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FuzzyRussianHat · 06-12-2024, 04:25 AM

Defending European Champion Copenhagen and Kyiv both finished at 101-61 atop the EBF Northern Conference standings. The tiebreaker gave the Corsairs the #1 overall seed as they won their sixth consecutive Northeast Division title. It wasn’t an easy road for Copenhagen with Oslo close behind at 97-65. The Octopi picked up their third wild card in five years.

The Kings got their third berth in four years, although this was their first North Central Division title since moving to EBF. Kyiv’s last time in first place was back in the 1994 EPB season. The Kings also had fierce competition with Warsaw (97-65) and Berlin (93-69). The Wildcats earned a wild card to grow their playoff streak to three seasons. The Barons ended up the first team out in the wild card hunt. Kharkiv at 88-74 notably missed the field in back-to-back years for the first time since 1991-92.

Glasgow’s eight year reign atop the British Isles Division and nine year playoff streak came to an end. Dublin took the division at 94-68, edging the Highlanders by one game. This was the Dinos’ first playoff berth since their 1995 pennant and their first division title since 1989. Glasgow ended up four games short in the wild card hunt. Rotterdam won a competitive Northwest Division at 89-73 for their second title in three years. Luxembourg was three back, defending division champ Paris was four back, and Amsterdam was six back.

In the first year of promotion/relegation, Riga was the Northern Conference’s worst at 63-99, ending their EBF Elite run after six years since joining in the EPB exodus. Just escaping demotion were Birmingham and Cologne at 65-97. The Bees were the conference champ only a decade earlier, but had their third sub-70 win season in four years.

Northern Conference MVP was Copenhagen two-way Atanas Kalkanov. It was a comeback story for him, as he had missed 2003 to a torn rotator cuff while with Sofia. The Spikes traded him to the Corsairs in 2004, where he emerged as a star. The 28-year old Bulgarian righty on the mound led in innings pitched (282) while posting a 21-4 record, 2.81 ERA, 264 strikeouts, and 7.5 WAR. As a right fielder, he had 127 games with 43 home runs, 119 RBI, a .352/.393/.689 slash, 201 wRC+, and 7.5 WAR. Kalkanov was the third player in EBF history with a 15+ WAR season, just behind Danijel Cindric’s 15.4 in 1953 and Edgar Miranda’s two-way 15.5 from 1986.

Pitcher of the Year went to Warsaw’s Oleh Moroz. He had a tremendous comeback story, having missed most of 2003 and all of 2004 to a torn labrum. The 26-year old Ukrainian righty led in ERA (2.36) and quality starts (27). Moroz added a 17-9 record, 255 innings, 241 strikeouts, and 6.8 WAR. He would have a few more nice years for the Wildcats, but more injuries eventually caught up to him in his 30s.

Round one of the playoffs had the division champs sweep the wild cards with Rotterdam over Oslo and Dublin over Warsaw. Copenhagen rolled to a round two sweep of the Ravens, while Kyiv outlasted the Dinos 3-2. This kept the repeat hopes alive for the Corsairs. For the Kings, this was their first Northern Conference Championship since joining the EBF and first subleague final since the 1994 EPB season.

The series was a fierce seven game battle that came down to the wire. Copenhagen entered the bottom of the ninth inning of game seven down 3-1. MVP Atanas Kalkanov would smack a walk-off three-run homer to give the Corsairs the 4-3 win and the 4-3 series victory. Copenhagen became the first repeat Northern Conference champ since 1993-94 Birmingham. This was the Corsairs’ fourth pennant, as they also won in 1985 and 1950.

Munich won the South Central Division for the fifth year in a row and took the Southern Conference’s top seed at 110-52. The Mavericks allowed the fewest runs in EBF at 570. The #2 seed was Vienna, who cruised to the East Central Division at 100-62. It was the third consecutive division title and 100+ win season for the Vultures.

In a tight Southwest Division, Barcelona and defending conference champ Madrid tied for the top spot at 93-69, while Milan was at 91-71 and Lisbon was 88-74. The Bengals won the tiebreaker game for the division title, their first since 1996. Barcelona hadn’t seen the playoffs or a winning record since 1998. The Conquistadors still got the first round card to grow their playoff streak to seven years.

