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FuzzyRussianHat · 09-02-2024, 01:00 PM

Two-time defending European Champion Dublin and last year’s #1 seed Cologne tied for the top record in the EBF Elite at 107-55. The Dinos had the tiebreaker to take the top slot in the Northern Conference and posted their fifth straight 100+ win season. Dublin also earned its sixth British Isles Division title in eight years. The Copperheads won a third straight North Central Division title with their fourth division title in five years.

Brussels took the Northwest Division at 98-64, edging Paris (95-67) and Amsterdam (89-73). The Beavers picked up their third straight division title. For the Poodles, they narrowly took the first wild card slot. Just behind them at 94-68 were both Birmingham and Antwerp. The Bees won a tiebreaker game over the Airedales to earn their third straight playoff berth. It was a record season for Antwerp, who had won the Second League title the prior year.

The only team above .500 in the Baltic Sea Division was 92-70 Oslo, winning a fourth consecutive division title. Thus, five of the six playoff teams from the prior season in the Northern Conference made it back. Paris was the only one who had missed in 2011, but had been a wild card in 2010. Luxembourg was the team that didn’t make it back, going from a 92-win wild card to only 79-83 in 2012.

Manchester was by far the worst team at 58-104 and was relegated. The Crushers had been a wild card in 2009, but hadn’t topped 70 wins since. London very narrowly was relegated again at 63-99, avoiding the 100-loss cut by one. The Monarchs had only been mark in the top tier for three years since their last relegation. Helsinki (64-98) almost dropped again in their second season back in the EBF Elite.

Oslo shortstop Harvey Coyle won his fourth consecutive Northern Conference MVP. The 25-year old English switch hitter led in home runs (55), total bases (421), slugging (.710), and WAR (13.2). Coyle added 101 runs, 132 RBI, a .322 average, 1.077 OPS, and 199 wRC+. He picked up his fifth Gold Glove, posting a 29.9 zone rating and 1.136 EFF.

Pitcher of the Year was Vilnius veteran Andrea Pellegrini. The 30-year old Italian righty led in ERA (1.88), WHIP (0.87), K/BB (7.9), and shutouts (8). He added 8.0 WAR, an 18-9 record, 262 strikeouts, and 195 ERA+ over 253.1 innings. This was Pellegrini’s last great season with labrum tears and a torn UCL getting him in later years. He would pitch only 308.1 innings combined over the next four seasons.

Paris swept Oslo and Brussels swept Birmingham in the first round of the playoffs. The Poodles then stunned Dublin 3-1 in round two, ending the Dinos’ three-peat bid. This was Paris’ third Northern Conference Championship berth of the decade (2004, 2006, 2012). Cologne meanwhile defeated Brussels 3-1, sending the Copperheads to their second-ever conference final (2008).

Cologne defeated Paris 4-2, becoming the first of the 2000 expansion teams to win a pennant. The Copperheads were also the first German team since Munich in 2001 to make it to the final. Bad luck continued for the Poodles, as the defeat gave them four consecutive conference finals losses.

Last year’s Southern Conference runner-up Athens earned the top seed in 2012. The Anchors finished 100-62, winning the Southeast Division for the fourth year in a row and extended their playoff streak to five. Zurich received the other bye, taking the South Central Division at 98-64. After winning the pennant in 2010, the Mountaineers had dropped to 76-86 in 2011. They had to fend off a feisty Prague at 94-68, who took the first wild card for repeat playoff berths.

Marseille secured the Southwest Division at 94-68, extending their playoff streak to four. It was their first division title since winning it all in 2009. They were five games better than Madrid and six ahead of both Lisbon and Milan.

In the East Central Division, Vienna (90-72) edged out Budapest (89-73) and Skopje (85-77). The Vultures bounced back from a 70-win 2011. Even though this was their seventh playoff berth in a decade, it was Vienna’s first division title since 2006.

The race for the second wild card was incredibly tight with the Bombers and Conquistadors tying at 89-73. The Clippers and Maulers missed by only one game, both Malta and Munich were two back, and the Stags were four behind. Budapest defeated Madrid in a tiebreaker game to end a three-year playoff drought for the Bombers.

