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FuzzyRussianHat · 07-12-2024, 07:53 PM

After taking second in the East League standings in 2007, Hyderabad had the top spot in 2008 at 107-55. The Horned Frogs wrestled the top spot from Karachi, who was a close second at 105-57. Hyderabad last took first in their 1999 championship season. The Carp extended their playoff streak to five seasons. There was a 19 game gap between Karachi in second place and the third place teams.

Defending ELCS winner Bishkek and Lahore tied for third at 86-76 to take the remaining wild cards. The Black Sox extended their playoff streak to five with their eighth berth of the 2000s. The Longhorns playoff streak grew to four seasons. Rawalpindi was two games short at 84-78, which continued the longest postseason drought in the EL at 20 seasons.

Nearly snapping the Red Wings drought was East League MVP Vural Yildiz. The 27-year old Turkish right fielder led in home runs (53), RBI (110), triples (18), total bases (392), OBP (.392), slugging (.703), OPS (1.094), wRC+ (238), and WAR (12.1). Yildiz also had a .310 average and 51 stolen bases for Rawalpindi.

Karachi’s Zahir Nasir won Pitcher of the Year in his ninth season for the Carp. The 28-year old Pakistani righty led in ERA (1.51), FIP- (47), and WAR (8.1). Nasir added a 16-6 record over 208.2 innings, 280 strikeouts, and a 206 ERA+. In May, Karachi locked him up with a seven-year, $40,600,000 extension. Also of note, Peshawar’s Ananthakrishnan Khan became the second ABF closer to win Reliever of the Year four times.

Despite the 23 win difference in the regular season, Bishkek shocked Hyderabad with a first round playoff sweep. Karachi cruised to a sweep of Lahore to set up a rematch in the East League Championship Series. The Carp splashed their way to a sweep of the Black Sox to give Karachi its fourth pennant (1985, 95, 96, 08).

Reigning Asian Baseball Federation champ Istanbul crushed the competition in the West League at 112-50. This set a new WL wins record, topping the Ironmen’s 111-51 from 1988. They grew their playoff streak to six seasons with their fourth first place finish in that stretch. Istanbul led the WL in runs (821) and fewest allowed (528). They also set a new ABF team record with 375 doubles, which held until 2020.

There was a 19-game gap to second place Isfahan at 93-69, extending their playoff streak to three seasons. Asgabat repeated as a wild card in third at 92-70. The fourth spot saw a tie between Shiraz and Bursa at 84-78 with the tiebreaker going to the Suns. That got Shiraz into the postseason field for the fourth time in five years. Last year’s WLCS runner-up Mashhad dropped to seventh at 77-85.

Istanbul 1B Petri Viskari earned West League MVP. The 26-year old Finnish lefty led in runs (131), hits (213), doubles (51), RBI (142), total bases (410), triple slash (.370/.445/.712), OPS (1.157), wRC+ (213), and WAR (11.4). Viskari’s 131 runs fell two short of the ABF record. He also smacked 46 home runs. After winning finals MVP the prior season, the Ironmen had given Viskari an eight-year, $46,460,000 extension.

Pitcher of the Year went to Tabriz’ Gevorg Qasimov in only his second full season. The 23-year old Uzbek lefty led in WHIP (0.85), innings (266.2), quality starts (23), and complete games (19). Qasimov added 7.5 WAR, a 153 ERA+, 319 strikeouts, a 2.40 ERA, and 19-9 record.

Istanbul cruised to a first round playoff sweep of Shiraz, while Isfahan topped Asgabat 3-1. It was the Imperials’ first West League Championship Series since 2002. They couldn’t do much against the Iromnen though, as they repeated as champion in five games. This was the fifth pennant for Istanbul, who also won in 1985, 1988, and 1989.

The ABF Championship luck for both Istanbul and Karachi continued on the same path. The Ironmen swept the Carp, giving them repeat titles and putting them at 5-0 all-time in the championship. The loss dropped Karachi to 0-4 in the finals, which included a loss to Istanbul in the inaugural 1985 event. League MVP Petri Viskari repeated as finals MVP, posting 15 hits, 7 runs, 6 doubles, 2 homers, and 11 RBI in 12 playoff starts.

The Ironmen’s 112-50 record was the second-best ever by an ABF champ, behind only Multan’s 113-49 in 2003. Istanbul became the first franchise to repeat as champs twice, having also done it in 1988-89. It was the fifth instance of an ABF repeat along with Hyderabad’s 1986-87, Adana’s 1995-96, and Isfahan’s 1997-98. It would be the last repeat until 2016-17.

Istanbul could argue their 2008 squad was the all-time best in ABF to that point. It would be the peak of the run, as the Ironmen wouldn’t make back to the WLCS in the next 28 seasons. Still, they were the first ABF squad to earn five titles. As of 2037, only Hyderabad reached or topped that distinction.

Other notes: Hyderabad’s Mardan Naxarov threw ABF’s 13^th perfect game on April 19, striking out 11 against Asgabat. Gujranwala’s Faramarz Hejazipour struck out 22 in 8 innings against Dushanbe on May 3. This was one short of the single game record set in 1999 of 24 over 9 innings by Rami Naqvi. His teammate Ibrahim Bulak had a 19 strikeout, 1 walk no-hitter against Tehran. That was one K short of the no-hitter record in ABF, also set by Naqvi in 1999.

Simin Arefi became the 7^th to 400 home runs and the ninth to 1000 RBI. 2B Rattu Najran won his eighth Gold Glove and C Amir Yskakov won his eighth.

