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FuzzyRussianHat · 02-08-2025, 12:02 PM

Asim Anuha – First Base – Ahmedabad Animals – 92.6% First Ballot

Asim Anuha was a 6’3’, 215 pound left-handed first baseman from Delhi, India. Anuha was known for his prolific hone run power, hitting 50+ dingers eight times and 40+ in all but his final year. His contact and eye skills were both average to above average, but he struggled significantly with strikeouts. Anuha’s power was focused on homers with only 24 doubles per his 162 game average. Anuha fared noticeably better facing right-handed pitching (.951 OPS, 175 wRC+) compared to against lefties (.776 OPS, 127 wRC+).

He was a very skilled and intelligent baserunner, but still was limited by terrible speed. Anuha played exclusively at first base and was a reliably average defender on the whole. He was an ironman who never missed a game to injury, playing 152+ games in 14 consecutive seasons. Anuha was scrappy and known for his impressive work ethic and adaptability. The sparkplug personality and towering home runs made him one of the Indian League’s most popular players of the era.

Anuha wasn’t a tip-top prospect though and he wasn’t picked until midway in the second round of the 2004 SAB Draft. With the 45^th overall pick and 14^th of the round, he went to Pune. The Purple Knights only used him for seven pinch hit plate appearances in 2005. Then in February 2006, Pune traded Anuha to Ahmedabad in a four-player deal. This started his signature run as he started immediately for the Animals.

He had one of the best Rookie of the Year campaigns in 2006, taking third in MVP voting with 55 home runs, 185 wRC+, and 6.8 WAR. All seven of his seasons with Ahmedabad had at least 49 homers and 110+ RBI. Anuha never won MVP, but he finished third in 2008 and second in 2009. He won a Silver Slugger in 2009 and a Gold Glove in 2008.

In 2009, Anuha led the Indian League in homers (61) and total bases (380) as well as with a career-best 125 runs. His best power stats came in 2010 with 63 homers, 144 RBI, 407 total bases, and 1.008 OPS. Anuha’s best WAR marks were 8.0 in both 2008 and 2009. He also was the homer leader and RBI leader again in 2011 with 49 dingers and 127 RBI. Anuha’s overall production was lower in his last two years for Ahmedabad, but he still was worth 4.6 WAR in both seasons.

Anuha’s tenure was around the end of Ahmedabad’s epic dynasty. They lost in the ILCS in 2006 and 2012, while suffering first round defeats in 2007, 2009, and 2011. 2008 marked the end of their 23-year playoff streak while they also narrowly missed in 2010. Anuha was great in the 2006 run, but merely decent in the other years. For the Animals, he had 32 playoff starts, 30 hits, 16 runs, 5 doubles, 7 homers, 18 RBI, .250/.318/.467 slash, 137 wRC+, and 1.1 WAR.

In total for Ahmedabad, Anuha played 119 games with 1156 hits, 730 runs, 170 doubles, 390 home runs, 876 RBI, 408 walks, 1434 strikeouts, .279/.324/.606 slash, 178 wRC+, and 46.7 WAR. They had signed him to an eight-year, $24,640,000 extension after the 2008 season, but Anuha opted out of the deal after the 2012 campaign. Now 30-years old, he secured the bag with a six-year, $54,800,000 deal with Jaipur.

Anuha still had good power in his first two years, but had a career-worst 228 strikeouts in 2014 and a then-low 2.5 WAR. He bounced back in 2015 with an IL-best 62 homers, his third time smacking 60+. The 7.1 WAR effort gave Anuha his second Silver Slugger and a third in MVP voting. 2016 also saw a Slugger, a third in MVP voting, and a league-best in homers with 59. Jaipur ended a six-year playoff drought, but were swept in the first round with Anuha going 1-13 in the series.

He had two more solid seasons, leading in homers for the fifth time in 2018 but also in strikeouts for the second time. Jaipur fell back out of contention, but Anuha still gave them good value over six seasons. In 950 games, Anuha had 903 hits, 577 runs, 138 doubles, 305 home runs, 638 RBI, .257/.319/.565 slash, 154 wRC+, and 30.2 WAR. While there, he became the 17^th to reach 1500 career RBI and the 11^th to reach 600 homers.

