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FuzzyRussianHat · 01-11-2025, 11:21 AM

Junia Lava – First Base/Designated Hitter – Fiji Freedom – 93.8% First Ballot

Junia Lava was a 6’3’’, 200 pound switch-hitting first baseman from Vila, the capital of Vanuatu. He was the third inductee from the small island nation, joining great pitchers Tarzan Rao and Brad Nelson. Lava was known as a consistently strong home run hitter, topping 30+ homers in 18 seasons and 40+ homers in nine seasons. His gap power was decent with around 20-25 doubles most years. Lava was painfully slow and wasn’t going to get extra bags with his legs. Lava’s contact ability and eye were both average at best and he struggled with strikeouts.

Lava’s durability was quite good, allowing him to play more than 3000 games over 22 years. He only ever started in the field at first base and graded for his career as a subpar defender, although you could do far worse. Early in his run, Lava was viewed as a positive value defenseman. About 30% of his starts came as a designated hitter. Lava was a respected team captain, known for his loyalty, leadership, and dedication. He became one of the most popular players in the Pacific League and one of the most universally admired players of his time.

A scout for Fiji managed to discover Lava as a teenager, signing him to a developmental deal as a teenager in September 1992. He spent three years in their academy before debuting with 47 games in 1996 at age 21. Lava was a starter the next year and held the job down for the next two decades.

His best season by many metrics was 2000, leading the league with career highs in home runs (54), total bases (391), and wRC+ (197). Lava also had his bests in runs (104), hits (190), doubles (33), triple slash (.312/.372/.642), OPS (1.014), and WAR (7.6). Lava won a Silver Slugger and took second in MVP voting. Fiji would lock him up by May 2002 to a six-year, $22,360,000 extension.

Lava’s lone MVP win and his second Silver Slugger came in 2002, leading in RBI, total bases, and WAR. He also won a Gold Glove to complete the awards sweep. This effort led Fiji to their first-ever Pacific League pennant win, although they were denied in the Oceania Championship by Brisbane in a seven game classic. In the series, Lava went 10-28 with 4 runs, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs, and 5 RBI.

Lava won a second Gold Glove in 2004, but wasn’t in awards conversations for the rest of his run. He didn’t get above 5 WAR in a season after 2002, but he still provided steady power numbers. After being a bottom-rung franchise for most of their existence, Fiji was in the mix in the mid 2000s. They fell one game short of the PL title to Tahiti in both 2003 and 2004. Then in 2006, the Freedom won their second-ever pennant, this time on the good side of a one-game margin with the Tropics.

Fiji would again be denied their first OBA crown, falling to Melbourne’s dynasty. Lava was 3-15 in the series as they got swept, but he’d be fondly remembered as the guy who got the Freedom to their first-ever finals trips. For the rest of Lava’s run after this, Fiji was in the middle of the standings and usually around .500, plus or minus a few games.

In April 2008, Lava signed another extension with the Freedom at $16,280,000 over five years. His durability remained steady into his 30s, even if his production was now merely decent. In 2012, Lava became the 5^th member of the 600 home run club, the 9^th to 2500 hits, and the 5^th to 1500 RBI. He signed a series of one-year deals with Fiji, remaining popular in a leadership role as he chased more milestones.

In 2015, Lava was the 3^rd to reach 1500 runs scored and the 3^rd to 700 home runs. He also had a resurgence that year at age 40, leading the PL with 117 RBI. He also smacked 44 homers, his first 40+ season since 2008. In 2016, he became the second to reach 3000 games played. Fiji gave him a three-year, $13,600,000 extension in July 2016. One month later, Lava was the second to earn 3000 career hits. That year, Lava also became OBA’s all-time RBI leader.

Lava had still been playable to that point, but age finally caught up in 2017 as he struggled to -0.6 WAR. Fiji had no choice but to bench him, ending a chase for the all-time home run and runs scored marks. He would get 71 hits in 2017, passing Quentin Basa’s 3078 to become OBA’s all-time hits king. Lava retired that winter at age 42 and immediately had his #10 uniform retired by the Freedom. At retirement, Lava was the OBA leader in games, at-bats, hits, strikeouts, and RBI. He was 2^nd in runs and 3^rd in home runs.

In total, Lava played 3243 games with 3113 hits, 1611 runs, 465 doubles, 51 triples, 778 home runs, 1989 RBI, 879 walks, 3268 strikeouts, .255/.307/.492 slash, 128 wRC+, and 66.0 WAR. As of 2037, Lava is still OBA’s leader in games, at-bats (12,223), and strikeouts. He ranks 5^th in runs, 5^th in hits, 10^th in doubles, 4^th in homers, 2^nd in RBI, and 15^th in walks.

