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The 2009 Hall of Fame class for the European Baseball Federation was a hefty one with four inductees. Three of them would be the headliner in almost any year with CF Willy Fierro (99.3%), SP Lindsey Brampton (99.0%), and LF Rodrigo Vilanova (97.6%). They were joined by CF Luca Wouterson, who finally made it in on his tenth and final chance with 70.1%.



RF Bernard Martin was quite close to the 66% requirement, but missed at 63.5% in his fifth ballot. 1B Luigi Cuttone was also a fifth ballot near miss at 60.4%. Also above 50% was LF Henrique Agnelo with a 59.0% debut, SP Viktor Fredsgaard at 55.9% on his third ballot, and SP Reggie Hobart with 54.5% for his sixth go.

Dropped after ten ballots was 1B Oliver Michaelsen, known for his great defense with ten Gold Gloves. In 14 years between Hamburg and Munich, he won one Silver Slugger and had 2492 hits, 1071 runs, 431 doubles, 386 home runs, 1274 RBI, a .300/.334/.502 slash, 135 wRC+, and 65.1 WAR. Voters often wanted big power stats at first base and weren’t sold by great defense and merely solid hitting. Michaelsen peaked at 23.6% in 2001 and ended at 9.4%.



Willy Fierro – Center Field – Lisbon Clippers – 99.3% First Ballot

Willy Fierro was a 6’0’’, 200 pound left-handed center fielder from Alhama de Murcia, Spain; a small town of 21,000 inhabitants in the country’s southeast. Fierro was the type of guy that did everything good to great as a rare five-tool player. He was an excellent contact hitter with a strong eye of drawing walks and a respectable strikeout rate. Fierro was dangerous for lefties (143 wRC+) and righties (163 wRC+).

Fierro never led the conference in homers, but he had reliably good power and averaged 35 per his 162 game average. He also found the gap well with 26 doubles and 13 triples per 162 games. Fierro was a brilliant baserunner and base stealer with impressive speed. He regularly could leg out extra bases and challenge even the strongest outfield arms.

Defensively, Fierro made around ¾ of his starts in center field and a ¼ in left. Although he never won a Gold Glove, Fierro graded out as a reliably positive defender in center and a great one in left. He managed a 22 year career, but Fierro did run into injury troubles, especially in his later years.

As remarkably talented and seemingly flawless Fierro’s profile looked, he wasn’t well-liked by other players. Many felt he was a selfish loner that cared about himself before the team. Others argued that he sometimes coasted by on his natural talent. Regardless, that talent was immense, helping Fierro to a successful career as an all-time great.

Fierro was the rare five-star rated prospect and was ranked as the #1 prospect by most observers entering the 1986 EBF Draft. Lisbon had the #1 pick and grabbed Fierro, who would play his entire European career with the Clippers. He was a full-time starter immediately and an instant success, posting 7.5 WAR to win 1987 Rookie of the Year and a Silver Slugger.

Lisbon soon went from a 61-win team in 1986 to a playoff regular with Fierro in the lineup. He won his second Silver Slugger in 1988, then posted an impressive 11.6 WAR in 1989. That earned Fierro his third Slugger and his first MVP. This would be his first of seven seasons worth 10+ WAR. All but one of his 14 years in Lisbon were worth 6.5+ WAR.

The Clippers earned a wild card in 1989 and rode it to a Southern Conference pennant, falling in the European Championship to Amsterdam. Fierro was named conference championship MVP. Lisbon missed the playoffs narrowly in 1990, but then earned nine straight berths from 1991-99 with six division titles and six conference finals appearances.

Lisbon picked up conference pennants in 1992, 1995, and 1997. They won their second European Championship in 1995, defeating Dublin. Fierro was finals MVP that year and was a big time playoff performer. In 74 starts for the Clippers, he had 94 hits, 58 runs, 13 doubles, 7 triples, 20 home runs, 64 RBI, 43 stolen bases, a .328/.375/.631 slash, and 4.4 WAR.

