Baseball: The World's Game

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Defending West African Baseball champion Dakar again was the Western League’s top seed, winning the new North Division at 104-58. The Dukes’ playoff streak grew to seven seasons, locking up a fourth straight appearance in the Western League Championship Series. Dakar’s high powered offense led WAB with 970 runs and set a new WAB record for team slugging percentage at .542.

Freetown dominated the South Division at 101-61, earning a fourth straight playoff trip and their eighth in nine years. The Foresters allowed the fewest runs in the WL with 668. With the realignment to divisions, the other two playoff teams would be each division’s second place finisher. Both divisions had a handful of teams in a tight race.

The best of them was Monrovia, advancing out of the South at 90-72 ahead of 87-75 efforts by Abidjan and Kumasi. The Diplomats ended what was the longest active playoff drought in WAB at 18 seasons. Monrovia had 1776 hits and a .307 team batting average, which were both the second-best seasons in Western League history. The Monkeys notably had a four-year playoff streak ended and the Athletes missed for only the second time in a decade.

The #2 spot in the North had four teams within three games of each other. Nouakchott (86-76) emerged the victor over Cape Verde (85-77), Bamako (83-79), Conakry (83-79), and Banjul (80-82). The Night Riders ended their won eight year postseason drought.

Dakar 3B Junior Jose won his fourth Western League MVP and seventh Silver Slugger. The 30-year old Mozambican had won the top honor previously in 2024, 27, and 28. Jose led in home runs (63), total bases (428), and WAR (9.7). He added 198 hits, 131 runs, 37 doubles, 141 RBI, 1.123 OPS, and 179 wRC+. The former #1 overall pick was in his eighth year with the Dukes. Jose also had a 25-game hitting streak in the fall and joined the 400 home run and 1000 RBI clubs.

Pitcher of the Year went to Freetown’s Ameyaw Abdul, who led in strikeouts (302), WHIP (0.96), shutouts (2), and WAR (7.9). The 24-year old Cameroonian righty had a 16-8 record, 2.87 ERA, 204 innings, and 161 ERA+. Abdul’s filthy stuff would earn him a six-year, $78,460,000 extension the following summer with the Foresters. He would have a great 2031, but fell off quickly as his control cratered from a combination of injuries and the yips.

Monrovia defeated Nouakchott 2-0 in the first round, but was promptly iced 2-0 by Freetown in the second round. For the fourth straight year and the sixth time in seven years, the Foresters made it to the Western League Championship Series. This renewed a finals rivalry with Dakar, whom they had met four times in that stretch. The Dukes had won in the 2025, 2027, and 2029 encounters with Freetown’s lone win coming in 2028.

Dakar continued their control of the rivalry and did it decisively with a 3-0 WLCS sweep over the Foresters. With the repeat and their fourth pennant in six years, the Dukes were now eight-time Western League champs. They’re the first WL team to win four in a six year span since Monrovia’s four-peat from 2005-08.



Four-time defending Eastern League champ Cotonou looked to continue their dynasty, taking the EL’s top seed and first in the new Coastal Division at 107-55. The Copperheads allowed the fewest runs in WAB at 635 and broke their own WAB single-season attendance record with 2,248,829 tickets sold. Port Harcourt advanced as a distant second place at 91-71, besting Lome by six games. The Hillcats earned repeat playoff berths.

In a tight Interior Division, Kano (98-64) edged out Benin City (97-65) for the top spot, although both advanced to the playoffs. The Condors ended a three-year playoff drought while the Blue Devils earned repeat trips. The next closest team was Niamey down at 88-74, ending their playoff streak at six seasons. Benin City led the EL in scoring with 963 runs.

Leading the Blue Devils offense was Eastern League MVP Joao Sebastiao da Silva, who led with 71 home runs, 167 RBI, 139 runs, and 449 total bases. His was the fifth season in WAB history of 70+ homers and his RBI tally was the fifth-best in WAB annuls. In addition, da Silva had 205 hits, 27 doubles, 1.072 OPS, 163 wRC+, and 7.3 WAR. The 27-year old Angolan third baseman signed an eight-year, $123,980,000 extension with Benin City back in June 2028.

Port Harcourt’s Ngalle Eto’o won his third Pitcher of the Year, having also won it in 2024 and 2028. 2030 was his fourth ERA title at 2.30 as the 31-year old Cameroonian lefty also led in wins (22-5), WHIP (0.81), K/BB (17.6), FIP- (39), and WAR (8.7). Eto’o struck out 282 over 179.2 innings, missing out on the Triple Crown by six Ks behind teammate Alhassan Sheriff.

Benin City beat Port Harcourt 2-0 in the first round, then pulled off the 2-0 upset of Kano in the second round. The Blue Devils had only twice previously been in the Eastern League Championship Series way back in 1980 and 1982. Unfortunately for them, Cotonou’s dynasty stood in the way of winning their first-ever pennant.

The Copperheads prevailed 3-1 over Benin City to complete the five-peat, a feat previously only accomplished in WAB during Kano’s epic nine-year reign from 1997-05. Cotonou became eight-time EL champs (2010, 11, 13, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30).



The 56^th West African Championship was another showdown between Dakar and Cotonou, who had built up an impressive finals rivalry. It began with a Copperheads victory in 2013, the final of their early 2010s dynasty. Cotonou’s second dynasty had a 2027 win over the Dukes, giving them back-to-back titles. The Copperheads lost in the 2028 final to Freetown, followed by Dakar getting revenge in 2029.

For 2030, Cotonou returned to the throne by surviving a seven-game classic with Dakar. The Copperheads were now six-time WAB champs (2010, 11, 13, 26, 27, 30) and were the first to win three titles in five years since they last did it. Finals MVP was 3B Paolo Apanga in his sixth season in Cotonou and first as a full-time starter. The 30-year old Gabonese righty in 11 playoff starts had 16 hits, 10 runs, 2 doubles, 3 homers, and 8 RBI.



Other notes: WAB hit king Fares Belaid moved to #2 on the all-time list for hits in all of pro baseball history. The 41-year old Tunisian started the season with Jos, but was traded to Abidjan in the summer, finishing the campaign with 4843 career hits. This passed EBF hit king Jiri Lebr’s 4651 for the #2 slot. Belaid was now conceivably in striking distance of Prometheo Garcia, who had 5083 hits between his CABA/MLB tenures from 1943-68.

Belaid had a good season with 207 hits, .892 OPS, and 3.8 WAR and signed an extension to stick around with the Athletes. He also finished the year at 2493 runs, 892 doubles and 451 triples. Belaid moved to #2 on the world runs scored list and was just behind SAB legend Majed Darwish’s 2664. Belaid was already the world doubles leader and was now six behind EBF’s Carsten Dal (457) for the most triples ever.

Monrovia’s Adam Seaton had a .398 average in 2030 and set the WAB single-season triples record with 40. It was only the 17^th time across all world leagues that someone recorded a 40+ triple season. WAB’s 20^th perfect game was thrown by Conakry’s Juilen Essongue on July 22 with five strikeouts against Banjul. Abdel Aziz Ashraf became the 6^th member of the 700 home run club and Youssoupha Diop became the 9^th to 600 dingers. Mohamed Khammas was the 25^th to smack 500 homers.

Jonah Moiseiwitsch became the 4^th to reach 3500 career hits and Ahmed Kone was the 8^th to 3000 hits. Diop and Rasaq Kadir each got to 2500 hits, now met by 35 WAB batters. Kadir won his 7^th Silver Slugger in CF. Rio Ogbonna was the 22^nd to reach 1500 RBI while Diop and Desmond Jaiyeola were the 15^th and 16^th to 1500 runs scored. Rene Zossou became the 10^th pitcher to 3500 strikeouts. SS Saturday Solomon won his 8^th consecutive Gold Glove.

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Chinese League Baseball joined the big expansion craze for 2030, although theirs was far more humble with only two new teams. CLB’s first expansion had added six teams back in 2009 to get to 30 overall teams. Joining the Northern League would be the Lanzhou Lava and the Nanchang Crickets entered the Southern League, giving CLB 32 overall teams.



CLB did make a monumental realignment though with the additions. Previously, CLB had been division free, but officials decided to change from that now that both leagues were up to 16 teams apiece. The decision was made to separate into four divisions of four teams each. With this also came a more unbalanced schedule, which was certainly a controversial decision.

