[FuzzyRussianHat]

Dar es Salaam had gotten relegated to the African Second League for the first time for the 2033 campaign. The Sabercats looked for an immediate escape, setting a Southern Conference record at 106-56. For the cartoonishly high-scoring A2L, Dar set new records for runs (1328), hits (2012), and doubles (505). Their 317 homers were the second most in league history.

It was a steep drop down for the #2 spot, but six teams were within four wins of each other after 162 games. Antananarivo and Blantyre finished tied at 87-75, followed by Nampula (85-77), Maputo (84-78), Lilongwe (83-79) and Lubango (83-79). The Eagles defeated the Black Wolves in the tiebreaker game to earn the playoff spot, their first since getting dropped to A2L in 2031.



A competitive Central Conference had Kampala on top at 97-65, advancing along with 95-67 Pointe-Noire. Ndjamena was a close third at 93-69. This was the Peacocks’ first playoff trip since getting relegated for 2028. The Pride had never gotten to the playoffs before, although they did get promoted once previously for 2029 thanks to league expansions.



Dar es Salaam rolled 4-1 over Antananarivo in the Southern Conference Championship to guarantee a one-and-done in A2L. Kampala outlasted Pointe-Noire 4-3 in the Central Conference to earn a promotion back to the African Association of Baseball’s first league after a six-year absence. The A2L Championship was a classic that needed all nine games with the Sabercats coming out on top of the Peacocks.



Other notes: Several league records were set in the ultra-high scoring league, although A2L doesn’t count on world leaderboards. Dar es Salaam’s Edzai Jeke scored 185 runs, Lubango’s Husain Ferdous had 216 RBI, and Dar’s Ferdinand Rajerison had 565 total bases and 277 hits. Jeke also set a playoff record by drawing 14 walks. Ferdous became the first player with 500 A2L homers and the first to both 1500 RBI and 1500 runs scored. He also won his eighth Silver Slugger and first as a DH.