Kolkata gave Anuha a one-year deal in 2019 and he became the seventh member of SAB’s 700 home run club. However, he had career lows in homers (30), RBI (87), OPS (.738), and WAR (1.7) while striking out 200+ times for the tenth time. Anuha decided to retire that winter at age 37.

Anuha finished with 2234 games, 2186 hits, 1379 runs, 337 doubles, 725 home runs, 1601 RBI, 780 walks, 2872 strikeouts, .266/.329/.577 slash, 163 wRC+, and 78.5 WAR. As of 2037, Anuha is 8^th in homers, 19^th in RBI, 84^th in hits, 42^nd in runs, 26^th in total bases (4744), 41^st in walks, 3^rd in strikeouts, and 51^st in WAR among position players. Among those with 3000+ plate appearances, his .906 OPS is 73^rd and his slugging is 51^st.

He played in an era which had some world record shattering home run power that overshadowed what would be considered outstanding power by most metrics. Anuha’s other deficiencies keep him out of the inner circle level, but getting 700+ homers and 1500+ RBI is a clincher for most voters by themselves. At 92.6%, Anuha earned a first ballot selection as the third of four members in a loaded 2025 South Asia Baseball Hall of Fame class.

Lance Tong – Catcher – Hanoi Hounds – 74.7% First Ballot

Lance Tong was a 6’0’’, 200 pound right-handed catcher from Lao Cai, Vietnam; a city of around 130,000 people on the northern border with China. At the plate, Tong was an above average to good contact and power hitter. He had a decent eye for walks and was better than most at avoiding strikeouts compared to other SAB players. Tong’s gap power was his biggest asset offensively with 37 doubles per his 162 game average despite having terrible speed and baserunning. He was also good for 21 homers per 162.

Tong was a far better hitter than most career catchers, but he was one of the weaker defensive catchers that saw regular play. Tong’s arm was especially subpar and he was easy to steal on. Still, he was passable enough to be worth starting because of that bat. While he had some recurring small injuries, Tong managed to play 22 seasons, an impressive feat at such a demanding position. You weren’t going to outwork Tong and he was a strong leader, making him a popular figure at each of his career stops.

In the 1997 SAB Draft, Tong was picked 8^th overall by Johor Bahru. He was a part-time starter mostly for his first three years with the Blue Wings. Tong was named the full-time starter in 2001, but missed the final two months to a fractured hip. He missed about two months in 2002 as well to a hamstring strain. Tong was healthy though for back-to-back Sluggers in 2003 and 2004, recording 6.4 WAR in the latter. He also had a career best 43 doubles in 2004.

Johor Bahru had first round exits in the 1999 and 2000 playoffs, then were below average after that. The Blue Wings would also soon leave SAB for Austronesia Professional Baseball along with Kuala Lumpur. With that move imminent, Tong decided not to re-sign and entered free agency for 2005 at age 29. With Johor Bahru, Tong had 722 games, 713 hits, 296 runs, 172 doubles, 91 home runs, 337 RBI, .303/.340/.494 slash, 136 wRC+, and 22.2 WAR.

Tong moved to the Indian League on a five-year, $10,760,000 deal with Bengaluru, who had won back-to-back IL pennants. His debut for the Blazers had career highs in WAR (6.8), wRC+ (177), homers (29), and RBI (82). Tong surprisingly missed the Silver Slugger in 2005, but won in 2006. Bengaluru won a weak division at 85-77 and lost in the first round. Little did they know, that would be their final playoff trip for more than three decades.

Tong didn’t hit those peaks again, but still had positive value. Tong did notably miss about two months in 2009 to a hamstring strain. For Bengaluru, he had 611 games, 602 hits, 259 runs, 105 doubles, 91 home runs, 306 RBI, .282/.335/.468 slash, 146 wRC+, and 22.6 WAR. Now 34-years old, Tong signed a one-year, $2,200,000 deal with Hanoi for 2010, returning home to Vietnam.