The playoff formatting remained similar with four teams advancing to a round robin in each league, followed by a best-of-seven league championship for the top two and the best-of-seven China Series. The Round Robin had previously been a double setup with each team playing each other twice for six total games. For 2030, it was expanded to a triple round robin with each team now playing nine total games with three against each opponent.

Instead of simply the top four teams by record advancing as previously done; now it would be the four division winners. Supporters liked having a team guaranteed from various regions and felt the new setup would intensify regional rivalries. Detractors worried about great teams missing the playoffs in a loaded division while a weak team could advance out of a bad division.

The Northern League’s alignment now had the West Division (Zhengzhou, Urumqi, Xi’an, Lanzhou); Southeast (Shanghai, Hangzhou, Qingdao, Nanjing); Northeast (Harbin, Changchun, Shenyang, Dalian); and the East Central (Jinan, Beijing, Tianjin, Shijiazhuang). The Southern League had the Southwest Division (Guangzhou, Nanning, Foshan, Kunming); Southeast (Hong Kong, Xiamen, Shenzhen, Macau); Central (Chongqing, Changsha, Wuhan, Chengdu); and East (Wenzhou, Dongguan, Nanchang, Shantou).

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Two teams were clear standouts in the Northern League; Harbin and Jinan. The Hellcats narrowly had the top record again, winning the new Northeast Division at 103-59. Harbin had a tough fight in the division with 95-67 Changchun, who became the first victim to miss the playoffs under the new wild card free system. The Hellcats set a new Chinese League Baseball attendance record with 2,090,696 tickets solid, besting the previous high set the prior year by Zhengzhou (2,049,265).

Reigning CLB champ Shenyang was a very distant third in the Northeast at 82-80. The Swans allowed the fewest runs in the NL at 508, but only scored 533. For the Jumbos, they rolled to the East Central Division at 102-60 to end a two-year playoff drought. Jinan made their own history, breaking CLB’s team on-base percentage record at .317. It was also the Jumbos’ first-ever 100+ win campaign. Last year’s NL runner-up Tianjin tied with Beijing for second in the division at 85-77.

Zhengzhou claimed the West Division at 92-70, earning their fourth playoff trip in five years. The Southeast Division was the NL’s weak link as Shanghai narrowly advanced at 83-79 over Hangzhou at 82-80. It was an impressive turnaround for the Seawolves, who hadn’t been above .500 since 2022 and hadn’t been a playoff team since 2017. Their 12-year playoff drought had been tied with Chengdu for the longest active skid in CLB.

The Zips took the top awards, led by Northern League MVP Harvey Chong. The 31-year old Hong Kong native was in his 11^th season for Zhengzhou and his ninth starting at first base. Chong led in total bases (413) while adding 210 hits, 109 runs, 58 home runs, 123 RBI, .327/.363/.642 slash, 192 wRC+, and 9.0 WAR. He also notably had a 23-game hitting streak in the fall.

Chong beat out Xiamen’s Liren Poh for the top honor. Poh had him beat for home runs (61) and RBI (130), but had lower advanced stats (.922 OPS, 163 wRC+, 6.7 WAR). Still, Poh’s effort was only the sixth 60+ homer season in CLB history to that point and only the sixth 130+ RBI campaign.

Second-year righty Jianglong An won Pitcher of the Year for the Zips, having led in ERA (1.80), and WAR (7.0). The fourth overall pick in the 2028 CLB Draft, An had been used as a closer the prior year. In 2030, An also had a 19-8 record, 234.2 innings, 254 strikeouts, and 180 ERA+. He was renowned for being “effectively wild,” with stellar stuff and movement (especially with his cutter), but lousy control.

In the new Triple Round Robin playoff format, Harbin took the top honor at 7-2. Both Jinan and Shanghai finished 4-5 while Zhengzhou was 3-6. The tiebreaker sent the Hellcats forward for their first semifinal trip since 2013. For the Jumbos, this was their first since 2016. Harbin had home field advantage, but Jinan dominated the Northern League Championship 4-1, advancing to the China Series for only the second time (2007).



The Southern League in 2030 arguably highlighted the problem with the four division system as the league’s top three records were all in the Central. Chongqing was the clear #1 at 100-62, earning their fifth playoff berth in six years. The Cavaliers hadn’t taken the top seed since 1985. Defending SL champ Changsha at 92-70 and Wuhan at 91-71 both missed the playoffs. The Cannons had allowed the SL’s fewest runs at 452.

The next best division winner was Guangzhou at 87-75 atop the Southwest, fending off Nanning (81-81) and Foshan (80-82). The Gamecocks ended a five-year playoff drought. In the Southeast, Hong Kong (86-76) edged out Xiamen (85-77). The Champions ended a six-year playoff drought, having not won more than 71 games in a season during that rough run.

The Mutts missed the playoffs for only the second time in eight years despite leading the SL with 665 runs scored. In the East Division, Wenzhou (83-79) took first by one game over last year’s top seed and SL runner-up Dongguan (82-80). The Wild ended a five year playoff drought.

Southern League MVP went to fifth-year Guangzhou center fielder Wo-Shi Hsu. The 27-year old from Taiwan led in stolen bases (82) and WAR (10.3). Hsu added 196 hits, 95 runs, 30 doubles, 14 triples, 30 home runs, .322/.374/.565 slash, and 187 wRC+. He had been selected third in the 2025 CLB Draft by the Gamecocks.

Chongqing’s Bin Li won his second Pitcher of the Year, having previously done it in 2026. The 28-year old righty led in WHIP (0.83) and posted a 2.27 ERA over 241.1 innings, 17-9 record, 291 strikeouts, and 138 ERA+. The lanky 6’8’’ Li had signed a six-year, $59,900,000 extension with the Cavaliers back after the 2027 campaign.

Guangzhou (7-2) and Wenzhou (6-3) emerged from the Triple Round Robin while Hong Kong (3-6) and top seed Chongqing (2-7) were ousted. The 2009 expansion Wild had never made it this far, while the Gamecocks’ last semifinal trip was in 2023. Wenzhou rolled 4-1 over Guangzhou for their first-ever Southern League pennant. CLB had continued to show impressive parity with 29 of the 32 teams having advanced to the China Series at least once in its 61-year history. Only 2009 expansion Shijiazhuang and the two brand new teams hadn’t made it yet.



The Jinan versus Wenzhou matchup also guaranteed the 23^rd different franchise to win it all. The Jumbos took the 62^nd China Series 4-2 over the Wild with an unlikely finals MVP in 1B Wenfeng Liu. He had been their first round pick in 2025, but still hadn’t made his CLB debut to that point. Liu’s debut came in the playoffs with 10 starts, 10 hits, 7 runs, 3 home runs, 9 RBI, 1.013 OPS, and 0.7 WAR.

Amazingly, Liu won finals MVP and would never play a CLB regular season game. The Jumbos cut him in 2033 and he’d bounce around as a rarely used bench piece in other leagues. Jinan notably had closer Federico Pagani tie the CLB playoff saves record (8) while Xinhui Liu tied the doubles record (8).



Other notes: Shijiazhuang set new Northern League pitching worsts for runs allowed (727) and team WHIP (1.351). Guangzhou set a new Southern League best for team triples (113). Xiku Yan became the 15^th member of the 400 home run club. Yan and Tao Cai became the 18^th and 19^th to 1000 runs scored. Cai and Xiku Yan became the 17^th and 18^th batters to 2000 career hits.

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It was a tough fight for the Taiwan League title with three teams in the mix for the top spot. Last year’s second place team Taichung nabbed first at 98-64 and the top seed in the Taiwan-Philippine Association. The Toucans narrowly edged out Taipei (97-65) and Tainan (93-69). The Tigercats ended a nine-year playoff drought with the second place finish. Reigning Austronesia Professional Baseball champ Taoyuan was a distant fifth at 84-78. Taipei allowed the TPA’s fewest runs (414) while 88-74 Hsinchu scored the most at 595.

Cebu returned to the top of the Philippine League at 94-68, extending their playoff streak to six seasons. It was a steep drop to second place with three teams battling for the remaining playoff spot. Manila and Cagayan de Oro tied at 83-79 while last year’s PL winner Quezon was 82-80. The Manatees defeated the Critters in the tiebreaker game, ending a nine-year playoff drought for Manila.

