NABL a History

[JayW UK]

2028 Regular Season

Eastern League Review

The Atlantic division was a tight race all season between three teams, Boston, New York and Washington. Despite the Pilgrims boasting the top scoring offense in the NABL led by stars, RF Jared Guest (.353, 32 HR, 129 RBI) and LF Stephen Thomas (.288, 29 HR, 100 RBI), they also owned the worst defense (their defensive problems highlighted by their .340 BABIP), Boston also struggled with injuries early in the season but finished strong to claim third place with an 84-78 record. New York, owners of the EL’s #1 pitching staff headlined by Marcos Moran (18-9, 3.13 ERA) and Orlando Vicenteno (17-6, 1.97 ERA) fought a season long battle with Washington and their powerful Aaron Harris (.21, 32 HR, 95 RBI) led offense. The Generals eventually took the division by a single game finishing with 89 wins, the Senators ended one game back, and but for the late season loss of leading homerun hitter Antonio Romero (23 HR), they may have had enough to win the division. Philadelphia stumbled through a disappointing season to finish a full 26 games off the pace with a 63-99 record a franchise worst that also cost manager Don Blair his job.
Detroit took the NABL by storm, with Bradley Starks (18-9, 2.98 ERA) topping their rotation and relievers Eric Hastings (11-1, 2.37 ERA) and Greg Gray (8-3, 1.91 ERA + 43 Saves) anchoring the bullpen their knack of coming out on top in close games won them the hearts of many neutrals as well as the Central division title, as they finished the season with a franchise best 98-64 record. Leaning on the arm of Angel Castro (16-7, 2.95 ERA) and the power hitting of 1B Nelson Vasquez (34 HR) and Jose Cintron (31 HR) Indianapolis pushed Detroit all the way, before fading down the stretch but still laid claim to the EL wildcard spot winning 93-games. Even a superhuman season from star 1B Matt Henderson (.393, 36 HR, 107 RBI) couldn’t prevent Chicago from falling back from their 94 wins the previous year to finish third with an 86-76 record whilst St. Louis improved from their 60-win maiden season to finish fourth with a 69-93 record. Defending champions Cleveland had a season to forget, while losing Pedro Arevalo for three months and Richie Rambeaux for four weeks hurt their offense, their real problem was pitching, only three players, relievers Roy Browning and Tony Munoz along with ace starter Eric Parker, owned an ERA under four while a whopping five players had ERA’s north of six !! including 2027 World Series MVP Keith Robison (7-17, 6.67 ERA)
The Southeast division was a lot closer than many expected, New Orleans pushed Tampa Bay close but eventually fell just short finishing with an 85-77 record just two games back of the Hurricanes (87-75). Tampa Bay, owners of the highest payroll in the NABL, used the EL’s #1 pitching unit, featuring stars Larry de Meza (17-10, 2.51 ERA) and Vince Little (16-10, 2.31 ERA) along with timely hitting to win their third straight division title. Atlanta, despite the power hitting of Jason Wilson (44 HR, 100 RBI), David Barnett (37 HR, 105 RBI) and Julio Ramirez (29 HR) could only muster 80-wins, Miami finished with a 73-89 record, their eleventh straight losing season whilst Charlotte bought up the rear, slipping back to 71 wins from the 76 they managed in their maiden campaign, solid season’s from Jose Cuesta (14-8, 2.89 ERA) and rookie sensation Greg Bailey (14-7, 2.41 ERA) only served to mask the real problem for the Express, a lack of reliable batting options.

Final Standings

Atlantic Division
Washington 89-73 *
New York 88-74
Boston 84-78
Philadelphia 63-99

Central Division
Detroit 98-64 *
Indianapolis 93-69 *
Chicago 86-76
St. Louis 69-93
Cleveland 68-94

Southeast Division
Tampa Bay 87-75 *
New Orleans 85-77
Atlanta 80-82
Miami 73-89
Charlotte 71-91

[JayW UK]

2028 Regular Season

Western League Review

With a solid pitching staff led by Mark Fort (15-7, 2.27 ERA) and a batting lineup headlined by star 2B Jack Underwood (.299, 25 HR, 84 RBI), Kansas City cruised to their third consecutive division crown finishing with a 97-65 record well ahead of runners up Oklahoma City who despite owning the lowest scoring offense in the NABL managed to still win 76 games. Denver, even after their offseason spending and having a roster boasting the NABL’s premier player Dixon Bodean (.289, 36 HR, 101 RBI), only managed to win 66 games largely because their pitching was among the league’s worst (Gerald Helton, 7-14, 4.84 ERA was the pick of a poor bunch) while Minneapolis sleepwalked their way through a 63-99 season, the worst in franchise history.
In the Southwest division, Las Vegas returned to the top winning 102 games (the first 100-win season in team history), the key to the Gamblers success was the NABL’s #1 pitching staff headlined by Holden Willis (20-5, 2.31 ERA). Dallas, with RF Nick Richardson (.289, 36 HR, 103 RBI) and 1B Ron Gilfedder (.284, 37 HR, 92 RBI) leading their exciting offense, continued their climb to relevance finishing as runners up with a record of 87-75, their best return since 2019. Houston slipped back to third finishing 86-76 despite the best efforts of all world pitcher Marc Birstall (21-5, 1.56 ERA) and fellow starter David Cook (15-10, 2.46 ERA), Phoenix finished fourth with an 82-80 record while Austin’s off-season spending did not produce the desired results as they endured a disastrous 67-win campaign.
Seattle and San Diego once again battled to the wire for the Pacific division crown, the Pioneers (91-71) edging the Mariners (88-74) for the second year in a row. Both teams were built on pitching, Seattle could boast a stellar rotation featuring Matt Powell (13-5, 1.87 ERA), Daniel Werner (13-6, 2.24 ERA) and 23-year-old rising star Domingas Fidi (17-6, 2.65 ERA) while San Diego’s bullpen with the likes of Anthony Jacobs 13-7, 2.96 ERA in 69 games), Guilherme Malagueira (10-3, 3.02 ERA before injury ended his season) and swingman Clifford West (12-3, 2.88 ERA in 47 games) was among the NABL’s best. San Jose (79-83) were their nearest challengers climbing out of the cellar with new manager Dan Stone instilling a new found belief in the team after an impressive finish to the season, San Francisco once again struggled for consistency and ended their campaign with a 76-86 record, their ninth without a winning record. Los Angeles finished the season rock bottom with a 74-88 record and whilst the Raul Pena (14-7, 2.55 ERA) led pitching staff was solid, their offense was decidedly un-clutch, batting a league worst .206 with men in scoring position.

Final Standings

Midwest Division
Kansas City 97-65 *
Oklahoma City 76-86
Denver 66-96
Minneapolis 63-99

Southwest Division
Las Vegas 102-60 *
Dallas 87-75
Houston 86-76
Phoenix 82-80
Austin 67-95

Pacific Division
Seattle 91-71 *
San Diego 88-74 *
San Jose 79-83
Sanfrancisco 76-86
Los Angeles 74-88

[JayW UK]

2028 Season Notes

Pre-season - Boston’s new signing 2B Luis Sanchez suffered torn ankle ligaments on the first day of spring training shelving him until the all-star break at the earliest.
April 8th - Houston’s Marc Birstall left LA’s batters swinging at thin air, striking out 15 in seven innings work.
April 9th – With the game tied in the bottom of the tenth inning and with the bases loaded, Kansas City pitcher Jerry Crane launched a walk-off Grand-Slam lifting the Tornadoes to a 9-5 victory over Austin and in doing so became the first pitcher in NABL history to achieve the feat.
April 13th - Cleveland pitcher Eric Parker became only the third player in NABL history to record 2500 strikeouts.
April 15th - San Diego off-season acquisition CF Jorge Sanchez suffered a high ankle sprain shelving him for two months.
April 16th - Oklahoma City star Marshall Ayersome collected his 1000th run in a victory over Seattle.
April 27th - in an effort to shore up their infield Cleveland traded 1B Clarence Davis to Minneapolis for 1B/3B Will Nicholas and catching prospect Manuel Salgado. The move was motivated by their desire to improve defensively after the loss in the offseason of 3B Wayne Martin to retirement and 1B Santiago Ybarra to San Diego, coupled with the disappointing start to the season from Davis and young 3B Boyd Farley.
April 27th - Atlanta 1B Jason Wilson smashed three homeruns against his old team Washington, reminding them what they were missing.
May 10th - Indianapolis starter Angel Castro blew through the Atlanta lineup to the tune of 16 strikeouts in only 8.1 innings of work, helping his side demolish the Flames 9-2.
May 23rd - Boston pitcher Daniel Zanetti hurled a NO-HITTER against Washington, allowing three walks along the way.
May 29th - Tampa Bay LF Juan Santos became the first player in NABL history to reach 2500 hits in his career when he went 1-for-4 against Charlotte.
June 10th - Kansas City pitcher Ronald Shockley suffered a serious shoulder injury, team officials confirmed in the following days that although his surgery was successful, he would still be out for over a year.
June 11th - OKC pulled the plug on Marshall Ayersome’s time in Oklahoma packing him off to Philadelphia for SS Lewis Washington and pitching prospect David Reyes.
June 27th - Las Vegas ace Dave Cahill became the fourth player to reach 2500 career strikeouts, reaching the milestone with his first strikeout of the day.
June 29th - Detroit 3B Ryan Scott hit for the CYCLE collecting 2-RBI’s in a losing effort against New Orleans.
July 4th - down 4-2 with two out and the bases loaded, Miami LF Pantaliao Igreja saved his best for last, belting a walk-off Grand-Slam handing his Everglades a 6-4 victory over the stunned Boston Pilgrims.
July 7th - LA’s starter Sterling Delaney shut down Austin on his way to a NO-HITTER, allowing a single walk (to the second batter he faced) while striking out six.
July 10th - with their season unlikely to end in a playoff berth, Oklahoma City traded veteran LF Steve Burgess to Chicago for RF Scott Winters and 2B prospect Luis Sandoval.
July 11th - San Diego CF Jorge Sanchez was sidelined again this time with a thumb ligament injury, ruling him out until mid-August.
July 12th – Pitcher-of-the-Year frontrunner, Las Vegas ace Dave Cahill (13-3, 1.36 ERA) suffered a shoulder injury landing him on the DL and cutting short his season.
July 17th - Tampa Bay packaged $3M and LF Vicente Fernandez to San Jose for SS Kyle Bruhlhart and minor league catcher Robinson Cervantes.
July 27th - Indianapolis star Gabriel Mendez collected RBI numbers 1500 and 1501 hitting a two-run walk-off homer against Charlotte. He became only the second player to reach the 1500 RBI milestone joining his great friend and rival Juan Santos.
July 28th - upon completing his rehab stint at AAA Pittsburgh and never having played for Boston, 2B Luis Sanchez found himself on a plane bound for Austin after being traded to the Kings for CF Raul Escobar. Austin had signed Escobar to a four year contract in the off-season but cut ties after only 93 games and numerous run-ins between Escobar and manager Alan Fullerton.
August 5th - San Diego relief pitcher Guilherme Malagueira who was 10-3 with a 3.02 ERA suffered a shoulder injury ruling him out for the season.
August 6th - Boston new boy Raul Escobar overpowered his former teammates, belting three homeruns and going 3-for-5 with 4 RBI helping the Pilgrims overcome the Kings 8-6.
August 9th - Miami LF Pantaliao Igreja smashed four doubles in a game against Cleveland, equaling the NABL record.
August 13th - Denver superstar Dixon Bodean joined Juan Santos as only the second player to reach 2500 career hits.
August 18th - Seattle’s Norm McLaughlin led his team to victory over Denver, going 4-for-5 including a triple, scoring every time he reached base and swiping four bases.
August 23rd – Kansas City LF Alberto Rangel was hit by a pitch thrown by San Diego pitcher Ray Cambell igniting a bench clearing brawl and resulting in suspensions for Campbell and Rangel. After the game it was announced that Rangel suffered a Fracture to his hand ruling him out until mid-October.
September 3rd - San Diego lost another pitcher for the season, this time starter Jerry Ambles was the victim of the injury bug.
September 8th - Chicago 1B Matt Henderson went 0-for-4 against Boston, ending his 25-game hitting streak.
September 13th - Atlanta RF David Barnett hit two homeruns (including a Grand-slam) and collected 8-RBI’s on the way to leading the Flames to victory over Boston.
September 15th - New Orleans CF Jorge Comotho collected four stolen bases in a losing effort against Chicago.
September 23rd - Seattle pitcher Daniel Werner pitched a gem against OKC and still ended up a loser. Working 8.1 innings and striking out ten, he allowed only four hits, unfortunately the last of them was a walk-off solo homerun to 1B Brian Watson.
October 29th – All-time great slugger Juan Santos announced his retirement from the game, Santos left the NABL as the all-time leader in hits (2546) homeruns (529) and RBI (1555) and would in all likelihood be one of the first names into the NABL hall of fame.

[JayW UK]

2028 Playoffs

Divisional Round

In the east Washington drew wildcard team Indianapolis (the two teams having met in the playoffs twice before with each team having tasted victory) while Detroit, back in the playoffs for the first time in ten years would take on Tampa Bay. In the west Las Vegas would play San Diego, who were the wildcard team for the third time in their history while Seattle took on Kansas City.