Fierro won a second MVP in 1994 and a third in 1997, winning additional Silver Sluggers in 1993, 94, 95, 97, and 2000. From 1992-1996, he led in WAR five times and posted 12+ in 1992, 1993, and 1994. He led in runs thrice (1991, 94, 95) and walks thrice (1990, 1991, 1995). Fierro led in the triple slash in 1994 and also led in OBP in 1993, and both slugging and OPS in 1997.

In April 1994, Fierro signed a seven-year, $22,120,000 extension to stay with Lisbon for the long haul. He also was a regular for Spain in the World Baseball Championship with 181 games and 179 starts from 1988-2006. Fierro had 151 hits, 109 runs, 28 doubles, 36 home runs, 91 RBI, 96 walks, 85 stolen bases, a .227/.333/.447 slash, 123 wRC+, and 5.5 WAR in the WBC.

Injuries began to plague Fierro in the late 1990s. A knee sprain and elbow sprain cost him about two months in 1996 with another knee sprain in 1997 costing two months. A strained groin muscle and elbow inflammation cost about three months, including the postseason in 1998. In 1999, it was a broken collar bone and torn hamstring that denied him about nine weeks and another playoff run.

2000 was his last year in Lisbon and saw a full load. Even with the injuries, Fierro was a valuable commodity and felt he could still command big money. He declined his contract option, becoming a free agent at age 36. This marked the end of his time with Lisbon and in the European Baseball Federation.

With the Clippers, Fierro had 2352 hits, 1501 runs, 356 doubles, 194 triples, 461 home runs, 1354 RBI, 844 walks, 1071 stolen bases, a .323/.394/.616 slash, 173 wRC+, and 132.6 WAR. As of 2037, Fierro is eighth among EBF position players in WAR. As of 2037, he’s 15^th in OPS among EBF hitters with 3000 plate appearances. He left too early for more prominent leaderboard spots for the other counting stats.

Still, his Hall of Fame resume was obvious and most Spanish baseball fans have him as a top five player in the nation’s history. Lisbon retired his #15 uniform once he was done. Fierro got 99.3%, the highest mark in the impressive four-player 2009 Hall of Fame class for EBF.

Fierro had another eight seasons of baseball left post-EBF. MLB’s Philadelphia gave him a three-year, $25,800,000 deal for 2001. He had a great full 2001 and helped the Phillies win the National Association pennant., although they lost to Nashville in the World Series. In 19 playoff starts, Fierro had 21 hits, 11 runs, 2 homers, 8 RBI, 8 steals, 134 wRC+, and 0.6 WAR.

Fierro missed the first half of 2002 between a strained groin muscle and elbow inflammation. He bounced back with a great second half with 5.7 WAR and 202 wRC+ in 82 games. In two seasons for Philadelphia, Fierro had 225 hits, 145 runs, 51 home runs, 143 RBI, a .280/.365/.523 slash, 163 wRC+, and 11.9 WAR. He didn’t meet the vesting criteria for the third year of the deal, entering free agency for 2003 at age 38.

Charlotte gave Fierro three years and $27,000,000. He lost the second half of 2004 to a broken kneecap and was never the same player after that. He was mostly healthy in 2004 for 3.7 WAR, but struggled at the plate for a .217 average and 93 wRC+. For the Canaries, Fierro had 7.2 WAR, a .244/.324/.433 slash, 104 wRC+, 213 hits, 126 runs, and 37 homers.

In February 2005, Fierro was part of a six-player trade that sent him from Charlotte to Albuquerque. A pinched nerve and strained ACL cost him half of the season with the Isotopes. He had a 93 wRC+ and 1.8 WAR and still provided positive value with his defense and speed, despite seeing his bat fall to subpar levels.

Now age 41, Winnipeg gave Fierro three years and $23,700,000. The Wolves won the National Association pennant in 2006, losing to Nashville in the World Series. Bone chips in his elbow ended Fierro’s postseason early, while other injuries cost him much of the regular season. The Wolves again lost in the 2007 World Series, but Fierro wasn’t available due to a fractured finger.