“The King” Binh Tang continued his annual dominance for Hsinchu to win an unprecedented tenth Taiwan-Philippine Association MVP. He became the fourth player in all of world baseball history to win 10+ MVPs, joining OBA/MLB legend Jimmy Caliw (12), WAB legend Darwin Morris (11), and CABA legend Kiko Velazquez (10). It was the fourth consecutive for the Vietnamese first baseman, who amazingly was still only 30-years old. Tang also picked up his tenth Silver Slugger.

Tang led in runs (115), home runs (51), total bases (350), OBP (.360), slugging (.598), OPS (.959), wRC+ (201), and WAR (11.2). He added 172 hits, 104 RBI, 43 stolen bases, and a .294 batting average. It was his eighth time as the WARlord, tenth time leading in OPS, sixth time leading in homers, and eighth time leading in runs. The 115 runs were the second-most in APB history behind Tang’s own 122 from 2023. Tang also became the 11^th APB slugger to 500 career home runs.

Pitcher of the Year went to Patrick Chen in his Taichung debut. The 28-year old Indonesian righty was traded to the Toucans in the offseason after eight seasons with Cebu. Chen led in wins (22-8) and WAR (10.4) while adding a 1.76 ERA over 266.1 innings, 315 strikeouts, and 157 ERA+. He edged out Tainan’s Kuan-Yang Kang for the top honor despite the latter’s 1.57 ERA, 425 strikeouts, and 10.4 WAR. Kang’s season was the 15^th in APB history with 425+ Ks.

The divisional round saw stunning upsets as both second place teams upset the league champs. Taipei edged Cebu 3-2 and Manila ousted Taichung 3-1. The last time either had gotten to the Taiwan-Philippine Association Championship was 2020, when the Tigercats defeated the Manatees in the last gasp of Taipei’s lengthy streak atop the Taiwan League. That series was a seven-game thriller, as would be the 2030 rematch.

Game seven came down to the final inning with the score tied 1-1. RF Tsu-Kai Ku wasn’t a big power hitter for Taipei, having only smacked 10 home runs in the regular season. But the hometown kid sent a solo shot over the fence for a 2-1 walkoff win and series victory for the Tigercats over Manila. Taipei earned their eighth TPA pennant (1968, 1988, 1989, 1993, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2030).



The Sundaland Association’s top seed went to Jakarta at 98-64, reclaiming the Java Sea League crown and extending their playoff streak to six seasons. The Jaguars led the SA with 519 runs, allowing them to hold off 96-66 Semarang despite a historically strong pitching staff for the Sliders. Semarang set a new world record with a team ERA of 1.71, an insane mark even in the extremely low scoring APB. Palembang was third in the Java Sea League at 89-73.

The Sliders allowed 342 runs and 289 earned runs, which surprisingly weren’t APB records as 1985 Jakarta had posted 324 and 289. Semarang’s 1878 strikeouts was a new Sundaland Association record, while their 5.68 H/9 was the second-best in SA history and their 0.797 team WHIP was third. Poor offense (only 401 runs) kept the Sliders second, but it did give them back-to-back playoff spots. Semarang also had only 118 doubles as a team, which was a new APB all-time worst.

The Malacca League had three teams in the fight for the two playoff spots. Pekanbaru claimed first at 95-67, followed by Medan at 94-68. Defending SA champ Batam missed the cut at 91-71. The Palms ended a five-year playoff streak and the Marlins snapped a six-year skid. Last year, expansion squad Penang notably was an 88-win wild card in their debut season. The Possums absolutely collapsed in 2030 with an APB worst 54-108 mark.

Pekanbaru’s James Yuwono won his fifth Sundaland Association MVP and his third consecutive. The 31-year old Indonesian also won his eighth Silver Slugger in left field. Yuwono led in runs (97), hits (178), doubles (31), total bases (353), slugging (.593), OPS (9.45), wRC+ (240), and WAR (10.8). He added 42 home runs, 85 RBI, and a .299 average. The tenth year starter for the Palms also hit for the cycle for the first time in April against Penang. Yuwono became the 30^th member of APB’s 400 home run club in 2030.

Medan’s Pao-Huang Lin repeated as Pitcher of the Year with a historic effort. The 23-year old Taiwanese lefty had a 0.76 ERA, which was the second-best qualifying ERA (162 IP required) in APB history and fourth-best in all of world baseball history. The lone APB mark that was better was 0.73 by Ching-Chen Yao in 2014. Lin also led in WHIP (0.59), shutouts (10), ERA+ (315), FIP- (17), and WAR (11.8). He had a 17-4 record and 14 saves over 223.2 innings with 357 strikeouts. It was the 12^th time an APB pitcher had recorded 10+ shutouts.

Jakarta cruised to a divisional round sweep over Medan while Pekanbaru survived 3-2 against Semarang. This gave the Jaguars their sixth appearance in the Sundaland Association championship in eight years, while it was the first since 2024 for the Palms. For the first time since 2020, the SA final needed all seven games. Jakarta prevailed over Pekanbaru for their third pennant in six years and their 12^th overall (1968, 69, 70, 82, 85, 86, 92, 93, 2004, 25, 27, 30). The 12 pennants led all APB teams.



The 66^th Austronesia Championship was the third finals encounter between Jakarta and Taipei. The Tigercats had won 4-3 in 1968, while the Jaguars claimed the 1993 title 4-2. In 2030, Taipei prevailed 4-2 to become four-time APB champs (1968, 1988, 2020, 2030). Seventh-year DH Chin-Tsai Lan earned finals MVP with 17 playoff starts, 14 hits, 9 runs, 5 homers, 8 RBI, and 0.8 WAR. Taipei’s Tao Lee also set a playoff record with 40.1 innings pitched, although he was merely decent with a 2.68 ERA.



Other notes: APB had three perfect games in 2030, bringing the total to 56. The first was July 8 by Kaohsiung’s Wei-Han Chao with 12 strikeouts against Chiayi. The second was August 16 by Cebu’s Hakimi Aziz with 16 strikeouts against Zamboanga. Aziz did it again in a September 13 rematch with the Zebras with 15 strikeouts.

Aziz joined Vhon Lasam, Yu-Ren Yang, and Rahmat Hasjim as the APB aces with two perfect games. He also joined Chinese League Baseball’s Guodong Lin (1981) as the only pitchers in all of world history with two perfect games in the same season. Like Aziz, Lin also earned both of his against the same opponent.

Quezon’s Nazer Fairusshi had the second-ever four home run game in APB on September 21 against Kaohsiung. Chiayi’s Carson Aguiling set a bad APB single-season record by allowing 274 hits. Jakarta’s Fandi Makatindu had a .348 batting average, which was the 4th-best qualifying season in APB to that point. Nazer Fairusshi was the 31^st to score 1000 runs.

Normeezan Hasrin became the 4^th closer to 400 career saves, finishing his final APB season at 431. That put him six short of APB’s all-time record of 437 by Metta Adam. Hasrin would spend his final four seasons between MLB and ALB. 1B Robert Corrado won his 9^th Gold Glove and SP Kuan-Yang Kang won his 7^th. 2B/SS Rahmadi Wahid won his 7^th Silver Slugger.

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The Oceania Baseball Association for 2030 lowered its active roster from 24 players to 23, placing them amongst the lowest of the world leagues. OBA had started at 25 like most leagues, moving to 24 from 1999 onward.



The Australasia League had an intense battle with four teams within two games of the top spot and six teams within seven games. Brisbane and Adelaide finished even in the top spot at 91-71, followed by Perth (90-72), Auckland (89-73), and two-time defending OBA champ Sydney. In a one-game playoff, the Black Bears defeated the Aardvarks for their first pennant in 13 years. Brisbane became four-time AL champs (1991, 2002, 2017, 2030).

Brisbane did it by allowing the fewest runs in the AL at 567, while Adelaide scored the most at 759. The Avengers notably had their first winning season since 2024, while the Snakes grew their run of winning seasons to 16 years. Sydney’s pitching staff also set a new AL record for fewest walks allowed at 242.

Australasia League MVP went to Melbourne LF Jun Lopez-Torres in his fourth season. The 25-year old Australian led in total bases (420), triples (24), batting average (.349), slugging (.698), OPS (1.077), wRC+ (190), and WAR (9.7). Lopez-Torres also had 106 runs, 210 hits, 46 home runs, 124 RBI, and 65 stolen bases.

