Baseball: The World's Game

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Angelo Costa – Starting Pitcher – Monrovia Diplomats – 70.5% Third Ballot

Angelo Costa was a 6’2’’, 200 pound left-handed pitcher from the capital of Cape Verde, Praia. At his peak, Costa had incredible stuff and movement along with solid control. His fastball was exceptional with 97-99 mph velocity, but he also had excellent options with a slider, changeup, sinker, and circle change. Scouts gave him a 9/10 grade in both stuff and movement during his best years; marks rarely reached by any pitcher.

Costa also had excellent stamina and won a Gold Glove in 1995. He had decent durability in his 20s, but injuries derailed him into his 30s. Some teammates criticized him for selfishness and occasional laziness. However, Costa’s peak was remarkable and made him one of the renowned pitchers of his era.

A scout visiting Cape Verde in 1989 took notice of a teenage Costa and signed him to a developmental deal with Monrovia in March. He spent five years in development and debuted in 1994 at age 21 as a part-time starter. He looked merely average as a rookie and in 1995 as a full-time starter. However, Costa put it all together by his third season.

In 1996, Costa won Pitcher of the Year and led the Western League in wins, innings, strikeouts, quality starts, complete games, and WAR. The 292 innings was the second-most in a single-season in WAB history and the 20 complete games remains the WAB record in 2037. He was the WARlord in five consecutive seasons and had 6.5+ WAR in seven straight WAB seasons.

Costa also led in strikeouts in 1997 and 1998, while leading in ERA in 1998. The 2.09 ERA in 1998 was a career best and he fell two wins short of the Triple Crown. Costa was second in 1997 POTY voting, won it in 1998, and was third in 1999. He thrived despite Monrovia’s struggles, who averaged only 71.5 wins per season from 1994-99.

After the 1998 season, Costa signed a two-year, $4,000,000 extension with Monrovia. They couldn’t get a long-term extension with him and traded him for three prospects before the 2000 season with Kano. The Condors had won three straight WAB Championships, having just posted a record-setting 123-39 in 1999.

In his lone Kano season, Costa won his third Pitcher of the Year and earned a Triple Crown with a 24-2 record, 2.19 ERA, and 370 strikeouts. He also led in innings, K/BB, shutouts, and had a career-best 11.7 WAR. That sits third-best all-time in WAB history by a pitcher as of 2037.

The Condors broke their own record at 125-37, but suffered a stunning finals loss to Abidjan. Costa was great in his three playoff starts with a 0.77 ERA over 23.1 innings with 33 strikeouts. That marked the end of his WAB career, as Costa was a free agent for the first time at age 28 and had attention from all around the world.

For his seven WAB seasons, Costa had a 116-67 record, 2.74 ERA, 1727.2 innings, 2137 strikeouts, 306 walks, 143/207 quality starts, 77 complete games, 142 ERA+, 66 FIP-, and 55.1 WAR. It was about as strong of seven years as you can have. However, many WAB Hall of Fame voters felt he simply didn’t have the tenure to deserve the nod. He had the fewest wins of any HOF as of 2037, but still ranks 38^th in WAR.

Some voters figured he’d have continued to dominate had he stayed considering he would do great in MLB. Still, Costa missed the cut at 58.6% on his debut in 2009. He barely missed in 2010 at 65.5%, then crossed the 66% requirement at 70.5% in 2011. That made Costa a third-ballot inductee with WAB’s 2011 class.

Costa found a big payday in MLB for 2001 with a five-year, $39,500,000 deal with Montreal. He debuted with a third place finish in Pitcher of the Year voting and 8.4 WAR in 2001. Costa was again strong in 2002 and finished in two years with the Maples with a 30-27 record, 2.86 ERA, 538.2 innings, 505 strikeouts, 121 ERA+, and 16.3 WAR.

Montreal was mid-grade during his two seasons. It shocked many as Costa opted out of his deal after two years, becoming a free agent again at age 30. Philadelphia gave him an all-time lucrative deal of seven seasons and $80,200,000. The Phillies won the National Association pennant in 2001, but just missed the playoffs in 2002.

Costa’s 2003 season was an all-timer, leading in wins (22-9), strikeouts (319), and WAR (11.7). The WAR mark was the seventh-best by a MLB pitcher. Costa had a 2.15 ERA and 159 ERA+, winning the fourth Pitcher of the Year of his career. He became one of a select group to win POTY in multiple leagues.

But even more impressive was this season earned National Association MVP. This was only the second time in NA history that a non-two-way pitcher won MVP, joining Jerry Addison in 1964. Philadelphia took the top seed at 102-60, but Costa struggled with a 5.14 ERA in 21 playoff innings. The Phillies lost to Ottawa in the NACS.

Costa still looked pretty good in 2004, but he missed much of the fall to shoulder inflammation. He allowed 3 runs in 13 playoff innings as Philadelphia lost in the second round. Costa had an okay start to 2005, but disaster struck with a torn rotator cuff in late May, putting him out five months.

He managed to make it back just in time for one World Series start in 2005, but got rocked with six runs allowed in three innings. Philadelphia ultimately lost in the World Series to Seattle. Costa decided not to opt out of his deal with a huge payday still owed for the next four seasons. However, Costa struggled in spring training and Philadelphia cut him in late March.

With the Phillies, Costa had a 33-16 record, 2.34 ERA, 488 innings, 557 strikeouts, 114 walks, 146 ERA+, and 18.1 WAR. It was a very impressive three years, but the rotator cuff injury absolutely ruined his control. Omaha signed him for 2006, but he was terrible with 74 walks in 126 innings. Costa’s highest walk total previously as 58 over 274.1 innings.

Costa had a -0.6 WAR with the Hawks, who cut him in late August 2006. He finished the year struggling with minor league Morgantown. Buffalo gave him a shot in 2007, but he stunk with a 7.36 ERA and -1.1 WAR in only four starts. The Blue Sox cut him in late April and Costa couldn’t find another job in 2007 or 2008. He retired from the game at age 35.

In MLB, Costa had a 68-56 record, 2.92 ERA, 1178.1 innings, 1166 strikeouts, 299 walks, 117 ERA+, and 32.7 WAR. For his entire pro career, he had a 184-123 record, 2.81 ERA, 2906 innings, 3303 strikeouts, 605 walks, 130 ERA+, and 87.8 WAR. His decline was steep, but Costa was arguably the best pitcher in all of pro baseball in his peak. Winning four Pitcher of the Years and a MLB MVP is a very impressive run.



Hamza Seidu – Second Base – Monrovia Diplomats – 66.5% Third Ballot

Hamza Seidu was a 6’0’’, 195 pound switch-hitting second baseman from Zaria, Nigeria; a city of 736,000 people in the north central part of the nation. Seidu overall a solid contact hitter with an above average ability to draw walks, although his strikeout rate was subpar. He had extreme splits with great numbers against right-handed arms (.989 OPS, 166 wRC+) compared to very average stats against lefties (.749 OPS, 108 wRC+).

Seidu had a much stronger bat than most second basemen, topping 30+ home runs seven times and 40+ thrice. He also was effective at finding the gap and had 33 doubles and 10 triples per his 162 game average. Seidu had excellent running speed, yet he had terrible baserunning skills and was mediocre at getting steals.

Defensively, Seidu played exclusively at second base and was a reliably strong glove, winning Gold Gloves in both 1994 and 1995. His durability was decent, managing to play 135+ games in all but two seasons from 1991-2001. Seidu worked very hard and was considered a solid leader. He was a likeable and respected player that became extremely popular with fans.

A visiting scout from Monrovia was impressed by a teenaged Seidu and signed him to a developmental deal in October 1985. He spent five years developing in Liberia before debuting in 1991 at age 21. Seidu was a full-time starter from the start with an impressive .300/.358/.536 slash as a rookie with 6.1 WAR, earning Rookie of the Year honors.

A sprained ankle cost Seidu about two months in 1992, but he bounced back in 1993 for his first Silver Slugger and a third place in MVP voting. He led in slugging and WAR in 1993. Seidu had 7+ WAR again in 1994 and won his first Gold Glove.

1995 would be his strongest year, winning both a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger. Seidu was second in MVP voting, leading the Western League with 9.2 WAR. He also had career bests in home runs (52), runs (97), hits (186), RBI (127), average (.321), slugging (.688), OPS (1.066), and wRC+ (190).

It was hard to get noticed despite his talent as Monrovia stunk in the 1990s. They were a wild card in Seidu’s rookie year, but only had one winning season in the rest of his tenure (a mere 82-80 in 1992). Seidu didn’t lead in any stats beyond 1995, but he won additional Silver Sluggers in 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2001.

Seidu also played for his native Nigeria from 1992-2003 in the World Baseball Championship. He had 113 starts with 89 hits, 53 runs, 15 doubles, 5 triples, 27 home runs, 63 RBI, a .213/.267/.460 slash, 104 wRC+, and 2.1 WAR.

Monrovia gave Seidu an eight-year, $11,000,000 extension in July 1994 and he kept plugging along. In total for the Diplomats, Seidu had 1753 hits, 884 runs, 323 doubles, 103 triples, 381 home runs, 1065 RBI, a .294/.354/.574 slash, 151 wRC+, and 63.8 WAR. Seidu and HOF classmate Angelo Costa were redeeming qualities in an otherwise lousy era for Monrovia. The Diplomats would retire his #12 uniform soon after he retired.

Seidu’s final season with Monrovia ended with a ruptured Achilles tendon in late September 2001. He had one year left on his contract, but the Diplomats opted to trade him to Kumasi for three prospects. The Monkeys gave Seidu a two-year, $3,600,000 extension in early May in hopes he could be a solid starter.

Kumasi made it to the WLCS in both 2002 and 2003, but lost both times. Injuries meant Seidu only played in around half of the games in both years with solid hitting in 2002, but merely okay stats in 2003. He had 4.0 WAR, a .265/.294/.502 slash, and 126 wRC+ with Kumasi. Seidu decided to retire after the 2003 campaign at only age 34.

For his career, Seidu had 1919 hits, 971 runs, 361 doubles, 112 triples, 412 home runs, 1167 RBI, 601 walks, 326 stolen bases, a .291/.349/.567 slash, 149 wRC+, and 67.8 WAR. A relatively short career gave him lower accumulations than many WAB Hall of Famers. A few guys got in with lower totals, but that was because they started official WAB careers late, entering the debuting league as seasoned pros.