Despite all those marks, he only clocks in 49^th in WAR among position players. Advanced stats paint Lava as an above average player with elite longevity, but that durability and his leadership are very important qualities. Among all players in world history as of 2037, Lava ranks 34^th in games played and 19^th in at-bats. He does also have the misfortune of having the 6^th most strikeouts.

Lava doesn’t factor into many conversations for OBA’s top ten position players despite his tallies. However, he’s remembered quite fondly for bringing Fiji its first-ever sustained success and pennants. Few players of Lava’s era garnered more respect as a man, making him a slam dunk Hall of Famer. Lava received 93.8% to take the second slot in OBA’s three-player 2023 class.

Austin Jong – Starting Pitcher – Samoa Sun Sox – 76.4% First Ballot

Austin Jong was a 6’3’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea. At his peak, Jong’s stuff was tremendous with a 10/10 grade from some scouts. He also had quite solid command with above average movement. Jong’s velocity hit 97-99 mph with his cutter, although a fantastic changeup was his biggest source of whiffs. He also had a nice curveball as a third offering.

Jong’s stamina was good initially, but took a hit like everything else with a major injury at age 25. He struggled holding runners, but was a great gloveman, winning a Gold Glove in 2014. In the 2002 OBA Draft, Jong was a rare pick selected out of the high school ranks. Samoa snagged him with the 14^th pick of the second round, 33^rd overall. The Sun Sox kept him in developmental for two seasons before debuting him in 2005 at age 20. Jong took second in Rookie of the Year voting with a nice effort.

By his second year, Jong had arrived. From 2006-09, he had four straight seasons as the Pacific League’s strikeout leader, topping 400+ each time. Jong also was above 10+ WAR each year, leading the league from 2007-09. He was second in 2006’s Pitcher of the Year voting, then won the award in three consecutive seasons. Jong’s 14.1 WAR in 2008 is one of only 11 seasons above 14+ WAR by an OBA pitcher as of 2037.

On August 22, 2006, Jong tossed OBA’s 10^th Perfect Game in a 15 strikeout effort against Guadalcanal. He also had 20 strikeout games in both 2008 and 2009. Samoa was in the Pacific League title race, but couldn’t win it during Jong’s prime. They had second place finishes in 2008 and 2009 with 97 and 99 win seasons, respectively. The Sun Sox would be more around the third/fourth place range heading into the 2010s.

Jong seemed like the guy to lead to them eventual greatness, signing a seven-year, $26,560,000 extension in October 2007. Unfortunately, disaster struck for Jong at only age 25 on July 19, 2010 with a torn rotator cuff. Not only did that knock Jong out ten months, but his stuff, control, and stamina were never the same after that. He would finish out his Samoa run as an above average starter, but was a long way from his elite dominance of his early 20s.

With Samoa, Jong had a 156-123 record, 2.92 ERA, 2637 innings, 3304 strikeouts, 475 walks, 124 ERA+, and 80.5 WAR. The Sun Sox would eventually retire his #7 uniform for his efforts. However, they opted not to re-sign him when his deal expired after the 2014 season. Still only 30 as he hit free agency for the first time, Jong snagged a big payday from Perth at $42,600,000 over six years. The Penguins hoped they could reclaim some of Jong’s past production.

Sadly, Jong regressed further with mediocre results with the Penguins. Late in his third year in Perth, Jong suffered a torn flexor tendon that effectively ended his career. He had a 16 month recovery time and wanted to come back in 2019, but the Penguins kept him on the reserve roster all year. They voided the team option in his contract that winter and Jong retired at age 35. With Perth, he had a 31-43 record, 4.56 ERA, 606.1 innings, 545 strikeouts, 127 walks, 84 ERA+ and 8.2 WAR.

Jong finished with an 187-166 record, 3.22 ERA, 3243.1 innings, 3849 strikeouts, 602 walks, 267/420 quality starts, 116 complete games, 24 shutouts, 114 ERA+, 74 FIP-, and 88.7 WAR. As of 2037, Jong is 46^th in wins, 17^th in strikeouts, 40^th in innings, and 14^th in WAR among pitchers. His 10.68 K/9 ranks 25^th among all pitchers with 1000+ innings.

That 2006-09 run was so incredible to essentially carry Jong’s resume despite being done by age 32 and being merely decent after the rotator cuff tear. He hung around just long enough to hit the accumulations most voters had as prerequisites for a pitcher. Fans who were there remember that even if for only four years, Jong may have been the best pitcher in the world. Jong got 76.4% in his ballot debut to cap off a strong three-player Hall of Fame class in 2023 for the Oceania Baseball Association.