Auckland’s Braden Sam became the first in OBA history to win Pitcher of the Year and Rookie of the Year. The Papuan righty was the #2 overall pick in the 2029 OBA Draft by the Avengers. Sam led in ERA (2.16), FIP- (53), and WAR (9.7). He tossed 246 innings with a 19-8 record, 285 strikeouts, and 179 ERA+. Unfortunately for Sam, injuries would prevent him from tossing more than a half season’s worth of innings in following seasons.



The Pacific League was also quite competitive with six teams realistically in the hunt for most of the year. New Caledonia pulled away late to take first at 93-69, winning only their second-ever pennant (1970). The historically mediocre Colonels had only thrice before won 90+ games in a season, most recently in 2006. New Caledonia fended off Guadalcanal (89-73), Timor (88-74), defending champ Port Moresby (87-75), Fiji (84-78), and Vanuatu (84-78) for the top spot. The Green Jackets scored the most runs at 689, while the Tapirs allowed the fewest at 576.

Honolulu was 82-80, but they had the Pacific League MVP 1B Liam Winmar. The 29-year old Australian came to the Honu in a 2028 trade with Hobart. In 2030, Winmar led in runs (114), RBI (115), total bases (378), OPS (1.006), and WAR (9.0). He added 175 hits, 55 home runs, 43 stolen bases, and 184 wRC+. Winmar beat out Guam’s Timmy Ellis, who hit 60 home runs and posted only the 19^th 60+ homer season in OBA history.

Port Moresby lefty Darren Soo earned Pitcher of the Year, leading in wins (21-12), and strikeouts (317). The 27-year old Solomon Islander had a 2.85 ERA in 322.2 innings, 126 ERA+, and 5.4 WAR. He was third in ERA, missing the Triple Crown by only 0.25. It was a contract year for Soo who got himself paid on a six-year, $82,700,000 deal with Guadalcanal in the winter.



The 71^st Oceania Championship went to Brisbane over New Caledonia 4-2, making the Black Bears three-time OBA champs (1991, 2002, 2030). Finals MVP was RF Ralph McLean in his eighth year with Brisbane. He went 10-23 with 7 runs, 5 home runs, 6 RBI, 1.545 OPS, and 0.8 WAR.



Other notes: CF Pouvalu Manu won his 15^th and final Gold Glove. He became the 12^th player in all of world history with 15+ Gold Gloves and is the only one to do it in center field. He would retire with an accumulated 271.8 zone rating and 1.067 EFF. 1B David Odom and 3B Natan Chrostek won their 7^th Gold Glove. Trey Cruz became the 8^th player to score 1500 runs and won his 13^th Silver Slugger at second base. Jordy Vincent became the 46^th member of the 400 home run club.

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Beginning in 2030, Eurasian Professional Baseball instituted rule changes designed to increase scoring output. EPB had been considered a below average to low scoring league generally compared to other world leagues. For the 2020s, EPB had a league ERA around 3.15 and a batting average around .242.

With the changes, EPB in the 2030s would have an ERA closer to the 3.65 range and batting averages around .258. This placed EPB into average scoring territory relative to other world leagues historically. EPB’s scoring was in a similar range when it was founded in 1955, but the scoring dropped soon with ERAs in the high twos for much of the 20^th Century before bumping into the low threes after 2006 rule changes.



Reigning EPB champ and two-time defending European League champ Volgograd crushed the competition with a franchise-best 113-49 record. The Voyagers were the first 110+ win team in the EL since Minsk in 1998 and the first in all of EPB since Krasnoyarsk in 2020. Volgograd led the league in runs (740) and fewest allowed (537), earning a third consecutive South Division title. It was their ninth division title in a decade.

Also for the third year running, Gomel won the North Division with a new franchise best at 98-64. It was a steep drop down to the wild cards with both Moscow and Samara advancing at 86-76. Voronezh at 82-80 was the first team out and the only other EL team above .500. The Mules earned repeat playoff trips while the Steelers made it four-in-a-row.

Moscow DH Yuri Demyan won European League MVP with a record breaking campaign. The 25-year old hometown favorite set the new EPB top mark for RBI with 145, passing Dzmitry Kuliev’s 141 which had stood since 1988. Demyan had 428 total bases, just missing Kuliev’s record 429 from the same year. Demyan also led in home runs (58), slugging (.668), OPS (1.047), wRC+ (189), and WAR (8.8).

The fourth-year starter also had 215 hits, 109 runs, and a .335 average. The Mules would give Demyan an eight-year, $97 million extension after the 2031 season.
Demyan was second in batting average in the EL, although he was far from a Triple Crown due to Voronezh’s Vladimir Pyatrenka at .378. Pyatrenka notably broke EPB’s single-season hits record with 241. The top mark had been Nikolay Denisov’s 239 since 1992.

Although Tel Aviv was 79-83, they had the Pitcher of the Year in Nikita Melnikov. The seventh-year righty from Kazakhstan led in ERA (1.87), innings (273.2), WHIP (0.87), K/BB (11.8), quality starts (29), complete games (18), FIP- (60), and WAR (9.6). Melnikov had a 21-9 record, 319 strikeouts, and 187 ERA+. He was the #1 overall draft pick in 2023 by the Aeros and would ink a five-year, $65,600,000 extension in the winter.

Also worth a mention, Volgograd’s Aleksei Kotyukh won his third Reliever of the Year award. The 33-year old has alternated between starting and relief for the Voyagers, even winning the ERA title in 2029 as a starter. Kotyukh led in saves with 39 in 2030 and also won ROTY in 2026 and 2028.

Volgograd escaped with a 3-2 first round victory over Samara, while Moscow upset Gomel 3-1. The Mules earned their first European League Championship Series trip since their 2025 pennant. The Voyagers were going for three straight titles and were a heavy favorite considering the 27 win difference between the teams. However, Moscow dethroned the reigning champs with a stunning 4-2 ELCS upset. It was the 14^th EL crown for the Russian capital (1967, 74, 75, 2005, 06, 07, 09, 10, 15, 16, 19, 21, 25, 30), second-most behind only Minsk (21).



Novosibirsk took the Asian League’s top seed at 102-60, winning the East Division for the first time since the 2000 realignment. The Nitros hadn’t posted a first place finish since 1991 and earned back-to-back playoff berths for the first time since the mid 1990s. Novosibirsk held off two-time defending AL champ Vladivostok, who easily got the first wild card at 96-66 for a third straight playoff trip. The Shibas allowed the fewest runs in EPB at 532.

Nur-Sultan was the top scoring team at 751 runs, pushing them to 94-68 for a fourth consecutive West Division title. Omsk was second at 89-73 to earn the second wild card, ending a two-year playoff drought. Irkutsk was the next closest competitor for the spot at 86-76, followed by last year’s wild card Khabarovsk at 81-81. For the Ice Cats, it was notably their first winning season since 2018.

Leading Novosibirsk to the top seed was Asian League MVP Timofei Kolarov. The 30-year old second baseman had debuted with the Nitros in 2020 after being the #1 overall draft pick in 2018. He had been a full-time starter since 2023. Kolarov led in home runs (47), RBI (109), slugging (.627), and WAR (8.0). The Russian righty added 179 hits, 96 runs, 32 doubles, .308 average, .964 OPS, and 179 wRC+.

Nur-Sultan’s Vardan Aslan won his second Pitcher of the Year in three seasons. The 26-year old Uzbek righty led in wins (21-10), innings (281.2), complete games (24), shutouts (5), and WAR (7.4). Aslan had a 2.72 ERA, 281 strikeouts, 127 ERA+, and 74 FIP-.

Novosibirsk swept Omsk in the first round and Vladivostok got the road upset 3-1 over Nur-Sultan. For the Nitros, this was their first Asian League Championship Series trip since 1991. However, home field advantage made no difference as the Shibas cruised to a 4-1 ALCS victory. Vladivostok is the first EPB team to win three consecutive pennants since Rostov (2012-14) and the first to do it in the AL since Yekaterinburg (2006-08).



The 76^th EPB Championship was a seven-game classic which saw Vladivostok outlast Moscow, bringing the cup to the Russian Far East for the second time in three years. The Mules fall to 5-9 all-time in their finals trips. Finals MVP was Argentine journeyman RF George Lemus, who came to the Shibas in 2029 after a brief run in MLB. The 30-year old had 16 playoff starts with 20 hits, 11 runs, 3 doubles, 4 triples, 3 homers, 12 RBI, and 1.025 OPS.