Working in Seidu’s favor was that he was the WAR leader among second baseman, a mark he still holds in 2037. Among all position players, he ranked 29^th. But second base was a lesser valued position and Seidu also was stuck on some forgettable Monrovia teams.

He missed the cut at 57.3% and 57.7% on his first two ballots. Seidu’s popularity and likeable nature helped get him a bump just beyond the 66% requirement on his third ballot. At 66.5%, he became the third and final member of WAB’s 2011 Hall of Fame class.

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South Asia Baseball added two players into the Hall of Fame in 2011 with left fielder Amoda Shah leading the way at 98.3%. Pitcher Jalal Mohammad joined him, narrowly breaching the 66% requirement with 67.5% on his second try. Also above the 50% mark was 1B Sunil Lamichhane with 59.2% on his third ballot and C Kumar Patel at 57.5% on his fourth try. No players were dropped following ten failed tries in 2011.



Amoda Shah – Left Field – Ho Chi Minh City Hedgehogs – 98.3% First Ballot

Amoda Shah was a 6’0’’, 200 pound left-handed left fielder from Bhiwandi, India; a city of around 870,000 people within the greater Mumbai region. Shah simply socked dingers and had one of the strongest bats in the world during his run. He topped 50+ homers nine times and smacked 30+ in all of his full seasons. Shah especially raked against righties (1.064 OPS, 190 wRC+) with merely decent stats against lefties (.742 OPS, 115 wRC+).

Shah’s contact skills and his eye were both average at best and he struggled significantly with strikeouts. He was very much boom or bust, but any contact would be very hard as almost 60% of his career hits went for extra bases. Shah could find the gap with around 30-40 doubles/triples most years. He was also far faster on the basepaths than you’d expect from a big bopper with very good speed and baserunning skills.

Defensively, Shah spent the majority of his time in left field and graded as a firmly above average defender there. He had rare starts in center field, but was poorly suited for that spot. His durability was great for much of his career, playing 150+ games each year from 1992-2003. Shah was likeable and his towering dongs made him a massive superstar.

Shah emerged seemingly out of nowhere, signed as an 18-year old by Bangkok in June 1989. He debuted for the Bobcats in 1991 at age 20 with 56 games and only 10 starts. Shah was a full-time starter in 1992 and made a massive impact. He led the Southeast League in runs, homers, total bases, slugging, OPS, and wRC+. His 59 home run, 8.3 WAR effort earned a Silver Slugger as a designated hitter and a second place in MVP voting.

He did even better in 1993 with 64 home runs, which was only three short of the then single-season record. Shah led in strikeouts again, but also had the most total bases with the best slugging and OPS in SEAL. This earned his second Slugger (his first in LF) and his first MVP. All six of his full seasons with Bangkok were worth 6+ WAR.

Shah won additional Silver Sluggers with Bangkok in 1994, 1995, and 1997 along with a Gold Glove in 1997. He took second in 1995 and 1997 MVP voting. Shah led in homers and RBI in 1997 and would lead in slugging four times with Bangkok. The Bobcats earned wild card berths in 1994, 1996, and 1997; but could never get beyond the first round.

Although his full pro career was in SEAL, Shah was a superstar back home in India after an impressive 1993 World Baseball Championship. In 23 games, he had 24 hits, 21 runs, 12 homers, and 23 RBI, helping India to its first-ever championship berth. They fell to Canada in the final ultimately. From 1993-2005, Shah had 130 games and 107 WBC starts with 86 hits, 67 runs, 15 doubles, 34 home runs, 69 RBI, a .216/.308/.534 slash, 142 wRC+, and 3.8 WAR.

In total with Bangkok, Shah had 955 hits, 632 runs, 187 doubles, 324 home runs, 700 RBI, a .277/.347/.639 slash, 173 wRC+, and 49.3 WAR. He was extremely popular in Thailand, but the Bobcats couldn’t keep with the massive money Shah would likely get in free agency. Thus, he left after 1997 and tested the waters at only age 27.

In this era, Ho Chi Minh City and Ahmedabad were the two dynasties who almost exclusively scooped up all the big free agents of the era. Shah ended up in Vietnam with an eight-year, $12,000,000 deal with the Hedgehogs. This would ultimately be his signature and most famous run.

Shah immediately made a massive impact, becoming the single-season home run king in his debut with 70 homers. He only held the top spot two years, but Shah’s season still is one of only nine in SAB history with 70+ as of 2037. He also led in runs and posted both league and career highs in RBI (140), total bases (405), slugging (.713), OPS (1.069), wRC+ (195), and WAR (9.8). Shah won his second MVP and sixth Silver Slugger.

HCMC won its eighth SEAL pennant in 12 years, but lost in the 1998 SAB Championship to Ahmedabad. Shah was underwhelming in the postseason with only 0.4 WAR in 14 starts. He made up for it in 1999, winning LCS MVP with a 9 home run, 20 RBI, 1.284 OPS, 264 wRC+, 1.8 WAR effort in 17 starts. Ho Chi Minh City again fell in the SAB Championship to Ahmedabad.

Shah was less dominant in 1999, but still repeated as MVP and won another Silver Slugger with a league best 118 runs scored, plus 53 homers. In 2000, he had a career and league-best 126 runs scored while smacking 65 homers with 9.5 WAR. Shah won his eighth and final Slugger, but was second in MVP voting as Dhuna Itar broke his homers record with 74.

However, 2000 saw Ho Chi Minh City win its second-ever SAB Championship, getting one over on Ahmedabad. Shah was a bit off in 2001 with a mere 40 home runs, but smacked 54 and 51 in the next two years with 6+ WAR both years. HCMC was upset in the LCS in both 2001 and 2002.

From 2003 to 2005, Ho Chi Minh City had a SAB Championship three-peat, winning 118, 122, and 121 games in their epic seasons. This gave Shah four SAB title rings for his impressive career. He wasn’t called upon to be “the guy” as much in this run, but still delivered plenty of power. In 89 playoff starts, Shah had 75 hits, 50 runs, 11 doubles, 26 home runs, 57 RBI, a .230/.300/.534 slash, 138 wRC+, and 3.0 WAR.

Shah became the career home runs leader later in his career, becoming the first to reach 700 home runs in 2005. That year, Shah also was the third to reach 1500 career RBI. His HCMC teammate Tirtha Uphadhyaya passed him as the homers leader about two years later. Shah would fall down the leaderboards a bit as a new group emerged in a higher offense SAB.

His tallies also didn’t reach their full heights due to injuries. In 2004, Shah missed six weeks to a fractured hand. Then in August 2005, he suffered a broken bone his elbow that ended his season and kept him out of the playoffs. 2005 was also the end of his Ho Chi Minh City contract and unexpectedly ended his career.

In December, Shah suffered a setback in his elbow which forced his retirement from the game at only age 35. With Ho Chi Minh City, he had 1070 hits, 809 runs, 183 doubles, 405 home runs, 855 RBI, 267 stolen bases, a .259/.333/.625 slash, 165 wRC+, and 50.1 WAR.

Shah’s final stats had 2025 hits, 1441 runs, 370 doubles, 101 triples, 729 home runs, 1555 RBI, 679 walks, 478 stolen bases, a .267/.339/.632 slash, 169 wRC+, and 99.4 WAR. As of 2037, Shah is 20^th in WAR among position players, seventh in homers, and 23^rd in RBI. He also has the sixth highest slugging percentage among Hall of Famers.

There were other great home run hitters in that era and the later years in SAB that overshadowed his final tallies. But Shah’s incredible power was something to behold in the 1990s and early 2000s, making him a major superstar beloved in multiple countries. He was an easy headliner for the 2011 Hall of Fame class for SAB at 98.3%.



Jalal Mohammad – Starting Pitcher – Kolkata Cosmos – 67.5% Second Ballot

Jalal Mohammad was a 5’11’’, 185 pound right-handed pitcher from Kurumbalur, India; a town of only 21,000 in the southern Tamil Nadu state. Mohammad had terrific stuff led by a dominant 99-101 mph fastball. He had above average movement, but his control was mediocre at best. Mohammad’s arsenal included a good cutter and curveball, plus an okay slider and changeup. But the fastball, when on target, was among the most impressive in the game.

Mohammad had very good stamina and was a decent defensive pitcher. Teammates and coaches were often critical of him for a poor work ethic and a lack of leadership skills. Mohammad generally just let his fastball carry him to success despite his other flaws.

He threw hard even from a young age, which earned the attention of Indian scouts. Kolkata grabbed a teenaged Mohammad in June 1988 and officially debuted him in 1993 at age 21. He only had 30 innings that year, but showed great potential. Mohammad was a full-timer in 1994 with mixed results, leading the Indian League with 99 walks. Still, he did well enough to earn Rookie of the Year honors.

Mohammad had a good 1995, the missed much of 1996 to a sore shoulder. He bounced back with a third place in 1997’s Pitcher of the Year voting. This saw his lone ERA title at 1.73 along with a career best 7.5 WAR. He matched the WAR total in 1998 and again was third in voting. Mohammad also made history in 1998 with SAB’s third-ever perfect game, striking out 11 on September 8 against Hyderabad.

1998 saw Kolkata end an eight-year playoff drought. They had three straight berths from 1998-2000 with their best performance being an Indian League Championship Series loss in 1999. Mohammad had an unremarkable 4.22 ERA in 21.1 career playoff innings. He also had a 3.51 ERA over 48.2 innings for India in the World Baseball Championship from 2001-2004.

Mohammad led the IL in strikeouts and innings pitched in both 2000 and 2001, as well as in WAR in 2001. 2000 would be his lone Pitcher of the Year win with his 383 strikeouts ranking as the eighth-best single season as of 2037. His 387 Ks in 2001 is tied for third most. 2001 also marked the end of his time with the Cosmos.

Kolkata would go onto retire Mohammad’s #13 uniform. With the Cosmos, he had a 120-84 record, 2.43 ERA, 1859.2 innings, 2545 strikeouts, 584 walks, 128 ERA+, and 40.7 WAR. Few teams had the money or interest needed for Mohammad and he ended up sitting out all of 2002. He returned to the game at age 31 in 2003 on a two-year, $2,720,000 deal with Dhaka. The Dobermans had won the Southeast Asia League pennant in 2002.