With Winnipeg, Fierro had 176 games and still managed 3.9 WAR, 118 wRC+, 136 hits, 82 runs, and a .240/.316/.423 slash. He failed to meet the vesting criteria again and was a broken down free agent. Fierro was unsigned until late June 2008 with Jacksonville giving him a chance. He stunk in 65 games for the Gators with -0.4 WAR and a 73 wRC+. Fierro retired that winter as one of the few pros to get to age 44.

In his MLB tenure, Fierro still posted a very respectable 24.4 WAR in 799 games and 738 starts with 704 hits, 423 runs, 91 doubles, 130 home runs, 420 RBI, 186 stolen bases, a .251/.330/.443 slash, and 120 wRC+. For his entire career, Fierro had 3056 hits, 1924 runs, 447 doubles, 223 triples, 591 home runs, 1774 RBI, 1156 walks, 1257 stolen bases, a .303/.376/.568 slash, 158 wRC+, and 157.0 WAR.

Hitting 150+ WAR, 3000+ hits, nearly 2000 runs, 500+ homers, 1500+ RBI, 1000+ walks, and 1000+ stolen bases is an incredible set of milestones. Few, if any, pros can say they did each of those. Fierro was one of the finest outfielders of his era and arguably the best in the world during his 1990s peak.



Lindsey “Clang” Brampton – Starting Pitcher – Birmingham Bees – 99.0% First Ballot

Lindsey Brampton was a 6’1’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from London, England with duel English and Northern Irish heritage. Few pitchers in baseball history were better strikeout pitchers than Brampton. His stuff was legendary and on the 1/10 scale, graded as a 13 in his best seasons. Brampton also had reliably solid control with respectable movement.

His fastball was hard enough for most hitters, regularly hitting 97-99 mph. Brampton’s changeup was the one though that got a remarkable amount of whiffs. You could argue he had the best changeup of all-time and was an absolute master at changing speeds. Even worse for batters, Brampton also had an excellent curveball he could get you with. He absolutely re-wrote the EBF strikeout record book with that trio of pitches.

Brampton also had excellent stamina and was considered quite durable for most his career, tossing 235+ innings each year from 1990-2001. Runners weren’t often going to steal on his and he played respectable defense. Brampton also wasn’t a bad batter for a pitcher with a .219 average, winning a Silver Slugger in 1992.

It is no wonder that Brampton became one of the most beloved baseball figures not only in the United Kingdom, but worldwide. He was also a hard worker, dedicated, and selfless. Hitters hated facing him, but perhaps no European pitcher elicited more respect, and fear, then Lindsey Brampton.

Despite all that, Brampton wasn’t a mega hyped prospect coming out of the University of Oxford. Birmingham picked him in the second round of the 1987 EBF Draft with the 45^th overall pick. Brampton was mostly a full-timer right way for the Bees, posting 204.2 innings in 1989 with decent results. He found his strikeout form in 1990 and was a superstar soon after.

From 1990-2001, Brampton led the Northern Conference each season in strikeouts. From 1991-01, he had 11 straight seasons with 400+ strikeouts. Prior to that, there had only been 12 seasons total by other pitchers in EBF with 400+. All but two of those were by Jean-Luc Roch or Alejandro Canas, who won ten Pitcher of the Year awards between them.

The only player in world history with more 400+ strikeout seasons was world strikeout king Mohamed Ramos of Beisbol Sudamerica, who had 13 total and 12 consecutive. The Oceania Baseball Association’s Akira Brady would reach 12 seasons of 400 Ks over the 2010s-2020s.

Prior to Brampton, EBF’s single-season record was 454 in 1978 by Canas. Brampton broke that five times, starting with 465 in 1993. He posted 474 Ks in 1995, then peaked with 489 in 1996. At the time, that ranked 6^th best in world history. As of 2037, Brampton holds the top five EBF seasons and has 11 spots in the top 20.

