarks, who decided to trade him back to Fiji in June along with $2,515,000 in exchange for three prospects. Atkins was a bit better in the second half with the Freedom, but was let go in the offseason. The Freedom would retire his #15 uniform though soon after. He joined Auckland for his final season in 1989 with unremarkable results, but he did become the second OBA hitter to reach 550 career home runs. Atkins hoped to play in 1990, but went unsigned and retired in the winter at age 38.

For his career, Atkins had 2204 hits, 1103 runs, 373 doubles, 564 home runs, 1305 RBI, a .257/.318/.507 slash, 162 wRC+, and 86.2 WAR. His power numbers would get dwarfed by many guys in the coming years, but they were fairly impressive for such a low-offense era in OBA. As of 2037, he’s 17^th in home runs and 19^th in offensive WAR. He might have gotten more notice if he wasn’t on so many bad Fiji teams, but Atkins was still a very well-liked and respected player in his time. This earned him the first ballot induction at 78.2%, joining Tarzan Rao for the 1995 OBA Hall of Fame class.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

The 1995 Austronesia Professional Baseball ballot was rife with retreads as the highest mark for a ballot newcomer was 14.4%. This allowed two returning starting pitchers to get across the 66% requirement line and earn induction. Ary Mustofa bumped up to 74.7% in his seventh ballot and Lifki Santoso earned 68.9% on his fourth ballot. Two others were above the 60% mark but short of induction with RF Lin Zulkifli at 63.0% for his second ballot and 1B Po-Yu Shao with 60.7% on his eighth try.



Pitcher Kai Diaz dropped off after ten failed ballots. His numbers aren’t too far removed from the two guys who got in with the 1995 voting with a 160-115 record, 2.20 ERA, 2639.2 innings, 2796 strikeouts, and 62.8 WAR over his 14 year career with Cebu. Diaz was incredibly close on his third ballot in 1988, getting 65.6%. He finished above 60% one more time before eventually dropping down to 37.7% by the end.

Another pitcher fell off in Ahmad Nasir Suryadi, who also had comparable stats. Unlike Diaz, Suryadi did win a Pitcher of the Year, posting a 150-134 record, 2.36 ERA, 2677.1 innings, 2763 strikeouts, and 52.6 WAR in 14 seasons for Batam. Yet, Suryadi never got much traction with a peak of 34.5% in his second ballot. He closed his candidacy at only 5.1%.



Ary Mustofa – Starting Pitcher – Depok Demons – 74.7% Seventh Ballot

Ary Mustofa was a 6’1’’, 200 pound left-handed pitcher from Buaran, Indonesia; a small city of around 38,000 people in the Central Java province. Mustofa’s scouting graded him as incredibly average to just above average across the board. His velocity only reached the 92-94 mph range, but he did have a respectable arsenal of slider, forkball, cutter, and changeup. Mustofa’s stamina was solid and he was above average defensively. He wasn’t the most well-liked guy in the clubhouse and was often criticized for a lousy work ethic and poor loyalty.

Mustofa’s personality quirks were part of the reason his APB career began so late. In his early 20s, he found himself barnstorming and playing independent baseball throughout Indonesia. Mustofa showed enough talent though that Depok signed him to a deal for the 1969 season. He made his debut as a full-time starter in 1969 at age 25 and had a fine debut, leading the Sundaland Association with 28 quality starts. Mustofa earned second in Rookie of the Year voting and tossed a no-hitter in May against Semarang with 10 strikeouts and two walks.

Depok was generally a poor team for his run, although he posted a 77-58 record, 2.27 ERA, 1295 innings, 1367 strikeouts, and 27.5 WAR over four seasons and change. Mustofa was third in Pitcher of the Year voting in 1970 and second in 1972; the closest he’d come to winning the award. He impressively had a second no-hitter with the Demons in September 1971 with seven strikeouts and one walk against Bandung. However, Mustofa’s personality was clashing with the dugout and management felt compelled to get rid of him.

At the 1973 trade deadline, Depok sent Mustofa to Batam for pitchers Kian Mangoenkoesomo and Ty Noguera. The Blue Raiders were the defending Austronesia Champion and they hoped the move would solidify their rotation. Mustofa had a middling second half and struggled in his three playoff starts, but Batam was able to win the Sundaland Association title again. They would fall in the APB final to the budding Kaohsiung dynasty.