2003 notably saw a no-hitter against Kuala Lumpur on August 7 with 16 strikeouts and 3 walks. He struck out 300+ for the sixth time, but also posted a career worst 3.64 WAR. Dhaka missed the playoffs in both 2003 and 2004.

Mohammad had a better ERA and WAR in 2004, but an elbow strain put him out for the final two months. With Dhaka, he finished with a 3.19 ERA, 23-17 record, 375 innings, 528 strikeouts, 116 ERA+, and 7.6 WAR. Mohammad was unsigned in 2005 and retired that winter at only age 33.

The final stats saw a 143-101 record, 2.56 ERA, 2234.2 innings, 3073 strikeouts, 721 walks, 220/289 quality starts, 63 complete games, 21 shutouts, 126 ERA+, and 48.3 WAR. The rate stats were quite good and as of 2037, he has the 22^nd best ERA of any SAB pitcher with 1000+ innings. The accumulations were quite low with a short career and he ranks 63^rd in pitching WAR as of 2037.

Working in Mohammad’s favor was a perfect game, one ERA title, and one Pitcher of the Year award. He missed the cut with a debut at 62.8%, but enough voters were impressed with his resume to get him in on the second ballot. Mohammad only narrowly crossed the 66% requirement at 67.5%, but that made him the second member of SAB’s 2011 Hall of Fame class.

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For back-to-back seasons, the Asian Baseball Federation didn’t elect any players into the Hall of Fame. Only one player in 2011 even crossed 50% with SP Sa’id Farahani debuting with 51.2%. The best returner was 1B Mohammed Khan at 42.4% on his fourth ballot. CF Cuneyt Solak was the only other guy above 1/3 with a 39.8% debut. No one was dropped following ten failed ballots.

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The Arab League Baseball Hall of Fame had elected five players from 2005-2010, but never had a multi-person class to that point. 2011 changed that with the first-ever three player group. Two pitchers were nearly unanimous and both got 98.4% with Rashid Tariq and Mohamed Wael.




Closer Khadr Seif was the third inductee with 67.4% on his third try, narrowly crossing the 66% requirement. LF Jonoon Asghar barely missed a first ballot nod with 62.7%. SP Ahmed Khandour also had a strong debut, but missed at 57.5%. No players were dropped following ten failed ballots.



Rashid Tariq – Starting Pitcher – Mosul Muskies – 98.4% First Ballot

Rashid Tariq was a 6’5’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Basra, Iraq’s third largest city. Tariq’s pitches had absolutely absurd movement on them that some scouts graded as a 10/10 at his peak. His stuff was also very good with solid control. Tariq’s sinker hit the 96-98 mph range regularly and was mixed with a great forkball, quick slider, and a changeup. He had an extreme groundball tendency

Tariq was also known for legendary stamina and good durability. He would lead the Eastern Conference nine times in innings pitched, eight times in complete games, and nine times in shutouts. Tariq was a prankster in the clubhouse, but was also known for great leadership and intelligence. It’s no wonder that Tariq became ALB’s first great superstar pitcher.

The 1990 ALB Draft was the very first rookie draft for the new league. The timing worked out that Tariq was a top prospect for this and went fifth overall to Mosul. He had a full load immediately with 237.2 innings as a rookie split between starting and relief. Tariq took second in Rookie of the Year voting and earned a full-time gig for the next 14 years with the Muskies.

He quickly became a beloved figure both in Mosul, but for all of Iraqi baseball. Tariq was a regular in the World Baseball Championship from 1991-2005 and posted a 2.66 ERA, 9-13 record, 189.1 innings, 184 strikeouts, 65 walks, 134 ERA+, and 4.8 WAR. Tariq was a consistent positive figure for Iraqis during a tumultuous era generally for the country.

In his third season, Tariq led in WAR, wins, and innings, earning his first Pitcher of the Year. This started a streak of nine consecutive seasons worth 9+ WAR. From 1993-2001, Tariq led the conference in wins seven times, ERA five times, innings eight times, strikeouts once, WHIP four times, complete games seven times, and WAR seven times.

1995 was Tariq’s second Pitcher of the Year with a 23-9 record, 2.02 ERA, 340 strikeouts, 11.7 WAR, and 0.88 WHIP. The WAR mark set a new single-season best for the new league and still ranks fifth in 2037. The 298 innings pitched remains ALB’s single-season most as of 2037. This also was good for third in MVP voting. Perhaps most importantly, this helped make Mosul a contender.

The Muskies had posted losing seasons in the first five years of existence, but 1995 started an eight-year Iraq Division title streak. Mosul would lose to Medina in the conference final, but they knew they were on the right track with Tariq as the ace. That winter, the Muskies signed Tariq to a six-year, $5,020,000 extension.

Tariq repeated as Pitcher of the Year in 1996 with a 24-6 record, 2.42 ERA, 282.1 innings, 343 strikeouts, and 11.5 WAR. He had a 1.52 ERA over 23.2 playoff innings as Mosul won their first-ever Eastern Conference pennant, although they lost the Arab League Championship against Cairo. They lost in the 1997 conference final in an upset to Doha with Tariq posting a 4.70 ERA in 7.2 playoff innings.

Still, 1997 was his best-ever regular season, winning a fourth POTY and taking third in MVP voting. He had career bests in wins (27-4), ERA (1.72), strikeouts (365), WHIP (0.85), quality starts (29), complete games (15), ERA+ (219), FIP- (53), and WAR (11.9). The 27 wins remains the single-season ALB record as of 2037, while the WAR mark ranks third and the ERA mark ranks seventh. There have been eight 11+ WAR pitching season in ALB history and Tariq has three of them.

Tariq’s Pitcher of the Year streak was broken in 1998 with a third place, although he led again in WAR and had his only time leading in strikeouts. However, this year saw an impressive playoff run with a 1.17 ERA over three starts and 23 innings. Mosul won it all, defeating Khartoum in the ALB Championship.

They officially began a dynasty by winning the ALB title again in 1999, this time over Amman. Tariq was second in POTY voting and posted a 2.97 ERA and 3-0 record over 30.1 playoff innings. In 2000, Tariq won his fifth Pitcher of the Year and took third in MVP voting with a 25-8 record, 2.28 ERA, 288 innings, 324 strikeouts, and 10.2 WAR.

Mosul set a league record at 121-41 and seemed primed for a three-peat, but they suffered a stunning upset in the conference final to 83-win Kuwait. Tariq gave up four runs in eight innings over his lone playoff start. Although a disappointing end to that season, Mosul didn’t hesitate to re-up their 31-year old ace. Tariq signed a five-year, $23,600,000 extension that winter.

The Muskies rebounded by winning the 2001 title over Casablanca, making it three titles in four years. Tariq won his sixth Pitcher of the Year in 2001 with his fifth ERA title, seventh WAR title, and seventh time as the wins leader. He only saw 0.2 playoff innings though due to a rotator cuff strain in his lone appearance.

The rotator cuff was strained again in 2002, costing Tariq the first two months of the season. An oblique strain in the summer cost him another six weeks. Tariq allowed four runs in eight innings in his lone playoff start as Mosul fell in the first round to Dubai. This ended their playoff run, as the Muskies fell just below .500 for the next three years, then to the bottom shortly after.

Tariq went down as an all-timer in the playoffs for his career with a 7-5 record, 2.56 ERA, 116 innings, 129 strikeouts, 26 walks, 13/16 quality starts, 4 complete games, 149 ERA+, and 4.2 WAR. As of 2037, he’s fifth in playoff pitching WAR, seventh in wins, and ninth in strikeouts. Tariq’s four complete games are also the most of any player.

He bounced back from an injury-laden 2002 by winning his seventh Pitcher of the Year in 2003, winning a sixth ERA title and leading in WAR for the eighth time. As of 2037, he’s the only seven-time POTY winner in ALB with the next closest having six.

Tariq also started hitting notable statistical firsts in the young league. In 2000, Tariq was the first to reach 200 career wins, then was the first to 250 in 2003. He was the second to reach 3000 strikeouts in 2001, but the first to 3500 in 2003 and the first to 4000 in 2005.

His velocity dropped from a 96-98 mph peak to 92-94 in 2004. While he still was a good pitcher, the 5.7 WAR was the lowest full season since his rookie year and the 3.29 ERA was his worst full season. By 2005, Tariq couldn’t get out of the 80s on his pitches and he posted a middling 3.94 ERA and 3.4 WAR over 264.2 innings. Tariq allowed 296 hits, which remains a single-season ALB worst. Tariq retired that winter at age 37 and was immediately honored with his #11 uniform retired.

Tariq finished with a 285-132 record, 2.64 ERA, 3979.2 innings, 4008 strikeouts, 732 walks, 346/493 quality starts, 167 complete games, 48 shutouts, 142 ERA+, 67 FIP-, and 125.5 WAR. At retirement, he was the all-time leader in wins, innings, complete games, shutouts, strikeouts, and pitching WAR.

As of 2037, Tariq is third in WAR, third in wins, seventh in strikeouts, and fourth in innings. He remains the all-time complete games and shutouts leader by a significant margin, but surprisingly never threw a no-hitter. Tariq’s ERA ranks 11^th among all ALB pitchers with 1000+ career innings and his opponent’s OPS of .611 ranks 14^th.

That, seven POTYs, and three titles with Mosul makes for an impeccable resume. A couple guys would make a run in later years at the GOAT pitcher title, but Tariq is pretty much undisputed for his era. Many still argue that he is the Arab League’s all-time best pitcher and certainly a strong case can be made to that effect. Tariq earned 98.4% to co-headline the 2011 ALB Hall of Fame class.

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Mohamed Wael – Starting Pitcher – Khartoum Cottonmouths – 98.4% First Ballot

Mohamed Wael was a 6’2’’, 200 pound left-handed pitcher from Shubra El Kheima, Egypt’s fourth largest city. It has around 1,240,000 people and is part of the greater Cairo area. Wael had excellent stuff with above average to good movement and control. His fastball his the 96-98 mph range and was complimented by a forkball, changeup, and curveball.

Wael’s stamina was average to below average relative to other ALB aces. However, he was an ironman that started 34+ games in all 13 of his full ALB seasons. Wael was one of the hardest working guys in the game and his popularity and notoriety at times rivaled his Hall of Fame classmate Rashid Tariq.

