North African and European Baseball Leagues

[Cactusguy21]

CAIRO, EGYPT - Excitement sweeps through the sand today as commissioner Ahmed Fahmi is introduced to lead a bold new project: the North African Baseball Association.

Baseball was sparsely played in some of the African colonies prior to the war, most famously Al Spalding's barnstorming stop in Egypt. But during WWII, the popularity of the game exploded, as a result of American soldiers teaching the game to the local citizens. The North African World Series (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_...n_World_Series) was sparsely attended, with a crowd of only 4,000 people (mostly servicemen) but the legend of those games began to grow among the youth of northern and eastern Africa.

Four years later, with the war now over and decolonization beginning its slow march, baseball fever had reached the point where it could be monetized. In comes Commissioner Fahti, whose bold vision of North Africa united by their shared love of the game spread like wildfire through the nations.

In this glorious year of 1947, we shall have for the first time professional baseball in Africa.

[Cactusguy21]

[Cactusguy21]

Note: I am using 20-80 but allowing ratings past 80 to appear. Everything is increments of 5.


The inaugural draft is underway, and the Rabat Invaders won the first pick in the snake draft.

With the first pick in the draft, the Rabat Invaders selected Umarah Abdul-Wahid, an Egyptian CF. Abdul-Wahid is known for his elite contact skills and plate discipline and is very difficult to get out. His power is above average, so combined with his ability to make contact he should be good for 15-20 homers in the 100 game season.






With the 2nd pick, the Khartoum Isotopes select Hadad Bin Nasim, an Ethiopian LF/DH. Nasim is a pure power bat, who can drive the ball out of the park with great frequency, and has the hit tool to give him as many chances to drive it as possible. His instincts on the basepaths are elite. Unfortunately, he has a little bit too many groundballs in his game, and his defensive skills leave something to be desired, as he takes poor routes in the outfield.

[Cactusguy21]

With the third pick, the Tripoli Counts selected Rahimat Bin Abdullah, a starting pitcher from Egypt. Abdullah is a fearsome presence on the mound, boasting 5 pitches, 4 of which are plus. He generates an exceptional number of groundballs, and generally keeps the ball in the park. His fastball touches 97 on the gun, paired with a devastating sinker/knuckle curve. Unfortunately, his personality is just as fearsome as his pitches, and his command of the strike zone leaves something to be desired.





With the 4th pick, the Algiers Jets select Qaraja Bin Anwar, a Tunisian starting pitcher. Bin Anwar is the oldest player taken so far, at 28 years old. His command is stellar, and he offers 4 plus pitches with good movement to boot. A well rounded pitcher, he hits 98 on the gun. If there is a drawback to his game, it's that he doesn't really vary speeds too well, throwing a mix of relatively fast pitches.

[Cactusguy21]

With the 5th pick, the al-Hartum Bahri Rail Cats make a surprise selection of Burhan Isa, a Tunisian center fielder. Isa is a power hitter with a lot of swing and miss and groundballs, but the sheer strength to muscle a ball out of the park with ease. His defense is competent in the corner outfields, and his base stealing instincts are excellent. In a way he's a more well rounded version of Hadad Bin Nasim.






With the 6th pick, the Cairo yaks select Fath Maalik, an Eritrean starting pitcher. Maalik is a pure groundballer with an interesting arsenal, throwing the slider and changeup as his primary pitches, occasionally mixing in a plus sinker as an out pitch. His consistency is his best trait, with generally positive reviews in all aspects of his game, including a high stamina for going deep into games. Unfortunately, his clubhouse status is not great.

[Cactusguy21]

With the 7th pick, the Umm Durman River Rats select the most exciting player in the draft, Samir Kadeer, an Egyptian outfielder. When a guy gets a speed grade of 95 on a 20-80 scale you know there's something going on. This man could probably win an olympic medal. He has elite contact skills and gap power as well, and will generate a ton of infield hits and triples. He even has a little pop in his bat, and could maybe hit 15 homers in the 100 game season. Unfortunately, his outfield defense is average at best.






With the 8th pick, the Alexandria Quakes select Qaseem Sekayi, a Moroccan DH. this is perhaps the most confounding selection in the draft so far. A 29 year old designated hitter with glacial speed and no elite tools at the plate is not a good selection. Oh, and he's also clubhouse cancer.