Batam fell hard in 1974 to 71-91, although they did bounce back for a playoff spot in 1975. Mustofa’s 1974 was subpar, while his 1975 was showing potential until he lost three months to a partially torn labrum. In total with the Blue Raiders, Mustofa had a 22-27 record, 2.51 ERA, 466.1 innings, 475 strikeouts, and 6.8 WAR. At age 32, he became a free agent for the first time in his APB run. Surabaya would sign Mustofa to a two-year, $470,000 deal for the 1976 season.

Mustofa had a respectable season for the Sunbirds, but they traded him in the winter to Palembang with a prospect to get LF Ardi Ginting. His one year with the Panthers was the best he had looked since the Depok days. Palembang had won the SA pennant in 1976 and got back to the playoffs in 1977, but Mustofa was rocked in his one postseason start and the Panthers were ousted in the association final. This left Mustofa a free agent again, now at age 34. To the surprise of many in APB, he got a long-term deal as Bandung inked him to a five-year, $1,730,000 contract.

This was his longest tenure with one team, although he would go into the HOF in the Depok hat. Mustofa’s 1979 was solid, but he was otherwise very mid as a Blackhawk. Injuries cost him notable chunks in both 1980 and 1982 as well. For his Bandung tenure, Mustofa had a 50-51 record, 2.69 ERA, 965 innings, 905 strikeouts, a 92 ERA+, and 14.3 WAR.

Mustofa was a free agent once more for the 1983 season and inked a one-year deal with Medan. He was used sparingly with only 91.1 innings for the season. The Marlins would win the Sundaland Association title and fall in the APB championship to Taoyuan. Mustofa only had one relief appearance for the postseason though. No one wanted him in 1984 and he retired that winter at age 40.

Mustofa’s final stats saw a 187-159 record, 2.38 ERA, 3330.1 innings, 3277 strikeouts, 322/418 quality starts, 116 complete games, 90 FIP-, 106 ERA+, and 57.2 WAR. APB voters were very pitcher friendly, but his totals were very much at the bottom when compared to others that eventually got in. Mustofa debuted at 46.9% and got up to 63.3% in 1992, but fell back down to 50.7% in 1994. The voters were loath to have a blank ballot and the 1995 ballot had no newcomers worth a look. Mustofa’s resume managed to get a second look from enough voters to push him to 74.7%, earning a seventh ballot addition into APB’s Hall of Fame.



Lifki Santoso – Starting Pitcher – Batam Blue Raiders – 68.9% Fourth Ballot

Lifki Santoso was a 6’0’’, 200 pound left-handed pitcher from Indramayu, Indonesia; a city of around 120,000 in the West Java province. Santoso had very good control, which allowed him to have success despite having only average stuff and mediocre movement. He had 91-93 mph peak velocity on his fastball and mixed it with a slider, changeup, and curveball. Santoso had excellent stamina and durability, leading the Sundaland Association four times in innings pitched. He was also a solid defensive pitcher that could effectively hold runners. Most importantly, Santoso was a team captain and a great leader in the clubhouse.

Santoso’s pro career started in Singapore, as the Sharks picked him 13^th overall in the 1973 APB Draft. He was a full-time starter right away and looked okay as a rookie, but he was surprisingly traded away in his rookie year. Santoso and catcher Lifki Hadi were sent to Batam in exchange for LF Augustus Chia. The rest of Santoso’s career would be with the Blue Raiders, who had won Sundaland Association pennants in 1972 and 1973.

Batam wouldn’t find the same success during Santoso’s tenure, making the playoffs only thrice (1975, 1979, 1985) and falling in the association final each time. He would reliably eat innings though and occasionally look elite. Santoso led in WAR in 1978 and twice led in quality starts. In 1979 against a fairly quiet field, Santoso won Pitcher of the Year. It would be his only time as a finalist for the top award. He would commit to a six-year, $2,340,000 extension just before the 1981 season.

Santoso didn’t quite hit his peak numbers in his early 30s and slipped down the rotation even though he was healthy. By 1986, he only started for half of the season. Santoso remained under contract with Batam in 1987 and still provided some leadership, but he wasn’t used once. He would retire that winter at age 36 and the Blue Raiders did honor him by retiring his #10 uniform.