Like Tariq, Wael was a top prospect in the first rookie draft in 1990. He was picked 11^th overall by Khartoum, but only saw eight relief appearances in 1991. Wael was moved to the rotation full-time the next year and took second in 1992 Rookie of the Year voting. He was a dominant ace by 1993 and from 1993-1997, Wael led the Western Conference in both strikeouts and WAR four times.

Wael was second in 1993 Pitcher of the Year voting, leading in WAR (10.5), strikeouts (314), K/BB (10.1), and WHIP (0.70). He took second despite setting multiple single-season records that still hold in 2037. Wael’s 0.70 WHIP, 5.14 H/9, opponent’s triple slash (.165/.202/.258), and opponent’s OPS (.460) are each all-time single-season ALB bests.

In 1994, Wael again led in WAR (10.5) and strikeouts (338), but this time led in wins too at 21-4. He won Pitcher of the Year and finished second in ERA at 1.83. Wael finished second in POTY voting in 1995, again leading in wins and WHIP. In 1996, Wael led in Ks (300) and WAR (8.7) again, but took second. 1996 also featured a no-hitter on May 18 against Beirut with nine strikeouts and four walks.

Despite his efforts, Khartoum was stuck in the middle tier, averaging 82 wins per season in Wael’s first six years. Things changed with 1997, which saw Wael’s second Pitcher of the Year. It was his first ERA title (2.36) and he also led in strikeouts and WAR again. Khartoum earned its first-ever playoff berth and the top seed at 105-57. Wael posted a 2.08 ERA in 13 playoff innings with the Cottonmouths winning the Western Conference title, falling to Doha in the ALB Championship.

Wael won a third Pitcher of the Year in 1998 with his second ERA title and fourth time leading in WHIP. He struggled in the playoffs with a 6.00 ERA over 21 innings, but Khartoum repeated regardless as conference champs despite dropping to 86-76. They lost the Arab League Championship matchup against Mosul.

All the while, Wael had pitched for his native Egypt in the World Baseball Championship regularly. He had 203.1 innings from 1993-2008 and posted a 9-13 record, 3.14 ERA, 272 strikeouts, 57 walks, 115 ERA+, and 5.5 WAR. Wael continued to pitch for Egypt even after he left the Arab League.

May 1999 saw a five-year, $7,880,000 extension for Wael, although the season had a 3.19 ERA, a career worst to that point. He tossed seven shutout innings in his one playoff start as Khartoum had the #1 seed, but was upset by Amman in the conference final. The Cottonmouths would be stuck back around .500 for the remainder of Wael’s run. He had an unremarkable 3.73 ERA over his seven playoff starts there.

Wael bounced back with his fifth WARlord season in 2000, taking third in Pitcher of the Year voting. He was respectable, but not outstanding in 2001 and 2002. In 2003, Wael returned to form and led in strikeouts for the fifth time, WAR for the sixth time, and WHIP for the fifth time. He finished third in POTY voting.

One year remained on his Khartoum deal, but they opted to trade the 34-year old ace within the division to Alexandria for outfield prospects Mido bin Zahoor and Hamza Moheisen. His one year with the Astronauts was excellent, earning the second-ever pitching Triple Crown season with a 22-8 record, 2.36 ERA, and career best 359 strikeouts. This made Wael a four-time Pitcher of the Year winner.

Alexandria took the top seed at 106-56, but lost to Beirut in the conference final. Wael struggled in six playoff innings, allowing 10 runs. It was a lackluster way to end an otherwise brilliant run in the Arab League. A free agent at age 35, Wael left for Major League Baseball on a three-year, $29,400,000 deal with Quebec City.

In ALB, Wael had a 225-105 record, 2.47 ERA, 3087.1 innings, 3977 strikeouts, 569 walks, 331/462 quality starts, 26 complete games, 152 ERA+, and 101.9 WAR. He was often right there with HOF classmate Tariq on the pitching leaderboards. Some thought Wael might get more play in the GOAT conversations had his final five seasons stayed in ALB.

As of 2037, he’s still fifth in WAR, eighth in strikeouts, eighth in wins, and 16^th in innings. His rate stats are tremendous and he still ranks first in 2037 among all pitchers with 1000+ innings in WHIP (0.91) and opponent’s OBP (.248). Wael also is third in ERA and second in OPS (.576). He has the best OPS of starters, behind fellow 2011 HOFer Khadr Seif.

Certainly, you could see how Wael might have made a run at some of Tariq’s all-time numbers. Four POTYs versus seven, plus Wael’s mediocre playoff stats, certainly puts Tariq ahead in the minds of most. But Wael’s resume was still a lock and he finished with the same 98.4% as Tariq. Thus, they co-headlined the 2011 ALB Hall of Fame class as the top pitchers of their era.

Wael debuted in MLB in 2005 and looked below average, getting demoted to a part-time role. He made it back to a full-time spot with strong numbers in 2006 with a 2.63 ERA and 5.0 WAR. Wael had 4.3 WAR and a 3.93 in 2007. He also had a 1.54 ERA over 11.2 playoff innings as Quebec City lost in the 2005 National Association Championship Series and the second round in 2006.

With the Nordiques, Wael had a 40-27 record, 3.36 ERA, 646.1 innings, 525 strikeouts, 144 walks, 101 ERA+, and 11.2 WAR. A free agent again and now 38, Austin gave him a two-year, $14,200,000 deal. Wael looked decent in 12 starts with a 3.15 ERA and 2.0 WAR, but the Amigos surprisingly cut him loose in June.

Portland picked him up soon after, although a hamstring strain knocked him out in September. He had a 3.41 ERA and 1.3 WAR over 108.1 innings. This ended his MLB tenure, but Wael still wanted to pitch somewhere. He posted a 51-35 record, 3.34 ERA, 851.2 innings, 661 strikeouts, 104 ERA+, and 14.6 WAR in his MLB career.

West African Baseball’s Port Harcourt gave him a three-year, $7,800,000 deal with expectations of solid things. Wael struggled in his one season with the Hillcats, posting a 4.57 ERA and 2.6 WAR over 203 innings. He remained on roster for all of 2010, but never saw the field. Wael retired from the game that winter at age 41.

For his entire career, Wael had a 285-151 record, 2.75 ERA, 4142 innings, 4799 strikeouts, 837 walks, 411/598 quality starts, 135 ERA+, and 119.0 WAR. He was certainly one of the strongest pitchers to come from Arab League Baseball’s first decade of play and is often a part of any conversation about ALB’s top five pitchers ever.



Khadr Seif – Closer – Amman Aviators – 67.4% Third Ballot

Khadr Seif was a 6’0’’, 205 pound right-handed relief pitcher from Irbid, Jordan; the nation’s third largest city with around 569,000 inhabitants. Seif had terrific stuff with an impressive 98-100 mph fastball and an even better splitter. His movement was reliably good, but his control was below average to poor. Seif had excellent durability, but a lack of stamina and a third pitch confined him to the bullpen.

Seif had just started a pro career by the time Arab League Baseball formed for the 1990 season, giving him free agency at age 22 to start. He signed with his home country team Amman. Seif was the starting closer for five seasons and won Reliever of the Year honors in 1993 with a 1.69 ERA and 136 strikeouts over 90.1 innings with 31 saves. Seif was third in ROTY voting in 1994.

Amman finished below .500 in their first five seasons. Seif had a reduced role in 1995, but had a 0.79 ERA over 45.1 innings. The Aviators won their first-ever division title, but lost in the first round of the playoffs to Cairo. This ended Seif’s first run with Amman after six seasons with 167 saves, 841 strikeouts, 523.2 innings, 2.02 ERA, and 19.4 WAR.

Just before the 1996 season started, Seif was traded to Cairo for three prospects and a draft pick. He was a part-time closer with the Pharaohs in 1996, but helped them win the Arab League Championship over Mosul. They missed the playoffs in 1997, but Seif saw his only season as the saves leader with 39. That secured him his second Reliever of the Year.

A free agent at age 30, Seif signed a three-year, $2,220,000 deal with Basra. He repeated as Reliever of the Year in 1998, but was moved out of the closer role by his third season with the Bulldogs. In three seasons there, he had a .238 ERA, 77 saves, 230.1 innings, 320 strikeouts, and 5.3 WAR. While there, he also became the first ALB reliever to 300 career saves.

Seif signed a one-year deal in 2001 with Kuwait, but was traded to Cairo in the summer. He had 66 saves, a 1.86 ERA, 169.1 innings, 257 strikeouts, and 7.2 WAR between his Cairo stints. Seif’s only playoff appearances came with the Pharaohs with 3 runs allowed over 6 innings with 9 strikeouts. In 2002, Seif started in Beirut and was traded to Jeddah in June.

Amman brought him back in 2003, but he was traded in July to Khartoum. That was his last ALB season, although he saw stints in AAB with Johannesburg and Dar es Salaam in 2004. He earned a championship ring in 2004 with the Sabercats, although he only had one appearance with them. Seif retired after the 2004 season at age 37.

In ALB, Seif had 357 saves and 444 shutdowns over 1118.1 innings, a 2.19 ERA, 1715 strikeouts, 413 walks, 166 ERA+, and 34.8 WAR. Combining his brief AAB run, he had 1136.2 innings, 1731 strikeouts, and 35.1 WAR. Seif retired as ALB’s saves leader and still ranks third as of 2037.

His rate stats were also excellent. As of 2037, Seif leads all pitchers with 1000+ innings in career ERA, H/9 (5.71), opponent’s batting average (.180), slugging (.301), and OPS (.564). However, Seif’s lack of postseason success hurt him with some voters. Others thought the first-ever reliever into the Hall of Fame needed more eye-popping numbers.

Seif barely missed the cut in his first two ballots. He fell short of the 66% requirement by less than one point at 65.1% and 65.2%. His third ballot got the very slight bump to 67.4%. Seif was the third member of the 2011 ALB Hall of Fame class and the first relief pitcher to earn the nod.

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2011 still didn’t mark the first Hall of Famer for the African Association of Baseball. However, closer Juares Ibara set a new high mark at 56.1% on his debut, still falling short of the 66% requirement. CF Bawaka Ngoie made a slight improvement on his second ballot at 54.0%. SP Hendrik Jongman also topped ½ with 50.2% on his fourth ballot. Three others were above 1/3 of the vote. No players were dropped after ten failed ballots.