[Cactusguy21]

With the 9th pick, the Mogadishu Razorbacks select Harun Al Rachid Wadi, an Egyptian center fielder. Wadi is an elite defensive outfielder with plus speed and great instincts in the field. He has above average power and below average swing decisions, which makes him a bit boom or bust at the plate. He is also 30 years old, making this another odd pick.




With the final pick, the Addis Adaba Destroyers select Yusef Bin Labid, a Tunisian left fielder. OBP is the name of the game for Bin Labid, who gets on base at a high clip while hitting some homers to boot. He is glacial on the basepaths though, and his defense is not great, and his strikes out a ton. So a real boom or bust young player.

[Cactusguy21]

Now for a few of the interesting guys!


Fella Skah was the 5th pick of the 2nd round by the Cairo Yaks. He boasts the best screwball in the league, and 5 plus pitches.




Zouibeier Tantawi is the best power bat in the game, showing up in the 3rd round with the first pick. He is 37, so not many years left, but his 70 grade power is tops, and his 80 grade discipline is tied with the #1 overall pick for the best. The Moroccan outfielder/first baseman will be the heart of the Rabat order.

[Cactusguy21]

The best velocity in the game belongs to Asadel Qutaiba, a 9th round pick who touches 100 on his sinker. The 34 year old is one of the few Djiboutians in the game, and will be a quality setup man for Tripoli.





Kalif Osakwe has been rated the pitcher with the best stuff, with 85/90 grades being assigned. His elite slider is paired with a solid 96 mph sinker. He fell to the 9th round due to control issues.

[Cactusguy21]

There is exactly one knuckleballer in the game, and his name is Addisu Mosi. He has become a bit of a media sensation due to his odd pitch. He does have a curveball and a changeup that are acceptable offerings, but he's clearly a fringe player, as befitting his 20th round status. Fortunately for Mosi, he will have plenty of opportunities on the horrid Cairo pitching staff, where he lines up as likely the 3rd best reliever.

[Cactusguy21]

Meanwhile...


PARIS, FRANCE - The European Baseball League is formed today, January 3rd, 1947. With 16 member clubs spanning across the continent, this league is an important step towards reunification of a continent ravaged by the second World War.

More to come....

[Cactusguy21]

[Cactusguy21]

And now the Inaugural Draft for the European Baseball League is underway!!!

With the first pick in the draft, the Warsaw Cavalry select Jose Figueroa, a Spanish shortstop.

Figueroa may be 28 years old already, but he's still got a ton of prime years left. He is a true 5 tool player, providing plus speed and defense with elite power, OBP, and a good hit tool. You cannot ask for a better franchise player.





With the 2nd pick in the draft, the Dublin Foxes select Dolf Kruis, a Belgian 1B. Dolf is probably the best pure hitter in the draft. His power is 2nd only to Figueroa, and his hit tool is vastly superior. Also a 28-year old, he might not dominate forever, but his bat will keep him around at least in a DH role after his mediocre defensive skills degrade further.

[Cactusguy21]

With the 3rd pick in the draft, the London Armada select Mikael Sologub, a Swedish second baseman. Sologub is a well rounded hitter who is above average in all aspects of his game, both in his approach at the plate and his defensive skills. He is known to be a bit aggressive in the clubhouse though, and some have called him disruptive.



With the 4th pick, the Stockholm Mariners selected Aurelien Viaud, a French corner outfielder. The speedy outfielder has the best hit tool in the league, and can find the gaps with regularity. His outfielding ability is not quite what you'd expect given the speed, but still good enough to hold down a spot comfortably. If he can tap into his power, he could be an MVP candidate.

[Cactusguy21]

With the 5th pick, the Paris Liberators selected Manuel Mendoza, a Spanish right fielder. Mendoza has a cannon arm and massive power, but that's pretty much it for this 3 true outcome slugger. He handles right field pretty competently despite subpar speed, and his discipline at the plate is actually pretty good, giving him a decent floor of production even when the power isn't there.




With the 6th pick, the Barcelona Falcons selected Ludwik Brown, an outfielder from Germany. Brown is an elite hitter all around, and plays the field well. The big drawback is he is nearly 33 years old, so his time as an elite hitter might be coming to a close.

[Cactusguy21]

With the 7th pick, the Copenhagen Islanders selected Gavril Bagnoryus, yet another big power bat coming off the board. The Belarussian outfielder is a fan favorite who always stays after games to sign autographs. He is 31 though, so again another older player coming off the board, very different from the NABA draft.