Although he hadn’t played for a Vietnamese pro team to that point, Tong was a regular for his country in the World Baseball Championship. From 2000-19, he played 114 games with 91 hits, 40 runs, 11 doubles, 17 home runs, 41 RBI, .262/.317/.447 slash, and 2.4 WAR. Tong’s biggest notoriety would come with Hanoi, although 2010 would be a one-and-done. Led by Majed Darwish’s world record power, the Hounds had won the SAB title in 2007 and 2008.

Tong posted a nice 4.2 WAR in 2010 and Hanoi won the Southeast Asia League at 121-41, although they were upset by Kolkata in the SAB Championship. His playoff numbers were unremarkable as were his stats in the inaugural Baseball Grand Championship, which saw the Hounds finish 3-6.

He then switched sides of that finals matchup and played for the Cosmos in 2011. He won a Silver Slugger despite losing a month to a fractured finger with a 3.9 WAR season. Kolkata again won the Indian League, but lost the SAB Championship to Dhaka. Tong had a mere 0.2 WAR and 110 wRC+ over 16 starts. Now 36-years old, Hanoi brought him back on a three-year, $14,040,000 deal. This started his signature run as he’d ultimately spend the next eight seasons starting for the Hounds. Tong got another three years and $25,900,000 after the 2014 season and three more years at $29,000,000 after the 2016 campaign.

Tong won Silver Sluggers in 2013, 2014, and 2016. He won the award nine times, more than any other SAB catcher as of 2037. Tong lost some time to sporadic injuries, but played at an impressive level in his late 30s and early 40s. He even mustered a 6.2 WAR and a career-best .909 OPS in 2016. It was rare enough for any catcher to play to age 40 and even more incredible for them to post a 6+ WAR season.

Hanoi’s playoff steak continued through 2017 with appearances in the SEAL Championship each year from 2010-17. The Hounds won the SAB Championship in 2013 over Visakhapatnam and 2016 over Mumbai. Tong had good results specifically in the 2015 and 2016 runs. For his playoff career with Hanoi, he had 76 starts, 79 hits, 26 runs, 17 doubles, 8 homers, 35 RBI, .285/.332/.433 slash, 119 wRC+, and 2.0 WAR.

The Hounds finished tied for seventh in the 2013 Baseball Grand Championship at 10-9. Hanoi then was 12-7 in 2017, one win short of Guam for first with an official finish of third place after breaking a three-way tie. In 39 career BGC games, Tong had 26 hits, 26 runs, 4 doubles, 10 homers, 17 RBI, .188/.253/.435 slash, and 0.4 WAR.

Hanoi fell to around .500 for his final two seasons. Tong started a career-high 140 games in 2019 at age 43, but had a career-low 0.4 WAR. He retired that winter at age 44, an age rarely reached by any pro and a near impossibility for a catcher. Between runs with the Hounds, Tong had 488 runs, 1122 hits, 264 doubles, 130 home runs, 554 RBI, .300/.351/.484 slash, 134 wRC+, and 34.0 WAR. It was a rare case of a player’s signature run starting in his mid 30s, but the Hounds were appreciative enough to retire his #17 uniform for his role in their dominance.

Tong played 2467 games with 2542 hits, 1079 runs, 564 doubles, 31 triples, 323 home runs, 1245 RBI, 592 walks, 1455 strikeouts, .297/.345/.483 slash, 139 wRC+, and 82.7 WAR. As of 2037, Tong ranks 32^nd in games, 36^th in hits, 15^th in doubles, 65^th in RBI, and 46^th in WAR among position players. Among catchers, he is the career leader in runs, hits, total bases, RBI, and WAR.

By many metrics, Tong is the best catcher in SAB history. However, the bar always is so tough for catchers with many voters shunning them for the lower offensive numbers that come with the position. To that point, only Class of 2003 Krish Balvinder had been inducted into South Asia Baseball’s Hall of Fame as a catcher. He had also gotten a big bump for being part of Ahmedabad’s historic dynasty run.

The voters were still tough on Tong due to the lack of black ink and because he was admittedly a mediocre defensive catcher. But his longevity and bat, along with his role in Hanoi’s dynasty, couldn’t be overstated even by the harsh standards for catchers. Tong received 74.7%, which got him across the 66% requirement for a first ballot induction and the final spot in SAB’s impressive four-player 2025 class.