Other notes: Volgograd’s Marc Kubler had the lone no-hitter of 2030, striking out 18 with two walks against Rostov on September 29. He was one K short of the EPB record for strikeouts in a no-no. Svyatoslav Tyahnybok became the 12^th pitcher to 250 career wins and the 32^nd to 4000 strikeouts. Later in the year, Yevgeni Lyubimov also crossed 4000 Ks.

Yuri Lukashov and Bakhtiyar Dolukhanov became the 32^nd and 33^rd batters to 2500 hits. Brandon Chunchignorov became the 23^rd member of the 500 home run club. Robert Albrecht won his 9^th Gold Glove in center field. RF Timofei Averkin won his 12^th Silver Slugger, becoming the 4^th in EPB to win the award 12+ times at any spot. 3B Yerjanik Kostin won his 7^th Silver Slugger.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

The Northern Conference’s top records were skewed towards the East Division. Berlin earned the top seed at 103-59 to end a four-year playoff drought. It was the first division crown for the German capital since 1999 and first 100+ win season since 1997. The Barons also sold 2,659,709 tickets for the season, the third-highest in European Baseball Federation history. Frankfurt was a close second at 100-62, ending a seven-year playoff drought for the Falcons. It was the second time in franchise history that they won 100+ games.

Two additional wild cards came out of the East with Hanover at 97-65 and reigning EBF champ Kharkiv at 96-66. Both extended lengthy playoff streaks with the Hitmen’s moving to eight years and the Killer Bees’ moving to seven years. The first team out was Warsaw at 89-73.

Nantes (97-65) edged out Manchester (96-66) for the West Division, although both made it to the playoffs. The Trappers have made the playoffs four straight years since their first promotion from the European Second League. Nantes was tied for the most runs scored in the conference at 805 with Berlin. The Crushers allowed the fewest runs in all of EBF (553) and grew their playoff streak to three seasons.
At 88-74, Rotterdam’s playoff streak notably ended at nine years. The Ravens still posted a 14^th consecutive winning campaign. Cologne was the next closest to a wild card after that, ten back at 86-76.

In the West Division, Luxembourg was relegated with the bottom slot at 64-98. They finished five games behind both Copenhagen and London. The Monarchs had a steep fall, having won 91 games in 2029. The Lancers had returned to the EBF Elite in 2026 after 11 years in E2L, but couldn’t climb from the bottom of the standings. In the East, Krakow had the worst overall mark at 59-103, six beneath Wroclaw. It is the third time the Canines have been relegated, although both prior times they were promoted right back up after one E2L year. Krakow had just returned to the top tier for 2028.

A powerful season for Kharkiv shortstop Danut Alecsandrescu earned Northern Conference MVP honors. In his seventh year with the Killer Bees, the 28-year old Romanian switch hitter led in home runs (66), RBI (132), total bases (403), and slugging (.688). Alecsandrescu was the first EBF slugger since 2001 with a 65+ homer season with his mark tied for the ninth-most in federation history. He also had 167 hits, 114 runs, 47 stolen bases, 1.018 OPS, and 7.8 WAR. Kharkiv had given Alecsandrescu an eight-year, $195,400,000 extension after the 2028 campaign.

Glasgow’s Todd McBride won his second Pitcher of the Year, having previously earned the honor in 2025. The 30-year old English lefty won his first ERA title (1.96) and led in WHIP (0.88). McBride had an 18-9 record in 220.1 innings, 267 strikeouts, 193 ERA+, and 7.9 WAR. Much to his chagrin despite, the Highlanders would trade McBride in the offseason to E2L’s Helsinki for prospects. After a contract year with the Honkers, he returned to the top tier in 2032 on a six-year, $157 million deal with Barcelona.

First round playoff matchups saw Hanover over Manchester 2-1 and Kharkiv over Frankfurt 2-0. Both division champs prevailed in round two with Berlin besting the defending champ Killer Bees 3-1 and Nantes surviving 3-2 over the Hitmen. It was the 11^th trip to the Northern Conference Championship for the Barons, although they hadn’t done it since 1998. It was the second try in three years for the Trappers. Berlin ultimately ended their 31-year pennant drought, defeating Nantes 4-2 to become four-time conference champs (1955, 1958, 1998, 2030).



The Southern Conference’s West Division was very top heavy with Munich growing their division title streak to ten seasons and playoff streak to eleven. At 114-48, the Mavericks tied their franchise-best record from 1987 and won 100+ games for the seventh time in a decade. Munich was the top scoring team in all of EBF at 849 runs and allowed the fewest in the conference at 575.

Barcelona was next at 107-55, forced to settle for the first wild card. The Bengals extended their playoff streak to four seasons and earned back-to-back 100+ win campaigns. In the East Division, Cluj-Napoca at 99-63 took first by six games for only their second-ever playoff berth in the EBF Elite (2020). The Paladins had spent the prior six years in the Second League and had just gotten promoted back for 2030.

Their closest foes in the East were defending conference champ Zagreb (93-69) and Ljubljana (92-70), who both earned wild cards. The Gulls earned their tenth playoff trip in eleven years, while the Juggernauts made it three in-a-row. For the final wild card, Rome (90-72) edged out Marseille (88-74), Tirana (87-75), Milan (87-75), and Odesa (86-76). The Italian capital ended a five-year playoff skid. Chisinau notably fell to 77-85, their first losing season since returning to the EBF Elite in 2023.

Yerevan and Bratislava were even at the bottom of the East at 56-106, however the tiebreaker formula doomed the Valiants to relegation. The Blue Falcons were saved as the new relegation rules merely demoted each division’s last place team, as opposed to the previous rule that dropped any 100+ loss team. Yerevan’s return to the top tier lasted only three seasons. Naples (65-97) was the worst in the West with only Palermo (72-90) somewhat close by. This is the second demotion for the Nobles, who spent 2013-18 in E2L. Naples had been strong to start the 2020s and won a pennant in 2022, but they struggled specifically from 2028 onward.

While Budapest was a non-factor at 72-90, their 1B Attila Sebek earned Southern Conference MVP. The 25-year old Czech lefty led in home runs (62), walks (114), total bases (412), OBP (.462), slugging (.757), OPS (1.220), wRC+ (226), and WAR (11.4). Sebek also had 193 hits, 121 runs, and a .355 average. His OPS ranked as the fifth-best single-season in EBF history. His 114 walks was the ninth-best effort in EBF annuls. Sebek needed it to beat out the likes of Cluj-Napoca RV Dimitar Ivanov, who matched his 62 homers and led with 149 RBI.

Barcelona’s J.R Pando won his second Pitcher of the Year, having earlier won in 2027. The 25-year old Spanish lefty led in wins (24-4), ERA (1.90), and quality starts (25). Pando tossed 237.1 innings with 262 strikeouts, 201 ERA+, 57 FIP-, and 8.7 WAR. Despite the Bengals’ efforts, Pando would leave for free agency after the 2031 campaign, eventually inking a seven-year, $196 million deal with Warsaw.

Both first round series saw 2-1 results with Zagreb over Ljubljana and Rome over Barcelona. The defending champ Gulls fell 3-1 to Cluj-Napoca in the second round, giving the Paladins their first-ever trip to the Southern Conference Championship. Munich defeated the Red Wolves 3-1, returning the Mavericks to the finale for the sixth straight year.

Since 2018, the SC final has featured Munich each year sans 2019 and 2024. In that stretch, the Mavericks had gone 6-4 against their various foes. Munich would be denied for the second straight year and third time in four years. Cluj-Napoca pulled off the upset in a seven game classic to become the 39^th different franchise to win a conference crown. The Paladins joined Zaragoza (2012-13) and Valencia (2013-14) as teams that made the European Championship one year removed from being in the European Second League. C-N became the seventh franchise founded with the 2005 E2L season with a pennant.



In the 81^st European Championship, Berlin bested Cluj-Napoca 4-2 to give the Barons their-second title (1958). This set the record for most seasons between titles in EBF at 71 years. 2B Mark Schroder won finals MVP in his tenth year with Berlin. In 16 playoff starts, Schroder had 19 hits, 12 runs, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 4 home runs, 11 RBI, 6 stolen bases, .964 OPS, and 0.9 WAR.



