OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post

FuzzyRussianHat · 07-05-2024, 06:35 PM

The Mexican League’s top seed in 2007 was Mexicali at 101-61 atop the North Division. A wild card the prior year, the Maroons tied their franchise’s best record and won a division title for the first time since 1972. Hermosillo was second at 95-67, repeating as a wild card.

Ecatepec returned to the South Division perch after having their 10-season streak snapped in 2006. The Explosion won it at 93-69, topping Merida by three games. The Mean Green and two-time defending ML champ Juarez were both 90-72, tying for the second wild card spot. Leon was three games back, Monterrey and Puebla were two back, and Torreon was five back.

In the one game playoff, Merida defeated the Jesters to earn repeat playoff berths. This ended Juarez’s hopes for a three-peat and snapped their playoff streak at five seasons. Notable also was the Lions’ turnaround, winning 87 games after an abysmal 58-104 mark the prior year.

Chihuahua was again below .500 despite the continued dominance of 1B Donald Gonzalez. The 28-year old Puerto Rican won his fourth Mexican League MVP with arguably his finest season yet. Gonzalez earned his third Triple Crown season with 51 home runs, 137 RBI, and a .391 average. He also led in runs (142), hits (238), total bases (452), OBP (.445), slugging (.742), OPS (1.187), wRC+ (241), and WAR (13.9).

The 13.93 WAR was the third-best ever season by a CABA position player behind Prometheo Garcia’s 14.18 in 1949 and Iwan Valen’s 14.06 in 2003. Gonzalez’s hits, batting average, and OBP would also be career bests for him. He had remarkably averaged 11.8 WAR per season over the prior six seasons, furthering his resume as an all-time CABA bat. Gonzalez joined Garcia (5) and Kiko Velazquez (4) as the only 3+ time Triple Crown hitters in CABA.

Pitcher of the Year went to Mexicali’s Vincent Medina. In his fourth season in the rotation, the 25-year old Mexican righty led in wins (18-2), and ERA (1.95). Medina added 249 strikeouts in 222 innings and 6.6 WAR. Sadly, major injuries would limit his usefulness in later seasons.

Mexicali swept Merida 3-0 and Ecatepec bested Hermosillo 3-1 in the first round. The Explosion was back in a very familiar spot, playing in their 12^th Mexican League Championship Series in 15 years. For the Maroons, they hadn’t gotten that far since 1964. In a seven-game classic, Mexicali ended a 52-year pennant drought. It was their sixth title, joining their dynasty five-peat run from 1950-54.

Honduras had the top seed in the Caribbean League with a 101-61 record. The Horsemen repeated as Continental Division champs and grew their playoff streak to 10 seasons. Salvador’s only playoff streak grew to five as the Stallions were 95-67. This netted them the second wild card spot, finishing six games ahead of their next foe Costa Rica.

Defending CABA champ Haiti and Puerto Rico tied for the Island Division title at 96-66. The Herons won the tiebreaker game for the division as they extended their playoff streak to 11 years. It was also their tenth division title of that stretch. For the Pelicans, this was their first playoff berth since the 1985 season. Last year’s second wild card Santo Domingo dropped to 76-86.

Caribbean League MVP went to Haiti 1B Ivan Moran. The 27-year old Honduran switch hitter led in runs (129), OBP (.447), OPS (1.095), wRC+ (183), and WAR (9.8). Moran added 43 home runs, 129 RBI, 219 hits, and a .366 average. The Herons decided to go big to keep the 2006 CABA Championship MVP, giving Moran an eight-year, $70,100,000 extension in the winter.

He took the MVP despite record setting power by Trinidad OF Luis Fernandez. The 33-year old lefty smacked 71 home runs, falling one short of the CABA record 72 set the prior year by Darion Gaudi and by Yohnny Galaz in 1988. Fernandez was second in MVP voting and won his eighth Silver Slugger.

Sal Meza won his third Pitcher of the Year in his 13^th season. The 35-year old Mexican had won the award in 2001 and 2002 with Haiti. For 2007, he signed a four-year, $28,000,000 deal with Honduras and led in his Horsemen debut with a 2.41 ERA, 21-5 record, and 1.00 WHIP. Meza added 204 strikeouts and 6.2 WAR over 216.2 innings. 2007 also saw Meza join the 200 win and 3000 strikeout clubs.

The division champs prevailed in the first round of the playoffs as Honduras topped Salvador 3-1 and Haiti survived 3-2 against Puerto Rico. That set up a Caribbean League Championship Series rematch and marked their fourth meeting against each other in the CLCS in the 2000s. The Horsemen had home field advantage, but the Herons prevailed 4-2 to repeat as champion. This was Haiti’s fifth pennant of the 2000s and eighth overall.

Haiti rolled to a sweep over Mexicali in the 97^th Central American Baseball Association Championship, giving the Herons their second repeat of the decade (2001-02, 06-07). They became five-time CABA champs having also won it all in 1938. Finals MVP was 1B Abdulsalam Erpan in his second year with Haiti after playing eight years in China. In 14 playoff games, he had 12 hits, 8 runs, 3 doubles, 4 home runs, and 9 RBI.

The Herons became the fourth CABA franchise to win four titles in a decade, joining Monterrey (5 in the 1990s), Mexico City (4 in the 1970s), and Tijuana (4 in the 1910s). The Caribbean League has also won six of the eight years thus far in the 2000s, only interrupted by Ecatepec’s 2000 and 2004 wins.

Other notes: Maikel Loya became CABA”s tenth member of the 3000 hit club. Loya would play two more seasons and get to 3288, which sits ninth as of 2037. Costa Rica’s Juan Castro had a 33-game hit streak, tied for the fifth-longest to date in CABA.