02-08-2025, 12:02 PM	#2050
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,905	2025 SAB Hall of Fame (Part 2) Asim Anuha – First Base – Ahmedabad Animals – 92.6% First Ballot Asim Anuha was a 6’3’, 215 pound left-handed first baseman from Delhi, India. Anuha was known for his prolific hone run power, hitting 50+ dingers eight times and 40+ in all but his final year. His contact and eye skills were both average to above average, but he struggled significantly with strikeouts. Anuha’s power was focused on homers with only 24 doubles per his 162 game average. Anuha fared noticeably better facing right-handed pitching (.951 OPS, 175 wRC+) compared to against lefties (.776 OPS, 127 wRC+). He was a very skilled and intelligent baserunner, but still was limited by terrible speed. Anuha played exclusively at first base and was a reliably average defender on the whole. He was an ironman who never missed a game to injury, playing 152+ games in 14 consecutive seasons. Anuha was scrappy and known for his impressive work ethic and adaptability. The sparkplug personality and towering home runs made him one of the Indian League’s most popular players of the era. Anuha wasn’t a tip-top prospect though and he wasn’t picked until midway in the second round of the 2004 SAB Draft. With the 45^th overall pick and 14^th of the round, he went to Pune. The Purple Knights only used him for seven pinch hit plate appearances in 2005. Then in February 2006, Pune traded Anuha to Ahmedabad in a four-player deal. This started his signature run as he started immediately for the Animals. He had one of the best Rookie of the Year campaigns in 2006, taking third in MVP voting with 55 home runs, 185 wRC+, and 6.8 WAR. All seven of his seasons with Ahmedabad had at least 49 homers and 110+ RBI. Anuha never won MVP, but he finished third in 2008 and second in 2009. He won a Silver Slugger in 2009 and a Gold Glove in 2008. In 2009, Anuha led the Indian League in homers (61) and total bases (380) as well as with a career-best 125 runs. His best power stats came in 2010 with 63 homers, 144 RBI, 407 total bases, and 1.008 OPS. Anuha’s best WAR marks were 8.0 in both 2008 and 2009. He also was the homer leader and RBI leader again in 2011 with 49 dingers and 127 RBI. Anuha’s overall production was lower in his last two years for Ahmedabad, but he still was worth 4.6 WAR in both seasons. Anuha’s tenure was around the end of Ahmedabad’s epic dynasty. They lost in the ILCS in 2006 and 2012, while suffering first round defeats in 2007, 2009, and 2011. 2008 marked the end of their 23-year playoff streak while they also narrowly missed in 2010. Anuha was great in the 2006 run, but merely decent in the other years. For the Animals, he had 32 playoff starts, 30 hits, 16 runs, 5 doubles, 7 homers, 18 RBI, .250/.318/.467 slash, 137 wRC+, and 1.1 WAR. In total for Ahmedabad, Anuha played 119 games with 1156 hits, 730 runs, 170 doubles, 390 home runs, 876 RBI, 408 walks, 1434 strikeouts, .279/.324/.606 slash, 178 wRC+, and 46.7 WAR. They had signed him to an eight-year, $24,640,000 extension after the 2008 season, but Anuha opted out of the deal after the 2012 campaign. Now 30-years old, he secured the bag with a six-year, $54,800,000 deal with Jaipur. Anuha still had good power in his first two years, but had a career-worst 228 strikeouts in 2014 and a then-low 2.5 WAR. He bounced back in 2015 with an IL-best 62 homers, his third time smacking 60+. The 7.1 WAR effort gave Anuha his second Silver Slugger and a third in MVP voting. 