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Defending Western League champ Conakry was atop the standings for the third time in four years, finishing first at 100-62. Kumasi was second at 94-68, extending their West African Baseball record postseason streak to 13 seasons. Third place and the second wild card went to 92-70 Dakar, who bounced back from 82 wins the prior year. There was a nine game gap from third to fourth with both Abidjan and Freetown at 83-79.

Western League MVP was Conakry CF Ikechukwu Araromi. The 25-year old Nigerian led in runs (114), average (.323), slugging (.597), OPS (.951), wRC+ (169), and WAR (8.0). Araromi added 34 home runs, 1 18 RBI, and 72 stolen bases. The Coyotes had 503 steals in 1990, the second-best ever in WAB history behind their own 525 the prior season. Dakar’s Ousseynou Darboe won Pitcher of the Year. Nicknamed “Tarzan,” the fourth-year Gambian lefty led in ERA (2.51), and strikeouts (350). He was one win short of a Triple Crown with a 19-11 record over 240 innings and 6.4 WAR.

Dakar upset Kumasi 2-0 on the road in the first round of the playoffs, sending the 1988 Western League champs back to the WLCS. The Dukes gave Conakry a spirited effort, but the defending champ Coyotes took the series 3-2.



Lome took first in the Eastern League standings for back-to-back seasons with the Lasers on top at 103-59. Ibadan had an impressive turnaround from 63 wins the prior season to 94-68 in 1990. This gave the Iguanas their first-ever playoff berth in WAB’s 16 year history. Defending WAB champ Port Harcourt narrowly took third at 90-72 to get back into the postseason. Cotonou was fourth at 87-75 and Lagos, winners of 104 the prior season, was 86-76.

Leading Ibadan’s turnaround was Rudy Bambara, who was the #2 overall pick in 1988. He won Eastern League MVP with his two-way heroics, posting 7.0 WAR on the mound with a 17-8 record over 253.2 innings with a 2.84 ERA and 272 strikeouts. As a third baseman in only 96 games at the plate, the 24-year old Burkinabe had 5.7 WAR with a .331/.394/.675 slash, 34 home runs, and 93 RBI. Pitcher of the Year was Lome lefty Dedric Godwin. The 28-year old Cameroonian was the leader in ERA (2.16), wins (21-3), WHIP (0.80), quality starts (30), FIP- (65), and WAR (8.5). He was also second in the EL with 375 strikeouts over 266.1 innings.

Port Harcourt looked to recreate their magical run from the prior season where they took the #3 seed all the way to the title. The Hillcats accomplished step one by edging Ibadan 2-1 in the wild card. Then in an Eastern League Championship Series rematch, Port Harcourt accomplished step two, upsetting the Lasers 3-1. It was the fourth pennant for the Hillcats, who also won in 1980 and 1982.



Port Harcourt wouldn’t complete step three in their West African Championship rematch with Conakry. In the 16^th finale, the Coyotes got both revenge and their first title, taking the series in a seven-game classic. Finals MVP was 1B Shane Bowermaster, a 31-year old American that had joined Conakry in 1989 after a failed MLB bid. In 11 playoff games, he had 12 hits, 5 runs, 2 home runs, and 4 RBI.



Other notes: Port Harcourt’s Raoul Edah set a still-standing playoff record with 14 stolen bases. For the first time in WAB history, a season had zero no-hitters. Vincent Langat became the first batter to 500 career home runs and the first to 1000 runs scored. Langat would retire after the 1992 season with 584 HRs, which would be the top mark until the early 2000s. Siradji Yacouba became the third to 1000 RBI. Catcher Guy Kamga won his seventh Gold Glove.