Other notes: Brno’s offense drew only 207 walks all season, a new EBF single-season worst. Turin’s Ubaldo Grasso had a 34-game hitting streak, tied for the 10^th-longest in EBF history. Stefanos Emmanoulidis became the 10^th member of the 700 home run club. Theofilos Psarras and Zeljko Siladjdzic became the 41^st and 42^nd sluggers to sock 500 dingers.

Aleksandr Parts became the 15^th batter to join the 3000 hit club and won his 8^th Gold Glove at first base. SS Andrea Tonetti won his 9^th Gold Glove. In pitching milestones, Griffin Arnall became the 29^th to record 3500 strikeouts. Mario Perez, Grigol Dzneladze, Isak Alsaker, and Nejc Novak each joined the 3K club in 2030, making 64 EBF aces to hit the mark.

Promotion/Relegation: Demoted from the Northern Conference were Luxembourg and Krakow, while Naples and Yerevan were ousted from the Southern Conference. The Lancers and Nobles were sent to E2L’s Western Conference while the Canines and Valiants joined the Eastern Conference.

Earning promotion were Sarajevo, Edinburgh, Reykjavik, and Tallinn. The Enforcers and Raccoons both were moved into the NC West Division, while the Twisters joined the NC East. Sarajevo moved to the SC East, while a team would need to be shifted to restore balance. NC West champ Nantes ended getting swapped into the SC West to fix this. Meanwhile, Toulouse and Athens were relegated from E2L to European Tier Three. Dresden replaced the Toads in the WC and Gdansk took the Anchors’ spot in the EC.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

With the completion of the 2030 season, Beisbol Sudamerica became the fourth of the major world baseball leagues to have 100+ seasons worth of history. Like their predecessors, BSA announced a Centennial Team honoring the absolute best players through the league’s first century.

The continent’s largest country Brazil was represented the most with ten Brazilian players. Venezuela was next with six, followed by two apiece by Bolivia and Argentina. Ecuador, Colombia, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay each had one player while Peru surprisingly didn’t have anyone on the squad.



Starting Lineup

Catcher – Cicero Lugo – Santiago Saints – 2004-26 – 16x Silver Slugger, 17x All-Star, 1x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 1x OPS Leader, 1x WARlord – 3061 games, 3139 hits, 1617 runs, 612 doubles, 91 triples, 578 home runs, 1697 RBI, 835 walks, 1647 strikeouts, .316/.368/.571, 160 wRC+, 137.4 WAR.

First Base – Valor Melo – Salvador Storm – 1970-87 – 6x MVP, 10x Silver Slugger, 13x All-Star, Rookie of the Year, 3x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 1x Finals MVP, 2x LCS MVP, Single Season HR King (76), 9x HR Leader, 6x Runs Scored Leader, 8x RBI Leader, 6x OPS Leader, 5x WARlord – 2636 games, 2915 hits, 1708 runs, 414 doubles, 50 triples, 870 home runs, 1862 RBI, 854 walks, 1792 strikeouts, .309/.371/.640, 197 wRC+, 140.9 WAR.

Second Base – Niculao Semide – Fortaleza Foxes – 1963-83 – 4x MVP, 13x Silver Slugger, 15x All-Star, 2x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 2x Finals MVP, 2x LCS MVP, 3x Runs Scored Leader, 2x Hits Leader, 1x HR Leader, 1x RBI Leader, 2x Batting Title, 3x OPS Leader, 3x WARlord – 2593 games, 2906 hits, 1588 runs, 376 doubles, 97 triples, 515 home runs, 1374 RBI, 1288 walks, 1240 strikeouts, 574 stolen bases, .324/.408/.560, 191 wRC+, 150.0 WAR.

Shortstop – Diego Pena – Belo Horizonte Hogs – 1933-58 – 15x Silver Slugger, 18x All-Star, 1x Gold Glove, 3x Copa Sudamerica Winner, Most Games Played, 1x HR Leader, 2x WARlord – 3588 games, 2775 hits, 1956 runs, 286 doubles, 257 triples, 725 home runs, 1754 RBI, 1168 walks, 3773 strikeouts, 664 stolen bases, .224/.291/.465, 144 wRC+, 153.6 WAR.

Third Base – Niccolo Coelho – Recife Retrievers – 2006-27 – 4x MVP, 12x Silver Slugger, 16x All-Star, Rookie of the Year, 2x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 1x Finals MVP, 1x LCS MVP, Career Runs Scored and RBI Leader, Position Player WARlord, 2x Runs Scored Leader, 3x HR Leader, 2x RBI Leader, 1x OPS Leader, 2x WARlord – 3369 games, 3745 hits, 2133 runs, 552 doubles, 100 triples, 926 home runs, 2231 RBI, 1112 walks, 2639 strikeouts, 241 stolen bases, .313/.374/.607, 174 wRC+, 168.5 WAR.

Left Field – Ishmael “Lucifer’ Perla – Buenos Aires Atlantics – 1952-66 – 2x MVP, 13x Silver Slugger, 7x Gold Glove, 15x All-Star, 1x Copa Sudamerica Winner, Career Stolen Bases Leader, 8x Runs Scored Leader, 4x Hits Leader, 7x Batting Title, 4x OPS Leader, 10x WARlord – 2256 games, 2641 hits, 1462 runs, 402 doubles, 341 triples, 177 home runs, 985 RBI, 1203 walks, 1031 strikeouts, 1519 stolen bases, .332/.419/.536, 201 wRC+, 152.1 WAR.

Center Field - Pasquale Martin – Valencia Velocity – 1973-90 – 3x MVP, 7x Silver Slugger, 17x All-Star, 2x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 1x LCS MVP, 2x Runs Scored Leader, 2x HR Leader, 2x RBI Leader, 2x Batting Title, 2x OPS Leader, 4x WARlord – 2621 games, 2816 hits, 1702 runs, 455 doubles, 175 triples, 646 home runs, 1629 RBI, 1237 walks, 2060 strikeouts, 802 stolen bases, .303/.387/.597, 172 wRC+, 127.6 WAR.

Right Field - Celso “Yogi” Galo – Rosario Robins – 1963-84 – 2x MVP, 8x Silver Slugger, 12x All-Star, 1x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 1x Runs Scored Leader, 3x Hits Leader, 1x HR Leader, 1x RBI Leader, 5x Batting Title, 3x OPS Leader, 1x WARlord – 2771 games, 3182 hits, 1467 runs, 516 doubles, 83 triples, 526 home runs, 1506 RBI, 759 walks, 1268 strikeouts, 403 stolen bases, .337/.387/.576, 193 wRC+, 126.1 WAR.

Designated Hitter – Milton Becker – Caracas Colts – 1990-08 – 3x MVP, 12x Silver Slugger, 14x All-Star, Career Home Run King – 2836 games, 3386 hits, 1980 runs, 446 doubles, 91 triples, 941 home runs, 2226 RBI, 1131 walks, 2107 strikeouts, 159 stolen bases, .320/.389/.647, 174 wRC+, 126.7 WAR.

Reserves

First Base – Javier “Snapper” Herrera – Quito Thunderbolts – 1957-78 – 4x MVP, 8x Silver Slugger, 6x Gold Glove, 16x All-Star, 1x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 3x Runs Scored Leader, 5x Hits Leader, 8x Batting Title, 6x OPS Leader, 3x WARlord – 2912 games, 3597 hits, 1639 runs, 618 doubles, 300 triples, 348 home runs, 1546 RBI, 950 walks, 1855 strikeouts, 1230 stolen bases, .335/.388/.545, 164 wRC+, 117.9 WAR.

First Base – Bernaldo “Cowboy” Lagasse – Brasilia Bearcats – 1995-09 – 3x MVP, 5x Silver Slugger, 10x All-Star, 2x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 1x Finals MVP, 2x LCS MVP, 5x Runs Scored Leader, 1x HR Leader, 5x OPS Leader, 6x WARlord – 2117 games, 2361 hits, 1434 runs, 361 doubles, 36 triples, 551 home runs, 1280 RBI, 1221 walks, 1407 strikeouts, 19 stolen bases, .325/.424/.613, 195 wRC+, 111.0 WAR.