2016 also saw a Slugger, a third in MVP voting, and a league-best in homers with 59. Jaipur ended a six-year playoff drought, but were swept in the first round with Anuha going 1-13 in the series. He had two more solid seasons, leading in homers for the fifth time in 2018 but also in strikeouts for the second time. Jaipur fell back out of contention, but Anuha still gave them good value over six seasons. In 950 games, Anuha had 903 hits, 577 runs, 138 doubles, 305 home runs, 638 RBI, .257/.319/.565 slash, 154 wRC+, and 30.2 WAR. While there, he became the 17^th to reach 1500 career RBI and the 11^th to reach 600 homers. Kolkata gave Anuha a one-year deal in 2019 and he became the seventh member of SAB’s 700 home run club. However, he had career lows in homers (30), RBI (87), OPS (.738), and WAR (1.7) while striking out 200+ times for the tenth time. Anuha decided to retire that winter at age 37. Anuha finished with 2234 games, 2186 hits, 1379 runs, 337 doubles, 725 home runs, 1601 RBI, 780 walks, 2872 strikeouts, .266/.329/.577 slash, 163 wRC+, and 78.5 WAR. As of 2037, Anuha is 8^th in homers, 19^th in RBI, 84^th in hits, 42^nd in runs, 26^th in total bases (4744), 41^st in walks, 3^rd in strikeouts, and 51^st in WAR among position players. Among those with 3000+ plate appearances, his .906 OPS is 73^rd and his slugging is 51^st. He played in an era which had some world record shattering home run power that overshadowed what would be considered outstanding power by most metrics. Anuha’s other deficiencies keep him out of the inner circle level, but getting 700+ homers and 1500+ RBI is a clincher for most voters by themselves. At 92.6%, Anuha earned a first ballot selection as the third of four members in a loaded 2025 South Asia Baseball Hall of Fame class. Lance Tong – Catcher – Hanoi Hounds – 74.7% First Ballot Lance Tong was a 6’0’’, 200 pound right-handed catcher from Lao Cai, Vietnam; a city of around 130,000 people on the northern border with China. At the plate, Tong was an above average to good contact and power hitter. He had a decent eye for walks and was better than most at avoiding strikeouts compared to other SAB players. Tong’s gap power was his biggest asset offensively with 37 doubles per his 162 game average despite having terrible speed and baserunning. He was also good for 21 homers per 162. Tong was a far better hitter than most career catchers, but he was one of the weaker defensive catchers that saw regular play. Tong’s arm was especially subpar and he was easy to steal on. Still, he was passable enough to be worth starting because of that bat. While he had some recurring small injuries, Tong managed to play 22 seasons, an impressive feat at such a demanding position. You weren’t going to outwork Tong and he was a strong leader, making him a popular figure at each of his career stops. In the 1997 SAB Draft, Tong was picked 8^th overall by Johor Bahru. He was a part-time starter mostly for his first three years with the Blue Wings. Tong was named the full-time starter in 2001, but missed the final two months to a fractured hip. He missed about two months in 2002 as well to a hamstring strain. Tong was healthy though for back-to-back Sluggers in 2003 and 2004, recording 6.4 WAR in the latter. He also had a career best 43 doubles in 2004. Johor Bahru had first round exits in the 1999 and 2000 playoffs, then were below average after that. The Blue Wings would also soon leave SAB for Austronesia Professional Baseball along with Kuala Lumpur. With that move imminent, Tong decided not to re-sign and entered free agency for 2005 at age 29. With Johor Bahru, Tong had 722 games, 713 hits, 296 runs, 172 doubles, 91 home runs, 337 RBI, .303/.340/.494 slash, 136 wRC+, and 22.2 WAR. Tong moved to the Indian League on a five-year, $10,760,000 deal with Bengaluru, who had won back-to-back IL pennants. His debut for the Blazers had career highs in WAR (6.8), wRC+ (177), homers (29), and RBI (82). Tong surprisingly missed the Silver Slugger in 2005, but won in 2006. Bengaluru won a weak division at 85-77 and lost in the first round. Little did they know, that would be their final playoff trip for more than three decades. Tong didn’t hit those peaks again, but still had positive value. Tong did notably miss about two months in 2009 to a hamstring strain. For Bengaluru, he had 611 games, 602 hits, 259 runs, 105 doubles, 91 home runs, 306 RBI, .282/.335/.468 slash, 146 wRC+, and 22.6 WAR. Now 34-years old, Tong signed a one-year, $2,200,000 deal with Hanoi for 2010, returning home to Vietnam. Although he hadn’t played for a Vietnamese pro team to that point, Tong was a regular for his country in the World Baseball Championship. From 2000-19, he