Naples was relegated with an EBF-worst 56-106 record. It was their sixth straight losing season, although only 15 years earlier they had won it all. Bratislava would also be relegated as they lost exactly 100 games at 62-100. The Blue Falcons had won 106 in 2007, but slowly declined from there. Thus, three total teams were demoted in 2012.

For the fifth time in six years, Marseille RF Jean-Luc Tapie won Southern Conference MVP. He joined Sean Houston as EBF’s only players to win 5+ MVPs. The 27-year old French lefty led in homers (53), slugging (.704), OPS (1.128), and total bases (390). Tapie added 9.8 WAR, 208 wRC+, .339 batting average, 112 RBI, and 117 runs. The Musketeers had locked him up long-term the prior autumn on an eight-year, $88,300,000 extension.

Pitcher of the Year went to Krakow’s Rostyslav Varenyk. The 28-year old Ukrainian led with 26 quality starts, posting a 2.20 ERA over 249.1 innings with 244 strikeouts and a 22-6 record. Varenyk added a 166 ERA+ and 6.2 WAR. It was the one standout season in an otherwise journeyman career. He’d post 10.1 WAR total over the next decade bouncing around between three leagues and eight teams.

Vienna edged Prague 2-1 and Budapest edged Marseille 2-1 in the first round. The Vultures then upset top-seed Athens 3-1, while Zurich survived in five against the Bombers. Vienna hadn’t been to the Southern Conference Championship since their 2005 pennant, while the Mountaineers had a shot at their second title in three years.

The Vultures prevailed 4-2 over Zurich, making Vienna eight-time conference champs (1967, 69, 70, 72, 73, 2003, 05, 12). This put them only one pennant behind the Mountaineers, Madrid, and Barcelona; who have nine apiece.

For only the fifth time in the 63 year history of the European Championship and the first time since 1987, the series ended in a sweep. Cologne clobbered Vienna, making the Copperheads the first expansion team to win the EBF crown. The Vultures’ finals fortunes remain lousy, moving to 1-7 all-time.

Veteran LF Gabby Flor was finals MVP in his 10^th season for Cologne, posting 14 hits, 10 runs, 5 homers, and 11 RBI over 14 playoff starts. The Copperheads became the first German team since Munich in 1988 to take the cup. The other German champs were Berlin in 1958 and Munich in 1952.

Other notes: Amsterdam’s Giannis Mavromichalis threw EBF’s 33^rd perfect game on July 23, striking out 10 against Helsinki. He then threw another no-hitter with seven strikeouts and one walk against Manchester on August 29. Mavromichalis joined Hall of Famer Jean-Luc Roch (1975) and Harald Solbach (1952) as the only EBF pitchers with two no-hitters in the same season. Mavromichalis was the only of those three to have a perfecto in that season.

Blazej Swierczewski and Alan Dikov became the 25^th and 26^th sluggers to reach 500 home runs. Francisco Cruz became the 18^th to reach 1500 RBI. Sam Connor was the 28^th to reach 2500 hits and Lance de Ruiter was the 32^nd to cross 200 pitching wins. 1B Wilfried Keilbach won his eighth Gold Glove.

Promotion/Relegation: Naples, Bratislava, and Manchester were the relegated teams. Promoted were Second League finalists Gothenburg and Zaragoza, along with Reykjavik. The Crushers and Nobles took over the two E2L Western Conference slots while the Blue Falcons joined the Eastern Conference.

Manchester’s relegation allowed for Edinburgh to move out of the Northwest Division into the logical fit of the British Isles Division. Reykjavik took the Enforcers’ spot in the Northwest. Zaragoza was moved into the Southwest Division with their fellow Spanish squads. This allowed Milan to be moved out of the Southwest and back into the South Central, filling Naples’ spot.

Gothenburg was moved into the Baltic Sea Division with their Scandinavian neighbors, which required one team to switch conferences to fix the balance. Hamburg was moved out of the Baltic Sea Division to the North Central. Krakow would then be swapped from the North Central into the East Central, swapping conferences. That plugged the spot previously occupied by Bratislava.