Third/Second Base – Angel Gabriel Cornejo – Cordoba Chanticleers – 1936-59 – 7x Silver Slugger, 15x All-Star, 3x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 1x LCS MVP, 1x OPS Leader, 1x WARlord – 3444 games, 3253 hits, 1507 runs, 426 doubles, 56 triples, 555 home runs, 1570 RBI, 940 walks, 2300 strikeouts, 213 stolen bases, .272/.327/.456, 155 wRC+, 139.0 WAR.

Second Base – Daniel “Tall One” Schafer – Manaus Magpies – 2011-27 – 2x MVP, 4x Silver Slugger, 14x All-Star, 2x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 1x Finals MVP, 3x Batting Title, 1x OPS Leader, 3x WARlord – 2456 games, 3236 hits, 1538 runs, 425 doubles, 151 triples, 451 home runs, 1499 RBI, 911 walks, 1407 strikeouts, 364 stolen bases, .357/.414/.586, 177 wRC+, 120.7 WAR.

Center Field – Saul Vargas – Cali Cyclones – 1933-51 - 4x MVP, 11x Silver Slugger, 11x All-Star, 6x Runs Scored Leader, 5x Hits Leader, 4x Batting Title, 3x OPS Leader, 6x WARlord – 2714 games, 2948 hits, 1514 runs, 377 doubles, 262 triples, 338 home runs, 1179 RBI, 747 walks, 1686 strikeouts, 1191 stolen bases, .290/.340/.479, 146 wRC+, 115.6 WAR.

Left/Center Field – Owen Arcia – Barquisimeto Black Cats – 1996-15 – 1x Silver Slugger, 8x All-Star, 1x LCS MVP, 2x Hits Leader, Career Hits Leader – 3068 games, 3940 hits, 1904 runs, 643 doubles, 245 triples, 409 home runs, 1690 RBI, 613 walks, 1805 strikeouts, 1373 stolen bases, .325/.358/.520, 136 wRC+, 95.9 WAR.

Pitching Staff

Starting Pitcher – Mohamed “Toto” Ramos – La Paz Pump Jacks – 1931-48 – 7x Pitcher of the Year, 2x MVP, 16x All-Star, 2x ERA Title, 15x Strikeout Leader, 11x WARlord, Single Season Strikeout World Record (549), Single Season Pitching WAR Record (17.94), 4x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 1x Finals MVP, 1x LCS MVP, World Career Leader in Strikeouts and Shutouts, WARlord Among All World Pitchers, BSA Career Leader in Wins, Complete Games, Shutouts, 2x Perfect Game, 9x No-Hitter, 13x Games w/20+ Ks, Single Game Strikeout Record (23) - 347-170, 1.98 ERA, 5030 innings, 7747 strikeouts, 782 walks, 296 complete games, 100 shutouts, 152 ERA+, 50 FIP-, 205.1 WAR.

Starting Pitcher – Laurenco Cedillo – Guayaquil Golds – 1956-75 – 7x Pitcher of the Year, 15x All-Star, 4x ERA Title, 3x Strikeout Leader, 11x WARlord – 342-198, 2.43 ERA, 5102.1 innings, 5358 strikeouts, 780 walks, 203 complete games, 56 shutouts, 137 ERA+, 64 FIP, 162.9 WAR.

Starting Pitcher – Lazaro Rodriguez – Valencia Velocity – 1971-88 – 9x Pitcher of the Year, 12x All-Star, 2x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 4x ERA Title, 10x Strikeout Leader, 11x WARlord, 1x Perfect Game, 2x No-Hitter – 11 Games w/20+ Ks – 309-155, 2.60 ERA, 4261.1 innings, 6045 strikeouts, 712 walks, 257 complete games, 55 shutouts, 136 ERA+, 61 FIP-, 148.0 WAR.

Starting Pitcher – Evan “Bull” Yho – Buenos Aires Atlantics – 1935-53 – 3x Pitcher of the Year, 13x All-Star, 3x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 1x LCS MVP, 2x ERA Title, 3x Strikeout Leader, 4x WARlord, 2x No-Hitter – 289-168, 1.96 ERA, 4478.1 innings, 5591 strikeouts, 624 walks, 159 complete games, 60 shutouts, 144 ERA+, 56 FIP-, 155.0 WAR.

Starting Pitcher – Timoteo Caruso – Rio de Janeiro Redbirds – 1936-50 – 4x Pitcher of the Year, 12x All-Star, Rookie of the Year, 5x ERA Title, 3x Strikeout Leader, 6x WARlord, 1x Perfect Game, 2x No-Hitter – 219-99, 119 saves, 1.56 ERA, 3184 innings, 4290 strikeouts, 459 walks, 104 complete games, 50 shutouts, 176 ERA+, 39 FIP-, 138.6 WAR.

Starting Pitcher – Domingas Ribeiro – Sao Paulo Padres – 1964-78 – 6x Pitcher of the Year, 12x All-Star, 1x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 6x ERA Title, 1x Strikeout Leader, 8x WARlord, 1x Perfect Game, 2x No-Hitter – 245-118, 72 saves, 2.02 ERA, 3490.1 innings, 4085 strikeouts, 374 walks, 113 complete games, 43 shutouts, 155 ERA+, 58 FIP-, 120.5 WAR.

Pitcher/Right Field – Ignacio Rola – Salvador Storm – 1936-49 – 1x MVP, 11x Silver Slugger, 4x All-Star, 1x Copa Sudamerica Winner – 185-130, 12 saves, 2.29 ERA, 2925.2 innings, 3064 strikeouts, 439 walks, 82 complete games, 22 shutouts, 118 ERA+, 78 FIP-, 69.1 WAR – 1066 games, 842 hits, 349 runs, 111 doubles, 7 triples, 10 home runs, 202 RBI, 88 walks, 402 strikeouts, 446 stolen bases, .268/.292/.350, 107 wRC+, 24.6 WAR.

Closer – Chano “Steady” Angel – Salvador Storm – 1931-44 – 6x Reliever of the Year, 11x All-Star, 4x Saves Leader, World ERA Leader – 80-50, 411 saves, 0.99 ERA, 1124.2 innings, 2165 strikeouts, 252 walks, 533 shutdowns, 304 ERA+, 10 FIP-, 79.0 WAR.

Closer – Jonathan Iglesias – Caracas Colts – 1935-53 – 3x Reliever of the Year, 8x All-Star, 3x Copa Sudamerica Winner, 3x Saves Leader, World Career Saves Leader, – 123-146, 579 saves, 1.85 ERA, 1256 games, 1609.2 innings, 2331 strikeouts, 350 walks, 705 shutdowns, 163 ERA+, 43 FIP-, 75.9 WAR.

Closer – Freddie Sandoval – Fortaleza Foxes – 1935-50 – 3x Reliever of the Year, 11x All-Star, 4x Saves Leader – 60-55, 459 saves, 1.44 ERA, 1047.1 innings, 1655 strikeouts, 204 walks, 578 shutdowns, 201 ERA+, 25 FIP-, 61.3 WAR

Manager – Nolan Best – Sao Paulo Padres (1975-96), Cali Cyclones (1999-00) – 4x Copa Sudamerica Wins, 6x League Champ, 12x Playoff Berths, 12x Division Titles, 6x Manager of the Year, 2226-1651, .574%.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

The best three records in the Bolivar League battled in the Peru-Bolivia Division with Arequipa, Lima, and La Paz earning return playoff berths. The Arrows were third last year, but went onto win the pennant anyway. In 2030, Arequipa took first at 104-58 and secured the top seed. The Lobos took second at 98-64, growing their playoff streak to four years. La Paz was third at 96-66 for the final wild card slot. Arequipa allowed the fewest runs (602) while Lima’s offense had 1768 hits; the second-most in BL history.

Bogota ended the longest active playoff drought in the Bolivar League at 22 seasons. The Bats won the Colombia-Ecuador Division at 94-68, fending off Barranquilla (90-72), and Guayaquil (88-74). Although the Blues led ins coring with 838 runs, their playoff streak ended at eight seasons.

Caracas reclaimed the Venezuela Division at 91-71, earning their 12^th division crown in 14 years. Barquisimeto was second at 83-79 while last year’s division winner Maracaibo fell to 76-86. For the Colts, they’ve now posted 15 winning seasons in a row.

Lima’s Marc Melgar won his third consecutive Bolivar League MVP. The 28-year old hometown hero led in hits (257), runs (133), RBI (132), total bases (470), average (.415), slugging (.758), OPS (1.208), wRC+ (204), and WAR (10.4). Melgar joined West African Baseball hit king Fares Belaid as the only players in world history to hit above .400 thrice. For Melgar, he has done it consecutively with .404, .420, and .415 from 2028-30.