Santoso’s final stats: 165-151 record, 2.23 ERA, 3275.2 innings, 3344 strikeouts, 324/403 quality starts, 109 ERA+, 86 FIP-, and 62.8 WAR. He was never dominant and didn’t have great longevity. Like his HOF classmate Mustofa, Santoso’s tallies are more towards the borderline among APB starting pitchers that would get it. He was boosted though by his leadership and general positive reputation as a man. Santoso debuted at 57.7% and jumped to 65.1% in 1993, but fell back to 49.0% in 1994. With a weak field in 1995, Santoso crossed the line with 68.9% to earn a fourth ballot induction. The 1995 APB Hall of Fame class is definitely one of the weaker ones, but two pitchers found their way in.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

Two players wearing the Xi’an Attack cap joined the Chinese League Baseball Hall of Fame in 1995 with first ballot selections. Pitcher Guodong Lin had 99.4%, nearly unanimous, while his longtime teammate SS Junjie Hsiung had 75.5%. The only other player above 50% was also a Xi’an comrade in closer Huyi Gao, but he was at only 53.7% for his second ballot. No players were dropped after ten failed ballots in 1995.



Guodong Lin – Starting Pitcher – Xi’an Attack - 99.4% First Ballot

Guodong Lin was a 6’1’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Dongchang, a district with 1,800,000 people in northeast China’s Jilin province. Lin was best known for pinpoint control that he balanced with above average stuff and movement. His velocity peaked in the 96-98 mph range and he had a tricky five pitch arsenal with a curveball, forkball, changeup, cutter, and circle change. Lin had excellent stamina and durability, tossing 240+ innings in every season but his rookie year. His downside was atrocious defense and poor ability to hold runners. Lin was a team captain with great leadership and a fine work ethic. In many ways, he was the soul of Xi’an’s squads during his era.

Lin was signed as a teenage amateur by the Attack in 1971 and made his debut primarily in relief at age 21 in 1975. He became a full-time starter the next year and a pretty strong one as Xi’an would go onto their second China Series win in three years. At 113-49, the 1976 Attack still hold the CLB record for the best record by a team that won the championship. Lin had a solid 1.93 ERA and 3-0 record in his starts that year over 23.1 innings.

Xi’an made the playoffs again the next three seasons, although they fell each time in the semifinal. For his playoff career, Lin had a 2.75 ERA over 55.2 innings with 64 strikeouts. The Attack would be a middle of the road team throughout Lin’s most impressive individual seasons in the 1980s. Lin also had some strong showings from 1978-83 in the World Baseball Championship for China. Over 78.1 WBC innings he had a 7-2 record, 1.61 ERA, 82 strikeouts, and 2.3 WAR. Lin picked up a world title ring as part of China’s 1979 squad.

Lin tossed a no-hitter in 1977 with 8 strikeouts against Tianjn. On April 30, 1981, he then had a perfect game with eight strikeouts against Hangzhou. Less than two months later, Lin had a second perfect game against the Hens, this time with nine strikeouts. He became the fifth pitcher in pro baseball history to throw two perfect games and was the only one of that group to do it in the same season. Later that season, he added a 33 inning scoreless streak from August 27 to September 11.

Lin would lead the league in wins thrice, ERA twice, innings once, strikeouts thrice, WHIP thrice, K/BB twice, quality starts twice, shutouts four times, and WAR once. This earned him three consecutive Pitcher of the Year awards from 1980-82. Xi’an had signed Lin to a five-year, $1,054,000 extension after the 1978 season. Following his early 1980s tear, the Attack signed him in May 1983 to a seven year, $3,974,000 extension.

Lin’s dominance would begin to fade a bit into his early 30s, although he still certainly provided positive value. He would become the fifth CLB pitcher to 200 career wins in 1988 and the third to 4000 strikeouts. As of 2037, he’s the last guy to make it to those milestones. Xi’an had bottomed out hard that season though with a franchise worst 61-101. They needed to rebuild and Lin was included in a six-player deal with Guangzhou.

There would be no hard feelings and Lin’s #4 uniform would be retired the next year. He remained an important franchise ambassador for many years to come. His one season with the Gamecocks was unremarkable and easily the weakest full season of his career. Some wondered if he might try to chase the all-time strikeout or wins records, but Lin called it quits that winter at age 36.