07-12-2024, 07:53 PM	#1421
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,907	2008 in ABF After taking second in the East League standings in 2007, Hyderabad had the top spot in 2008 at 107-55. The Horned Frogs wrestled the top spot from Karachi, who was a close second at 105-57. Hyderabad last took first in their 1999 championship season. The Carp extended their playoff streak to five seasons. There was a 19 game gap between Karachi in second place and the third place teams. Defending ELCS winner Bishkek and Lahore tied for third at 86-76 to take the remaining wild cards. The Black Sox extended their playoff streak to five with their eighth berth of the 2000s. The Longhorns playoff streak grew to four seasons. Rawalpindi was two games short at 84-78, which continued the longest postseason drought in the EL at 20 seasons. Nearly snapping the Red Wings drought was East League MVP Vural Yildiz. The 27-year old Turkish right fielder led in home runs (53), RBI (110), triples (18), total bases (392), OBP (.392), slugging (.703), OPS (1.094), wRC+ (238), and WAR (12.1). Yildiz also had a .310 average and 51 stolen bases for Rawalpindi. Karachi’s Zahir Nasir won Pitcher of the Year in his ninth season for the Carp. The 28-year old Pakistani righty led in ERA (1.51), FIP- (47), and WAR (8.1). Nasir added a 16-6 record over 208.2 innings, 280 strikeouts, and a 206 ERA+. In May, Karachi locked him up with a seven-year, $40,600,000 extension. Also of note, Peshawar’s Ananthakrishnan Khan became the second ABF closer to win Reliever of the Year four times. Despite the 23 win difference in the regular season, Bishkek shocked Hyderabad with a first round playoff sweep. Karachi cruised to a sweep of Lahore to set up a rematch in the East League Championship Series. The Carp splashed their way to a sweep of the Black Sox to give Karachi its fourth pennant (1985, 95, 96, 08). Reigning Asian Baseball Federation champ Istanbul crushed the competition in the West League at 112-50. This set a new WL wins record, topping the Ironmen’s 111-51 from 1988. They grew their playoff streak to six seasons with their fourth first place finish in that stretch. Istanbul led the WL in runs (821) and fewest allowed (528). They also set a new ABF team record with 375 doubles, which held until 2020. There was a 19-game gap to second place Isfahan at 93-69, extending their playoff streak to three seasons. Asgabat repeated as a wild card in third at 92-70. The fourth spot saw a tie between Shiraz and Bursa at 84-78 with the tiebreaker going to the Suns. That got Shiraz into the postseason field for the fourth time in five years. Last year’s WLCS runner-up Mashhad dropped to seventh at 77-85. Istanbul 1B Petri Viskari earned West League MVP. The 26-year old Finnish lefty led in runs (131), hits (213), doubles (51), RBI (142), total bases (410), triple slash (.370/.445/.712), OPS (1.157), wRC+ (213), and WAR (11.4). Viskari’s 131 runs fell two short of the ABF record. He also smacked 46 home runs. After winning finals MVP the prior season, the Ironmen had given Viskari an eight-year, $46,460,000 extension. Pitcher of the Year went to Tabriz’ Gevorg Qasimov in only his second full season. The 23-year old Uzbek lefty led in WHIP (0.85), innings (266.2), quality starts (23), and complete games (19). Qasimov added 7.5 WAR, a 153 ERA+, 319 strikeouts, a 2.40 ERA, and 19-9 record. Istanbul cruised to a first round playoff sweep of Shiraz, while Isfahan topped Asgabat 3-1. It was the Imperials’ first West League Championship Series since 2002. They couldn’t do much against the Iromnen though, as they repeated as champion in five games. This was the fifth pennant for Istanbul, who also won in 1985, 1988, and 1989. The ABF Championship luck for both Istanbul and Karachi continued on the same path. The Ironmen swept the Carp, giving them repeat titles and putting them at 5-0 all-time in the championship. The loss dropped Karachi to 0-4 in the finals, which included a loss to Istanbul in the inaugural 1985 event. League MVP Petri Viskari repeated as finals MVP, posting 15 hits, 7 runs, 6 doubles, 2 homers, and 11 RBI in 12 playoff starts. The Ironmen’s 112-50 record was the second-best ever by an ABF champ, behind only Multan’s 113-49 in 2003. Istanbul became the first franchise to repeat as champs twice, having also done it in 1988-89. It was the fifth instance of an ABF repeat along with Hyderabad’s 1986-87, Adana’s 1995-96, and Isfahan’s 1997-98. It would be the last repeat until 2016-17. Istanbul could argue their 2008 squad was the all-time best in ABF to that point. It would be the peak of the run, as the Ironmen wouldn’t make back to the WLCS in the next 28 seasons. Still, they were the first ABF squad to earn five titles. As of 2037, only Hyderabad reached or topped that distinction. Other notes: Hyderabad’s Mardan Naxarov threw ABF’s 13^th perfect game on April 19, striking out 11 against Asgabat. Gujranwala’s Faramarz Hejazipour struck out 22 in 8 innings against Dushanbe on May 3. This was one short of the single game record set in 1999 of 24 over 9 innings by Rami Naqvi. His teammate Ibrahim Bulak had a 19 strikeout, 1 walk no-hitter against Tehran. That was one K short of the no-hitter record in ABF, also set by Naqvi in 1999. Simin Arefi became the 7^th to 400 home runs and the ninth to 1000 RBI. 2B Rattu Najran won his eighth Gold Glove and C Amir Yskakov won his eighth. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)