Indianapolis started their series against Washington with a bang, 1B Nelson Vasquez belting a 2-run homer in the first inning and Gene Robinson scoring on a Jose Cintron double in the second. The Generals steadied the ship after the early wobble and they were level by the sixth inning, a Joey Buhler RBI double in the seventh gave them the lead and when Lou Stephens (35 saves out of 35 chances during the regular season) stepped onto the mound in the top of the ninth, things looked bleak for the Racers. Stephens struggled, allowing the Racers to tie the game blowing the save and when Washington were sat down in order in the home half, the game continued into extra innings. Indianapolis scored the go ahead run in the top of the tenth only for their own closer Chuck Patrick to blow the save by giving up a solo homerun to Anibal Trueba, neither team could muster a score through the next few innings until finally, with a man on second and one out in the bottom of the 13th, Washington pinch hitter Ronson Daley hit a sharp grounder into left field that Gene Robinson misplayed, leading to Tatsui Aoyama scoring the winning run on the error. Washington were all over Indianapolis starter Will Christopher in game two, forcing him from the action after four messy innings with the Generals ahead 6-1. The Racers recovered well after that slowly chipping away at the lead and closing the gap to 6-5, a Michael Matthews RBI single added an insurance run for Washington before closer Lou Stephens took the mound for the ninth. Stephens delivered the save but once again he struggled, putting men on the corners with no-one out, only poor Indianapolis hitting preserved the Washington win. Game three in Indianapolis saw the visitors strike first building a two-run lead through four innings, the Racers came to life in the bottom of the fifth collecting two runs on four hits and tying the game, in the next inning NABL legend Gabriel Mendez clubbed a solo homer to give the Racers the lead (it was his eleventh career postseason homer). With Indianapolis protecting a narrow 3-2 lead starter Angel Castro ran into trouble in the eighth putting two runners on base before manager Roy Edwards turned to his tired bullpen to finish the job. Jason Bin Talib couldn’t get the job done, instead surrendering a three-run homerun to catcher Aaron Harris turning the game on its head. In the bottom of the inning Indianapolis reduced the deficit to one and then held Washington scoreless in the ninth setting up a tense finish. With the Generals clinging to a 5-4 lead closer Lou Stephens was summoned from the bullpen to put the game and series to bed, just as he had in game one, he failed, retiring just one batter and surrendering back to back singles before CF Manny Ramos cleared the bases with a 2 RBI walk-off double giving Indianapolis a dramatic 6-5 win and keeping the series alive. Game four was a pitching duel between IND Owen Randall and WAS Gabriel Lopez, with the game tied at two after six, Washington edged ahead, plating two runs in the seventh for a 4-2 lead, Indianapolis opened the eighth by putting two runners on base and chasing starter Gabriel Lopez from the game before grizzled veteran Ron Henderson was called from the pen to save the day, just like Stephens the previous night, he failed allowing both runners to score. From there neither team threatened to score until the eleventh when the Generals scored the go-ahead runs on Marc Smith’s one out 2-RBI single. Washington manager Matt Hunt then decided to turn to Frank Wilcox instead of the struggling Lou Stephens to close the game, Wilcox duly obliged (taking just six pitches to do so) sending Washington onto the EL pennant series for the second time in their history.

In the first ever playoff meeting between Tampa Bay and Detroit it was the Hurricanes who got off to the best start, ace pitcher Larry de Meza went the distance allowing just a single run (a solo homerun by catcher Jorge Maldonado in the ninth) on three hits. While the Detroit pitchers struggled, they only allowed four runs (three by starter Bradley Starks and another by reliever Marcos Diaz) although it could have been so much worse but for the profligacy of Tampa Bay, they put seventeen men on base (eleven hits and six walks) but only managed to score four, hitting into three double plays and stranding ten. Game two started better for the home side as they built a 3-0 lead against Vince Little through the first four innings before Tampa Bay finally got going. Detroit starter Rajion Samit pitched through seven innings before handing a 3-2 lead over to the bullpen, in a messy eighth, the Giants used three pitchers to escape the inning but somehow Tampa Bay only scored once to tie the game. Matt Becker and Josh Renshaw between them made a mess of the home half of the eighth surrendering two runs to give Detroit the lead once more, before closer Greg Gray entered the game in the ninth to retire the side without in order closing out a 5-3 Detroit win. Game three back in Florida saw Tampa Bay open up a four-run lead after two innings, however Hurricane starter Anastasio Perez ran into trouble himself in the third, allowing three runs to cut the lead to one. Detroit starter Jermaine Diffin settled down after his early wobble to complete six innings and by the time he left the game he was in line for the win as runs in the fifth and sixth inning had put the Giants ahead 5-4. Tampa Bay tied the game once again in the seventh only for Francisco Hernandez to gift Detroit two runs in the eighth before Giants closer Greg Gray did his thing once again in the ninth to protect the 7-5 scoreline. Tampa Bay starter Claudio Gonzalez drew the start in game four and went seven strong innings surrendering only five hits, the problem was Detroit turned those hits into four runs helped by two errors and some sloppy fielding by the Hurricanes. Detroit starter Gonzalo Tellez by contrast was helped out by his defense, including three double plays and two outstanding catches at the outfield fence to deny probable homeruns, when he left the game in the seventh inning, he had issued a single walk and given up only one run on four hits. Both bullpens took over in the eighth and Detroit immediately added to their lead and while Tampa Bay managed to collect a total of five hits against a procession of Giants pitchers, they could only generate a single run as they slipped to a disappointing 6-2 defeat, sending Detroit onto the ELCS for the third time in their history where Washington awaited them.

Game one of the series between Kansas City and Seattle was a good old fashioned pitcher’s duel between Matt Powell (SEA) and Mark Fort (KC), neither pitcher gave an inch through the first seven innings but in the top of the eighth Seattle broke through taking the lead when 1B Marc Baxter scored on an error by Jack Underwood. Kansas City answered in the home half with CF Manuel Ruiz ripping a double down the line and then scoring on RF George Shipp’s RBI single to center. In the top of the ninth Mark Fort ran out of steam loading the bases without retiring anyone and bringing Ryan McPhates into the game, McPhates managed to hold Seattle to a single run from that strong position giving his hitters a chance to save the game. Pioneers closer Pedro Rivas took the mound in the bottom of the inning and proceeded to mow down the Kansas City hitters, striking out the side to preserve the 2-1 victory. Game two was another close affair with Seattle’s Trevor Kaiser pitching a gem, tossing a complete game 3-hit shutout, Kansas City starter Jose Roa pitched well going eight innings surrendering just three runs and striking out nine, but with the offense stuck in neutral (only two players reached base) Roa took the hard luck loss leaving Kansas City in a 2-0 series hole. With their backs to the wall Kansas City came out swinging in game three taking the lead on a Jack Underwood 3-run homer in the second but spurned chances to further increase the lead in both the fourth and fifth inning allowing Seattle to close the gap to one on catcher Stephen Miller’s two-run homer. Both teams turned to their bullpens in the seventh and it was Kansas City who finally broke, with the normally reliable Ryan McPhates surrendering a 2-run homer to SS Craig Meyers giving Seattle a 4-3 lead. With Kansas City’s spirit broken Seattle relievers Maurizio Villani and Ken Kramer breezed through the last two innings securing the Pioneers a place in the WLCS for the second year in a row and the third time in four seasons. The Seattle pitchers totally dominated the Tornadoes hitters during the series, holding them to a .170 batting average and allowing just four runs on sixteen hits.

100-win Las Vegas possessed the best pitching staff in the NABL (even after the loss in July of Staff ace Dave Cahill) along with the #4 offense in the WL and were widely expected to dispatch wildcard entry San Diego. The Mariners for their part were given a punchers chance of upsetting the Gamblers courtesy of their powerful batting lineup (they hit 183 homeruns on the season, second only to Washington). Game one in Las Vegas got off to the perfect start for San Diego who took a three-run lead in the second when Dan Matterby slammed a three-run bomb off a stunned Holden Willis, in a back-and-forth game, Las Vegas erased deficits of 3-0, 5-2 and 7-5 before in the top of the ninth the Mariners yet again found a way to get into the lead when 3B Jose Montoya scored on 2B Ernesto Bernal’s single to center, barely beating Brian Quinborough’s throw to home. San Diego Closer Clint Long was tasked with ending the game and after allowing CF Brian Quinborough to reach base via a walk he managed to entice consecutive batters to harmlessly fly out to end an entertaining game handing San Diego the series lead. Game two once again started well for San Diego, plating three runs before a single Las Vegas player had stepped into the batter’s box although after their early success the Mariners offense dried up, San Diego’s pitchers on the other hand couldn’t keep a lid on the Gamblers offense turning the 3-0 lead into a 7-3 deficit after six innings, a two-run homer from CF Jorge Sanchez cut the lead to 7-5 in the seventh. Neither team could register a hit from then until, with Las Vegas closer Davis Robinson on the mound, Mario Cristo clubbed his second double of the game to lead off the ninth. Robinson (the NABL leader in saves during the regular season with 49) showed his class dispatching the next three Mariners with minimum fuss to end the game and tie the series. Game three in San Diego saw the Mariners take the lead for the third time in the series and just as before Las Vegas roared back to take a lead of their own. Gamblers starter Max Castle started the seventh inning with a strikeout, his ninth of the day, before walking catcher Dan Matterby ending his night, Leland Watson got the call to pitch to Jose Montoya. On a full count Montoya took what he thought was ball four but was called strike three, in a moment of madness he turned and berated the Umpire while also appearing to make contact with him earning an instant ejection. Clearly spurred on by this, next man up Ernesto Bernal launched a Watson fastball deep to left for a two-run homer tying the game. Worse was to come for the Gamblers as in the next inning, consecutive strikeouts from 2B John Hoskins and LF Chip Owers left the bases loaded and wasted a glorious opportunity to retake the lead, before in the bottom half of the inning Kirby Watts belted a solo homerun to give San Diego a late lead. Mariner closer Clint Long took the mound in the ninth looking for his second save of the series, the Gamblers swiftly collected a pair of hits putting two men in scoring position but then the Gamblers bats went cold as Long dispatched the heart of the Las Vegas lineup without fuss to put the Mariners up 2-1 in the series. Game four followed the familiar pattern, San Diego taking the early lead only for Las Vegas to peg them back and take a lead of their own. Ahead 4-2 after five innings the wheels fell off for the Gamblers, as over the next two innings Las Vegas were forced to use four pitchers as San Diego turned a 4-2 deficit into a 6-4 lead. The Gamblers for their part couldn’t find a way to hurt the Mariners bullpen after starter Clifford West left the game in the sixth, Anthony Jacobs, Bernard Pelle and Mike Anderson held them hitless through eight. The game finally got away from the Gamblers in the home half of the eighth when the Mariners scored four more runs including a monster 3-run homer to ex-Gambler Santiago Ybarra to push their lead to 10-4 and with the home crowd partying in the stands pitcher Ray Campbell dealt the coup-de-grace to end the Gamblers season. San Diego not only outscored Las Vegas 28-22 during the series they also clubbed more homeruns 6-1 and collected more hits 53-42 on their way to comfortably beating the best team in baseball, awaiting them in the Championship series was Seattle and a re-match of the previous seasons WLCS.

[JayW UK]

2028 Playoffs

Championship Round

The Eastern League Championship series pitted Detroit against Washington and a chance for Detroit manager Keith Bennett to beat his former employers. Neither team troubled the scorers through the first three innings of game 1, Washington broke the duck in the fourth plating two runs, Detroit pulled one back in the fifth and tied the game in the sixth, only for Bradley Starks to gift the lead back to Washington when he surrendered a 2-run homer to Joey Buhler. Gabriel Lopez kept the Detroit hitters quiet in the eighth before handing the game over to closer Lou Stephens who pitched a clean ninth to give Washington a 4-2 victory. The call to turn to Stephens despite his struggles in the series against Indianapolis was a big call by manager Matt Hunt and showed his confidence in his closer. In game two, despite Detroit starter Rajion Samit’s inability to keep the basepaths clean, Washington couldn’t take advantage only scoring once in the first five innings and leaving the bases loaded three times. This wastefulness came back to haunt them as Detroit tied the game in the sixth then tacked on further runs against the Generals bullpen including a massive 2-run Alonso Gonzales homer to pull away and win 4-1. Washington’s inability to take their chances really hurt them as they should have been out of sight before Detroit even scored, Washington out-hit Detroit 15-6 but left 13 men on base in the loss. With the series moving to the nation’s capital the home fans were given a treat in game three as Washington took the chances they missed in game two, Detroit starter Jermaine Diffin was rocked for four runs in the first and did not even survive the third inning before being replaced, veteran Anthony Barrett got the call, entering an 8-0 game he regained some control for Detroit, throwing three innings for the cost of two runs, but once Barrett left the game the floodgates opened again with Washington scoring a further five runs. Generals starter Ned Scott had an easy time of it compared to his Giants counterparts, pitching seven innings and conceding a solitary run to the last batter he faced before the bullpen took over and finished off the Giants, the one blip on an otherwise excellent day was the fact infielder Rick MacDulothe left the game with an elbow injury and would miss the rest of the playoffs. After the 15-1 demolition job in game three Washington entered game four in confidant mood, and immediately got to work scoring twice in the first to take the lead. An error by 3B Joseph Cruz allowed Detroit to halve the deficit in the fourth, and the lead was gone next inning when 3B Ryan Scott drove in LF Justin King to tie the game. With runners on the corners and two out an amazing catch at the wall by Roberto Cornell robbed Tatsui Aoyama from giving Washington the lead in the sixth and this proved to be crucial as in the eighth with two men on base SS Bo Southall drove a Caden Duncan fastball deep into the corner for a bases clearing double giving Detroit the lead. Washington couldn’t conjure an answer against pitchers Jamie Berry and Greg Gray as the Giants ran out 4-2 winners once again tying the series. Game five started with both teams scoring early, before the game settled into defensive struggle. With Washington holding a slim 3-2 lead in the eighth they managed to tack on two more insurance runs courtesy of Tatsui Aoyama’s 2-run blast, Lou Stephens took the mound for the ninth looking to protect the three run lead, he retired the first two batters before things began to unravel, first he hit C Jorge Maldonado before watching Ryan Scott send a double down the line scoring Maldonado, Stephens then walked the next batter on four pitches earning the ire of his manager and ending his night as Frank Wilcox was sent to the mound to finish the game, PH Jason Clement’s drive to center was caught on the warning track by a sprinting Marc Smith for the final out. With Washington leading 3-2 the series returned to Detroit, in a tight matchup neither team could build a lead cancelling out each score. Both starters pitched into the seventh with Detroit’s Rajion Samit the beneficiary of another stunning catch by Roberto Cornell to keep the score level while the General’s David Rios wasn’t so lucky, as with a runner on second a routine grounder was flubbed by 3B Joseph Cruz critically extending the inning for next man up 1B Alonso Gonzales to drive both runners home with a bases clearing double down the right field line. The Generals couldn’t find a way to get back into the game with Detroit closer Greg Gray striking out the final two batters to secure the 5-3 victory and send the series to a deciding seventh game. Washington took the lead in game seven when RF Michael Matthews smashed a two-run homer in the third silencing the raucous Detroit crowd, the Giants dug deep and worked their way back into the game scoring in both the fifth and sixth innings to tie the game and get the crowd back on side, when backup catcher Owen Carter slammed a go-ahead two-run homer in the seventh the crowd was well and truly back on board. After their early flurry Washington couldn’t get to grips with Detroit starter Jermaine Diffin and when 1B Joey Buhler rolled tamely to 3B Ryan Scott to end the game, Diffin had retired 20 straight batters without allowing a baserunner. Despite being outscored 32-23 in the series Detroit were heading back to the World Series for the first time since 2015, while manager Keith Bennett was also returning the fall classic having led Washington there in 2022 although he was aiming for a better result this time around.