For his career, Lin had a 212-189 record, 2.19 ERA, 3859 innings, 4140 strikeouts, 470 walks, 369/467 quality starts, 78 FIP-, 176 complete games, 51 shutouts, and 89.8 WAR. As of 2037, he holds the CLB record for most innings pitched. Lin also still sits second in strikeouts, third in wins, fourth in complete games, and seventh in pitching WAR. It is not always easy to rank the group of great pitchers from that era that still hold prominent spots on the CLB pitching leaderboards. However, Lin’s candidacy for the Hall of Fame was a slam dunk, getting in with 99.4%.



Junjie Hsiung – Shortstop – Xi’an Attack – 75.5% First Ballot

Junjie Hsiung was a 5’11’’, 200 pound right-handed shortstop from Anyang, a city with 5,400,000 inhabitants in central China’s Henan province. He’s renowned for being one of the greatest defensive shortstops of all-time, winning ten Gold Gloves and posting a career 363.4 zone rating and 1.086 EFF. Hsiung was also considered an ironman, playing in 125+ games in each of his 18 seasons despite the physical demands of the position.

As a batter, Hsiung was a great contact hitter that was excellent at avoiding strikeouts. He had good gap power, averaging around 40 doubles/triples per year. Hsiung wasn’t a home run guy or someone who drew walks with any real frequency. His baserunning speed was respectable, but he was considered a poor baserunner. Hsiung was also very outspoken, which made him very much a “love him or hate him” type guy among both teammates and fans.

His amateur accolades were impressive as excellent defensive players don’t always come with a good bat too. Xi’an picked Hsiung fifth overall in the 1971 CLB Draft and made him a starter instantly; a role he held for the next 18 years. He took third in Rookie of the Year voting in 1972, then started racking up the awards from there.

Hsiung won ten Gold Gloves at shortstop (73-76, 78-79, 81, 83-84, 88) and picked up ten Silver Sluggers (1973, 76-77, 79-81, 83, 85-87). His stellar defense helped him with remarkable WAR totals, posting 12 seasons worth 8+ WAR and four seasons worth double-digits. Hsiung was the conference WAlord thrice while also earning two batting titles. He also led twice in hits and once in total bases, slugging, and wRC+. 1979 was his peak season in many ways with career bests in hits (195), total bases (308), doubles (35), triples (18), average (.326), slugging (.515), wRC+ (194), and WAR (12.3). That earned Hsiung his lone MVP. He also took third in 1985, second in 1986, and third in 1987.

From 1974-79, Xi’an had five playoff appearances and won the China Series in both 1974 and 1976. Hsiung had 36 career playoff starts and posted 41 hits, 10 runs, 6 doubles, 17 RBI, a .301/.321/.412 slash, and 0.9 WAR. After the 1976 season, the Attack gave Hsiung an eight-year, $2,756,000 extension. He added another five years and $3,600,000 following the 1983 campaign. Hsiung didn’t seem to age, putting up arguably better production in his 30s than he did in his 20s. However, Xi’an was generally stuck in the middle of the standings throughout the 1980s.

Hsiung’s longevity helped him soar up many of the CLB offensive leaderboards. In 1987, he was the second to reach 2500 hits and he would pass Shenchao An soon after for the top spot. Age finally caught up to him with a rough 1989 season at age 39, dropping from 9.7 WAR the prior season to a career worst 3.1. His Xi’an contract expired and he went unsigned in 1990, finally retiring that winter at age 40.

Hsiung’s final stats: 2824 hits, 955 runs, 471 doubles, 177 triples, 178 home runs, 1071 RBI, a .286/.308/.423 slash, 141 wRC+, and 152.6 WAR. Those tallies stand out even more considering the very low offensive environment for Chinese baseball. As of 2037, Hsiung is still CLB’s all-time hit king at 2824. He also leads in doubles, games played (2658), at bats (9888), and offensive WAR. His zone rating is also still second best among CLB shortstops. Sabremetric guys point to his WAR total to place him perhaps as CLB’s greatest pure position player in history. Hsiung got the first ballot induction, but amazingly only at 75.5%. Maybe his outspoken nature really rubbed some the wrong way. Regardless, Hsiung holds a spot as one of China’s most talented position players ever.

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Two starting pitchers picked up Hall of Fame inductions for West African Baseball’s 1995 class. Kouadio Diao was a slam dunk first ballot induction getting 99.3%. Adul dos Santos was far less certain, narrowly getting across the line with 68.9% for his seventh ballot. Only one other player was above 50% as closer Johnson Madu had 54.2% in his sixth attempt. No players were dropped after ten ballots.