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The 65^th World Baseball Championship in 2011 was the first hosted in the Arab World since 1991, this time centered around Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. France advanced out of Division 1 at 7-2, topping Canada by one game and three other nations by two. This was the first division title since 2004 for the French and their 11^th overall.

The defending champion United States was the only unbeaten team in divisional play at 9-0 atop D2, although Guatemala gave them a fight at 8-1 The Americans advanced for the fifth consecutive year and for the 54^th time overall. Division 3 was tight with China and Panama tied at 7-2, while both Germany and Scotland were 6-3. The Chinese advanced on the tiebreaker to end a three-year drought and earn their 24^th division crown.

England advanced out of Division 4 at 7-2, holding off 6-3 efforts by Brazil and Japan. This was the seventh division title for the English and their first since 2002. Division 5 had a tie between Thailand and Egypt at 7-2, while Sudan was 6-3 and 2009 champ India was 5-4. The Thais took the head-to-head tiebreaker and became the 74^th unique nation to earn a division title.

Ireland and Serbia were even atop Division 6 at 6-3, while Russia and Spain were 5-4 and five countries went 4-5. The Irish had the head-to-head tiebreaker for their second-ever division title with the other way back in 1960; a 50 year gap.

Indonesia and South Africa each were 7-2 in Division 7, while last year’s runner-up Colombia and Nicaragua were 6-3. The Indonesians had the tiebreaker to advance for the 19^th time and the second time in four years. Lastly, Nigeria snagged D8 at 8-1, topping last year’s third place team Pakistan (7-2) plus both the Czech Republic and Myanmar at 6-3. The Nigerians secured a second division title in three years and their third overall.

The United States ended up being the only team from the 2010 playoff field to make it back in 2011. They advanced to the semifinal for the 48^th time, taking the top record in Round Robin Group A at 5-1. Ireland at 3-3 moved forward as well for their first-ever final four. Both France and Indonesia finished 2-4.

Group B saw England and Nigeria prevail with 4-2 records, while China was 3-3 and Thailand went 1-5. The Nigerians earned a fourth semifinal berth and their second in three years. It was the third semifinal for the English, who hadn’t made it that far since 1975.

The Americans swept Nigeria in one semifinal for a fifth consecutive finals appearance and their 44^th overall. England topped neighboring Ireland 3-1 on the other side, making the English the 25^th different nation to earn a championship berth. The Irish’s third place was a new best for them. Ireland became the 44^th unique country to make it to the final four.



The United States maintained its dominance by winning the 65^th World Championship 4-1 over England. The Americans moved to 38-6 in the finals, winning back-to-back, their fourth in five years, and their 11^th and 16 years.



Ezekiel Thomas became the fifth player to win Tournament MVP twice, having also won in 2008. The 27-year old RF with Virginia Beach had 36 hits, 26 runs, 10 doubles, 14 home runs, 32 RBI, 88 total bases, a .434/.505/1.060 slash, 317 wRC+, and 3.1 WAR. It was the fourth-highest WAR by a position player to that point and the second most total bases.

The Americans also had the best pitcher in Stevie Ray Thornton, a 27-year old closer for Philadelphia. The two-time Reliever of the Year winner tossed 13 scoreless innings with 32 strikeouts, one hit, and four walks. Both Thornton and Thomas were New York City natives.

Other notes: In the all-time team score, China’s division title pushed them just past Brazil for the third most points of any team.

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Reykjavik had the European Second League’s top record for the Western Conference at 99-63, earning repeat playoff berths. They were one game better than 98-64 Rome, who hoped to escape the bottom tier for the second time. After only 64 wins in 2010, Antwerp improved to 94-68 to earn the #3 seed.

Valencia narrowly grabbed the fourth and final playoff spot at 87-75. Four teams were two back at 85-77; Hanover, Liverpool, Nottingham, and Palermo. Recently relegated Berlin was in the mix too at 83-79. Notably Cardiff and Stuttgart, both playoff teams in 2010, plummeted to 57-105 and 66-96, respectively.



Wroclaw finished atop the Eastern Conference at 100-62 to end a four-year playoff drought. Lviv (97-65), and Chisinau (94-68) were next. The Lunkers earned a fifth straight playoff berth hoping to finally earn promotion. For the Counts, this was their first-ever winning season.

Odessa in its second season in the E2L grabbed the fourth playoff spot at 91-71. The closest foes were Cluj-Napoca and Varna at 86-76, plus recently demoted Tirana at 85-77. Riga, a semifinalist last year, was tied for eighth at 83-79 along with Sarajevo and Tbilisi.

Round Robin Group A had Antwerp and Rome both advance at 4-2, while top seed Reykjavik and Valencia were both 2-4. In Group B, Lviv and Chisinau advanced at 4-2, while it was Odessa and top seed Wroclaw both at 2-4. Antwerp rolled Rome in a Western Conference Championship sweep and Chisinau topped Lviv 4-2 in the Eastern Conference final.



The Airedales earned a second promotion to the European Baseball Federation Elite, having made it in 2008 only to get relegated immediately back. The Counts earned their first-ever trip to the top tier. In the Second League Championship, Antwerp defeated Chisinau 4-1 for the top spot.



If any additional promotion spots come up due to 100+ loss teams in the Elite tier, Lviv would be the first in line to join Antwerp and Chisinau, followed by Rome, then Wroclaw.

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After a second place in 2010, Lusaka took first in the African Association of Baseball’s Southern Conference in 2011 at 107-55. It was the second-ever first place for the Lake Monsters, who did it in the inaugural 1995 season. Lusaka showed impressive power, setting a conference record with 318 team home runs. That remained the top mark until 2036. Lusaka’s 938 runs were 179 more than second place.

It was great pitching that gave Maputo second place at 101-61, earning their first-ever playoff berth. The Piranhas allowed only 540 runs, which remains the conference record as of 2037. It was an 11 game drop to third place with reigning conference champ Harare and Durban both at 90-72. Antananarivo was fifth at 88-74.

Lusaka right fielder Kaunda Kalinga repeated as Southern Conference MVP. The 29-year old Tanzanian led in home runs (64), OPS (1.097), and WAR (8.8). Kalinga added 124 runs, 144 RBI, 184 wRC+, and a .282/.395/.702 slash.

Maputo’s Natnael Seyoum won Pitcher of the Year in his third season. The 25-year old Ethiopian lefty led in strikeouts (258), innings (253.2), WHIP (1.03), quality starts (24), shutouts (4), FIP- (74), and WAR (6.9). Seyoum had a 2.73 ERA. 155 ERA+, and 16-7 record.



Three-time defending AAB champ and five-time defending Central Conference champ Addis Ababa earned another first place finish. The Brahmas dropped from their historic 120-win 2010, but still finished strong at 104-58. AA’s pitching staff set a new conference record for strikeouts (1653) and K/9 (10.22). Both held as the top mark until 2030.

Kigali was a close second at 100-62, a nice improvement from a .500 mark the prior year. This was the third-ever playoff berth for the Guardians (2008, 2003). It was a steep drop to third place Mogadishu at 86-76, ending their hopes for a third straight wild card.

CF Mwarami Tale repeated as Southern Conference MVP and became the first six-time MVP in AAB history. The 30-year old Tanzanian won his second with Addis Ababa, having won the prior four with Luanda. It was his fourth consecutive season with an MVP.

Tale led in WAR (8.8), and runs (125) while adding 61 home runs, 122 RBI, a .290/.394/.681 slash, and 181 wRC+. He edged out Bujumbura’s Luke Tembo for the honor despite Tembo’s conference-best 66 homers, 143 RBI, and 131 walks.

Addis Ababa ace Michael Wakachu repeated as Pitcher of the Year and won his third award. The 31-year old Malawian led in ERA (2.56), WHIP (0.96), K/BB (5.5), FIP- (53), and WAR (7.4). Wakachu added a 13-8 record over 186.1 innings, 160 ERA+, and 269 strikeouts.

Maputo stunned top seed Lusaka 4-1 in the Southern Conference Championship for their first-ever pennant. They became the eighth team from the SC to win the pennant, leaving the Lake Monsters and Lilongwe as the only teams without.

Addis Ababa’s dynasty rolled on with a sixth straight Central Conference Championship win, although Kigali made them earn it. The series needed all seven games and game down to the final at-bat. In the bottom of the ninth tied 4-4, Marlin Kimwaki ended it with a three-run home run for a 7-4 game seven victory. The Brahmas joined SAB’s Ahmedabad, WAB’s Kano, CLB’s Dalian, MLB’s Philadelphia, OBA’s Melbourne, and CABA’s Mexico City as the only franchises to win six consecutive subleague titles.



In the 17^th Africa Series, Addis Ababa defeated Maputo 5-3 for a fourth consecutive title, matching Kinshasa’s four-peat from 1997-2000. Conference MVP Mwarami Tale was finals MVP, posting 21 hits, 8 runs, 6 doubles, 4 home runs, 10 RBI, and a 1.211 OPS in 14 playoff starts. The Brahmas were joined the Sun Cats, Ahmedabad, Dalian, Mexico City, and Melbourne as the only teams in any world league to four-peat as overall league champs.



Other notes: Felix Chaula became the second player to 700 career home runs. He finished the season at 713, while Mohau Sibiya played his final season to end with 727. Chaula would pass him the next year for the home run king crown. Chaula also joined him in the 1500 RBI club with Sibiya retiring at 1585. Chaula also passed him for that top mark in 2012. Adding to the accolades, Chaula became the first ten-time Silver Slugger winner with his in right field.

2B Gedeon Bukasa won his ninth Silver Slugger and 3B Marlin Kimwaki won his eighth. Mwarami Tale and Luke Tembo both breached 500 home runs, making that a six-player club. Tembo won his seventh Slugger at first base and Tale earned his sixth in center field. Nairobi’s Amisi Kongolo was the third player to have a six hit game and would be the last one until 2020. SS Joaquim Artur won his seventh Gold Glove.

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Two-time defending Arab League Baseball champ Amman won the Levant Division for the fourth consecutive year. They dropped from an impressive 116-win campaign in 2010 down to 97-65, fending off a spirited effort from 94-68 Jerusalem. The Aviators weren’t able to take the top seed, as that went to Casablanca at 99-63.

The Bruins guaranteed a fifth consecutive appearance in the Western Conference Final with their fifth straight Mediterranean Division title. They also had some competition, holding off 92-70 Tunis. Giza’s hope for a sixth Nile Division title in a row was thwarted as they dropped to 77-85. Alexandria won a weak division at 81-81, beating the Goats and Khartoum both by four games. The Astronauts ended a five-year playoff drought.