The Western League Championship Series between Seattle and San Diego was a rematch of the previous seasons Pennant series which culminated in the now infamous “Battle of Seattle”. In game one the Seattle pitchers carried on from where they left off against KC, with Starter Matt Powell and reliever Luis Lopez combining to restrict San Diego to a single run on just five hits whilst the Seattle offense managed to scrape just enough runs together to give the Pioneers a 2-1 victory. Game two saw another strong pitching performance from Seattle, this time starter Trevor Kaiser went the distance in a 3-hit shutout, San Diego starter Pedro Escobar also went the distance, but allowed the only runs of the game on a 1B Marc Baxter 2-run homer in the fourth. So far through the first two games San Diego’s offense had been well below par scraping together just eight hits and a solitary run in two narrow defeats and with the next three games back in San Diego they needed to get some offensive production or face the unpalatable prospect of being swept out of the playoffs. Answering the call San Diego’s hitters came out swinging in game three, the Mariners took the lead in the first when Mario Cristo drove in a pair and by the third they had as many hits (8) as they had managed the first two games combined. San Diego doubled the lead in the fourth before Seattle finally managed to get on the board in the fifth, plating one run but crucially leaving two men stranded on base. Back-to-back San Diego homeruns in the sixth, one each for Thie Santagoeds and Jose Montoya ended Pioneer starter Daniel Werner’s night and put the result beyond doubt. With the game drawing to a close Pioneer reliever Pedro Rivas was back to his old tricks pitching inside to several San Diego batters and hitting Santiago Ybarra earning a warning from the umpire. San Diego’s bullpen remained unused on the night as Dan Rogers went the distance allowing just seven hits on his way to a 6-1 victory. The bad blood between the teams surfaced again the following night, with the scores tied at one apiece in the fifth inning, San Diego SS Mario Cristo slid into second base and into the legs of Seattle shortstop Craig Meyers leaving him in a crumpled heap with the Pioneers players and coaches furious with his overly aggressive slide. Both benches emptied but the officials managed to keep control and after Meyers was helped from the field, play continued. Seattle’s fury spurred them on as they used their anger to their advantage keeping San Diego from scoring while plating three runs of their own to take the game and push their series lead to 3-1. After the game Seattle team officials condemned the San Diego “roughhouse tactics” and also announced that Craig Meyers would only miss one week with a bad gash and luckily not a broken leg as first feared. The series continued the following night in a powderkeg atmosphere with both teams swapping homeruns early before San Diego pulled away scoring three runs in the fifth. With the game seemingly drifting away from Seattle there was still time for the next controversial moment in the series to take place. With San Diego’s Dan Matterby at the plate pitcher Pedro Rivas threw too tight and hit him, just as he had in the previous season’s WLCS igniting the brawl that became known as the “Battle in Seattle”, but unlike in that game Matterby did not rise to the bait instead taking his base. When Rivas plunked the next man up the officials had their hands full keeping a lid on things and to his credit Seattle manager William McDonald intervened pulling Rivas from the game before he could spark a riot, as he left the field to a chorus of boos from the crowd more than a few missiles were thrown Rivas’ way forcing him to run for cover and causing yet another delay in proceedings while things settled down. With order restored the game itself petered out as a contest, with San Diego ensuring there would be a game six back in Seattle by running out comfortable 5-2 winners. Two nights later the teams reconvened in Seattle where the Pioneer pitchers (minus Pedro Rivas who had been suspended from this game by the team) completely dominated the Mariners from start to finish. The game was over as a contest after three innings with San Diego starter Pedro Escobar struggling with control and surrendering six runs including a Nick Harridge 2-run homer (Harridge was deputizing for the injured Craig Meyers). Despite his disastrous start Escobar managed to stave off the hook until the fifth inning when Anthony Jacobs took over and proceeded to allow two more runs to score. Seattle’s Domingas Fidi by contrast pitched seven shutout innings before leaving to a standing ovation and with the game all but over a procession of pitchers from both sides put up zeros. With the fight completely knocked out of them San Diego slipped quietly out of the playoffs going down 8-0 to the Pioneers who gained revenge for their 2027 WLCS defeat at the hands of the Mariners and claimed their place in the World Series.

[JayW UK]

2028 Playoffs

World Series

The 2028 World Series saw Detroit return to the fall classic for the first time since winning in 2015 while for their opponents Seattle, this was the third appearance and second in four years under manager William McDonald. While the Giants had the homefield advantage due to their better regular season record, Seattle were seen as slight favorites because of their recent big game experience. In game one Detroit got on the board first on John Ladbrooke’s RBI-single, Seattle rebounded immediately to plate two runs off Detroit starter Bradley Starks courtesy of a C Stephen Miller two-run homer. After the early scoring, runs were hard to come by for both teams, Seattle not helping their cause by failing to take advantage of numerous baserunners and Detroit flat out struggling to hit anything. Seattle finally added a run in the top of the eighth to push their lead to 3-1 before Pedro Rivas closed the door on the Giants in the ninth to hand Seattle the 3-1 win. Having laid an egg in game one, Detroit were eager to prove a point, but it was Seattle who took the lead on a Kirby Watts sacrifice fly in the second inning and they were threatening to score again in the fourth with two men in scoring position and two out, Jose Montoya hit a flyball deep into rightfield which looked to be clearing the wall but an astonishing play by Detroit RF Roberto Cornell (who caught the ball at full stretch, collided with the wall and somehow still held onto it) provided the crucial final out. After making the play Cornell stayed down holding his shoulder and appeared to be in some considerable discomfort, things did not look good for him as he was helped from the field of play with his arm in a makeshift sling. Spurred on by Cornell’s heroics Detroit broke out of their malaise ripping five runs (including a 3B Ryan Scott 3-run homer) off Seattle’s ace Matt Powell to turn the game on its head. The Pioneers couldn’t find a way to answer and Detroit added another run in the eighth before Seattle finally scored a second run in a messy ninth for the home side that required the services of three pitchers to navigate, ageless Anthony Barrett claiming the final out to secure the 6-2 victory and sending the series back to Seattle tied at one. Roberto Cornell didn’t travel to Seattle with the team and before game three manager Keith Bennett confirmed what many suspected, announcing Cornell would miss the rest of the season with a broken collar bone suffered during game two. Seattle called on Daniel Werner to start while Detroit countered with Jermaine Diffin, both pitchers coughed up runs in the first inning but things settled down from there with both men lasting until the sixth before running into trouble again. Werner surrendered three runs including a catcher Jorge Maldonado’s 2-run homer while Diffin gave up a solo homerun to SS Craig Meyers (in his first game back from injury). Detroit’s bullpen suffered a meltdown in the eighth blowing a 5-2 lead before Seattle reliever Pedro Rivas decided to emulate Detroit’s pitchers from the previous inning, allowing two runs to score handing the lead back to the visitors, Giants closer Greg Gray wasn’t as charitable in the home half, pitching a clean inning to preserve the lead and give Detroit a 7-5 win. Game four quickly became a pitching duel between Detroit starter Gonzalo Tellez and Seattle’s Domingas Fidi with neither man allowing a baserunner through the first four innings. Both teams swapped runs in the fifth before Seattle took the lead on an error by SS Bo Southall in the seventh. Pioneers starter Domingas Fidi continued his serene outing, not allowing any Detroit hitters to reach base until the ninth where he wobbled allowing a pair of singles, after a visit from his pitching coach he steadied himself and got over the line to hold onto the 2-1 win and tie the series at two games apiece. Detroit got off to a flying start the following night, plating three runs off Pioneer starter Trevor Kaiser in the first inning giving the Giants an early 3-0 lead. The lead didn’t last long as Seattle scored a run of their own in the home half and then tied the game at three with a Gabriel Nestor 2-run blast in the second, from there the game fell into a lull with neither team troubling the scoreboard through the middle innings. With both starters back in the clubhouse after seven innings it was down to the bullpens to win the game, Detroit’s hitters took advantage of some below par Pioneer relief pitching to score four times over the final two frames while their own relievers held Seattle off the board securing a 7-3 victory and leaving the Giants one win away from their second world championship. The series returned to Michigan and game six began with a slow burn with both starters Matt Powell for Seattle and Rajion Samit for Detroit in control, the visitors broke the deadlock in the fifth when with Craig Meyers on base RF Manny Romero smashed a two-run homer to give the Pioneers the lead. Detroit managed to pull even with an Arthur Davie 2-RBI double and slipped ahead when Bo Southall scored on a Ryan Scott sacrifice fly in the sixth. The Pioneers wouldn’t lie down though and put two men on base in the eighth against Samit prompting a switch, with closer Greg Gray getting the call to attempt a five out save, Gray retired the first man he saw but then surrendered a bases clearing triple to Kirby Watts instantly blowing the lead and putting Seattle ahead. After the bullpen collapse the previous game Seattle manager William McDonald elected to keep starter Matt Powell in the game rather than rely on his pen, but with Powell running on fumes his decision backfired when Alonso Gonzales drilled a sharp two out RBI-single to left to once again tie the game. Greg Gray was back on the mound for Detroit in the ninth and he breezed through the inning before McDonald reluctantly turned to his bullpen to try to send the game to extra innings, Maurizio Villani duly obliging by retiring the Giants in order. A series of relievers for both sides kept the hitters off balance and the scorers unemployed until the bottom of the 13th when with one out Giants CF Orlando Gonzalez smashed the cover off a Ken Kramer fastball depositing it deep into the upper deck in leftfield for a walk-off homerun, sending the crowd wild and delivering the game, and World Series in the most dramatic of ways !!

2028 Playoff Recap

Divisional Series
EL: Detroit 3-1 Tampa Bay, Washington 3-1 Indianapolis
WL: San Diego 3-1 Las Vegas, Seattle 3-0 Kansas City
Championship Series
EL: Detroit 4-3 Washington
WL: Seattle 4-2 San Diego
World Series
Detroit 4-2 Seattle

[JayW UK]

2028 Season Leaders and Awards

EL Batting
Hits
225 Daniel Garcia (NO)
215 Matt Henderson (CHI)
204 Jared Guest (BOS)
Batting Avg
.393 Matt Henderson (CHI)
.353 Jared Guest (BOS)
.350 Daniel Garcia (NO)
Homeruns
44 Jason Wilson (ATL)
37 David Barnett (ATL)
36 Matt Henderson (CHI)
RBI
129 Jared Guest (BOS)
107 Matt Henderson (CHI)
105 David Barnett (ATL)
Stolen Bases
40 Willie Ingle (STL)
38 Marc Smith (WAS)
35 Daniel Garcia (NO)

EL Pitching
Wins
18 Marcos Moran (NY)
18 Bradley Starks (DET)
17 Larry de Meza (TB)
ERA
1.97 Orlando Vicenteno (NY)
2.31 Vince Little (TB)
2.41 Greg Bailey (CHA)
Strikeouts
316 Larry de Meza (TB)
220 Angel Castro (IND)
217 Orlando Vicenteno (NY)
Saves
46 Chuck Patrick (IND)
46 Bill Thompson (ATL)
43 Greg Gray (DET)

WL Batting
Hits
189 Arlan Bresnahan (LV)
184 Salvador Colon (SF)
182 Dustin Polk (PHO)
Batting Avg
.319 Arlan Bresnahan (LV)
.300 Jose Diaz (OKC)
.299 Jack Underwood (KC)
Homeruns
37 Ron Gilfedder (DAL)
36 Dixon Bodean (DEN)
36 Nick Richardson (DAL)
RBI
103 Nick Richardson (DAL)
101 Dixon Bodean (DEN)
92 Ron Gilfedder (DAL)
Stolen Bases
57 Jose Diaz (OKC)
53 Dustin Polk (PHO)
45 Salvador Colon (SF)

WL Pitching
Wins
21 Marc Birstall (HOU) *
20 Holden Willis (LV)
17 Domingas Fidi (SEA)
ERA
1.56 Marc Birstall (HOU) *
1.87 Matt Powell (SEA)
2.24 Daniel Werner (SEA)
Strikeouts
298 Marc Birstall (HOU) *
271 Will Spencer (LV)
259 Wessel Oost (MIN)
Saves
49 Davis Robinson (LV)
43 Luis Torres (DAL)
39 George Webb (DAL)