Kouadio Diao – Starting Pitcher – Abidjan Athletes – 99.3% First Ballot

Kouadio Diao was a 6’3’’, 190 pound right-handed pitcher from Beoumi, a town of 85,000 people located dead center in Cote d’Ivoire. Diao wasn’t amazing at any one thing, but was considered above average to good across the board with his stuff, control, and movement. He had 95-97 mph velocity on his fastball and mixed it with a slider and changeup. Diao had very good stamina early in his career, although injuries in his 30s caused him trouble. He was scrappy and pushed through those setbacks with his great work ethic and adaptability.

Diao was already a promising young star throughout the Ivory Coast when West Africa Baseball was formed in 1975. He had already begun his semi-pro career and wasn’t draft eligible, but also didn’t immediately join the new WAB. After barnstorming mostly in 1975 and 1976, he signed with his home country’s Abidjan Athletes for the 1977 season. The 23-year old future ace inked a seven-year, $1,496,000 deal.

This deal was a big reason while Abidjan was a regular Western League contender in their early years. They made the playoffs six straight seasons from 1977-82 with all of but one of those seasons being 100+ win seasons. The Athletes won the WL pennant in 1978, 1981, and 1982. The Lagos dynasty denied them the overall title in 1978 and 1981, but Abidjan took their first overall ring over Port Harcourt in 1982.

During this stretch, Diao won four Pitcher of the Year awards (1977, 78, 79, 81) and took second in 1981. Diao was also second in MVP voting in each of the years he won Pitcher of the Year. His debut Rookie of the Year season was maybe the best debut a player has ever had, setting a league record for pitching WAR at 13.69. That still stands as the top mark in WAB as of 2037. That year also had a record eight shutouts.

In 1978, Diao set still-standing WAB records for H/9 (5.05), WHIP (0.69), as well as opponent average (.160), OBP (.191), and OPS (.462). He had Triple Crowns in 1977, 1979, and 1981. Diao led in ERA four times, strikeouts five times, WAR four times, wins thrice, WHIP four times, innings pitched thrice, quality starts thrice, complete games thrice, and FIP- three thrice. For that five year stretch from 1977-81, he had one of the best runs any pitcher had ever had in pro baseball.

In the playoffs with Abidjan, Diao posted a 3.21 ERA, 2-4 record over 12 appearances, 84 innings, 89 strikeouts, and 1.6 WAR. He also pitched from 1977-91 for the Ivory Coast in the World Baseball Championship. However, his WBC numbers were pretty mediocre with a 2-19 record, 4.30 ERA, 178 innings, 210 strikeouts, and 3.0 WAR.

Diao surprisingly regressed to merely good in 1982, then below average in 1983. This left the 30-year old in an interesting spot as his contract with Abidjan ended. In total with the Athletes, he had a 148-50 record, 2.37 ERA, 1814 innings, 2340 strikeouts, and 62.6 WAR. That run pretty much alone gave him a very strong shot at a later Hall of Fame induction. Abidjan was worried he was cooked and didn’t re-sign Diao.

His next contract would be a six-year, $2,322,000 deal with Kumasi. The Monkeys were already in the midst of what ended up being a 14-year playoff streak. While Diao was there, they made the playoffs each year. They won the Western League title in both 1985 and 1987, but fell both times in the WAB Championship.

Diao’s value in this run was a mixed bag though. He had a very solid debut season, but put up generally middling production the other years with injuries costing him innings each year. Diao has a solid 1985 playoff run with a 2.33 ERA over 27 innings, but had trouble in his other postseason appearances. His playoff stats with Kumasi saw a 4.26 ERA over 44.1 innings, 39 strikeouts, and an ERA+ of 84.

Back trouble was his most common ailment, although shoulder inflammation also cost him three months in 1988. In total with Kumasi, Diao had a 57-38 record, 3.38 ERA, 911.1 innings, 971 strikeouts, and 15.8 WAR. Now 36 years old, Diao couldn’t find any teams interested within west Africa. He wanted to play somewhere and eventually had to look towards Arab League Baseball, which had just formed for the 1990 season.