Melgar’s 257 hits were a career high and tied for third-most in Beisbol Sudamerica history behind Nuno Escalante’s 262 from 2018 and Juan Suarez’s 259 from 2022. His 470 total bases tied for the sixth-best in BSA history. Melgar also had 36 doubles, 15 triples, and 49 home runs. He also accomplished the rare feat of having a six-hit game and three home run game in the same season. Melgar did the former against Trujillo on August 2 and the latter facing Quito on September 12.

In his second year with Caracas, Bartolo Flores became a four-time Pitcher of the Year winner. He had won the award previously with Santa Cruz in 2021, 24, and 25. Flores joined the Colts on a five-year, $120 million deal for 2029. The 32-year old Ecuadoran righty remarkably led the league in strikeouts for the tenth consecutive season, this time with 340. Flores also led in WAR (8.3) and K/BB (13.6). He posted a 2.78 ERA in 252.2 innings, 143 ERA+, and 17-10 record.

Bogota swept Caracas 2-0 in the first round, then shocked defending champ Arequipa 3-2 in the divisional series. The Bats earned their first trip to the Bolivar League Championship Series since their early 2000s dynasty run. Lima outlasted La Paz 3-2 on the other side, giving the Lobos their third BLCS trip in four years. Bogota ultimately ended their 24 year title drought with a 4-2 victory over Lima, making the Bats seven-time Bolivar League champs (1951, 1973, 1995, 2000, 2004, 2005, 2030).



Three teams were in a tight fight for the Southern Cone League’s top seed. South Central Division champ Santiago and North Division champ Brasilia finished even at 102-60 with the tiebreaker giving the #1 spot to the Saints. Santiago’s playoff streak grew to 11 seasons with ten division titles in that run. The Saints are now on a 22-year streak of winning seasons. The Bearcats meanwhile earned a third straight division crown.

Brasilia had to fend off a 100-62 Manaus for the division crown, as the Magpies took the first wild card. It was Manaus’s second playoff berth in three years. Salta gave the Saints a fight at 96-66, which ended a nine-year playoff drought for the Silver Hawks as the second wild card. Just missing the wild card cut from those divisions were Salvador (94-68), Concepcion (93-69), and defending Copa Sudamerica winner Belo Horizonte (89-73).

Over in the Southeast Division, Buenos Aires (89-73) prevailed over Rosario (86-76), Sao Paulo (84-78), and Montevideo (83-79). The Atlantics picked up their third playoff trip in five years, while the Padres saw their streak ended at six. Brasilia led the Southern Cone League with 830 runs and had a .493 team slugging percentage, the third-best in league history. The Chiefs allowed the fewest runs at 509.

MVP honors went to Sao Paulo 3B Hector Gonzalez in his second year as a full-time starter. The 27-year old Colombian led in WAR (10.9), walks (78), OBP (.439), and wRC+ (209). Gonzalez added 47 home runs, 113 RBI, 216 hits, 108 runs, and 1.080 OPS. This effort earned him an eight-year, $146,900,000 extension in the offseason. Gonzalez held off Rio de Janeiro slugger Simon Veronese for MVP, as the latter led with 60 home runs and 142 RBI.

Veteran Vitorio Rosales had a career year at age 35 for Salta, winning Pitcher of the Year. He joined the Storm in 2029 after pitching previously with Cali and Barranquilla. The Colombian righty won an ERA title at 2.26 and led with four shutouts. Rosales had a 19-12 record, 262.1 innings, 251 strikeouts, 163 ERA+, and 7.1 WAR.

Buenos Aires ousted Salta 2-0 in the first round, but promptly was swept 3-0 by Santiago in the divisional series. The Saints earned their fourth trip to the Southern Cone Championship in a decade. On the other side, Manaus upset Brasilia 3-2 in a classic. For the third straight year, the Bearcats went one-and-done despite winning 100+ games.

The Magpies earned their second-ever finals trip, having won their lone pennant in 2027 in an upset over Santiago. Manaus reused the same script, knocking off the Saints 4-2 to claim the Southern Cone crown. For Santiago, they’ve now lost their last four finals trips. For the tenth straight year, the Saints made the playoffs and left ultimately empty handed.



Bogota ultimately rolled to a 4-1 victory over Manaus in the 100^th edition of Copa Sudamerica. The Bats won their fourth cup, having also taken it in 2000, 2004, and 2005. Four of the last seven Copa Sudamericas have been won by a Colombian team. CF Axel Greene was a surprise finals MVP winner, considering he finished his career with -4.2 WAR over 823 games. The 30-year old Belizean in 18 playoff starts had 19 hits, 9 runs, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homers, 8 RBI, and 0.5 WAR.



Other notes: Curitiba’s pitching staff allowed 1725 hits with a 10.87 H/9, both marks were the second-worst in Southern Cone League history behind their own worsts of 1774 and 11.19 from the prior year. In milestones, Juan Rizo became the 4^th to 3500 career hits. Elijah Reuter became the 19^th member of the 3000 hit club. The 500 home run club now had 65 members after Martinho Criscuolo, Spinoza Arajo, and Santino Garza met the mark in 2030.

Otavio Furtado and Bartolo Flores became the 71^st and 72^nd pitchers to win 200 wins. Flores also became the 53^rd to 3500 strikeouts. Isias Fabian became the 40^th closer to 300 saves. LF Feliz Zaldivar won his 8^th straight Gold Glove. SS Eddy Corunha won his 9^th Silver Slugger.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

Beisbol Sudamerica completed season #100 in 2030, becoming the fourth of the major pro leagues to reach the milestone. Below are the results and stats from BSA’s first 100 seasons.



In the Bolivar League, Caracas and Medellin have been the most successful teams. The Colts have the most playoff appearances (37), pennants (15), division titles (36), and the best average wins per season (85.2). The Mutiny have been to the LCS the most (27) and they are even with Caracas for Copa Sudamerica wins at six. All but the brand new expansion teams in the BL have at least one pennant. Maracaibo is the only original team from the BL without a Cup win and has the fewest playoff berths of those teams at 11.

In the Southern Cone League, Santiago and Sao Paulo have been the strongest squads. The Saints lead all teams with 47 playoff berths, 42 division titles, 29 LCS trips, and 88.8 wins per season. The Padres have had better playoff luck with 15 pennants compared to Santiago’s nine, while both have six cups. Buenos Aires leads all teams with eight Cup wins. Montevideo is the only original team in BSA without a single pennant, only making the playoffs six times in 100 years. The Southern Cone League has fared better in Copa Sudamerica with a 56-44 record over the Bolivar League.

[FuzzyRussianHat]

East Asia Baseball saw a four-team expansion of the Japan League in 2025, moving it to 20 teams split between four divisions. The Korea League remained at 16 teams in two divisions, although the long-term plan was to do a similar expansion a few years later. In 2030, the KL made its additions to get to 20 teams and also split into a four-division format for the first time.



Three new South Korean teams entered the league with the Cheongju Checkers, Gimhae Golden Angels, and Jeju Islanders. EAB also added the Chongjin Ironbirds, a third team from North Korea. The league had only had two NK teams (Pyongyang and Hamhung) since EAB’s founding. Those teams had stayed in EAB despite political tensions, but those issues and North Korea’s own internal woes had prevented new NK teams from joining. By 2030, the political situation had gotten less tenuous and there was less pushback against the idea.



The next big step was figuring out how to divide the teams into four divisions after more than a century with a two division setup. The North Division would have the three NK teams (Pyongyang, Hamhung, Chongjin) along with Goyang and Seoul. Making up the Central Division was Bucheon, Incheon, Seongnam, Suwon, and Yongin. In the Southwest Division you had Jeonju, Gwangju, Jeju, Daejeon, and Cheongju. Lastly, the Southeast Division saw Busan, Daegu, Ulsan, Changwon, and Gimhae.

The Korea League also expanded the postseason to match the Japan League with the four division champs and two wild cards advancing. The wild card round was a best-of-four hosted by the division champ. They needed only two wins to advance, while the wild card had to win thrice. The divisional round was a HH-AA-H best of five, while the League Championship Series and EAB Championship were both HH-AAA-HH best-of-sevens.