Batting Champion - For the second season in a row, Chicago 1B Matt Henderson (.393) walked away with the EL award, a full forty batting points ahead of Boston’s Jared Guest. Las Vegas 1B Arlan Bresnahan (.319) finished ahead of OKC’s Jose Diaz (.300) in the west, these two were the only qualified players to hit .300 in the western league in 2028.
Homerun Champion - Atlanta 1B Jason Wilson (44 HR) won the award in the east, teammate David Barnett finished as runner up with 37 while Dallas star Ron Gilfedder (37) held off the close attentions of both Dixon Bodean (DEN) and Nick Richardson (DAL) who both clubbed 36 homers to win the WL award.
Outstanding Hitter – Matt Henderson (.393, 36HR, 107 RBI, 109 Runs) was the unanimous winner in the east, healthily ahead of nearest challenger Jared Guest (.353, 32 HR, 129 RBI) in the voting. For the first time since 2020 there was a name other than Dixon Bodean on the WL trophy, as San Diego Shortstop Mario Cristo (.295, 25HR, 103 RBI, 112 Runs) took home the award
Outstanding Pitcher – Tampa Bay ace Larry de Meza (17-10, 2.51 ERA, 316K) held off teammate Vince Little (16-10, 2.31 ERA) and New York’s Orlando Vicenteno (17-6, 1.97 ERA) to win the eastern league award. The western award belonged to Houston’s Marc Birstall (21-5, 1.56 ERA, 298K) who despite not leading his team to the playoffs still managed to record the pitching triple crown.
Rookie of the Year – Detroit’s outstanding rookie LF Justin King (.290, 13HR, 77 RBI) went home with the EL award. The western league award went to Kansas City LF Alberto Rangel (.298, 15HR, 69 RBI)
Manager of the Year – The eastern award went to Keith Bennett (his second award) for his impressive work taking Detroit to their second World Series victory. In the west Las Vegas manager, and Keith’s brother, Pat Bennett took home the award for the Gamblers 102-win season.
Glove Wizard Awards EL – P Doug Solgato (MIA) – C Ronald Clark (CHA) – 1B Fernando Flores (NO) – 2B Anibal Trueba (WAS) – 3B Ryan Scott (DET) – SS Christian Moore (WAS) – LF John Barnett (CHA) – CF Freddie Holden (CHA) – RF Hun-Ho Park (NY)
Glove Wizard Awards WL – P Hunter Thomas (MIN) – C Paul Heard (AUS) – 1B Arlan Bresnahan (LV) – 2B Ernesto Bernal (SD) – 3B Bob Pierce (DEN) – SS Pancho Sousa (AUS) – LF Alberto Rangel (KC) – CF Manuel Ruiz (KC) – RF Jose Dominguez (SF)

Interesting Facts – Tampa Bay pitcher Larry de Meza struck out 316 batters during the season, his third 300+ season in four years. Indianapolis slugger 1B Nelson Vasquez collected his second straight 100 walk, 200K season becoming the first player in NABL history to achieve this dubious honour.
Keith Bennett (2 MOY awards, 2022 WAS and 2028 DET) and Pat Bennett (3 MOY awards, 2017 SF, 2026 & 2028 LV) became the first brothers to win the manager of the year award in the same season, the rarest of rare feats (to this point they are the only brothers to have managed in the NABL)

[JayW UK]

Interlude – Player Profile

Juan Santos (Retired)
College – N/A
Drafted – 2014 Inaugural Draft – 1st Round - #8 Overall by Philadelphia Independence
Current Team – None (Retired)
Previous Teams – PHI (2014-2020), TB (2021-2028)

Drafted eighth overall in the 2014 Inaugural draft by Philadelphia, the 24-year-old Venezuelan quickly established himself as one of the NABL’s premier power hitters, including blasting 51 homers in 2017. After seven successful seasons and despite Philadelphia making a contract offer which most players couldn’t refuse, Santos chose to test free agency. His desire to leave and “play for a winner” was fuelled by the failure of Philadelphia to build on their early success (2014 EL pennant and 2016 Atlantic division title). Santos eventually settled on Tampa Bay as his new home signing a 4-year $78M contract significantly lower than what was being offered by Philadelphia. The move seemed to bear fruit as his new team reached the world series but succumbed in seven games to Los Angeles. The 2021 season was the high-water mark for the Hurricanes as for the rest of Santos’ stay they failed to make much headway in the playoffs (losing the EL pennant series in 2027 and being dumped out at the first stage on three other occasions. Santos remained productive throughout his time in Florida right up until his final season when age finally caught up with him as he struggled through an injury plagued season, starting only 104 games while hitting .236 and slugging just 9 homeruns, his playoff numbers were worse hitting just .133 in four games. When his contract was up at the end of the season Juan Santos chose to call time on his career rather than play on at a much-diminished level, he left the game as the NABL all-time leader in hits (2546), homeruns (529 including 10 Grand-Slams), and RBI’s (1555) to go with three Outstanding hitter awards (2017, 2020 and 2022), four homerun titles (2018, 2020, 2023 and 2025) and ten all-star selections. Santos will very likely be a first ballot hall of famer when he becomes eligible, and the only thing missing for him was a world series ring, he came close, being on the losing side twice (2014 and 2021) but never tasted sweet victory in the fall classic.

Career Stats
Regular Season
G – 2230 AB - 8498 RS - 1418 H - 2546 2B - 507 3B - 15 HR - 529 RBI - 1555 BB - 921 K - 1352 SB - 8 CS - 9 AVG - .300 OBP – .373 SLG – .550 OPS – .922 OPS+ 156 WAR – 69.3
Post Season
G - 67 AB - 266 RS - 31 H - 75 2B - 13 3B - 0 HR - 16 RBI - 47 BB - 21 K - 46 SB - 0 CS - 1 AVG - .282 OPB – .337 SLG – .511 OPS – .848 OPS+ 134

[JayW UK]

2029 Off-Season

When San Diego chose not to pick up the team option on closer Clint Long’s contract he decided to go under the knife in an effort to cure a nagging problem in his throwing shoulder, although the issue hadn’t been serious enough to cause him to miss significant time he had spent a number of short stints on the DL over the past two seasons dealing with the problem, it was hoped the procedure would cure the issue once and for all and allow Long to continue his career pain free.
The big talking point at the winter meetings was the possibility of further expansion, several attractive bids were on the table to entice the league owners to expand the NABL. As always things came down to money and with an improved media deal in the works when the proposal for expansion was tabled, the owners voted overwhelmingly for league expansion. Two new teams would begin play in 2031, one team would be based in Baltimore and be placed into the Atlantic division bringing it in line with the other two eastern league divisions with five teams, while the western league would get a new team based in Omaha who would join the Midwest division. Team Nicknames and colours would be announced at a later date (Baltimore owner John Rockwell said he was going to run a vote via local media with fans getting the chance to name the team) While these monumental decisions were being debated by the owners, the business of the league continued with several managers announcing their retirements, Don Blair in Philadelphia and Hector Guerra in Charlotte leaving both clubs searching for their replacements. Charlotte were the first to strike, in a somewhat surprising move they named former Miami and Philadelphia Scouting director Dzevat Draskovic as their manager for 2029, Philadelphia chose to go the more traditional route by staying in house and naming Bench coach Raul Aguilar as their skipper. Phoenix were also on the lookout for a new skipper having allowed John Martin to walk after his contract expired, Martin didn’t have to wait long as both Atlanta and Los Angeles came calling, he chose Atlanta becoming the Flames new manager. Mario Sanchez, having left Los Angeles after nine successful years and two championships, chose Phoenix to be his new project, being announced as the Eagles new manager at the beginning of December. Los Angeles having failed to lure several top international managers to town, eventually settled on promoting bench coach Ramon Ortega to fill the position vacated by Mario Sanchez.
Las Vegas opened their off-season with a blockbuster trade, sending star CF Brian Quinborough and four prospects (RF Lawrence Hale, SP Felix Reyes, SS Jonathan Estes and MR Tony Lee) to Tampa Bay for 1B Broderick Hill and BNN top 20 prospect LF Michael Carroll, also getting in on the trade action was Phoenix who sent SS Eduardo Ruiz and prospect 3B Eduardo Guzman to Charlotte for their LF John Barnett. Seattle traded away 1B Marc Baxter after a contract dispute, sending him to Philadelphia for LF Randy Simons and prospect SS TJ Johns. NABL royalty Gabriel Mendez chose to keep playing rather than retire when he was not offered a new contract by Indianapolis, Kansas City was his chosen destination, but at 40 years old there probably wasn’t a huge amount left in the tank, still the deal was for only one year and KC could recoup the outlay ten times over in merchandise sales. On the negative side for KC star 2B Jack Underwood left town signing a lucrative 6-year contract with Washington, also heading to the nation’s capital was Atlanta 1B Jason Wilson who signed for four years at $70M. Wilson had left Washington 18 months before via a trade looking for playing time to show what he could do, his fantastic 2028 season had pushed him out of Atlanta’s price range and back onto the Generals radar. The Generals also lost one of their own stars to free agency when SS Michael Matthews jumped ship to sign for defending world champions Detroit on a 2 year $26M deal. New York were also busy strengthening their rotation, signing former Minneapolis pitcher Hunter Thomas to a 2-year $32M deal and also adding four-time pitcher of the year Vince Little from Tampa Bay on a two year $40M deal. Tampa Bay chose former Boston pitcher Daniel Zanetti as Little’s replacement signing him to a 7-year $93M contract while also taking a chance on former San Diego closer Clint Long on a one year $1.5M prove it deal, If Long could come back healthy from his surgery and recapture his form then the Hurricanes and got themselves a steal. Los Angeles were busy adding stars, signing former Boston 2B Lucio Martinez to the biggest deal this free agency, a mammoth 6-year $130M contract, former Chicago star 3B Jose Munoz’s four year $80M contract took the Lynx’s offseason spending to well over $200M. San Diego added SS Alejandro Pichardo on a one-year deal but lost star 3B Jose Montoya who left town to sign for Austin on a 5-year deal that would pay him an average of $18M per year.
The 2029 draft class was dominated by college players, led by power hitting outfielder Todd Louthian (Minnesota State), 2B tom Stirling (USC) and Illinois speedy 2B Adam Bailey (the 2028 first round pick of OKC who had failed to agree terms with the Outlaws and returned to college) pitchers Rafer MacNeil (Alcorn State) Steve Gream (Georgia Tech) and Keith Kimbrell (TCU) completed the highly touted college players, the only high school prospect in the conversation for a top five pick was RF Lance Parrish. On draft night Minneapolis passed on local star Todd Louthian to instead name Georgia Tech power pitcher Steve “Mean Machine” Gream as the first player taken while Philadelphia took High Schooler Lance Parrish with the second pick. San Jose stayed in the state of California for their pick, tabbing USC’s 3B Tom Stirling third before OKC grabbed pitcher Rafer MacNeil fourth, the Outlaws also used the 13th overall pick to steal high school 3B Levi Bute from under the noses of divisional rivals Denver who had him next on their draft board. In a high-risk high reward move, St Louis drafted track star Adam Bailey from Illinois over Todd Louthian eighth overall, if Bailey managed to adjust to big league pitching he would cause havoc on the basepaths with his blistering speed, Todd Louthian’s fall lasted until the tenth pick where Miami grabbed him, while Los Angeles added to their stable of young pitching prospects by taking TCU’s Keith Kimbrell eleventh. In the wake of the draft, new OKC pitcher Rafer MacNeil was installed as BNN’s new No1 prospect, fellow draftees Steve Gream (MIN) #10 and Adam Bailey (STL) #19 also made it into the top 20.
Washington were BNN’s favourite to repeat as Atlantic division champs although New York after spending the off-season strengthening their rotation were widely expected to push then Generals all the way. In the Central division, Indianapolis possessed the best roster and were the favourites but challenges were expected from both 2028 surprise team Detroit and Chicago, while Tampa Bay were once again the cream of the Southeast division and many peoples tip to win the EL pennant.
Over in the west Kansas City were clear favourites for the Midwest division after none of the other three teams did enough in the off-season to move the needle. Las Vegas possessed the top pitching staff in the league and were being tipped to go the distance and win it all while Dallas were getting some love to make the playoffs as a wildcard team. San Diego and Seattle were again set to do battle for the Pacific division crown but were expected to come under pressure from dark horse candidates San Jose, while after their off-season spending, Los Angeles could not be written off either.

[JayW UK]

2029 Regular Season

Eastern League Review

After a rocky start to the season Washington (100-62) took the Atlantic division by storm, led by CF Anibal Trueba (31 HR), C Aaron Harris 30 HR) and the EL No2 scoring offense (they hit 185 HR second only to Indianapolis in the entire NABL) the Generals won 100 games for the first time in the history and cruised the division title by sixteen games. Boston finished with the same 84-78 record as they had in 2028 but climbed to second in the division while Philadelphia bounced back from their disappointing 2028 to finish tied with Boston on 84-78. New York (80-82) were in the mix until the all-star break before injuries to key players derailed their season.
Led by their excellent pitching staff headlined by Rajion Samit (18-5, 2.75 ERA) and Jamie Berry (18-7, 2.75 ERA), Detroit were just as impressive as they were in 2028 winning 96 games to claim their second straight Central division crown. Despite excellent campaigns from LF Jose Cintron (.317, 40 HR, 106 RBI) and ace pitcher Angel Castro (16-3, 2.53 ERA), Indianapolis (87-75) stumbled down the stretch to finish nine games back in second, but did manage to claim the EL wildcard spot. Star 1B Matt Henderson (.364, 42 HR, 117 RBI) carried the load in Chicago, but he couldn’t do it all as the Zephyrs slumped to 80 wins to finish third for the third year in succession and whilst Cleveland improved their record from 2028, they still finished well off the pace at 72-90. St Louis fielded a very young lineup (the oldest regular starter was 27yr 1B John Perkins) and a pitching staff full of journeymen with a couple of decent youngsters thrown in for good measure, as expected the Reds struggled and finished with a 54-108 record.
In the Southeast division, with one of the lowest payrolls in the NABL Miami Everglades surprised everyone by winning 92 games on their way to their first playoff appearance in 12 years and while their offense, led by LF Pantiliao Igreja (.279, 27 HR, 94 RBI) was one of best in the EL, their pitching was just middle of the pack. Tampa Bay on the other hand boasted the highest payroll but both their offense and pitching were middle of the pack and as a result they finished a disappointing 80-82 their worst record since 2020, Atlanta flattered to deceive, despite CF Julio Ramirez (34) and RF David Barnett (31) hitting plenty of homeruns, the Flames regularly found ways to lose games they should have won. Charlotte finished tied for third with Atlanta with a 77-85 record while New Orleans brought up the rear with only 71 wins.