In May 1990, Diao ended up in Saudi Arabia on a two-year, $696,000 deal with Jeddah. He was respectable with the Jackals, but certainly a far cry from the dominator he was early in his career. He had 2.8 WAR over 204.1 innings with a 2.77 ERA and 125 ERA+. In May 1991, ulnar nerve entrapment ended his season and ultimately his career. Diao tried to find a home in 1992, but had to retire that winter at age 38 after going unsigned.

For his WAB career, Diao had a 205-88 record, 2.71 ERA, 2725.1 innings, 3311 strikeouts, 556 walks, 251/351 quality starts, 72 FIP-, and 78.4 WAR. At induction, he had the fourth most WAR of any WAB pitcher and still sits sixth as of 2037. As of 2037, he’s also 19^th in strikeouts and eighth in wins. Although he was unremarkable in the back end of his career, Diao’s first five years still have a case for the best five-year stretch by any WAB pitcher. That run alone cemented his Hall of Fame status for most voters, giving him the first ballot nod at 99.3%.



Adul dos Santos – Starting Pitcher – Kano Condors – 68.9% Seventh Ballot

Adul dos Santos was a 6’2’’, 200 pound left-handed pitcher from Bissau, the capital of Guinea-Bissau. Dos Santos was known for having respectable stuff and control with average movement. His velocity on his fastball peaked in the 96-98 mph range and was mixed with a slider, curveball, and changeup. Dos Santos was considered a durable pitcher with decent stamina. He was criticized though for a lack of hustle and a perceived selfishness.

When West Africa Baseball officially began with the 1975 season, dos Santos was already 27 years old and established on the semi-pro circuits. Kano signed him to a five-year, $880,000 deal to officially begin his WAB career. The Condors were the first WAB dynasty, winning back-to-back titles in 1975 and 1976. Dos Santos led the Eastern League in wins in 1975 and ERA in 1977, helping Kano to its early success. Notably in 1975, he tossed a no-hitter against Niamey with 12 strikeouts and one walk. 1978 saw a second no-hitter against the Atomics with six Ks and no walks.

In 1977, dos Santos was second in Pitcher of the Year voting, the only time he was a finalist. In the playoffs for Kano, he had a 2.80 ERA over seven starts and 45 innings with 44 strikeouts and 0.6 WAR. In four seasons total with the Condors, dos Santos had a 75-30 record, 2.47 ERA, 940 innings, 1165 strikeouts, and 25.2 WAR. He still clashed with some members of the clubhouse and Kano looked to trade him in the final year of his contract. Before the 1979 season, the Condors sent dos Santos to Freetown for three prospects.

After a respectable season with the Forresters worth 4.2 WAR, dos Santos was a free agent at age 32. Abidjan had been an early contender in WAB and they gave him a one-year deal for the 1980 season. He put up steady production and helped the Athletes to a 112 win season. However, dos Santos allowed four runs in six playoff innings and Abidjan lost in the WLCS to Monrovia. A free agent again at age 33, dos Santos joined Cotonou on a five-year, $1,290,000 deal.

The Copperheads were a bottom rung franchise during dos Santos’ tenure. He had a respectable debut in 1981, but looked very middling in 1982. In his third season, dos Santos struggled and was eventually relegated to a bullpen role. He had 5.1 WAR and a 3.49 ERA in total with Cotonou. Dos Santos remained under contract in 1984, but never saw the field. He retired that winter at age 37.

For his official WAB career, dos Santos had a 140-71 record, 2.89 ERA, 1883.2 innings, 2157 strikeouts, 150/263 quality starts, 83 FIP-, and 39.5 WAR. It is always tough to rate early-era guys as he missed out on 4-5 years of potentially great production in his early 20s. The accumulations are certainly on the low end, hurt by the late start and relatively early end to his career. Most voters didn’t think dos Santos had done enough and kept him in the 40-50% range for his first few ballots. He bumped up to 60.5% in 1993, then finally crossed the line in 1995 at 68.9% for a seventh ballot induction. The role in Kano’s early dynasty played a big part in dos Santos finding his way into the 1995 WAB Hall of Fame class.

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South Asia Baseball didn’t induct any players into the Hall of Fame in 1995. The top performer was SP Vannak Thai at 52.7% on his fourth ballot. Closer Jason Mayekar was next on his fourth ballot also with 47.6%. SP Ramesh Kohinoor was the only other player above 40%, earning 43.2% in his second go. The best debut was SP Ratanpreet Nagpal at a lackluster 13.3%.