The Maulers and the South Central’s Zurich were both 91-71, tied for the second wild card. The Mountaineers won the tiebreaker game to advance for back-to-back wild cards and their fourth berth in six years. In the Southeast Division, Tbilisi took the top spot for the fourth year running. At 86-76, the Trains were four games better than Yerevan and five ahead of Bucharest.

Seville had won 100 games in 2001, but at 61-101 in 2005, they had the unfortunate distinction of being relegated. Just escaping demotion were Krakow (64-98), Odessa (65-97), Malta (66-96), and Rome (66-96).

For the third time in four years, Vienna 3B Ben Springer won Southern Conference MVP. The sixth-year Austrian righty nicknamed “Dump Truck” led in hits (227), RBI (150), total bases (406), slugging (.656), wRC+ (193), and WAR (11.0). Springer also had 45 home runs, a .367 average, and 1.061 OPS. In the offseason, the Vultures locked up Austria’s favorite baseball player to an eight-year, $68,000,000 extension to be the franchise icon for the next decade.

Vienna also saw Steffen Neumann repeat as Pitcher of the Year, leading in wins (21-5), strikeouts (308), quality starts (25), FIP- (64), and WAR (8.5). The 26-year old German also had a 2.59 ERA and 256.2 innings. Having just spent big on Springer, they weren’t yet able to lock up Neumann long-term. He was still under team control through 2007.

Tbilisi upset Madrid 2-1 and Zurich edged Barcelona 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs. Vienna rolled to a sweep of the Mountaineers in round two, while Munich survived an intense 3-2 challenge by the Trains. It was the Vultures’ second Southern Conference Championship berth in three years, having won the EBF title in 2003. The Mavericks last SCC was their 2001 pennant season. Despite Munich being the favorite, Vienna trounced them with a sweep. The Vultures became seven-time conference champs (1967, 69, 70, 72, 73, 03, 05).

In the 56^th European Championship, Copenhagen defeated Vienna 4-1 to become the first repeat EBF champ since Marseille in 1985-86. Veteran slugger Mattias Stole was the finals MVP at age 35. He had 12 playoff games and 7 starts with 13 hits, 6 runs, 5 home runs, and 12 RBI. This was the third title for the Corsairs, who also won in the inaugural 1950 campaign. The Vultures are an unfortunate 1-6 now in their finals berths.

Other notes: Luxembourg’s pitching staff allowed only 215 walks with a 1.32 BB/9 all season. That set a new Northern Conference record that would only get topped by Kharkiv in 2033. Lisbon set a new Southern Conference offensive record with 285 doubles, which still sits third in 2037. Munich had 134 triples, which is also third as of 2037. Bratislava stole 505 bases, the second most in SC history.

Copenhagen’s Evangelos Stathakis tossed EBF’s 29^th perfect game on April 12, striking out 10 against Kharkiv. Zurich’s Gabriel Cadete had a 31-game hit streak. CF Aime Ghys won his seventh Gold Glove. Roberto Baccin became the sixth member of the 3000 hit club. He would play three more years and end at 3439, just short of Jacob Ronnberg’s 3520. As of 2037, Baccin is sixth all-time in hits.

Both Baccin and Mattias Stole reached 1500 RBI in 2005, making it 16 players to reach that mark. Stole also became the 12^th member of the 600 home run club, ultimately finishing with 686 after retiring in 2008. Anders Maurstad became the ninth pitcher to 4000 strikeouts, finishing up his career at 4067. That is good for ninth as of 2037. There wouldn’t be another member of the 4k club until 2023.

Promotion/Relegation: Riga was dropped to the Second League’s Eastern Conference and Seville to the Western Conference. The promoted teams, Thessaloniki and Valencia, were both geographically Southern Conference fits. The Vandals slotted in nicely to the Stingrays’ Southwest Division slot as a swap between Spanish teams. The Greece-based Tritons were added to the SC’s East Central Division. To fix the balance, Krakow switched conferences and took the Roosters’ Northeast Division slot.