Prior to Brampton, only Ugo Musacci had reached 21 Ks in a game in EBF, doing it in 1970. Brampton thrice had 22 K games, including one in only 8.1 innings in 1996 against Glasgow. He hit 21 Ks five times and 20 Ks five times. One of those 21 K games was his lone no-hitter, coming against his hometown London on August 14, 2001 with four walks.

It wasn’t just strikeouts though for Brampton. He led the conference in ERA from 1991-93, then again from 1995-96. Brampton led in WHIP nine times, wins five times, innings once, K/BB twice, quality starts thrice, complete games twice, FIP- seven times, and WAR six times. 1993-97 had five straight seasons worth 10+ WAR.

Brampton was third in Pitcher of the Year voting in 1990, then won it seven straight years from 1991-97. He’s the only EBF pitcher with seven consecutive and only Roch has more with eight. In 1993, Brampton took the MVP as well with career bests in ERA (1.66), and WAR (12.9). Brampton had Triple Crowns in 1995 and 1996. He also took second in 1999 and 2001 POTY voting. The Bees locked him up long-term after the 1994 season for seven years and $18,300,000.

With Brampton’s pitching and Sean Houston’s homers and multiple MVPs, Birmingham became a regular contender. The Bees had seven straight playoff berths from 1991-97 with five conference finals appearances. Birmingham took the pennant in 1991, 93, 94, and 96. In 1991 and 1994, the Bees earned the European Championship.

Brampton’s playoff numbers weren’t as dominant as his regular season bests, but still plenty good. He had a 3.20 ERA over 166 innings, 9-9 record, 270 strikeouts, 35 walks, 116 ERA+, and 4.8 WAR. As of 2037, Brampton is third all-time in playoff strikeouts and ninth in WAR among pitchers.

1998 marked the end of Birmingham’s streak, as they’d be just above .500 for the next four years. It ended Brampton’s POTY streak with a surprisingly weak 3.45 ERA, leading the conference in home runs allowed. He bounced back with three strong seasons after that and led in WAR again in 2001 with 9.8. In 2000, Brampton joined Roch and Canas in the 5K strikeout club and seemed more than poised to catch Roch’s 5757 record.

Birmingham gave Brampton a five-year, $26,500,000 extension in April 2001. He was 33 at the time of signing that and hadn’t showed any real sign of slowing down. Things very quickly changed though on June 10, 2002. On that day, Brampton suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament. He had been unremarkable earlier in the season and now, his career seemed to be in doubt.

Brampton rehabbed back for a return in 2003. His stuff was still strong, but the injury greatly diminished his control. He walked 93, way more then his career worst of 65 in 1990. Brampton had a mere 3.85 ERA, 1.9 WAR, 250 strikeouts, and 96 ERA+ over 224.1 innings.

This season did allow him to pass Roch as EBF’s strikeout king, but he fell just short of 6000. Only four pitchers in world history had made it to 6k and Brampton ranks sixth in the world as of 2037. Many thought he might be able to chase the all-time mark, but the injury and his diminished production put that in doubt.

Additionally, Birmingham had entered a rebuild after a putrid 68-win 2002, their worst since 1973. Brampton opted to retire after the 2003 campaign at only age 35. Birmingham immediately retired his #11 uniform and he remains one of the most beloved sportsmen in the UK.

Brampton finished with a 268-118 record, 2.58 ERA, 3713.1 innings, 5955 strikeouts, 780 walks, 328/444 quality starts, 185 complete games, 52 shutouts, 143 ERA+, 63 FIP-, and 123.4 WAR. As of 2037, Brampton is still the EBF strikeout king and the leader in K/9 at 14.43. He also ranks sixth in wins, fifth in complete games, and seventh in pitching WAR.

In his prime, Brampton’s dominance was something to behold. Guys like Roch and Canas may have been more efficient, but Brampton’s raw strikeout ability was remarkable and exciting. He was certainly a no-doubt Hall of Famer in 2009 at 99.0% and is quickly mentioned in any conversation about the best strikeout pitchers in pro baseball history.