The Asian Baseball Federation was still a long way from adding its first-ever Hall of Famer. SP Zeyad Noori’s debut was the highest percentage for anyone yet, but his 26.1% was still a long way away from the 66% threshold. SP Abbas Nadim had 24.2% in his second ballot. No one else reached double digits.

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Entering the mid 1990s, the only populated region that still didn’t have a Global Baseball Alliance sanctioned major baseball league was central and southern Africa. The rest of the continent had seen the game thrive with West African Baseball and had shown tremendous growth in a short period in the north from the Arab League. The other part of the continent had seen a number of cities and markets grow to the point of being able to sustain major teams. However, the region had a lot of internal and external strife, making a multinational league tough to consummate.

South Africa had been the nation with the most developed baseball presence in the mid 20th Century. However, the Apartheid regime made most nations understandably not interested in associating with or partnering with them. With Apartheid’s official ending in the early 1990s and the growth of the game elsewhere on the continent, a league for the remaining African nations looked more possible. Enough powerbrokers eventually came up with what would become the African Association of Baseball (AAB), which began play in 1995.

In its initial layout, AAB was split up into two conferences of ten teams each. The Southern Conference had three South African teams (Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg), along with Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Lusaka (Zambia), Luanda (Angola), Harare (Zimbabwe), Lilongwe (Malawi), Antananarivo (Madagascar) and Maputo (Mozambique). On the other side was the Central Conference with Kinshasa and Lubumbashi (DR Congo), Brazzaville (Congo Rep), Mogadishu (Somalia), Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), Nairobi (Kenya), Kigali (Rwanda), Kampala (Uganda), Ndjamena (Chad), and Bujumbura (Burundi).



AAB would use a balanced schedule without interleague play. The designated hitter was universal and offensive numbers would be considered above average to high in the early years relative to other world leagues. Batting averages were actually considered below average initially despite ERAs being above average. AAB would see higher numbers of home runs and stolen bases than most other leagues.

In the postseason, the top two placing teams would face off in the Conference Championship. The first place team would receive a one-game advantage built in with a “Best of Seven” format that would see at most six games played with a HH-AAA-H format. The two conference champs advanced to the Africa Series, which was unique for being the only championship in the world using a Best of Nine format. It would be a HHH-AAAA-HH setup to decide the champion.

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The 1995 World Baseball Championship was the 49^th edition of the event. It was the first to be hosted in Europe since 1977, this time being centered around Lisbon, Portugal. In a very tight Division 1, Indonesia finished first at 7-2. Romania and Vietnam were both one back with three other nations at 5-4. It was the third consecutive division win for the Indonesians and their 12^th time advancing to the elite eight. In D2, the United States and Chile tied at 7-2 with Switzerland at 6-3. The Americans had the tiebreaker to move forward for the 41^st time.

Two-time defending world champion China was the lone unbeaten team, taking Division 3 at 9-0. The Philippines were the closest competitor at 7-2. The Chinese earned a fifth consecutive division title and advanced for the 18^th time. In D4, Iran (7-2) edged Haiti (6-3) with three others at 5-4. This was Iran’s first ever division title. Ghana also earned its first division title, taking Division 5 at 7-2. Guatemala, India, and Russia were each right in the mix at 6-3.

For the sixth time in a decade, Canada moved forward. They won Division 6 at 7-2, topping the Dominican Republic and South Korea by one game each. The Canadians advanced for the 30^th time, second most only to the Americans. In D7, Denmark secured a first-ever division title at 7-2. Pakistan and Thailand were each at 6-3. Division 8 saw Brazil prevail at 8-1, two better than the Czech Republic and Nigeria. The Brazilians picked up a 27^th elite eight appearance.

In Round Robin Group A, China and Canada both advanced at 4-2. The United States fell short at 3-3 in a rare elimination for them, while Denmark was 1-5. The Canadians made their 24^th semifinal berth and the Chinese got their 13^th. Both picked up a fourth final four berth in the last five years. Group B saw Iran on top at 4-2 as a first time semifinalist. Brazil and Indonesia were both 3-3 and Ghana finished 2-4. The Brazilians had the tiebreaker over the Indonesians for their 15^th final four appearance.