06-12-2024, 04:25 AM	#1329
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,733	2005 in EBF Defending European Champion Copenhagen and Kyiv both finished at 101-61 atop the EBF Northern Conference standings. The tiebreaker gave the Corsairs the #1 overall seed as they won their sixth consecutive Northeast Division title. It wasn’t an easy road for Copenhagen with Oslo close behind at 97-65. The Octopi picked up their third wild card in five years. The Kings got their third berth in four years, although this was their first North Central Division title since moving to EBF. Kyiv’s last time in first place was back in the 1994 EPB season. The Kings also had fierce competition with Warsaw (97-65) and Berlin (93-69). The Wildcats earned a wild card to grow their playoff streak to three seasons. The Barons ended up the first team out in the wild card hunt. Kharkiv at 88-74 notably missed the field in back-to-back years for the first time since 1991-92. Glasgow’s eight year reign atop the British Isles Division and nine year playoff streak came to an end. Dublin took the division at 94-68, edging the Highlanders by one game. This was the Dinos’ first playoff berth since their 1995 pennant and their first division title since 1989. Glasgow ended up four games short in the wild card hunt. Rotterdam won a competitive Northwest Division at 89-73 for their second title in three years. Luxembourg was three back, defending division champ Paris was four back, and Amsterdam was six back. In the first year of promotion/relegation, Riga was the Northern Conference’s worst at 63-99, ending their EBF Elite run after six years since joining in the EPB exodus. Just escaping demotion were Birmingham and Cologne at 65-97. The Bees were the conference champ only a decade earlier, but had their third sub-70 win season in four years. Northern Conference MVP was Copenhagen two-way Atanas Kalkanov. It was a comeback story for him, as he had missed 2003 to a torn rotator cuff while with Sofia. The Spikes traded him to the Corsairs in 2004, where he emerged as a star. The 28-year old Bulgarian righty on the mound led in innings pitched (282) while posting a 21-4 record, 2.81 ERA, 264 strikeouts, and 7.5 WAR. As a right fielder, he had 127 games with 43 home runs, 119 RBI, a .352/.393/.689 slash, 201 wRC+, and 7.5 WAR. Kalkanov was the third player in EBF history with a 15+ WAR season, just behind Danijel Cindric’s 15.4 in 1953 and Edgar Miranda’s two-way 15.5 from 1986. Pitcher of the Year went to Warsaw’s Oleh Moroz. He had a tremendous comeback story, having missed most of 2003 and all of 2004 to a torn labrum. The 26-year old Ukrainian righty led in ERA (2.36) and quality starts (27). Moroz added a 17-9 record, 255 innings, 241 strikeouts, and 6.8 WAR. He would have a few more nice years for the Wildcats, but more injuries eventually caught up to him in his 30s. Round one of the playoffs had the division champs sweep the wild cards with Rotterdam over Oslo and Dublin over Warsaw. Copenhagen rolled to a round two sweep of the Ravens, while Kyiv outlasted the Dinos 3-2. This kept the repeat hopes alive for the Corsairs. For the Kings, this was their first Northern Conference Championship since joining the EBF and first subleague final since the 1994 EPB season. The series was a fierce seven game battle that came down to the wire. Copenhagen entered the bottom of the ninth inning of game seven down 3-1. MVP Atanas Kalkanov would smack a walk-off three-run homer to give the Corsairs the 4-3 win and the 4-3 series victory. Copenhagen became the first repeat Northern Conference champ since 1993-94 Birmingham. This was the Corsairs’ fourth pennant, as they also won in 1985 and 1950. Munich won the South Central Division for the fifth year in a row and took the Southern Conference’s top seed at 110-52. The Mavericks allowed the fewest runs in EBF at 570. The #2 seed was Vienna, who cruised to the East Central Division at 100-62. It was the third consecutive division title and 100+ win season for the Vultures. In a tight Southwest Division, Barcelona and defending conference champ Madrid tied for the top spot at 93-69, while Milan was at 91-71 and Lisbon was 88-74. The Bengals won the tiebreaker game for the division title, their first