Final Standings

Atlantic Division
Washington 100-62*
Boston 84-78
Philadelphia 84-78
New York 80-82

Central Division
Detroit 96-66*
Indianapolis 87-75*
Chicago 80-82
Cleveland 72-90
St. Louis 54-108

Southeast Division
Miami 92-70*
Tampa Bay 80-82
Atlanta 77-85
Charlotte 77-85
New Orleans 71-91

[JayW UK]

2029 Regular Season

Western League Review

Kansas City continued their dominance of the Midwest division, wrapping up the title in early September and finishing with a 95-67 record, a full 23 games ahead of their nearest challenger OKC, the Tornadoes strength lay in their pitching, with a staff anchored by ace Robert Warwick (19-12, 2.73 ERA) and featuring Francisco Perez (14-6, 3.38 ERA), Mark Fort (13-9, 3.30 ERA) and Juan Villa (13-7, 3.02 ERA), KC would be a handful for anyone in the playoffs. Oklahoma City (72-90) finished a distant second despite ending the season on an 8-2 run while Denver (67-95) and Minneapolis (66-96) failed to break 70 wins. The Wildcats boasted one of the top offenses in the WL, featuring star LF Dixon Bodean (.322, 44 HR, 117 RBI) and 1B Jamie Boden (.305, 30 HR, 113 RBI) but also finished the season dead last in team defense, while the Bears were the opposite, bringing up the rear offensively really struggling to score (barely managing three runs a game) while being one of the better defensive teams in the NABL (making only 81 errors on the season)
Dallas (96-66) rode the WL #2 offense featuring exciting 22-year-old LF Alfonso Sosa (.289, 22 HR, 97 RBI) and their Alwin Roozen (18-12, 3.07 ERA) led pitching staff to a stunning division title, taking the Southwest from Las Vegas (90-72) by virtue of an impressive run of 11 straight wins (including a 3-game sweep of the Gamblers) over the final two weeks of the season. Las Vegas owned one of the league’s better pitching staffs, anchored by Holden Willis (16-5, 1.63 ERA) and hard throwing Will Spencer (16-8, 2.42) but a lack of scoring punch down the stretch cost them in the race for the division. Austin who boasted the WL #1 offense led by new signing 3B Jose Montoya (.302, 31 HR, 115 RBI) and LF Clayton Jones (.267, 30 HR, 95 RBI) were held back by their pitching to finish third with a franchise best 85-77 record. Despite the superhuman efforts of Outstanding Pitching Award frontrunner Marc Birstall (15-6, 1.57 ERA), Houston finished the season 85-77 winning one less game than in 2028 and dropping to fourth in the division. Although starter Arturo Rodriguez (16-8, 2.58 ERA) was superb for Phoenix the Eagles fell all the way into the division basement winning just 71 games.
The Pacific division was a tight season long race between three teams before San Diego separated themselves over the final weeks to take the division crown, finishing 88-74 four games ahead of a resurgent Sanfrancisco (84-78) who recorded their first winning record for a decade. San Diego relied heavily on their pitching staff with Mike Fulton (17-7, 2.97 ERA) and Dan Rogers (14-7, 2.94 ERA) standing out while Sanfrancisco depended more on their offense with 1B Jose Ramirez (33 HR) leading the way. Despite the best efforts of Matt Powell (17-6, 2.73 ERA) and Domingas Fidi (16-8, 2.83 ERA), Seattle (80-82) dropped to third as injuries piled up in September robbing them of the chance to win a fourth division title in five years. LA’s off-season spending did not have the desired effect with the Lynx mired in mediocrity finishing the season 79-83 a far cry from where they thought they would be while San Jose once again ended the season in the division basement, the ninth such finish in their 15-year history, wasting a franchise record 21-win campaign from pitcher Julio Torres (21-9, 2.88 ERA) and costing GM Brian Halliday his job.

Final Standings

Midwest Division
Kansas City 95-67*
Oklahoma City 72-90
Denver 67-95
Minneapolis 66-96

Southwest Division
Dallas 96-66*
Las Vegas 90-72*
Austin 85-77
Houston 85-77
Phoenix 71-91

Pacific Division
San Diego 88-74*
Sanfrancisco 84-78
Seattle 80-82
Los Angeles 79-83
San Jose 76-86

[JayW UK]

2029 Season Notes

Spring Training - There was still time for 41-year-old Anthony Barrett to find a new home, the three-time pitcher of the year signed on with OKC for one year at $2.5M hoping for one last hurrah before calling it a day. Barrett, a veteran of four world series, would bring a wealth of experience to the Outlaws pitching staff and his 218-121 record was second only to Vince Little in NABL history. With few options to man first base on the roster after the trade of Marc Baxter, Seattle turned to veteran Tanner Gosse, signing him to a 1-year deal while Chicago’s veteran OF Steve Burgess suffered a torn hamstring ruling him out until July at the earliest.
April 4th – Houston 2B Angel Valdez clubbed three homeruns in a Stars victory over San Jose. In doing so he became the first player in NABL history with multiple 3-homerun games having first achieved the feat back in 2023.
April 7th – In a somewhat strange move Dallas tried to sneak 1B Ron Gilfedder (the 2028 WL Homerun champion) through waivers, the move failed as LA pounced adding the slugging first baseman to their already powerful lineup.
April 13th – Denver LF Lewis Washington smashed three hits, all of them for extra bases (two doubles and a Grand-Slam!) collecting 8RBI’s, Denver still found a way to lose though, going down 11-10 to OKC in extra innings.
April 17th – in only his fourth start after recovering from the shoulder injury which cut short his 2028 season, Las Vegas star Dave Cahill threw a 3-hit shutout against Seattle taking just 87 pitches to dispose of the Pioneers. Ominously for the rest of the league, Cahill was looking back to his 2026 best, at 3-0 with an impressive 0.87 ERA and 28 K’s to just 3 walks through his first four games. All the Gamblers runs on the day were provided by a Claude Cummins 3-run homer, the 400th of his career, making him only the third player to reach the milestone in NABL history.
April 18th – after a disastrous 2-13 start to the season, which included six blown saves in seven tries by closer Lou Stephens!!, Washington manager Matt Hunt was forced into action, Stephens was moved to a setup role and replaced as closer by David Gonzalez, who had been signed in the off-season to be the Generals fifth starter. In his nine-year career playing in Boston, New York and Oklahoma City, Gonzalez had appeared in 321 games, starting 187 of them and forging an 80-58 record with a 3.56 ERA and although he had no experience of being a closer, he was deemed as the Generals best option for the role.
April 20th – Denver superstar Dixon Bodean collected his 400th homerun, joining Juan Santos, Gabriel Mendez and Claude Cummins as the only players to have reached the milestone.
April 22nd – during the third inning of the game between Las Vegas and Houston, Gamblers star Dave Cahill left the mound clutching his right shoulder, team doctors confirmed the Gamblers worst fears three days later, announcing Dave Cahill had suffered a torn rotator cuff and would miss the rest of the season leaving Las Vegas scrambling to replace his spot in the rotation. The Gamblers eventually settled on their long reliever and spot starter Shannon Hendricks for the role.
May 1st – Veteran Philadelphia pitcher Carlos Correa recorded his 2500th strikeout when he K’d New York 1B Ben Cox.
May 3rd – New York’s ace Vince Little became the first player in NABL history to reach 250 wins with victory over Philadelphia.
May 4th – Washington SS Christian Moore belted three homeruns leading his Generals to a 7-3 win over division rivals Boston.
May 11th – Boston SP Robinson Castro reached the 2000K milestone.
May 12th – Larry de Meza reached the 2500K milestone helping Tampa Bay to victory over Atlanta. On the same day Indianapolis suffered a major blow when SP Earl Stone blew out his elbow rupturing his UCL, the injury had a recovery time of a year at the minimum and would likely spell the end of his time in Indianapolis.
May 13th – Denver’s veteran closer Min-Jae Choi suffered a torn UCL ending his season. With a recovery time of at least 11-months and slated to be a free agent at the end of the season, 37-year-old Choi would have a tough decision to make on whether to continue to play or retire.
May 26th – Washington 1B Joey Buhler was injured in a collision making a play in a game against division rivals New York, team doctors announced the following day that Buhler would miss at least a month with a fractured foot.
May 31st – New York catcher Max Johnson suffered a torn ACL ruling him out for the season. Two days later Senators suffered another injury blow, this time SP Orlando Vicenteno suffered a triceps strain, his injury though turned out to not be too serious but still landed him on the DL until the all-star break.
June 1st – Dallas rookie pitcher Cristobal Chapa struck out 11 Phoenix batters on his first NABL start. Chapa fresh off leading Lowell Blue Thunder to back-to-back AAA championships had earned his call up with another dominant start to the AAA campaign.
June 3rd – Sanfrancisco SP Mike Powell hurled the fifth PERFECT GAME in NABL history, shutting down LA while striking out five. It was 26-year-old Powell’s first complete game of his career.
June 10th – LA RF Dustin Holt single handedly led the Lynx to victory, he collected exactly half of LA’s hits (2) both of them homeruns (including a Grand-Slam), while driving home all seven of their runs in a 7-5 smash and grab win over Oklahoma City.
June 11th – Las Vegas veteran RF Claude Cummins scored the 1000th run of his career, his achievement was overshadowed by the Gamblers humbling 12-3 loss at the hands of Dallas.
June 12th – Detroit catcher Jorge Maldonado collected two hits, both of them homeruns (a 2-run homer and a Grand-Slam) leading the Giants to a late come from behind 7-5 victory in Atlanta.
June 16th - Seattle star SP Matt Powell struck out 15 OKC batters in just eight innings of work, the Pioneers comfortably saw off the Outlaws 8-1.
June 20th – Los Angeles RF Dustin Holt hit for the cycle but the Lynx fell short against Dallas going down 4-3.
June 27th – Phoenix 2B Dustin Polk collected the 2000th hit of his career in the Eagles victory over Minneapolis.
July 1st – Just over a year after being traded from Cleveland, Minneapolis 1B Clarence Davis was sent back east, this time to Detroit for OF Roberto Cornell and MR Roy Wrightson.
July 3rd – Atlanta 3B Julio Ramirez destroyed Philadelphia, almost singlehandedly winning the game for the flames collecting six hits, four of them doubles and driving in nine runs!!
July 13th – RF Hun-ho Park collected three hits, all of them homeruns, unfortunately his heroics didn’t help as New York ultimately fell to Miami in extra innings.
July 16th – Seattle catcher Stephen Miller suffered an oblique strain forcing him to miss 9 weeks and opening up playing time for rookie Jesus Maldonado.
July 18th – LA’s Lucio Martinez belted three solo homeruns helping the Lynx dispose of Sanfrancisco.
July 21st – Dallas Mustangs pitching phenom Cristobal Chapa suffered bone spurs in his elbow forcing him to the DL for the rest of the season, ending his impressive rookie campaign (his rookie numbers were 4-1 with a 1.75 ERA and 102 K’s)
July 22nd – New York’s prized off-season acquisition SP Vince Little suffered a torn elbow flexor tendon putting him on the shelf for at least 10 months.
July 23rd – Houston closer Robert Grove took just five pitches to retire the side in the ninth inning of Houston’s 3-2 victory over Denver and in doing so collected the 300th save of his career.
July 25th – Washington SP Frank Wilcox suffered a shoulder injury putting him out for the rest of the season.
July 26th – Miami catcher Curt Pitts took three different Cleveland pitchers over the wall, smashing three homers and driving in five runs, leading the Everglades to a 12-3 victory.
July 28th – In an effort to shore up their rotation after the loss of Frank Wilcox, Washington sent LF Tatsui Aoyama and pitching prospect Chandler English to Atlanta for veteran SP Gary Miller (8-5, 4.00 ERA)
July 30th – Boston LF Stephen Thomas (in the midst of an excellent season .309, 25 HR, 96RBI in 103 games) was shipped along with CL Miguel Santana to Tampa Bay for SP Claudio Gonzalez.
August 1st – New York 1B Ben Cox suffered a groin injury landing him on the DL and ending his season.
August 14th – Denver catcher Domingo Villanueva became the sixth player on the season to hit three homers in a game when he accomplished the feat against Sanfrancisco, The Gold had the last laugh though, winning the game 8-6.
August 16th – Chicago SP Benny McCauney suffered a shoulder injury shelving him for the duration of the season.
August 18th – Kansas City ace Mark Fort became the second player on the season and sixth all-time to throw a PERFECT GAME when he blanked Oklahoma City.
August 24th – Kansas City star 1B Michael Jennings drove in two to reach 1000 RBI for his career, the Tornadoes fell short though, going down 5-3 to Minneapolis.
September 3rd – Dallas starting catcher Carlos Barron suffered a broken kneecap sending him to the DL and ruling him out for the rest of the season.
September 4th – LA’s 38-year-old veteran pitcher Felipe Sanchez struck out four against Seattle to reach 2000K for his career.
September 4th – In a waiver trade Washington added an experienced arm to their bullpen in the shape of Beau Bass and BNN’s No 16 prospect RF Tomas Mendivil from Tampa Bay, sending 2B Ronson Daley the other way.
September 5th – Miami catcher Curt Pitts certainly enjoyed playing Cleveland, smashing six hits (including a two-run homer) and collecting 6RBI’s on the way to leading Miami to victory.
September 6th – Kansas City’s young star, RF George Shipp hit for the cycle, going 5-5 including two doubles and 2RBI’s helping the Tornadoes down Houston 6-3.
September 7th – Detroit CF Orlando Gonzalez (hero of the 2028 world series) suffered torn ankle ligaments ending his season.
September 8th – Detroit suffered another injury blow, this time starter Bradley Starks injured his elbow ruling him out for the season. Another playoff hopeful Seattle suffered an injury blow of their own, losing young star LF Kirby Watts to a torn PCL ruling him out for at least 8 months.
September 18th – Tampa Bay’s Larry de Meza pitched a NO-HITTER, striking out ten and allowing two walks while blanking St. Louis.
September 21st – Playoff bound Kansas City lost starting RF George Ship for the rest of the season to a hamstring injury.
September 24th – San Diego CF Jorge Sanchez collected his 2000th RBI in a crucial Mariners victory over Sanfrancisco.
September 26th – Detroit’s postseason hopes took another hit when 3B Ryan Scott suffered a back injury forcing him to the DL and ending his season. The Giants would be without the services of three key players (SP Bradley Starks, CF Orlando Gonzalez and 3B Ryan Scott) for the defence of their crown.
September 30th – Boston announced that star SS Joseph Davis had signed a 3-year extension with the team.
October 2nd – at the conclusion of the regular season, Philadelphia released pitcher Carlos Correa after a particularly poor campaign. The former pitcher-of-the-year posted a career worst 3-14, 5.09 ERA resulting in his release and leaving his future in question.
November 1st – Two of the games biggest stars, Gabriel Mendez and closer Min-Jae Choi announced their retirements. Mendez left the NABL second on the all-time list for homeruns (472) and third all-time in hits (2457) while Choi retired with the most career saves (537).