09-02-2024, 01:00 PM	#1576
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 3,236	2012 in EBF Two-time defending European Champion Dublin and last year’s #1 seed Cologne tied for the top record in the EBF Elite at 107-55. The Dinos had the tiebreaker to take the top slot in the Northern Conference and posted their fifth straight 100+ win season. Dublin also earned its sixth British Isles Division title in eight years. The Copperheads won a third straight North Central Division title with their fourth division title in five years. Brussels took the Northwest Division at 98-64, edging Paris (95-67) and Amsterdam (89-73). The Beavers picked up their third straight division title. For the Poodles, they narrowly took the first wild card slot. Just behind them at 94-68 were both Birmingham and Antwerp. The Bees won a tiebreaker game over the Airedales to earn their third straight playoff berth. It was a record season for Antwerp, who had won the Second League title the prior year. The only team above .500 in the Baltic Sea Division was 92-70 Oslo, winning a fourth consecutive division title. Thus, five of the six playoff teams from the prior season in the Northern Conference made it back. Paris was the only one who had missed in 2011, but had been a wild card in 2010. Luxembourg was the team that didn’t make it back, going from a 92-win wild card to only 79-83 in 2012. Manchester was by far the worst team at 58-104 and was relegated. The Crushers had been a wild card in 2009, but hadn’t topped 70 wins since. London very narrowly was relegated again at 63-99, avoiding the 100-loss cut by one. The Monarchs had only been mark in the top tier for three years since their last relegation. Helsinki (64-98) almost dropped again in their second season back in the EBF Elite. Oslo shortstop Harvey Coyle won his fourth consecutive Northern Conference MVP. The 25-year old English switch hitter led in home runs (55), total bases (421), slugging (.710), and WAR (13.2). Coyle added 101 runs, 132 RBI, a .322 average, 1.077 OPS, and 199 wRC+. He picked up his fifth Gold Glove, posting a 29.9 zone rating and 1.136 EFF. Pitcher of the Year was Vilnius veteran Andrea Pellegrini. The 30-year old Italian righty led in ERA (1.88), WHIP (0.87), K/BB (7.9), and shutouts (8). He added 8.0 WAR, an 18-9 record, 262 strikeouts, and 195 ERA+ over 253.1 innings. This was Pellegrini’s last great season with labrum tears and a torn UCL getting him in later years. He would pitch only 308.1 innings combined over the next four seasons. Paris swept Oslo and Brussels swept Birmingham in the first round of the playoffs. The Poodles then stunned Dublin 3-1 in round two, ending the Dinos’ three-peat bid. This was Paris’ third Northern Conference Championship berth of the decade (2004, 2006, 2012). Cologne meanwhile defeated Brussels 3-1, sending the Copperheads to their second-ever conference final (2008). Cologne defeated Paris 4-2, becoming the first of the 2000 expansion teams to win a pennant. The Copperheads were also the first German team since Munich in 2001 to make it to the final. Bad luck continued for the Poodles, as the defeat gave them four consecutive conference finals losses. Last year’s Southern Conference runner-up Athens earned the top seed in 2012. The Anchors finished 100-62, winning the Southeast Division for the fourth year in a row and extended their playoff streak to five. Zurich received the other bye, taking the South Central Division at 98-64. After winning the pennant in 2010, the Mountaineers had dropped to 76-86 in 2011. They had to fend off a feisty Prague at 94-68, who took the first wild card for repeat playoff berths. Marseille secured the Southwest Division at 94-68, extending their playoff streak to four. It was their first division title since winning it all in 2009. They were five games better than Madrid and six ahead of both Lisbon and Milan. In the East Central Division, Vienna (90-72) edged out Budapest (89-73) and Skopje (85-77). The Vultures bounced back from a 70-win 2011. Even though this was their seventh playoff berth in a decade, it was Vienna’s first division title since 2006. The race for the second wild card was incredibly tight with the Bombers and Conquistadors tying at 89-73. The Clippers and Maulers missed by only one game, both Malta and Munich were two back, and the Stags were four