since 1996. Barcelona hadn’t seen the playoffs or a winning record since 1998. The Conquistadors still got the first round card to grow their playoff streak to seven years. The Maulers and the South Central’s Zurich were both 91-71, tied for the second wild card. The Mountaineers won the tiebreaker game to advance for back-to-back wild cards and their fourth berth in six years. In the Southeast Division, Tbilisi took the top spot for the fourth year running. At 86-76, the Trains were four games better than Yerevan and five ahead of Bucharest. Seville had won 100 games in 2001, but at 61-101 in 2005, they had the unfortunate distinction of being relegated. Just escaping demotion were Krakow (64-98), Odessa (65-97), Malta (66-96), and Rome (66-96). For the third time in four years, Vienna 3B Ben Springer won Southern Conference MVP. The sixth-year Austrian righty nicknamed “Dump Truck” led in hits (227), RBI (150), total bases (406), slugging (.656), wRC+ (193), and WAR (11.0). Springer also had 45 home runs, a .367 average, and 1.061 OPS. In the offseason, the Vultures locked up Austria’s favorite baseball player to an eight-year, $68,000,000 extension to be the franchise icon for the next decade. Vienna also saw Steffen Neumann repeat as Pitcher of the Year, leading in wins (21-5), strikeouts (308), quality starts (25), FIP- (64), and WAR (8.5). The 26-year old German also had a 2.59 ERA and 256.2 innings. Having just spent big on Springer, they weren’t yet able to lock up Neumann long-term. He was still under team control through 2007. Tbilisi upset Madrid 2-1 and Zurich edged Barcelona 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs. Vienna rolled to a sweep of the Mountaineers in round two, while Munich survived an intense 3-2 challenge by the Trains. It was the Vultures’ second Southern Conference Championship berth in three years, having won the EBF title in 2003. The Mavericks last SCC was their 2001 pennant season. Despite Munich being the favorite, Vienna trounced them with a sweep. The Vultures became seven-time conference champs (1967, 69, 70, 72, 73, 03, 05). In the 56^th European Championship, Copenhagen defeated Vienna 4-1 to become the first repeat EBF champ since Marseille in 1985-86. Veteran slugger Mattias Stole was the finals MVP at age 35. He had 12 playoff games and 7 starts with 13 hits, 6 runs, 5 home runs, and 12 RBI. This was the third title for the Corsairs, who also won in the inaugural 1950 campaign. The Vultures are an unfortunate 1-6 now in their finals berths. Other notes: Luxembourg’s pitching staff allowed only 215 walks with a 1.32 BB/9 all season. That set a new Northern Conference record that would only get topped by Kharkiv in 2033. Lisbon set a new Southern Conference offensive record with 285 doubles, which still sits third in 2037. Munich had 134 triples, which is also third as of 2037. Bratislava stole 505 bases, the second most in SC history. Copenhagen’s Evangelos Stathakis tossed EBF’s 29^th perfect game on April 12, striking out 10 against Kharkiv. Zurich’s Gabriel Cadete had a 31-game hit streak. CF Aime Ghys won his seventh Gold Glove. Roberto Baccin became the sixth member of the 3000 hit club. He would play three more years and end at 3439, just short of Jacob Ronnberg’s 3520. As of 2037, Baccin is sixth all-time in hits. Both Baccin and Mattias Stole reached 1500 RBI in 2005, making it 16 players to reach that mark. Stole also became the 12^th member of the 600 home run club, ultimately finishing with 686 after retiring in 2008. Anders Maurstad became the ninth pitcher to 4000 strikeouts, finishing up his career at 4067. That is good for ninth as of 2037. There wouldn’t be another member of the 4k club until 2023. Promotion/Relegation: Riga was dropped to the Second League’s Eastern Conference and Seville to the Western Conference. The promoted teams, Thessaloniki and Valencia, were both geographically Southern Conference fits. The Vandals slotted in nicely to the Stingrays’ Southwest Division slot as a swap between Spanish teams. The Greece-based Tritons were added to the SC’s East Central Division. To fix the balance, Krakow switched conferences and took the Roosters’ Northeast Division slot. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)