played 114 games with 91 hits, 40 runs, 11 doubles, 17 home runs, 41 RBI, .262/.317/.447 slash, and 2.4 WAR. Tong’s biggest notoriety would come with Hanoi, although 2010 would be a one-and-done. Led by Majed Darwish’s world record power, the Hounds had won the SAB title in 2007 and 2008. Tong posted a nice 4.2 WAR in 2010 and Hanoi won the Southeast Asia League at 121-41, although they were upset by Kolkata in the SAB Championship. His playoff numbers were unremarkable as were his stats in the inaugural Baseball Grand Championship, which saw the Hounds finish 3-6. He then switched sides of that finals matchup and played for the Cosmos in 2011. He won a Silver Slugger despite losing a month to a fractured finger with a 3.9 WAR season. Kolkata again won the Indian League, but lost the SAB Championship to Dhaka. Tong had a mere 0.2 WAR and 110 wRC+ over 16 starts. Now 36-years old, Hanoi brought him back on a three-year, $14,040,000 deal. This started his signature run as he’d ultimately spend the next eight seasons starting for the Hounds. Tong got another three years and $25,900,000 after the 2014 season and three more years at $29,000,000 after the 2016 campaign. Tong won Silver Sluggers in 2013, 2014, and 2016. He won the award nine times, more than any other SAB catcher as of 2037. Tong lost some time to sporadic injuries, but played at an impressive level in his late 30s and early 40s. He even mustered a 6.2 WAR and a career-best .909 OPS in 2016. It was rare enough for any catcher to play to age 40 and even more incredible for them to post a 6+ WAR season. Hanoi’s playoff steak continued through 2017 with appearances in the SEAL Championship each year from 2010-17. The Hounds won the SAB Championship in 2013 over Visakhapatnam and 2016 over Mumbai. Tong had good results specifically in the 2015 and 2016 runs. For his playoff career with Hanoi, he had 76 starts, 79 hits, 26 runs, 17 doubles, 8 homers, 35 RBI, .285/.332/.433 slash, 119 wRC+, and 2.0 WAR. The Hounds finished tied for seventh in the 2013 Baseball Grand Championship at 10-9. Hanoi then was 12-7 in 2017, one win short of Guam for first with an official finish of third place after breaking a three-way tie. In 39 career BGC games, Tong had 26 hits, 26 runs, 4 doubles, 10 homers, 17 RBI, .188/.253/.435 slash, and 0.4 WAR. Hanoi fell to around .500 for his final two seasons. Tong started a career-high 140 games in 2019 at age 43, but had a career-low 0.4 WAR. He retired that winter at age 44, an age rarely reached by any pro and a near impossibility for a catcher. Between runs with the Hounds, Tong had 488 runs, 1122 hits, 264 doubles, 130 home runs, 554 RBI, .300/.351/.484 slash, 134 wRC+, and 34.0 WAR. It was a rare case of a player’s signature run starting in his mid 30s, but the Hounds were appreciative enough to retire his #17 uniform for his role in their dominance. Tong played 2467 games with 2542 hits, 1079 runs, 564 doubles, 31 triples, 323 home runs, 1245 RBI, 592 walks, 1455 strikeouts, .297/.345/.483 slash, 139 wRC+, and 82.7 WAR. As of 2037, Tong ranks 32^nd in games, 36^th in hits, 15^th in doubles, 65^th in RBI, and 46^th in WAR among position players. Among catchers, he is the career leader in runs, hits, total bases, RBI, and WAR. By many metrics, Tong is the best catcher in SAB history. However, the bar always is so tough for catchers with many voters shunning them for the lower offensive numbers that come with the position. To that point, only Class of 2003 Krish Balvinder had been inducted into South Asia Baseball’s Hall of Fame as a catcher. He had also gotten a big bump for being part of Ahmedabad’s historic dynasty run. The voters were still tough on Tong due to the lack of black ink and because he was admittedly a mediocre defensive catcher. But his longevity and bat, along with his role in Hanoi’s dynasty, couldn’t be overstated even by the harsh standards for catchers. Tong received 74.7%, which got him across the 66% requirement for a first ballot induction and the final spot in SAB’s impressive four-player 2025 class. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)