07-05-2024, 06:35 PM	#1400
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,914	2007 in CABA The Mexican League’s top seed in 2007 was Mexicali at 101-61 atop the North Division. A wild card the prior year, the Maroons tied their franchise’s best record and won a division title for the first time since 1972. Hermosillo was second at 95-67, repeating as a wild card. Ecatepec returned to the South Division perch after having their 10-season streak snapped in 2006. The Explosion won it at 93-69, topping Merida by three games. The Mean Green and two-time defending ML champ Juarez were both 90-72, tying for the second wild card spot. Leon was three games back, Monterrey and Puebla were two back, and Torreon was five back. In the one game playoff, Merida defeated the Jesters to earn repeat playoff berths. This ended Juarez’s hopes for a three-peat and snapped their playoff streak at five seasons. Notable also was the Lions’ turnaround, winning 87 games after an abysmal 58-104 mark the prior year. Chihuahua was again below .500 despite the continued dominance of 1B Donald Gonzalez. The 28-year old Puerto Rican won his fourth Mexican League MVP with arguably his finest season yet. Gonzalez earned his third Triple Crown season with 51 home runs, 137 RBI, and a .391 average. He also led in runs (142), hits (238), total bases (452), OBP (.445), slugging (.742), OPS (1.187), wRC+ (241), and WAR (13.9). The 13.93 WAR was the third-best ever season by a CABA position player behind Prometheo Garcia’s 14.18 in 1949 and Iwan Valen’s 14.06 in 2003. Gonzalez’s hits, batting average, and OBP would also be career bests for him. He had remarkably averaged 11.8 WAR per season over the prior six seasons, furthering his resume as an all-time CABA bat. Gonzalez joined Garcia (5) and Kiko Velazquez (4) as the only 3+ time Triple Crown hitters in CABA. Pitcher of the Year went to Mexicali’s Vincent Medina. In his fourth season in the rotation, the 25-year old Mexican righty led in wins (18-2), and ERA (1.95). Medina added 249 strikeouts in 222 innings and 6.6 WAR. Sadly, major injuries would limit his usefulness in later seasons. Mexicali swept Merida 3-0 and Ecatepec bested Hermosillo 3-1 in the first round. The Explosion was back in a very familiar spot, playing in their 12^th Mexican League Championship Series in 15 years. For the Maroons, they hadn’t gotten that far since 1964. In a seven-game classic, Mexicali ended a 52-year pennant drought. It was their sixth title, joining their dynasty five-peat run from 1950-54. Honduras had the top seed in the Caribbean League with a 101-61 record. The Horsemen repeated as Continental Division champs and grew their playoff streak to 10 seasons. Salvador’s only playoff streak grew to five as the Stallions were 95-67. This netted them the second wild card spot, finishing six games ahead of their next foe Costa Rica. Defending CABA champ Haiti and Puerto Rico tied for the Island Division title at 96-66. The Herons won the tiebreaker game for the division as they extended their playoff streak to 11 years. It was also their tenth division title of that stretch. For the Pelicans, this was their first playoff berth since the 1985 season. Last year’s second wild card Santo Domingo dropped to 76-86. Caribbean League MVP went to Haiti 1B Ivan Moran. The 27-year old Honduran switch hitter led in runs (129), OBP (.447), OPS (1.095), wRC+ (183), and WAR (9.8). Moran added 43 home runs, 129 RBI, 219 hits, and a .366 average. The Herons decided to go big to keep the 2006 CABA Championship MVP, giving Moran an eight-year, $70,100,000 extension in the winter. He took the MVP despite record setting power by Trinidad OF Luis Fernandez. The 33-year old lefty smacked 71 home runs, falling one short of the CABA record 72 set the prior year by Darion Gaudi and by Yohnny Galaz in 1988. Fernandez was second in MVP voting and won his eighth Silver Slugger. Sal Meza won his third Pitcher of the Year in his 13^th season. The 35-year old Mexican had won the award in 2001 and 2002 with Haiti. For 2007, he signed a four-year, $28,000,000 deal with Honduras and led in his Horsemen debut with a 2.41 ERA, 21-5 record, and 1.00 WHIP. Meza added 204 strikeouts and 6.2 WAR over 216.2 innings. 2007 also saw Meza join the 200 win and 3000 strikeout clubs. The division champs prevailed in the first round of the playoffs as Honduras topped Salvador 3-1 and Haiti survived 3-2 against Puerto Rico. That set up a Caribbean League Championship Series rematch and marked their fourth meeting against each other in the CLCS in the 2000s. The Horsemen had home field advantage, but the Herons prevailed 4-2 to repeat as champion. This was Haiti’s fifth pennant of the 2000s and eighth overall. Haiti rolled to a sweep over Mexicali in the 97^th Central American Baseball Association Championship, giving the Herons their second repeat of the decade (2001-02, 06-07). They became five-time CABA champs having also won it all in 1938. Finals MVP was 1B Abdulsalam Erpan in his second year with Haiti after playing eight years in China. In 14 playoff games, he had 12 hits, 8 runs, 3 doubles, 4 home runs, and 9 RBI. The Herons became the fourth CABA franchise to win four titles in a decade, joining Monterrey (5 in the 1990s), Mexico City (4 in the 1970s), and Tijuana (4 in the 1910s). The Caribbean League has also won six of the eight years thus far in the 2000s, only interrupted by Ecatepec’s 2000 and 2004 wins. Other notes: Maikel Loya became CABA”s tenth member of the 3000 hit club. Loya would play two more seasons and get to 3288, which sits ninth as of 2037. Costa Rica’s Juan Castro had a 33-game hit streak, tied for the fifth-longest to date in CABA. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)