[JayW UK]

2029 Playoffs

Divisional Round


The playoffs saw defending champions Detroit face off against Miami who were back in the post-season for the first time in twelve years while wildcard team Indianapolis faced a tough matchup with Washington, owners of the NABL’s best record. In the west surprise package Dallas would matchup with playoff regulars San Diego while Kansas City would play Las Vegas, in a repeat of the 2026 playoff matchup between the two.
Detroit came out all guns blazing and blitzed Miami Starter and 16-game winner Octavio Cortal, scoring seven times in the first three innings and chasing him from the game. The Everglades got on the board in the fourth when Pantaliao Igreja hit a solo homer off Detroit starter Rajion Samit but that was as good as it got as the Giants cruised to an impressive 8-1 victory. In game two the following night, it was Miami’s turn to score early breaking through for seven runs in the second and building an 9-2 lead heading into the seventh, with the game seemingly in the bag Miami turned to their bullpen to finish the proceedings. In an amazing finish to the game Detroit stormed back to stun Miami 11-10, the winning runs (a 2-run homer) were hit by 22-year-old RF Arthur Davie (who had batted a lowly .165 with 1HR and 9RBI in 133 regular season AB’s). After collapsing so spectacularly in game two, Miami had the look of a team who were still in shock to open game three and Detroit were not about to let them off the hook winning the game 6-3. Despite being shorthanded Detroit had shut down the NABL’s most prolific offense and were back in the EL Championship series where they awaited the winner of Indianapolis and Washington.

The Washington and Indianapolis series saw two of the top three scoring offenses in the NABL face off against each other with Washington (owners of the best record in the NABL at 100-62) the heavy favourites. It was the underdog Indianapolis Racers who used a gem of a game from starter Angel Castro (7.2 IP, 4H, 1ER, 2BB, 8K) and a late CF Manny Ramos Homerun to secure a series opening 3-2 win. Washington’s potent offense woke up in game two building a 6-0 lead after four innings but the Racers bullpen then proceeded to keep Washington off the scoreboard the rest of the way, giving their own hitters a chance to get them back into the game. Indianapolis pulled to within one in the eighth when 1B Nelson Vasquez slammed a 2-run homer, setting up a nerve wracking ninth for the home side. Washington closer David Gonzalez worked his way round two baserunners to claim the save and give the Generals a series tying 6-5 win. In game three, a back-and-forth contest saw Indianapolis come out on top while game four started well for Washington, who took the lead on a Jack Underwood two-run homer in the first, only for Indianapolis to storm ahead by the fifth. Washington put men on base in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings but failed to score any runs before Indianapolis turned the game over to veteran reliever Chuck Patrick who pitched a clean ninth to wrap up the game and send the Racers onto the EL Pennant series where they would face off against defending champions Detroit.

In the west, wildcard team Las Vegas (owners of the best pitching staff in the NABL) travelled to Kansas City to face off against the Tornadoes. It was the visiting Gamblers who took the opening game, a ninth inning homerun denying the Gamblers a shutout. Game two saw a pitching duel between Gambler’s starter Will Spencer and the Tornadoes Mark Fort, with KC holding a 3-2 lead in the ninth, veteran closer Jerry Crane dispatched the Gamblers with minimal fuss to tie the series at one. Game three saw playoff veteran Max Castle take the mound for Las Vegas while KC countered with Ronald Shockley. With neither starter at their best the lead changed hands several times in the early going and only when the bullpens got involved did LV pull ahead, eventually winning the game 7-3. Holden Willis and Jose Roa were the game four starters with both pitchers holding the offenses at bay until the seventh when 1B Arlan Bresnahan hit a solo homer to give the Gamblers the lead. Las Vegas added a second run in the eighth before turning to closer Davis Robinson for the ninth. Robinson allowed the first man to reach base before re-focusing and retiring the next three batters to put the lid on the Gamblers 2-0, series clinching win.

San Diego faced off against Dallas with the home side taking game one with a late homerun by rookie 3B Wayne Radke. Game two started much the same as game one with Dallas jumping out to an early lead, this time though Dallas starter Kurt Banks kept San Diego off the scoreboard going the distance in a four-hit shutout. Game three back in San Diego started the same as the previous two games with Dallas scoring early, this time the Mariners answered swiftly plating runs in the second and third to tie the game before taking the lead in the fifth on a homerun from second baseman Mario Cristo. Seattle starter Pedro Escobar, after struggling early settled down to keep Dallas quiet, pitching eight innings and striking out 13!! (one shy of the NABL playoff record set by Anthony Barrett in 2016) before handing over to young closer Harvey Widdowes, the young phenom pitched a clean ninth to keep the series alive. Game four featured game one protagonists Dan Rogers (SD) and Alwin Roozen (DAL) back on the mound with Roozen getting the better of his counterpart. With Dallas leading 7-2 reliever Alonso Torres worked a routine ninth to close the book on San Diego’s season and send Dallas onto the WL Pennant series for the first time since 2019.

[JayW UK]

2029 Playoffs

Championship Round

The EL Championship series saw defending champions Detroit take on division rivals and wildcard entry Indianapolis, the series was the first time the two teams had met in the playoffs. Game 1 in Detroit saw the home team stun visiting pitcher Will Christopher building a commanding 5-0 lead by the end of the second inning, by contrast Giants starter Rajion Samit was in complete control allowing just a single baserunner through the first six innings. Indianapolis chipped away at the lead and had narrowed the lead to 5-3 before Detroit closer Greg Gray took the mound to hold off the Racers in the ninth. The visiting Indianapolis Racers dominated from the first pitch in game two, racing into a first inning six run lead off shocked Detroit starter Jamie Berry and although Detroit got on the scoreboard when 2B John Ladbrooke went deep in the third, it was only a minor hiccup in a dominant display by Indianapolis. When all was said and done the Racers had slammed four homeruns and totaled sixteen hits in a lopsided 11-2 victory. Back in Indianapolis for game three, the hometeam Racers were at it again jumping on Detroit starter Gonzalo Tellez, building a four-run lead through the first three innings, after the early wobble Detroit battled back to close the gap to 4-3 after eight innings, but Jason Bin Talib held the Giants scoreless in the ninth to give Indianapolis a vital 4-3 victory. Game four went to the visitors with Detroit closer Greg Gray shutting the Racers down in the ninth to preserve a hard fought 7-6 win and tie the series at two games apiece. In game five Indianapolis called on game two starter Jerry Wood in short rest (his game two outing had lasted just five innings and 73 pitches in the lopsided 11-2 win) to go against Detroit’s ace Rajion Samit. Both pitchers were on top of their game barely giving anything away but an error and a late homerun doomed Wood and Indianapolis to defeat leaving Detroit one game away from the World Series, and with games 6 and 7 at home the Giants were favorites to repeat as EL champions. A seventh inning meltdown from Detroit starter Jamie Berry, allowed Indianapolis to steal game six and send the series to a seventh game decider. Indianapolis called on Angel Castro for the decider while Detroit ran out Gonzalo Tellez, with the Racers protecting a narrow 2-1 lead Jason Bin Talib was tasked with getting the final three outs, he retired the side on just nine pitches, falling to his knees when the final batter popped out to second base. Indianapolis had pulled off the unexpected, winning the final two games on the road against the defending champions to take the series 4-3 and return to the Fall Classic for the first time in ten years.

For the fourth year in a row the WL Championship Series was a divisional matchup, this time between Southwest division foes Dallas and Las Vegas. With both teams dominating the league with pitching, runs were expected to be in short supply, although Dallas were the marginally better offensive team and had the homefield advantage so were seen as slight favorites. In the opener, Gamblers starter Will Spencer dazzled with his blazing fastball, looping curve and forkball, allowing only a single run on five hits over eight innings, Dallas starter Kurt Banks was equally effective, yielding only a single unearned run in seven innings. Las Vegas scratched out the win in the top of the ninth on another unearned run after a second costly error by 3B Wayne Radke had kept the inning alive. In game two, both teams scored a flurry of runs early before Dallas blew the game wide open in the eighth when they plated four runs to take an 8-4 lead. Las Vegas had no answer and went quietly in the ninth to hand Dallas the series tying win. Game three was a classic pitching duel between the team’s aces, Mustangs Alwin Roozen kept Las Vegas scoreless through seven innings before handing over to Juan Rangel to continue the good work. Holden Willis, the Gamblers own ace, also pitched seven scoreless innings but ran into trouble in the eighth when 1B Cristobal Martinez took him deep for a three-run homer to put Dallas on top 3-0. Las Vegas managed to put two runners on base in the ninth but 2B John Hoskins to hit into a double play to end the rally and the game. The following night saw Dallas take a 6-3 lead into the final frame with Las Vegas needing to answer to keep the game alive, but once again the Gamblers failed to trouble the scorers in the bottom of the ninth, going down in order to hand Dallas a 6-3 victory and put them up 3-1 in the series. Game five saw both game one starting pitchers back on the mound, this time though the Gamblers Will Spencer was not as dialed in as he was in game one, with Dallas scoring four runs off him through the first three innings. Although Spencer settled down after this to pitch into the eighth the four runs surrendered early were all the run support that Dallas starter Kurt Banks would need as he pitched an excellent six hit one run complete game, including nine strikeouts, the last of which was Arlan Bresnahan to end the game and send Dallas onto their first World Series.

[JayW UK]

2029 Playoffs

World Series

The 2029 World Series was a matchup between the 96-win Dallas Mustangs and the 87-win and wildcard team Indianapolis Racers, it was also a strength-on-strength matchup with the Dallas pitching staff (owners of a 2.88 team ERA) versus the Indianapolis Racers powerful offense. Most experts expected this series to be a close matchup with Dallas seen as slight favorites courtesy of their better pitching and having homefield advantage. Fans flocked to the JFK Memorial Stadium for game one to witness the Dallas Mustangs first ever World Series game, but it was the visitors who built an early two run lead. Dallas finally gave their fans something to cheer in the the seventh when SS Mike Jensen slammed a Wood fastball into the seats for a 2-run homer giving the Mustangs a 3-2 lead. After his early wobbles Dallas starter Alwin Roozen had settled down and after pitching eight strong innings (8IP, 6H, 2ER, 1BB, 9K) handed over to closer Luis Torres for the ninth. Torres retired the first two batters before things went awry, as he surrendered two runs to blow the save. The whole atmosphere had changed and Indianapolis smelled blood, the Racers called on closer Chuck Patrick to finish the job, after retiring the first man Patrick then walked Wayne Radke before enticing Angel Gil to hit a groundball to short but Juan Miranda botched the double play chance and so the Racers were only able to retire Radke at second. Patrick then walked Mike Jensen to put two men aboard and swing the momentum once again back in the Mustangs favour and force the Racers to call on Brad Wright to try and get the final out. Dallas sent pinch hitter Nick Robbins to the plate and on a full count Robbins smashed the ball deep into centerfield for a game winning walk-off 2-RBI double. After the excitement of the night before game two was much more sedate, Indianapolis starter Stephen Price couldn’t keep the Dallas hitters off the bases, surrendering nine hits and four runs before he was removed having pitched just three innings. Dallas starter Randy Bane on the other hand was in complete control pitching into the seventh before surrendering a run. The Mustangs bullpen then kept the Indianapolis bats quiet the rest of the way, securing the 6-1 win and giving Dallas a 2-0 series lead to take to Indianapolis. Two nights later back in Indianapolis, Mustangs starter Edward Williams failed to make it out of the second inning as the Racers erupted for four runs, going on the take the game 5-1. The Mustangs struck first in Game four on Mike Jensen's RBI single but their starter Kurt Banks (a 19-game winner during the regular season) struggled in the bottom half, as he surrendered a two-run homer to Nelson Vasquez. Indianapolis starter Angel Castro took the 2–1 lead into the fifth, but then surrendered a crucial two-out, two-run homer to Wayne Radke giving Dallas the lead, Roberto Guzman then tied the game with a solo homer to lead off the bottom of the seventh. Angel Gil restored the Dallas lead in the eighth with solo shot of his own before Mustangs closer Luis Torres took the mound for the bottom of the ninth, he pitched around a Jose Cintron single to close out the 4-3 win and put Dallas one victory away from the world series title. Game one starters Alwin Roozen (DAL) and Jerry Wood (IND) opposed each other once again in game five. The contest remained scoreless until the bottom of the fourth when the Racers scored on a Roberto Guzman RBI single. Wayne Radke tied it for the Mustangs in the fifth with a solo blast, and they pushed a pair of runs across in the sixth to take a 3-1 lead. Indianapolis stranded two men in the seventh and left the bases loaded in the eighth and although Jose Cintron took Dallas closer Luis Torres deep to lead off the bottom of the ninth, that was as close as Indianapolis would get, as Torres retired the next three batters to preserve the narrow 3-2 victory and give the Dallas Mustangs their maiden World Series title.