Jerusalem DH Tarek Abdel Rahman won a third consecutive Western Conference MVP. The 30-year old Egyptian led in hits (207), runs (109), RBI (146), total bases (418), average (.351), OBP (.414), OPS (1.122), and wRC+ (229). Rahman added 9.6 WAR and 56 homers. The Jets would reward their slugger the following Jul with a six-year, $35,800,000 extension.

Giza’s Hazem El-Morsy became a two-time Pitcher of the Year winner, having also taken it in 2007. The 27-year old Egyptian righty led in WAR (10.2), WHIP (0.86), quality starts (28), and FIP- (53). El-Morsey added a 10-12 record over 257.2 innings, 2.58 ERA, 324 strikeouts, and a 142 ERA+.

The reigning champ Amman was shocked as Alexandria upset them 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs. The Astronauts continued to stun the Arab world, ousting Casablanca 3-1 in the Western Conference Final. This was the second pennant for Alexandria, who also won in 2002. At .500, the Astronauts became the weakest team in advance to the ALB Championship. The Bruins suffered a third consecutive WCF defeat.



Nobody stood out in the Eastern Conference as six teams were within six games of the #1 seed. Dubai took the top spot at 90-72 in the Gulf Division, ending a three-year playoff drought and guaranteeing their first conference finals berth since their 2003 pennant. They outlasted 86-76 Abu Dhabi. In the Saudi Division, Jeddah ended a nine-year drought at 88-74. They edged 87-75 Mecca by one game and 84-78 Medina by four.

Defending EC champ Basra maintained control of the Iraq Division for the ninth consecutive year, which stands alone as ALB’s longest playoff streak. 86-76 was the weakest record the Bulldogs had posted in that run, ending a three-year stretch of 100+ win campaigns. Sulaymaniya came closest in the division race at 81-81 with Kuwait at 79-83. Basra uniquely led all of ALB in runs scored (875) while also allowing the most (846).

Eastern Conference MVP was Abu Dhabi 2B Mohamed Mustafa. The 30-year old Sudanese righty led in hits (222), total bases (450), batting average (.368), and WAR (11.2). Mustafa also had 56 home runs, 141 RBI, a 1.151 OPS, and 202 wRC+. The Destroyers gave him a seven-year, $24,040,000 extension the prior summer. Mustafa beat out Mecca’s Yahya bin Hakam for the honor despite the latter’s 64 home run, 152 RBI, 10.9 WAR effort.

In his second season in the rotation, Jeddah’s Herdi Wahib won Pitcher of the Year. The 24-year old Palestinian lefty led in wins (19-10), ERA (2.11), innings (268.2), quality starts (28), complete games (14), shutouts (3), FIP- (60), and WAR (9.7). He finished second in strikeouts with 337 and had a 195 ERA+.

Although the road underdog, reigning conference champ Basra bested Jeddah 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs. The high powered Bulldogs then knocked off Dubai 3-2 in the Eastern Conference Final. This gave Basra its fifth pennant in eight years, the most of any ALB team in the league’s short history to date.



The 22^nd Arab League Championship had one of the weakest combined records of any league final in any league with Alexandria at 81-81 and Basra at 86-76. The Bulldogs rolled the Astronauts in five games, giving Basra its third overall title (2006, 2008, 2011). RF Farouk Adam was finals MVP with the three-time conference MVP getting 17 hits, 3 runs, 4 doubles, 2 homers, 10 RBI, and 7 stolen bases in 11 playoff starts.



Other notes: Basra slugger Nordine Soule became the all-time world leader in home runs, passing Beisbol Sudamerica’s Milton Becker’s 941 by finishing the 2011 season with 964. Soule smacked 48 homers at age 36, which actually ended a 14-year streak of 50+ homers each year. The Comoran left fielder also won his 15^th straight Silver Slugger, adding to an ALB record.

Adding his accolades, Soule became the first ALB batter to reach 3000 career hits. Mustafa bin Nazim joined Soule as the only ALB hitters with 700 home runs. Both bin Nazim and Fadi Adwan breached 2500 hits, making four batters to cross that mark. Samer Al-Mousa became the third to 600 home runs and the fourth to 1500 RBI. Additionally, bin Nazim won his 13^th Silver Slugger and third at third base. His previous 10 came at second base.

Ramy Kayat became the fifth reliever to 300 saves. Jabor Karim and Abdullah Al-Tamtami made seven pitchers to reach 3000 strikeouts. SS Amr Khatab won his ALB-record 12^th Gold Glove. Khatab would be the only ALB player with 12+ Gold Gloves until RF Nathan Nasreddine joined him in 2034.

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After taking the fourth and final seed in 2010, Faisalabad earned the East League’s #1 seed in 2011. The Fire won the South Division at 96-66 for their first-ever division title. Both wild cards came out of the South with Hyderabad (92-70) and Karachi (90-72). Both the Carp and Horned Frogs return to the playoffs after having streaks ended in 2010.

Almaty won the North Division at 91-71 for a third consecutive playoff berth. Peshawar was their closest competitor at 83-79. Bishkek, winners of 104 games the prior year, fell to 82-80. Reigning Asian Baseball Federation champ Rawalpindi also missed the cut, dropping from 96 wins in 2010 to 83 in 2011.

East League MVP went to Faisalabad 1B Rafkat Kudaybergenov. The 25-year old Uzbek lefty led in hits (204), runs (107), doubles (52), total bases (352), OBP (.407), slugging (.602), OPS (1.009), wRC+ (215), and WAR (10.3). Kudaybergenov added 32 home runs, 91 RBI, and a .349 batting average. He had signed a four-year, $20,760,000 extension the prior summer and would ultimately be the face of the Fire for the next decade-plus.

Karachi’s Zahir Nasir won his second Pitcher of the Year, having previously won in 2008. Like that season, Nasir in 2011 won an ERA title (1.45) and was the WARlord at 8.3. The 31-year old righty also led with a 0.81 WHIP and posted a 228 ERA+ over 217 innings, 295 strikeouts, and 17-6 record. His ERA mark was the eighth-best single season by a starter.

The division champs earned first round sweeps with Faisalabad over Karachi and Almaty over Hyderabad. The Assassins earned their second East League Championship Series berth in three years, hoping for their first pennant since joining ABF. The Fire also was searching for their first pennant, having fallen in 1992 and 1997 appearances. Faisalabad prevailed 4-2 in the ELCS, which gives all eight Pakistani teams at least one pennant to their name.



Ankara won the Turkish Division at 98-64 to take the top seed in the West League. The Alouettes earned a second division title in three years. Reigning WL champ Baku took a competitive Central Division at 95-67, giving the Blackbirds three straight division titles. Tehran was second at 92-70 to take the first wild card. The Tarpons ended a 17-year playoff drought and posted their first winning record since 2000.

Isfahan and Gaziantep tied for the second wild card at 89-73, while Tabriz was one back at 88-74. The tiebreaker formula gave the Imperials the final spot, putting them back in the postseason after seeing a four-year streak ended in 2010. The Tiger Sharks and Gorillas both missed out on repeat berths.

Ankara LF Guriel Chacham won West League MVP in his fifth season. The 28-year old Israeli righty led in home runs (55), and RBI (115). Cacham added 6.8 WAR, a 175 wRC+, and .964 OPS. The Alouettes gave him a six-year, $56,600,000 extension in May 2013, but he never posted an MVP caliber season again.

Bursa’s Ardak Novruzov snagged Pitcher of the Year honors and his second ERA title at 1.54. The 25-year old Tajik lefty also led in WHIP (0.81), quality starts (27), and FIP- (65). Novruzov had 6.3 WAR, 219 ERA+, 204.2 innings, 251 strikeouts, and a 15-6 record.

Wild card Isfahan stunned Ankara with a first round sweep, while fellow wild card Tehran outlasted Baku 3-2. The Imperials earned a third West League Championship Series appearance in four years and have made it 10 times since the Tarpons’ lone pennant in 1993. Tehran would snap the drought, defeating Isfahan 4-2 in the WLCS.



The 27^th Asian Baseball Federation Championship was guaranteed to crown the ABF’s 16^th unique champion. Faisalabad cruised to the title 4-1 over Tehran. Rookie RF Rahim Hashwani was a surprise finals MVP after starting only 32 regular season games. He only had 8 playoff games and two starts, but posted 5 hits, 2 runs, 3 doubles, 1 homer, and 3 RBI. The Fire are the third straight Pakistani team to win the title and mark four different champs in the last four seasons.



Other notes: Bishkek’s Talgat Bekturov had a 21 strikeout no-hitter against Rawalpindi on September 9 with 1 walk. This set the ABF record for most strikeouts in a no-hitter and was the 11^th time an ABF pitcher has fanned 21+. The previous no-hitter record was Rami Naqvi’s 20 Ks in 1999.

Hyderabad’s Ibrahim Bulak had two no-hitters in 2011. The first had 14 strikeouts on July 14 versus Multan with the second seeing 12 Ks and 3 walks on September 14 over Rawalpindi. Bulak became the first ABF pitcher with three career no-hitters, as he also tossed one in 2008.

Dushanbe had a historically bad pitching staff, setting East League all-time worsts in team ERA (4.64), earned runs (745), H/9 (9.95), hits (1598), and WHIP (1.483). Those remain all-time worsts as of 2037. Their 792 runs allowed ranks third worst.

Radi Umar became the first to reach 2500 career hits. Simin Arefi was the fourth to earn 500 home runs. Oskar Tamm became the 4^th pitcher to 3500 career strikeouts. Lakhani Mustafa was the fourth pitcher to 200 career wins. LF Martyn Khaladkow and 3B Shaheed Abbas won their seventh Gold Gloves.

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Defending South Asia Baseball champ Kolkata had the Indian League’s top record at 111-51. The Cosmos dominated the Central Division and earned a fourth consecutive playoff berth. Ahmedabad returned to the playoffs by taking the West Division at 104-58. Mumbai was close behind at 96-66, easily repeating as a wild card. Their closest wild card foes were in the division with Surat (88-74) and Pune (86-76).