In the semifinal, China survived in five games over Iran to return to the championship for the third consecutive time. The Chinese are the first nation since the United States in the 1970s to earn three finals appearances in a row. The Americans are the only other country to have seen three straight title matches. The other semifinal saw Canada top Brazil 3-1. This was the Canadians’ fifth championship appearance in ten years. Iran officially was third and Brazil was fourth.



The 49^th World Championship was the eighth finals for China and the 15^th for Canada, but their first-time facing each other for the title. This was arguably the most exciting world final in WBC history to this point, needing all seven games. The finale was scoreless until the 11^th inning with the Canadians going ahead in the top half for a 1-0 victory. This denied China’s three-peat bid and gave Canada a sixth world title (1954, 59, 67, 86, 91, 95). They are now 6-9 in the championship all-time while the Chinese are 4-4.



WBC MVP went to China’s Shichao Chang. A 35-year old switch hitting RF playing in MLB with Cleveland, Zhang had 26 hits, 26 runs, 17 home runs, 37 RBI, 18 walks, and 2.7 WAR over 27 starts. His countryman Zhiming Cao won Best Pitcher. A four-time Reliever of the Year winner with CLB’s Hangzhou, Cao pitched 16 innings with a 0.56 ERA and 34 strikeouts.

Other notes: With Iran, Denmark, and Ghana each winning their first division titles, that makes 66 different nations to make it to the elite eight once. There were two no-hitters in the 1995 WBC with the first from Burkina Faso’s Elodie Belem against Egypt with 14 strikeouts and one walk. The second was Russia’s Orel Mastinsky with 12 Ks and four walks over Ghana.

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1995 marked the first official season for the African Association of Baseball. The Southern Conference ended up being a two-team race with Lusaka and Johannesburg locking in the two playoff spots with a few weeks left. The Lake Monsters would finish at 94-68, one better than the Jackalopes to earn the regular season title and the conference championship advantage. The next closest teams were Cape Town (84-78), Antananarivo (83-79), and Harare (82-80).

The first Southern Conference MVP was Lusaka shortstop Lasse Kallevik. He was a 35-year old Norwegian who had won four Silver Sluggers over a decade between the EBF and MLB. In his AAB debut, Kallevik had a conference-best .959 OPS and added 50 home runs, 111 RBI, 102 runs, and 7.1 WAR. Luanda lefty Djedoboum Sanoussi won Pitcher of the Year. The 27-year old Chadian ace led with 25 quality starts, posting a 22-8 record over 271 innings with a 2.46 ERA, 277 strikeouts, and 8.3 WAR.



In the Central Conference, Kinshasa claimed first place at 100-62. Ndjamena grabbed the wild card spot at 97-65. Kampala was a distant third at 91-71, while Mogadishu was fourth at 88-74. Although short of the playoffs, the Peacocks notably stole 599 bases as a team. This is still the AAB single-season record as of 2037.

Central Conference MVP was Kinshasa CF Bawaka Ngoie. Nicknamed “Flounder,” the 25-year old was playing for his home country’s capital and led the CC with 8.6 WAR. Ngoie added 44 home runs, 116 RBI, 111 runs, and a .946 OPS. Mogadishu righty Innocent Nkosi won the Pitcher of the Year. A 25-year old South African righty, Nkosi led iin WAR (9.2), FIP- (58), K/BB (5.3), complete games (19), and shutouts (50). He added a 3.11 ERA over 255 innings with 233 strikeouts and a 17-10 record.

AAB’s playoff format for the Conference Championship gives the top seed a one game handicap advantage. This didn’t save Lusaka in the Southern Conference final, as Johannesburg upset the Lake Monsters 4-2. In the Central Conference, #1 seed Kinshasa would cruise to a sweep of Ndjamena.



In the first-ever Africa Series, Johannesburg bested Kinshasa 5-3 to become AAB’s first champion. Pitcher Kedir “Crazy Legs” Mohamed was the finals MVP. The 28-year old Tanzanian lefty had three complete games and two shutouts with a 0.64 ERA over 28 playoff innings and 34 strikeouts. His 1.68 postseason WAR remains the AAB single-playoff record.



Other notes: AAB’s first no-hitter was the only one in 1995 with Johannesburg’s Alan Wood striking out 10 with five walks against Luanda on 9/13. Kinshasa’s Ezra Ndlovu was the first AAB batter to hit for the cycle.