01-11-2025, 11:21 AM	#1967
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 3,142	2023 OBA Hall of Fame (Part 2) Junia Lava – First Base/Designated Hitter – Fiji Freedom – 93.8% First Ballot Junia Lava was a 6’3’’, 200 pound switch-hitting first baseman from Vila, the capital of Vanuatu. He was the third inductee from the small island nation, joining great pitchers Tarzan Rao and Brad Nelson. Lava was known as a consistently strong home run hitter, topping 30+ homers in 18 seasons and 40+ homers in nine seasons. His gap power was decent with around 20-25 doubles most years. Lava was painfully slow and wasn’t going to get extra bags with his legs. Lava’s contact ability and eye were both average at best and he struggled with strikeouts. Lava’s durability was quite good, allowing him to play more than 3000 games over 22 years. He only ever started in the field at first base and graded for his career as a subpar defender, although you could do far worse. Early in his run, Lava was viewed as a positive value defenseman. About 30% of his starts came as a designated hitter. Lava was a respected team captain, known for his loyalty, leadership, and dedication. He became one of the most popular players in the Pacific League and one of the most universally admired players of his time. A scout for Fiji managed to discover Lava as a teenager, signing him to a developmental deal as a teenager in September 1992. He spent three years in their academy before debuting with 47 games in 1996 at age 21. Lava was a starter the next year and held the job down for the next two decades. His best season by many metrics was 2000, leading the league with career highs in home runs (54), total bases (391), and wRC+ (197). Lava also had his bests in runs (104), hits (190), doubles (33), triple slash (.312/.372/.642), OPS (1.014), and WAR (7.6). Lava won a Silver Slugger and took second in MVP voting. Fiji would lock him up by May 2002 to a six-year, $22,360,000 extension. Lava’s lone MVP win and his second Silver Slugger came in 2002, leading in RBI, total bases, and WAR. He also won a Gold Glove to complete the awards sweep. This effort led Fiji to their first-ever Pacific League pennant win, although they were denied in the Oceania Championship by Brisbane in a seven game classic. In the series, Lava went 10-28 with 4 runs, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs, and 5 RBI. Lava won a second Gold Glove in 2004, but wasn’t in awards conversations for the rest of his run. He didn’t get above 5 WAR in a season after 2002, but he still provided steady power numbers. After being a bottom-rung franchise for most of their existence, Fiji was in the mix in the mid 2000s. They fell one game short of the PL title to Tahiti in both 2003 and 2004. Then in 2006, the Freedom won their second-ever pennant, this time on the good side of a one-game margin with the Tropics. Fiji would again be denied their first OBA crown, falling to Melbourne’s dynasty. Lava was 3-15 in the series as they got swept, but he’d be fondly remembered as the guy who got the Freedom to their first-ever finals trips. For the rest of Lava’s run after this, Fiji was in the middle of the standings and usually around .500, plus or minus a few games. In April 2008, Lava signed another extension with the Freedom at $16,280,000 over five years. His durability remained steady into his 30s, even if his production was now merely decent. In 2012, Lava became the 5^th member of the 600 home run club, the 9^th to 2500 hits, and the 5^th to 1500 RBI. He signed a series of one-year deals with Fiji, remaining popular in a leadership role as he chased more milestones. In 2015, Lava was the 3^rd to reach 1500 runs scored and the 3^rd to 700 home runs. He also had a resurgence that year at age 40, leading the PL with 117 RBI. He also smacked 44 homers, his first 40+ season since 2008. In 2016, he became the second to reach 3000 games played. Fiji gave him a three-year, $13,600,000 extension in July 2016. One month later, Lava was the second to earn 3000 career hits. That year, Lava also became OBA’s all-time RBI leader. Lava had still been playable to that point, but age finally caught up in 2017 as he struggled to -0.6 WAR. Fiji had no choice but to bench him, ending a chase for the all-time home run and runs scored marks. He would get 71 hits in 2017, passing Quentin Basa’s 3078 to become OBA’s all-time hits king. Lava retired that winter at age 42 and immediately had his #10 uniform retired by the Freedom. At retirement, Lava was the OBA leader in games, at-bats, hits, strikeouts, and RBI. He was 2^nd in runs and 3^rd in home runs. In total, Lava played 3243 games with 3113 hits, 1611 runs, 465 doubles, 51 triples, 778 home runs, 1989 RBI, 879 walks, 3268 strikeouts, .255/.307/.492 slash, 128 wRC+, and 66.0 WAR. As of 2037, Lava is still OBA’s leader in games, at-bats (12,223), and strikeouts. He ranks 5^th in runs, 5^th in hits, 