The South Division was terrible with a tie for the top spot at 78-84 between Visakhapatnam and defending winner Chennai, while Bengaluru was 77-85. The Volts won the tiebreaker game over the Cows to earn a second berth in three years. Amazingly, this wasn’t the weakest-ever division winner as the 2002 Blazers took first with only 74 wins.

Kanpur was 82-80, but underperformed their expected wins by ten. The Poison had signed 1B Bassava Sanjahay to a five-year deal before the season worth $33,500,000. Sanjahay had won three Indian League MVPs previously with Mumbai and won his fourth in his Kanpur debut.

The 31-year old righty led in WAR (10.5), OPS (1.035), wRC+ (212), slugging (.643), total bases (370), and runs (111). Sanjahay also had 44 home runs, 119 RBI, and a .329 batting average. He played one more year with the Poison, then opted out of his deal and went back to finish up with the Meteors.

Kolkata signed 30-year old Amarjit Bedi for 2011 on a five-year, $26,960,000 after a decent run with Lucknow. Bedi excelled in his Cosmos debut and won Pitcher of the Year with an ERA title at 2.02 and the most WAR at 7.0. Bedi had a 17-6 record in 195.2 innings, 276 strikeouts, and 178 ERA+ with a 55 FIP-.

Despite their losing record, Visakhapatnam swept Ahmedabad in the first round for their first Indian League Championship Series berth since 1998. Reigning champ Kolkata survived 3-2 over Mumbai, giving the Cosmos a third straight ILCS appearance. Kolkata had little trouble with the Volts, winning 4-1 to repeat as Indian League champs. They’re the first repeat IL winner since Bengaluru (2003-04).



The Southeast Asia League continued to be very top-heavy. After six consecutive wild cards, Dhaka finally won the North Division title at 113-49. Defending SEAL champ saw their streak of 120+ win seasons ended at three, settling for the wild card at 110-52. The Hounds still extended their playoff and 100+ season streak to seven, averaging a staggering 113.1 wins per season in that stretch.

Yangon’s playoff streak grew to 17 years as they won the South Division at 100-62. That was the 12^th division title of that run for the Green Dragons. The second wild card spot ended up with a four-way tie at 88-74 between Bangkok, Chittagong, Kathmandu, and Mandalay. Former powerhouse Ho Chi Minh City missed the playoffs in back-to-back years, finishing 83-79.

SAB didn’t use tiebreaker games for wild cards and had to great creative looking at the formulas for a four-way tie. The math favored Mandalay, ending a 27-year postseason drought. The Mammoths’ last berth was 1983. The Chaparrals notably had their best record since their 1986 pennant.

Hanoi’s Majed Darwish won his fifth straight SEAL MVP, although his stats looked human in 2011 after obliterating world records in the prior few seasons. He did miss three weeks to a strained groin, otherwise he might have kept his absurd pace. The 28-year old Bahraini DH led in runs (130), home runs (65), RBI (153), total bases (429), slugging (.750), and wRC+ (207). Darwish added a .336 average, 1.145 OPS, and 9.9 WAR.

Yangon had the Pitcher of the Year Sargis Jaffar. The 24-year old Bangladeshi righty won the ERA title at 2.05 and led in WHIP (0.79), K/BB (12.4), FIP- (52), and WAR (7.8). Jaffar added an 18-6 record, 190 ERA+, and 285 strikeouts in 193 innings. He had a couple more solid years, but flamed out by age 31.

Dhaka survived in five games over Mandalay and Hanoi ousted Yangon 3-1, setting up a rematch in the Southeast Asia League Championship. It was a seven game classic with the Dobermans dethroning the Hounds’ dynasty. This was Dhaka’s fifth SEAL pennant (1981, 84, 91, 02, 11) and finally got them back to the final after six straight years ending empty handed in the playoffs.



Kolkata’s repeat hopes were also dashed by Dhaka as the Dobermans won the 32^nd South Asia Baseball Championship 4-2. This was the second overall title for Dhaka, whose other triumph was back in 1981. LF Tommy “Dynamite” Toe was finals MVP in his 12^th SAB season and fifth with Dhaka. The four-time Gold Glover from Myanmar had 19 hits, 11 runs, 2 doubles, 2 triples, 6 homers, and 15 RBI in 18 playoff starts.



Other notes: Ageless 3B Manju Abbas won a ring with Dhaka and made world history. With 26 doubles at age 44, he passed EAB’s Dong-Ju Hahn (778) for the world record in career doubles. Abbas played one more year and finished with 816, which held as the world record until passed by eventual world hit king Fares Belaid of WAB in the late 2020s.

Abbas also became the first SAB player to 2000 runs scored. He finished with 2057, which ranks third in 2037. Abbas retired after the 2012 season at age 45 as the SAB hit king at 3897, a distinction he still holds as of 2037. He’s also the leader in singles (2412), games (3656), and at-bats (13,463). His 3656 games is a world record within any one specific league. Prometheo Garcia is the only player with more games played with 3784 between CABA and MLB.

Tirtha Upadhyaya also made history as the first SAB slugger to 900 home runs and the first to 2000 RBI. He joined Garcia, Nordine Soule, and Milton Becker as the only players in any world league with 900+ career homers. The 500 homer club in SAB had 15 players after 2011 with the addition of Abbas, Majed Darwish, and Sameer Sheikh.

Devavesman Toppo became the seventh to reach 1500 RBI and Ko Ratanaveroj became the seventh to 1500 runs scored. Suhrawadi Baisya became the fourth pitcher to 200 career wins. He pitched one more year and ended with 210. 3B Kanala Vijay won his ninth Gold Glove.

Dhaka Reliever of the Year winner Nopporn Samornchai set a playoff record with 12 appearances in relief. He had five saves over 20.2 innings with a 1.74 ERA and 34 strikeouts. Kathmandu set a SAB single-season team record with 473 stolen bases which held until 2025. Colombo only hit 91 home runs as a team, a SEAL all-time worst that stood until 2035.

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Despite being the WAB Western League champ the last two years, Abidjan had finished second both years in the standings. This time, they took the top spot at 101-61, extending their playoff streak to seven seasons. It was only their second time in first during this stretch, joining the 2008 season. Freetown bounced back from a 77-85 finish in 2010, taking second at 94-68 for a second berth in three years.

Monrovia’s playoff streak also extended to seven seasons with a third place finish at 91-71. Dakar and Conakry tied for the final playoff spot at 86-76 with the Dukes grabbing the spot in a tiebreaker game. Dakar ended a 16-year playoff drought back to 1994. Last year’s WLCS runner-up Cape Verde dropped to eighth at 77-85.

Although Kumasi was ninth place, they had the Western League MVP in RF Kay Duarte. The 25-year old Cape Verdean lefty led in WAR (8.3), slugging (.650), OPS (1.055), wRC+ (181), and total bases (367). Duarte added 44 home runs, 43 doubles, 112 RBI, and a .329 batting average.

Abidjan’s Arthur Boateng became the first to win Pitcher of the Year in four consecutive seasons and only the fourth four-time winner. The 27-year old Ghanaian lefty led in strikeouts at 286 and posted a 2.83 ERA over 235.2 innings, 15-7 record, 142 ERA+, and 5.9 WAR. The Athletes locked him down as the ace with a seven-year, $41,640,000 extension in March 2012.

Monrovia swept Dakar 2-0 in round one, but lost 2-1 to #2 seed Freetown in round two. The Foresters earned their first Western League Championship Series berth since losing six in-a-row from 1996-2001. Abidjan was looking for the three-peat in their fourth straight WLCS. Freetown pulled off the upset 3-2 to win their second-ever pennant (1977).



Reigning West African Baseball champ Cotonou improved with a franchise-best 114-48, taking first in the Eastern League by 21 games. The Copperheads led all of WAB in runs (872) and fewest allowed (555). Ouagadougou was a distant second at 93-69, taking their fourth playoff berth in five years. There was another nine game drop to third place.

Niamey and Port Harcourt tied at 84-78 to take the final two playoff spots, edging out 82-80 Ibadan and 80-82 Benin City. The Atomics earned a third consecutive playoff berth and their fifth in six years. The Hillcats meanwhile ended a 14-year playoff drought.

Cotonou’s Mohamed Elsheikh won Eastern League MVP. The 29-year old Sudanese first baseman had seen some success prior with Douala and Lagos and joined the Copperheads as a free agent in 2011 for $19,200,000 over four years. 2011 was a breakout year for Elsheikh, who led in hits (220), runs (119), RBI (155), total bases (440), slugging (.698), OPS (1.080), and WAR (8.8). He added 48 home runs, .349 average, and 190 wRC+.

His teammate Joshua Kumar won Pitcher of the Year. At 23-1, his .958 winning percentage was the second-best in world history to that point by a starter with 162+ innings. Only MLB’s Calvin Becerra was better with a 14-0 record, barely qualifying with 165 innings in 1926. Kumah also led in ERA at 1.86 and had a 219 ERA+. That said, the 27-year old Ghanaian’s 3.4 WAR was among the lowest ever by any POTY winner. Kumah had 184 strikeouts over 198.2 innings.

Port Harcourt outlasted Niamey 2-1 in the first round, then fell 2-1 to Ouagadougou in the second round. The Osprey earned their second Eastern League Championship Series berth in three years, but ultimately fell to the high-powered Copperheads. Cotonou took the ELCS to earn repeat pennants.



Cotonou also repeated in the 37^th West African Championship. It was an absolute classic against Freetown that went all seven games and needed extras in the finale. In the bottom of the 11^th inning in game seven, backup 2B Inspector Kanneh stepped up with a pinch hit RBI single for a 7-6 walkoff Copperheads win. It was only the second-ever walkoff finish in the WAB final, joining the 1984 series. It was the first-ever extra innings game seven.

2B Karim Dodoz was finals MVP, having joined Cotonou in a preseason trade with Bouake. The 29-year old Ivorian had 14 hits, 3 runs, 1 homer, and 3 RBI in 11 playoff starts. The Copperheads became the third WAB franchise to earn repeat titles, joining Kano and Lagos who have both done it multiple times.



Other notes: Darwin Morris became the first WAB player to reach 3000 career hits and 2000 runs batted in. At this point, Morris is the career leaer in hits, runs, homers, RBI, and WAR. Ahamad Mathew joined Morris as the only players with 600+ home runs and 1500 runs scored. Mathew also became the fourth to cross 1500 RBI.