With the 8th pick, the Rome Gladiators selected Bogdan visser, a Dutch utilityman who plays solid defense at nearly every position. Another big power hitter, Visser pus the ball in the air a lot, and the Romans are hoping his flyballs will make it out of the Coliseum with regularity.

[Cactusguy21]

With the 9th pick, the Brussels Volts selected Yermolay Aleshkovsky, a Belarussian third baseman. The outspoken infielder is YET ANOTHER power hitter who sprays flyballs all around the outfield with regularity. His defense at 3rd is likely not good enough to stick, where he will probably move to 1st at some point.



With the 10th pick, the Bratislava Knights select Rusty Houtepen, a Belgian 1B. The big slugger is by far the oldest player picked so far, and despite his impressive bat, a bit of a confounding pick.




With the 11th pick, the Marseile Waves select a fan favorite player, Jedrik Kasprzyk, a polish infielder. Kasprzyk is lead-footed on the basepaths, but is one of the most elite infielders in the game, and is known for soaking up balls at third base with ease, and making the most impossible, mind-bending throws imaginable. He combines that with, yes, elite power as well as an elite batting eye. At 24 years old, he will be a Wave for a long time, and it's honestly stunning that he did not previously get picked!

[Cactusguy21]

With the 12th pick, the Madrid Crusaders select Matvei Poimanov, another slugger and a Lithuanian corner outfielder.




With the 13th pick, the Budapest Dukes selected Arnold Knapp, a well rounded German first baseman. At 25, he is one of the younger players selected in this draft.




With the 14th pick, The Prague Royals selected Ivanhoe Tchakovsky, a Belrussian outfielder.





With the 15th pick, the Belgrade Royals finally break the boring streak of corner outfield power hitters and take a pitcher, Rufin Lyp, from Poland. Lyp is, in a word, electric. He hits 99 on the gun with an elite fastball that he pairs with 3 elite offspeed offerings. He works deep into games and runs up high pitch counds. His control is pinpoint, and he generates a lot of groundballs. And he's only 26! Lyp should have gone in the top 5, and Belgrade officials have to be elated.




With the final first round pick, the Kiev Defenders select Roodan Williams, the 2nd pitcher off the board. The fan favorite englishman is not quite the pitcher that Lyp is, but still a dominant presence on the mound. His curveball is his primary offering, but his changeup might be even better.

[Cactusguy21]

Now for a few interesting players.

Belgrade absolutely crushed it in this draft, and 4th rounder Sendy Fonseca is no exception. His fastball is elite and touches 100 mph on the gun. His three secondaries are all plus pitches. Even his control is a plus. He does give up a few longballs but with this level of power pitching, that's worth it. Donny Preston and the Belgrade front office deserve a round of applause.




With the 7th pick in the 4th round, Bratislava selected Caesar Jakkelsen, a pitcher who is most notable for throwing 6 pitches. There are a few other 6-pitch guys in the league, but he is unusual in that all 6 offerings are average or better. Additionally, they all come from a sidearm delivery. It's hard to know what to expect from Jakkelsen, but he definitely is an interesting pick.




Two picks later, the Rome Gladiators took professional hitter (and poor fielder) Alexander Strolz, who is sort of a mock version of the type of hitter who was taken in the first round. His eye is elite, but it's pretty much just that and power for him.





The Bratislava Knights boast a mythical roster, and Hansl Miller is their resident wizard. Forced pun aside, Miller is probably the greatest defensive player in the sport right now. His defense at shortstop is off the charts, and he can comfortably play pretty much ever position. His bat leaves something to be desired, but he'll at least get the ball in play reasonably often. His career will be something to behold.




The last player to highlight is a cautionary tale to the young pitchers of Europe. Vostorgov is a solid reliever who will have a consistent major league role, but for a guy who throws 101 (!!!), you'd expect more.

[Cactusguy21]

Now onto the Preseason Predictions!


Starting in NABA, the Tripoli Counts are projected to be the best team in the association thanks to a strong pitching staff that is projected to be the only 1000 K team. Close behind are the Algiers Jets, who have three pitchers in the projected top 10, and the Umm Durman River Rats, who are projected to lead the league in stolen bases entirely because of Saheed Kadir, who is projected for 64 (!!!).





Over in the EBL, the Western League features a jumble of teams at the top, with the leaders the Bordeaux Falcons. Note that there was an issue with the league modifiers, so the team statistics listed here are incorrect. This issue was rectified before the season started.




The Eastern League could not possibly be more close. Six teams are projected to be within a game of the championship, and Bratislava and Kiev aren't far behind.