10^th in doubles, 4^th in homers, 2^nd in RBI, and 15^th in walks. Despite all those marks, he only clocks in 49^th in WAR among position players. Advanced stats paint Lava as an above average player with elite longevity, but that durability and his leadership are very important qualities. Among all players in world history as of 2037, Lava ranks 34^th in games played and 19^th in at-bats. He does also have the misfortune of having the 6^th most strikeouts. Lava doesn’t factor into many conversations for OBA’s top ten position players despite his tallies. However, he’s remembered quite fondly for bringing Fiji its first-ever sustained success and pennants. Few players of Lava’s era garnered more respect as a man, making him a slam dunk Hall of Famer. Lava received 93.8% to take the second slot in OBA’s three-player 2023 class. Austin Jong – Starting Pitcher – Samoa Sun Sox – 76.4% First Ballot Austin Jong was a 6’3’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea. At his peak, Jong’s stuff was tremendous with a 10/10 grade from some scouts. He also had quite solid command with above average movement. Jong’s velocity hit 97-99 mph with his cutter, although a fantastic changeup was his biggest source of whiffs. He also had a nice curveball as a third offering. Jong’s stamina was good initially, but took a hit like everything else with a major injury at age 25. He struggled holding runners, but was a great gloveman, winning a Gold Glove in 2014. In the 2002 OBA Draft, Jong was a rare pick selected out of the high school ranks. Samoa snagged him with the 14^th pick of the second round, 33^rd overall. The Sun Sox kept him in developmental for two seasons before debuting him in 2005 at age 20. Jong took second in Rookie of the Year voting with a nice effort. By his second year, Jong had arrived. From 2006-09, he had four straight seasons as the Pacific League’s strikeout leader, topping 400+ each time. Jong also was above 10+ WAR each year, leading the league from 2007-09. He was second in 2006’s Pitcher of the Year voting, then won the award in three consecutive seasons. Jong’s 14.1 WAR in 2008 is one of only 11 seasons above 14+ WAR by an OBA pitcher as of 2037. On August 22, 2006, Jong tossed OBA’s 10^th Perfect Game in a 15 strikeout effort against Guadalcanal. He also had 20 strikeout games in both 2008 and 2009. Samoa was in the Pacific League title race, but couldn’t win it during Jong’s prime. They had second place finishes in 2008 and 2009 with 97 and 99 win seasons, respectively. The Sun Sox would be more around the third/fourth place range heading into the 2010s. Jong seemed like the guy to lead to them eventual greatness, signing a seven-year, $26,560,000 extension in October 2007. Unfortunately, disaster struck for Jong at only age 25 on July 19, 2010 with a torn rotator cuff. Not only did that knock Jong out ten months, but his stuff, control, and stamina were never the same after that. He would finish out his Samoa run as an above average starter, but was a long way from his elite dominance of his early 20s. With Samoa, Jong had a 156-123 record, 2.92 ERA, 2637 innings, 3304 strikeouts, 475 walks, 124 ERA+, and 80.5 WAR. The Sun Sox would eventually retire his #7 uniform for his efforts. However, they opted not to re-sign him when his deal expired after the 2014 season. Still only 30 as he hit free agency for the first time, Jong snagged a big payday from Perth at $42,600,000 over six years. The Penguins hoped they could reclaim some of Jong’s past production. Sadly, Jong regressed further with mediocre results with the Penguins. Late in his third year in Perth, Jong suffered a torn flexor tendon that effectively ended his career. He had a 16 month recovery time and wanted to come back in 2019, but the Penguins kept him on the reserve roster all year. They voided the team option in his contract that winter and Jong retired at age 35. With Perth, he had a 31-43 record, 4.56 ERA, 606.1 innings, 545 strikeouts, 127 walks, 84 ERA+ and 8.2 WAR. Jong finished with an 187-166 record, 3.22 ERA, 3243.1 innings, 3849 strikeouts, 602 walks, 267/420 quality starts, 116 complete games, 24 shutouts, 114 ERA+, 74 FIP-, and 88.7 WAR. As of 2037, Jong is 46^th in wins, 17^th in strikeouts, 40^th in innings, and 14^th in WAR among pitchers. His 10.68 K/9 ranks 25^th among all pitchers with 1000+ innings. That 2006-09 run was so incredible to essentially carry Jong’s resume despite being done by age 32 and being merely decent after the rotator cuff tear. He hung around just long enough to hit the accumulations most voters had as prerequisites for a pitcher. Fans who were there remember that even if for only four years, Jong may have been the best pitcher in the world. Jong got 76.4% in his ballot debut to cap off a strong three-player Hall of Fame class in 2023 for the Oceania Baseball Association. __________________ 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)