2029 Playoff Recap

Divisional Series
EL: Detroit 3-0 Miami, Indianapolis 3-1 Washington
WL: Dallas 3-1 San Diego, Las Vegas 3-1 Kansas City
Championship Series
EL: Indianapolis 4-3 Detroit
WL: Dallas 4-1 Las Vegas
World Series
Dallas 4-1 Indianapolis

[JayW UK]

2029 Season Leaders and Awards

EL Batting
Hits
227 Matt Henderson (CHI)
204 Daniel Garcia (NO)
191 Ryan Porter (TB)
Batting Avg
.380 Jared Guest (BOS)
.364 Matt Henderson (CHI)
.317 Jose Cintron (IND)
Homeruns
42 Matt Henderson (CHI)
40 Jose Cintron (IND)
39 Nelson Vasquez (IND)
RBI
117 Matt Henderson (CHI)
111 Stephen Thomas (BOS)
106 Jose Cintron (IND)
Stolen Bases
39 Adam Bailey (STL)
35 Marc Smith (WAS)
34 Willie Ingle (STL)

EL Pitching
Wins
18 Jamie Berry (DET)
18 Rajion Samit (DET)
17 David Adams (PHI)
ERA
2.53 Angel Castro (IND)
2.75 Jamie Berry (DET)
2.75 Rajion Samit (DET)
Strikeouts
269 Larry de Meza (TB)
259 Angel Castro (IND)
251 Rajion Samit (DET)
Saves
52 David Gonzalez (WAS)
46 Greg Gray (DET)
39 Ken Maynard (MIA)

WL Batting
Hits
216 Dustin Polk (PHO)
199 Dixon Bodean (DEN)
194 Jose Diaz (OKC)
Batting Avg
.332 Dustin Polk (PHO)
.322 Dixon Bodean (DEN)
.317 Jose Diaz (OKC)
Homeruns
44 Dixon Bodean (DEN)
33 Jose Ramirez (SF)
31 Jose Montoya (AUS)
RBI
117 Dixon Bodean (DEN)
115 Jose Montoya (AUS)
113 Jamie Boden (DEN)
Stolen Bases
48 Alfredo Guzman (AUS)
41 Jose Diaz (OKC)
40 Dustin Polk (PHO)

WL Pitching
Wins
21 Julio Torres (SJ)
19 Robert Warwick (KC)
18 Alwin Roozen (DAL)
ERA
1.57 Marc Birstall (HOU)
1.63 Holden Willis (LV)
2.42 Will Spencer (LV)
Strikeouts
282 Will Spencer (LV)
278 Marc Birstall (HOU)
265 Arturo Rodriguez (PHO)
Saves
48 Lorenzo Rodriguez (SJ)
45 Pedro Rivas (SEA)
43 Jerry Crane (KC)

Batting Champion – In the East Boston’s Jared Guest (.380) held off Chicago star Matt Henderson (.364) to win his first batting title, while in the west Phoenix 2B Dustin Polk (.332) held off Denver’s Dixon Bodean (.322) to claim his second batting title.
Homerun Champion – Chicago 1B Matt Henderson (42 HR) pipped Indianapolis pair Jose Cintron (40) and Nelson vasquez (39) to take the EL title. The homerun chase in the west was a one-horse race as Dixon Bodean (44 HR) claimed the title at a canter, finishing the season eleven ahead of nearest challenger Sanfrancisco’s Jose Ramirez (33 HR).
Outstanding Hitter – Chicago star Matt Henderson (.364, 42 HR, 117 RBI, 112 Runs) was the unanimous winner in the east, taking his third consecutive award. A familiar name was on the award in the west as Denver superstar Dixon Bodean (.322, 44 HR, 117 RBI, 119 Runs) claimed his eighth award.
Outstanding Pitcher – In the east Detroit star Rajion Samit (18-5, 2.75 ERA, 251K) took the award ahead of most people’s favourite, Indianapolis ace Angel Castro (16-3, 2.53 ERA). The WL award went to LV’s young phenom Holden Willis (16-5, 1.63 ERA) who held off Houston’s Marc Birstall (15-6, 1.57 ERA) by a single vote.
Rookie of the Year – In an underwhelming rookie class, Miami’s 1B Noel Brown (.273, 19HR, 56 RBI) took home the award in the east. The western award went to San Jose’s Gregg Bambridge (.261, 27 HR, 74 RBI) one of several young Spartans to make the breakthrough during the season.
Manager of the Year – Miami Manager Francisco Cerda took home the eastern award for leading the Everglades to their first postseason berth in twelve years. In the west Dallas manager Mike Holdsworth claimed the award for his work in leading the Mustangs to their first World Series Championship.
Glove Wizard Awards EL – P Gonzalo Tellez (DET) – C Curt Pitts (MIA) – 1B Fernando Flores (NO) – 2B Orlando Maros (CHA) – 3B Javier Saldana (CHA) – SS Eduardo Ruiz (CHA) – LF Marc Smith (WAS) – CF Manny Ramos (IND) – RF Gene Robinson (IND)
Glove Wizard Awards WL – P Kurt Banks (DAL) – C Paul Heard (AUS) – 1B Arlan Bresnahan (LV) – 2B Dustin Polk (PHO) – 3B Jose Montoya (AUS) – SS Pancho Sousa (AUS) – LF Alberto Rangel (KC) – CF Bobby Schoeppell (OKC) – RF George Shipp (KC)

Interesting Facts – Houston ace Marc Birstall’s record over the 2028 and 2029 campaigns stood at 65 GS, 36-11, 1.56 ERA, 13HRA, 60BB, 576K with a WHIP of just 0.81 having pitched 426 innings during the two seasons. It goes down as the most dominant stretch of pitching in NABL history.
Washington pitcher David Gonzalez who started the season as the fifth starter was thrown into the closer role when incumbent Lou Stephens struggled, Gonzalez proceeded to record 52 saves from 54 tries. He became only the fourth player to save 50 games in a season and his total of 52 was second only to Alfonso Vargas’ total of 54.
Indianapolis hit an NABL record 20 homeruns during their playoff run while for the second season in a row Kansas City laid an egg in the postseason, after being dominated the previous season by San Diego they were once again manhandled, this time by Las Vegas, several of their top stars had series to forget, chief among them were catcher Luis Macias (0-14 with 9K), 1B Michael Jennings (1-14, .071) and RF Pedro Arevalo (1-13 .077).

[JayW UK]

Interlude – Player Profiles

Gabriel Mendez - RF (Retired)
College – N/A
Drafted – 2014 Inaugural Draft – 1st Round - #3 Overall by Atlanta Flames
Current Team – None (Retired)
Previous Teams – ATL (2014-2017), IND (2018-2021), LA (2022-2024), TB (2025-26), IND (2027-2028), KC (2029)

The 26-year-old from Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic was taken 3rd overall in the 2014 Inaugural Draft and quickly established himself as a firm favourite with the Atlanta fans. His obvious talents were recognised in 2015 with the first of his Outstanding Hitter awards. Two batting titles and a World Series appearance followed before he moved onto pastures new, signing for the Indianapolis Racers prior to the 2018 season. His time in Indianapolis proved to be very fruitful as he claimed three Outstanding hitter awards along with another batting title and two homerun titles. A first World series ring arrived in 2019 in which he was named series MVP and in 2021, his last in Indianapolis, he became the first player to claim the batting triple crown. Mendez settled on Los Angeles as his new home prior to 2022 helping the team win the World Series in his first season and claiming his third homerun title in the process, the next two years were frustrating for Mendez as the team twice fell to Denver in the WLCS denying him a chance at a third World series ring. After the 2024 season Mendez once again became a free agent where the chance of playing with long-time friend and rival Juan Santos was too enticing to turn down. Mendez duly signed a lucrative two-year contract with Tampa Bay, the presence of the bash brothers didn’t help the Hurricanes as the team only made the playoffs once (2026) falling to New York in the divisional round. The final year in Tampa was marred by a serious shoulder injury which robbed Mendez of five weeks and seemed to affect his confidence when he returned, as he hit only .143 in the playoffs. The Racers came calling prior to the 2027 season, making the now 37-year-old Mendez a lucrative offer to return to Indianapolis, signing him for two years and $50M, but age and injury had caught up with Mendez and his two-season stay was a struggle, he missed time with injury (including another shoulder problem) in both seasons and hit only 29 homeruns during that time. After the 2028 season Mendez chose to play one last season rather than retire, a decision which turned out not to be his best, he appeared in just 67 games, mainly off the bench hitting a lowly .167 with two homers on the season. The final hit of his illustrious career was a pinch hit double as Kansas City fell to Las Vegas in the playoffs, he received a standing ovation as he left the field, a fitting end to an outstanding career for one of the NABL’s best.

Career Stats
Regular Season
G - 2111 AB - 7782 RS - 1349 H - 2457 2B - 510 3B - 17 HR - 472 RBI - 1518 BB - 1020 K - 1168 SB - 20 CS - 18 AVG - .316 OBP – .401 SLG – .567 OPS – .967 OPS+ 171 WAR – 103.2

Post Season
G - 83 AB - 308 RS - 43 H - 89 2B - 19 3B - 1 HR - 11 RBI - 48 BB - 33 K - 47 SB - 0 CS – 2 AVG - .289 OBP – .363 SLG – .464 OPS – .827 OPS+ 135

Min-Jae Choi - RP (Retired)
College – N/A
Drafted – 2014 Inaugural Draft – 16th Round - #363 Overall by Detroit Giants
Current Team – None (Retired)
Previous Teams – DET (2014-2020), NY (2021-2022), LA (2023), WAS (2024-2025) PHO (2025-2026) DEN (2027-2029)

The 22-year-old South Korean phenom was taken by Detroit in the 16th round of the inaugural draft joining a talented roster that caught fire at just the right time in 2015, going on to win the world series with Choi collecting the all-important save in game seven. Choi also went the entire 2015 season without blowing a save opportunity before his streak was ended at 63 in June the following year, although he was still playing at a high level the team around him couldn’t consistently win and eventually fell to back-to-back sub-70-win seasons. That was enough for Choi and he opted out of his contract and chose free agency after the 2020 season, New York won the sweepstakes for Choi signing him to a two-year contract. His time in New York, although more successful than in Detroit (back-to-back division crowns) was ultimately just as frustrating as the Senators failed in the playoffs both years. A playoff appearance with LA followed before a return back east with Washington, the team missed the playoffs in 2024 and a poor start to 2025 saw the Generals blow things up and trade away several stars including Choi who was sent packing to Phoenix. In 2026 the Eagles made the playoffs for the first time in twelve years with Choi playing a big part in their success collecting 44 saves along the way, the team progressed all the way to the WL pennant series but succumbed to eventual World champions Las Vegas. After this very successful season the soon to be 35-year-old found himself in demand, eventually settling for a lucrative 3-year deal with Denver. The following seasons were frustrating for both Choi and the team as they struggled, winning just 70 games in 2027 and 66 in 2028, after a poor start to the 2029 season Choi was removed from the closer role for the first time in his career and there was some speculation that Denver were looking to move him in a trade, but his season (and ultimately his career) came to an end on May 16th when he tore his UCL in a game against Seattle. At the end of the season with his contract over and still facing months of rehab, Min-Jae Choi decided to call time on his career stepping away from the game as the NABL’s all-time saves leader.