behind. Budapest defeated Madrid in a tiebreaker game to end a three-year playoff drought for the Bombers. Naples was relegated with an EBF-worst 56-106 record. It was their sixth straight losing season, although only 15 years earlier they had won it all. Bratislava would also be relegated as they lost exactly 100 games at 62-100. The Blue Falcons had won 106 in 2007, but slowly declined from there. Thus, three total teams were demoted in 2012. For the fifth time in six years, Marseille RF Jean-Luc Tapie won Southern Conference MVP. He joined Sean Houston as EBF’s only players to win 5+ MVPs. The 27-year old French lefty led in homers (53), slugging (.704), OPS (1.128), and total bases (390). Tapie added 9.8 WAR, 208 wRC+, .339 batting average, 112 RBI, and 117 runs. The Musketeers had locked him up long-term the prior autumn on an eight-year, $88,300,000 extension. Pitcher of the Year went to Krakow’s Rostyslav Varenyk. The 28-year old Ukrainian led with 26 quality starts, posting a 2.20 ERA over 249.1 innings with 244 strikeouts and a 22-6 record. Varenyk added a 166 ERA+ and 6.2 WAR. It was the one standout season in an otherwise journeyman career. He’d post 10.1 WAR total over the next decade bouncing around between three leagues and eight teams. Vienna edged Prague 2-1 and Budapest edged Marseille 2-1 in the first round. The Vultures then upset top-seed Athens 3-1, while Zurich survived in five against the Bombers. Vienna hadn’t been to the Southern Conference Championship since their 2005 pennant, while the Mountaineers had a shot at their second title in three years. The Vultures prevailed 4-2 over Zurich, making Vienna eight-time conference champs (1967, 69, 70, 72, 73, 2003, 05, 12). This put them only one pennant behind the Mountaineers, Madrid, and Barcelona; who have nine apiece. For only the fifth time in the 63 year history of the European Championship and the first time since 1987, the series ended in a sweep. Cologne clobbered Vienna, making the Copperheads the first expansion team to win the EBF crown. The Vultures’ finals fortunes remain lousy, moving to 1-7 all-time. Veteran LF Gabby Flor was finals MVP in his 10^th season for Cologne, posting 14 hits, 10 runs, 5 homers, and 11 RBI over 14 playoff starts. The Copperheads became the first German team since Munich in 1988 to take the cup. The other German champs were Berlin in 1958 and Munich in 1952. Other notes: Amsterdam’s Giannis Mavromichalis threw EBF’s 33^rd perfect game on July 23, striking out 10 against Helsinki. He then threw another no-hitter with seven strikeouts and one walk against Manchester on August 29. Mavromichalis joined Hall of Famer Jean-Luc Roch (1975) and Harald Solbach (1952) as the only EBF pitchers with two no-hitters in the same season. Mavromichalis was the only of those three to have a perfecto in that season. Blazej Swierczewski and Alan Dikov became the 25^th and 26^th sluggers to reach 500 home runs. Francisco Cruz became the 18^th to reach 1500 RBI. Sam Connor was the 28^th to reach 2500 hits and Lance de Ruiter was the 32^nd to cross 200 pitching wins. 1B Wilfried Keilbach won his eighth Gold Glove. Promotion/Relegation: Naples, Bratislava, and Manchester were the relegated teams. Promoted were Second League finalists Gothenburg and Zaragoza, along with Reykjavik. The Crushers and Nobles took over the two E2L Western Conference slots while the Blue Falcons joined the Eastern Conference. Manchester’s relegation allowed for Edinburgh to move out of the Northwest Division into the logical fit of the British Isles Division. Reykjavik took the Enforcers’ spot in the Northwest. Zaragoza was moved into the Southwest Division with their fellow Spanish squads. This allowed Milan to be moved out of the Southwest and back into the South Central, filling Naples’ spot. Gothenburg was moved into the Baltic Sea Division with their Scandinavian neighbors, which required one team to switch conferences to fix the balance. Hamburg was moved out of the Baltic Sea Division to the North Central. Krakow would then be swapped from the North Central into the East Central, swapping conferences. That plugged the spot previously occupied by Bratislava. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports The Level Playing Field: Alternate MLB History From 1884-Onward Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)