Career Stats
Regular Season
G - 1014 GS - 0 W/L - 67-73 SV - 537 ERA – 2.31 IP – 1069.2 BB - 187 K - 1303 WHIP – 0.94 ERA+ 190 WAR – 29.2
Post Season
G - 28 GS - 0 W/L - 2-2 SV - 13 ERA – 1.80 IP – 30.0 BB - 8 K - 42 WHIP – 0.90 ERA+ 431

[JayW UK]

2030 Off-Season

At the Winter Meetings the final details for the two expansion teams were released, The Omaha franchise would have the nickname “Braves” and play their home games at the Lone Tree Dome. The teams minor league affiliates were also announced, with franchises in Portland (Foresters, AAA) Fresno (Riders, AA) Sioux City (Chiefs, A) Pensacola (Pilots, SA) and Tallahassee (Indians, RL). The Baltimore franchise would use the nickname “Bulls” (the name chosen via a fan vote) and call the 40,000-seater Beltway Park Stadium home, their minor league affiliates were based in Savannah (Skyhawks, AAA) Canton (Kestrels, AA) Gainesville (Gators, A) Yakima (Beavers, SA) and Texarkana (Bulls, RL). Baltimore owner John Rockwell also announced that the new franchise had come to terms with former San Jose GM Brian Halliday, to be the Bulls first General Manager, Rockwell hoped that Halliday could turn his eye for talent to good use and build his expansion franchise into a winner. Halliday had left San Jose in a strong position with a young talented roster, headlined by LF Gregg Bambridge and a farm system with several more youngsters on the verge of breaking through and while Halliday had always been able to find talented players his issue in San Jose had been identifying a manager to harness that talent and deliver consistent winning baseball. San Jose’s search for a new General Manager didn’t take long as former Boston GM Larry Westheim was named as Halliday’s replacement, many observers felt this move spelt the end of manager Dan Stone’s tenure (as Westheim was the man who had sent him packing in Boston), this notion was debunked at Westheim’s first press conference when he backed Stone as his manager for 2030 and beyond.
Several managers were released at the end of 2029 including St. Louis Reds Daniel Donnelly who was fired after the teams disastrous 54-win campaign and Sanfrancisco’s Bruce Weaver, who stepped away from baseball after his contract expired to spend some time with his family. While in a somewhat surprising move, Seattle skipper William McDonald stepped down from his position after several heated discussions with owner Frank Hartmann over the direction of the franchise. Hartmann moved quickly to replace McDonald hiring Ken Buckner, a career minor league manager who had spent part of 2018 as San Jose’s manager. Sanfrancisco chose Jorge Castro as their new skipper, Castro who had not managed for ten years since leaving Minneapolis, was hired from Phoenix where he had been working as their bench coach. St. Louis promoted from within naming bench coach Joe Barron as manager on a three-year contract while Indianapolis were rocked when Ron Edwards, on the advice of his doctor, stepped down after being taken ill, caught out by Edwards’ sudden departure the Racers scrambled to fill his position. In a fortuitous turn of events, former New Orleans and San Diego skipper Leonard Miller became available when he quit at Stanford University, the Racers wasted little time in approaching Miller who jumped at the chance to manage at the NABL again and was duly named as Edwards replacement.
Headlined by pitchers Marc Birstall (HOU) and Matt Powell (SEA) along with 2B Dustin Polk (PHO) the 2030 free agent crop certainly had some top talent available. Las Vegas made the early headlines when they announced that Marc Birstall would be calling Sin City home for the next six years on a bumper $136M deal, Birstall would join Holden Willis and Dave Cahill to form a truly dominant rotation. St. Louis got in on the act soon after, signing pitcher Matt Powell for six years at $116M, Oklahoma City were busy as well, adding 2B Dustin Polk for 4-years on an $80M contract, former Washington slugger Joey Buhler for a bargain 2-year $17M deal and keeping veteran pitcher Anthony Barrett around for one more year at $1.6M. Division rivals Denver added former San Diego starting pitcher Pedro Escobar for four years and $75M while also signing superstar Dixon Bodean to a 3-year $64M extension, Minneapolis also added starting pitching, in the form of veteran Max Castle from Las Vegas on a team friendly 3-year deal. Kansas City lost two of their stars when 1B Michael Jennings signed with Seattle for two years and Washington poached SP Jose Roa away on a three year $41.5M deal. Washington, after picking up Roa were unable to persuade starter-turned-closer David Gonzalez to re-sign with them instead losing him to Charlotte who also lost one of their own stars when 3B Wes Lauderdale left town to sign with Sanfrancisco on a 3-year $42M deal. Las Vegas were also busy in the trade market, sending RF Dave Baker to Washington for 3B Michael Byrd and pitcher Shannon Hendricks to San Jose for infielder Jose Rodriguez and a 7th round draft pick. Charlotte and Boston got together for a trade involving two veteran stars with the Pilgrims sending CF Raul Escobar to the Express for SS Eduardo Ruiz, while on the eve of the draft Boston added starter Earl Stone (who was still recovering from a ruptured UCL) on a 1-year 880K deal, if Stone was able to reach full fitness again, he would provide the team with veteran pitching help or in the best-case scenario, be a solid starter for the Pilgrims, all on a cheap deal. Another team adding a veteran pitcher was Phoenix, who signed 37-year-old Carlos Correa (who just had endured a career worst 3-14, 5.09 ERA season in Philadelphia) on a one-year deal.
The 2030 amateur draft was top heavy on high school talent, with pitchers Lester Swindell, Rick Sauer and Eugene Fey along with 2B Michael Clarke and LF Kyle Van Obendorf gaining most of the plaudits. The top college prospects were LF Daron Murphy from UCLA and pitcher Adrian Knapp from Florida. St. Louis, owners of the first overall pick surprised no-one when they chose high contact, high power hitter 2B Michael Clarke, Minneapolis with the second overall selection chose to bolster their pitching with high school prospect Lester Swindell (although there were rumours that he would forego the NABL and attend college) Denver chose speedy outfielder Kyle Van Obendorf third while Phoenix also chose a speedy outfielder fourth when they took high school prospect Damon Woodrush, this pick was panned by many experts as a reach. The first college star chosen was pitcher Adrian Knapp who was taken 7th by Austin while fellow college standout LF Daron Murphy fell to eleventh where Charlotte took him. San Jose picked Rick Sauer ninth overall ahead of many experts favourite high school pitcher, Eugene Fey, who fell all the way to Los Angeles at 13, after the draft, BNN named Fey as No 4 and Sauer as No 41 on their annual top 100 prospects list seemingly confirming most draft analysts view as to who was better.
In the annual pre-season predictions, the Atlantic division was once again expected to belong to Washington, with Boston and New York predicted to push them and be in the running for the EL wildcard spot. On the back of their run to the World Series Indianapolis were once again prime challengers for the Central division, but how the team would perform for new manager Leonard Miller was an unknown factor, waiting in the wings for any stumble were both Detroit and Chicago. In the Southeast, the young Miami Everglades, the surprise of 2029, would no doubt push for a second consecutive division crown with Tampa Bay (with the EL’s highest payroll, an aging team, and with their championship window rapidly closing) once again in the mix.
In the WL, the Midwest division looked to be Kansas City’s to lose, as despite the Tornadoes losing several key veterans to free agency none of the other teams appeared quite ready to challenge them yet, in the Southwest division defending champions Dallas would have their work cut out for them to repeat as Las Vegas, after the addition of SP Marc Birstall to their already dominant rotation, were the bookies early favourites for the WL Pennant. The Pacific division would likely come down to a three-way fight between San Diego, Seattle and the up-and-coming Sanfrancisco Gold.

[JayW UK]

2030 Regular Season

Eastern League Review

In the Atlantic division, Washington (91-71), as many had predicted, won their fourth straight division crown, boasting the EL’s top scoring offense, paced by C Aaron Harris (.262, 33 HR, 106 RBI) and CF Anibal Trueba (.285, 32 HR, 92 RBI) coupled with the #3 pitching staff they would be a match for anyone in the playoffs. New York rode their Orlando Vicenteno (19-7, 2.57 ERA) led pitching staff to an 82-80 record while in Boston veteran pitcher Earl Stone enjoyed a strong campaign once he returned from injury, finishing with a 15-5, 2.55 ERA record in 25 starts, but the Pilgrims stumbled down the stretch to slip out of contention and finish the season in third with a record of 80-82. Despite a strong campaign from pitcher John Ford (14-7, 2.20 ERA) Philadelphia slumped back into the division basement with a disappointing 73-89 campaign.
In the Central division the expected battle between Detroit and Indianapolis did not materialise as behind excellent defense and a pitching staff headlined by Rajion Samit (16-7, 2.84 ERA) the Giants cruised to their third straight division crown finishing with a 95-67 record good enough for the number one seed in the EL playoff field. Indianapolis struggled early under new manager Leonard Miller (at one point sitting at 38-44) but a strong second half of the season powered by the bats of 1B Nelson Vasquez (42 HR, 107 RBI) and LF Jose Cintron (31 HR), saw the Racers charge to an 82-80 record, good enough to finish second in the Central division and a play-in game against New York. Cleveland missed the chance to make the playoffs for the first time in three years finishing 81-81, the team made the most errors in the NABL which cost them a number of wins down the stretch. St. Louis bounced back from their dismal 2029 to finish with a franchise best 79-83 record while Chicago, even with star 1B Matt Henderson (.365, 49 HR, 123 RBI) performing wonders, fell to a thoroughly disappointing 71-91 record held back by subpar pitching.
The Southeast division was won for the second year in a row by Miami (91-71), who led by CF Vincent Drew (.293, 36 HR, 104 RBI) slugged an NABL leading 201 homeruns while their main rivals for the division crown, Tampa Bay (79-83) finished as runners up. The Hurricanes pitching corps held up well (ranked 4th in the EL) but their offense (usually their calling card) fell off a cliff finishing dead last while New Orleans (79-83) also fielded one of the worst offenses in the EL and finished in a tie with TB for second. Slugging duo RF David Barnett (27 HR) and SS Julio Ramirez (24 HR) helped power Atlanta to an EL top five offense, however with an underwhelming pitching staff and a league worst defense, the Flames stumbled to a fourth placed finish with a 78-84 record while bringing up the rear were Charlotte who dropped back to 73 wins.

New York and Indianapolis met on the 1st October for the play-in game for the EL wildcard spot, both teams had been involved in play-in games before with both winning through (IND in 2023 and NY in 2025). This time, despite a strong pitching performance from Vince Little, the New York Senators fell 4-2 to the Racers sending Indianapolis on to the playoffs as the wildcard team for the third season in a row.

Final Standings

Atlantic Division
Washington 91-71*
New York 82-81 (+)
Boston 80-82
Philadelphia 73-89

Central Division
Detroit 95-67*
Indianapolis 83-80* (+)
Cleveland 81-81
St. Louis 79-83
Chicago 71-91

Southeast Division
Miami 91-71*
Tampa Bay 79-83
New Orleans 79-83
Atlanta 78-84
Charlotte 73-89

Play-In game
(+) Indianapolis defeats New York to claim EL Wildcard

[JayW UK]

2030 Regular Season

Western League Review

In the Midwest division, Kansas City as expected cruised to the title winning a franchise best 99 games, the Tornadoes had the dubious honour of being the only WL team to score more than 700 runs on the season (702) but their stellar pitching with Robert Warwick (19-12, 2.73 ERA) playing a starring role allowed only 570 runs to be scored against them. The only threat to KC’s dominance came in the form of Oklahoma City who finished 86-76, they were the first team in the division other than KC to finish with a winning record in five years, Denver (70-92) despite the superhuman efforts of LF Dixon Bodean (.322, 44 HR, 117 RBI) and 1B Jamie Boden (.305, 30 HR, 113 RBI) still struggled to reach 70 wins. Minneapolis (66-96) brought up the rear, their struggling offense (the Bears only managed to muster a paltry 92 homeruns during the season) making things very difficult for their pitchers, with Wessel Oost (10-13, 2.84 ERA) the only pitcher to reach double figures for wins.
The Southwest division was a battle between the two best pitching teams in the entire NABL, Dallas (102-60), with a rotation featuring young superstar in the making Cristobal Chapa (13-6, 2.13ERA) who had returned from injury as good as ever, Juan Rangel (13-5, 2.62 ERA), Randy Bane (12-4, 3.22 ERA) Alwin Roozen (13-11, 2.65 ERA) and Kurt Banks (12-7, 2.33 ERA) held off the strong charging Las Vegas Gamblers (95-67) who also boasted a solid rotation headed by ace Holden Willis (16-4, 2.43 ERA) and the league’s most fearsome relief corps featuring Rolando Cerny (6-4, 1.72 ERA, 42 SV in 72G), Davis Robinson (9-4, 2.17 ERA, 15 SV in 75G), Jeffrey McKinnon (10-2,2.45 ERA, 2 SV in 69G) and Leland Watson (9-3, 2.76 ERA, 2 SV in 89G). With Leo Wright (18-8, 2.60 ERA) racking up the wins and LF Clayton Jones (27 HR) providing the offensive spark, Austin had themselves another strong season but had the misfortune to be in the same division as Dallas and Las Vegas, finishing third with an 87-75 record. Despite strong seasons from Arturo Rodriguez (16-11, 3.12 ERA) and 3B Michael Ford (.313, 28 HR, 95 RBI) Phoenix continued their struggles limping home fourth with a 74-88 record while Houston slumped to just 71 wins, their lowest total since 2021. Although the Stars endured a dismal season they did receive strong play from several young stars led by 24-year-olds SS Stave Blanton (.290, 28 HR, 85 RBI) and 1B Eric finley (.271, 24 HR, 90 RBI), however 23-year-old pitcher Darrell Haney (9-21, 3.74 ERA) found the going tougher.
The Pacific division saw the surprise rise of Los Angeles from their slumber, inspired pitching from the likes of Vaughan Laursen (18-8, 2.86 ERA), Roman Diaz (13-4, 2.67 ERA) and Mitch Woodroffe (15-10, 2.91 ERA) propelled the Lynx to a record of 89-73 their best since 2024. A pitching staff that played better than expected (especially Domingas Fidi 19-9, 2.60 ERA) had Seattle in contention, but an indifferent August (13-15) cost them as they finished in second place with an 86-76 record, San Diego never got going on the season and drifted to an uninspiring 80-82 third place finish. San Jose struggled to just 72 wins with their offense being the biggest culprit, scoring just 563 runs, the team’s struggles meant the end of manager Dan Stone’s tenure as he was fired at the end of the season, but the cupboard was far from bare in San Jose as the Spartans could call on the services of a plethora of young talented players with P Julio Torres, P Walt Lake, LF Gregg Bambridge, CF Kenny Henry and 3B Tom Sterling all 25-years-old or younger. Sanfrancisco, many people’s dark horse before the season, had a campaign to forget, injuries and poor form (their main five-man rotation of Mike Pickett, Mike Powell, Jeff Powell, Carlos Burgos and TJ Simms combined for a record of 37–70, 4.46 ERA, and as a team they amassed only a .236 batting average for the season) saw the Gold drop to the division basement with a disastrous 57-105 campaign.

Final Standings

Midwest Division
Kansas City 99-63*
Oklahoma City 86-76
Denver 70-92
Minneapolis 66-96

Southwest Division
Dallas 102-60*
Las Vegas 95-67*
Austin 87-75
Phoenix 74-88
Houston 71-91

Pacific Division
Los Angeles 89-73*
Seattle 86-76
San Diego 80-82
San Jose 72-90
Sanfrancisco 57-105