Freetown’s Zackary Aisi set a bad postseason record with 27 strikeouts. Uche Abang had a 20 strikeout game for Ibadan against Libreville. It was the 14^th time a WAB pitcher hit 20+ and the first time since 2000. Shortstop Tchiressoua Yao won his tenth Silver Slugger. Catcher Okoro Otene won his ninth Gold Glove and RF Jacob Jamil won his seventh.

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Three of the four CLB Northern League playoff teams made it back in 2011. The exception was last year’s first place team Zhengzhou, who dropped to 75-87 to end a three-year playoff streak. Nanjing finished first at 100-62, their fifth time in franchise history taking first. Second had a tie at 95-67 between Shanghai and Tianjin. The tiebreaker gave the #2 seed to the Jackrabbit. Tianjin’s playoff streak grew to three seasons and the Seawolves’ grew to four.

The fourth and final playoff spot had a tie with Beijing and Hangzhou at 90-72. The Bears won the tiebreaker to advance for their third berth in five years. Xi’an just missed at 89-73 despite setting Northern League pitching records for fewest hits allowed (986) and H/9 (5.90). Those remain the NL records as of 2037.

Harbin was eighth at 82-80, but boasted the Northern League’s MVP Zhao Zhao. The 27-year old first baseman led in hits (203), doubles (36), total bases (351), average (.334), and slugging (.578). Zhao added 10.5 WAR, a 240 wRC+, 34 home runs, and .948 OPS. Zhao remained the face of the Hellcats franchise, inking a seven-year, $76,400,000 extension after the 2012 campaign.

Although Zhengzhou fell off, Yuandong Wang won his third straight Pitcher of the Year. Still in only his fourth season, the 24-year old lefty led in strikeouts (330), quality starts (30), and WAR (9.3). Wang had a 1.58 ERA over 267 innings, 11-11 record, and 146 ERA+.



Shenzhen and Chengdu had an intense battle for the Southern League’s top spot. The Spartans took it ultimately at 101-61, ending a four-year playoff drought. It was their second-ever first place finish, joining the 1988 campaign. For the reigning Chinese League Baseball champion Clowns, their playoff streak grew to four seasons. Changsha was third at 90-72 and Guangzhou fourth at 87-75 for the remaining playoff spots.

The Cannons earned repeat playoff spots, while the Gamecocks snapped a nine-year drought. There were eight teams stuck between 81-81 and 78-84, including last year’s China Series runner up Macau. At 78-84, the Magicians ended a three-year playoff streak and had their first losing campaign in a decade.

Foshan, a 2010 semifinalist, fell to 79-83. Top seed Shenzhen allowed 339 runs, which was the third fewest in CLB history. Chongqing at 79-83 set Southern League records for fewest walks (196) and BB/9 (1.18) which still hold as of 2037.

Chendgu’s Peng Wang won Southern League MVP and posted power numbers that seemed unfathomable in the dead-ball Chinese League. The 27-year old first baseman destroyed the previous home run record (59) and RBI record (125) by socking 70 dingers with 150 RBI. Prior to this, 50+ homers had been breached only nine times and it had only happened twice in the prior 30 years.

Both remain CLB records as of 2037. Wang’s 15.09 WAR was the second-most ever by a CLB position player behind Libo Li’s 15.85 from 1980. Wang also led the league in runs (113), total bases (409), slugging (.693), OPS (1.054), and wRC+ (272) while adding a .297 batting average. That set new CLB records for total bases and slugging, although both of those marks would later fall.

Pitcher of the Year went to Shenzhen’s Chenrui Lin in his fourth season. The 26-year old righty led in ERA (1.34), WHIP (0.70), and WAR (9.2). Lin added an 18-2 record over 248.1 innings, 283 strikeouts, and 183 ERA+. Sadly, his promising career was derailed in late 2013 with a torn labrum.

Also worth a mention was Shantou’s Zhenfeng Liu, who won Rookie of the Year. The #2 overall pick by the expansion Scorpions in 2010 set the record for most WAR by a CLB Rookie of the Year winner at 9.0. He added a 242 wRC+, .972 OPS, and 33 home runs.

Round Robin Group A saw both Southern League teams advance as #2 seed Chengdu and #4 seed Guangzhou both went 4-2, while Shanghai and Nanjing went 2-4. SL #3 Changsha was the top team in Group B as well, although the Northern League did get one team through. That was surprisingly #4 seed Beijing at 3-3, who had the tiebreaker over SL #1 Shenzhen who also went 3-3. Tianjin finished 1-5.

The Bears hadn’t been to the semifinal since 2002 and the Gamecocks hadn’t seen it since 2000. Beijing outlasted Guangzhou in their semifinal battle 4-3, giving the Bears their first China Series berth since 2001. Chengdu and Changsha both made repeat semifinal berths, although they didn’t meet last year. The defending champ Clowns was beaten 4-2 by the Cannons, sending Changsha to tis first China Series since their three straight berths from 2004-2006.



The 42^nd China Series saw Changsha become four-time league champions, defeating Beijing 4-2. This added the 2011 cup to their 1997, 2004, and 2005 wins. Finals MVP was pitcher Devin Swit, a 25-year old American who joined the Cannons after failing to grab a MLB spot out of college at Florida. All five of his starts were complete games, setting a playoff record. In 44.2 innings over six appearances, Swit had a 4-2 record, 1.21 ERA, 35 strikeouts, and 202 ERA+.



Other notes: Beijing’s Maoyu Yang set playoff records with three shutouts in his five playoff starts, posting a 1.02 ERA over 44 innings with 55 strikeouts. The shutouts and strikeout marks were records and his 1.99 WAR was the second-most behind Yo Ho’s 2.07 in 2009. Changsha’s Lei Li also had a great playoffs with a 1.89 WAR.

2011 had CLB’s 44^th and 45^th Perfect Game. On June 24, Xiamen’s Deng Wei struck out 12 against Guangzhou. On July 3, Shanghai’s Dong Chen fanned eight against Xi’an. Macau’s Yiak Pang struck out 21 in 8.2 innings against Guangzhou in May, becoming the sixth CLB pitcher with a 21+ K game.

Foshan’s Guoming Zhao notably tossed two no-hitters in 2011 within 12 days. The first was against Changsha on May 8 with 3 strikeouts and 1 walk. Then on May 20, he had 6 Ks and 1 walk against Shenzhen. Zhao became the sixth CLB pitcher to toss multiple no-hitters in the same season.

Hongtao Chen became the 15^th pitcher to 3000 career strikeouts. Jun Zhang became only the 13^th batter to 2000 career hits. Zhang also won his seventh Gold Glove in 2011 at shortstop. At a pathetic .274, Shiijazhuang had the worst slugging percentage by a team in Northern League history.

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Davao’s dynasty looked to continue on as the Devil Rays won the Philippine League for the seventh consecutive year. The two-time defending Austronesia Professional Baseball champs finished 105-57 for the top seed in the Taiwan-Philippine Association. Davao became the first team in APB history to earn seven playoff berths in a row.

Davao also set a new APB record for total attendance with 2,373,133 fans over the season. That remained the top mark until 2028. Cebu again had a strong season in second place, but their 94-68 couldn’t keep up with Davao. That was the best season for the Crows since their 1991 title.

The Taiwan League was top heavy with Kaohsiung ending a three-year title drought at 103-59. The Steelheads fended off defending TL champ Taipei at 98-64 and a sturdy Taichung at 96-66. Kaohsiung allowed the fewest runs in the TPA at 417, while Davao scored the most at 606.

For the fourth time in five years, Taipei’s Ching-Hui Lin was the Taiwan-Philippine Association MVP. The 27-year old right fielder led in home runs (49), RBI (111), runs (99), total bases (380), slugging (.639), OPS (.982), wRC+ (205), and WAR (9.4). He added a .292 average and .344 OBP.

Pitcher of the Year went to Cebu’s Favian Frias in only his third season. The 23-year old righty led in ERA (1.44), strikeouts (373), WHIP (0.65), and WAR (11.1). Frias added a 191 ERA+ and 18-6 record over 263 innings. Among his highlights was a no-hitter on August against Manila with 11 strikeouts and 2 walks, plus a 20 strikeout game against Tainan in May. The Crows wisely gave him a seven year, $51,120,000 extension in the offseason.



Surabaya’s Java Sea League reign grew to six seasons, taking the title and the top seed in the Sundaland Association at 99-63. Their nearest foes were Bandung and Depok both at 85-77. The Sunbirds joined Davao’s active seven-year streak an Manila’s six-year run from 1965-70 as APB’s longest continuous playoff runs.

In the Malacca League, Pekanbaru ended an 18-year playoff drought. At 96-66, the usually downtrodden Palms posted only their second winning season since 1993. Singapore finished 91-71 for back-to-back seasons, but again missed the playoffs. Defending Sundaland Association champ Medan was third at 87-75.

Singapore 1B Wil Tabaldo secured Sundaland Association MVP, leading in home runs (55), RBI (114), runs (97), total bases (348), OBP (.382), slugging (.612), OPS (.994), wRC+ (226), and WAR (10.1). Tabaldo’s .292 average fell seven points short of a Triple Crown. The 55 homers were tied for the third most in an APB season to date. The 24-year old Filipino lefty would start of streak of 11 seasons as the SA’s home run leader. That whole run came with the Sharks, who gave Tabaldo a massive eight year, $135,500,000 extension in April 2012.

Surabaya’s Rahmat Hasjim repeated as the Pitcher of the Year. The 28-year old Indonesian righty led in wins at 23-7 and posted a 1.59 ERA over 237.1 innings with 286 strikeouts, a 156 ERA+, and 7.6 WAR.

Davao swept Kaohsiung in the Taiwan-Philippine Association Championship for a third straight pennant and their fifth in seven years. They were only the third franchise to ever three-peat as subleague champs, joining Cebu (1990-92) and Jakarta (1968-70). Surabaya was ousted for the fourth consecutive season in the Sundaland Association Championship. Pekanbaru’s 4-2 upset win gave them their second-ever pennant, joining the inaugural 1965 season.



Davao had a shot to be the first-ever team to three-peat in the APB Championship. Pekanbaru denied that in a seven-game classic for their first-ever title. 1B Ali Yusuf was finals MVP, posting 17 hits, 5 runs, 3 doubles, and 4 RBI in 13 playoff starts.



With that, 15 of APB’s original 20 teams has won it all, leaving Tainan, Zamboanga, Depok, Palembang, and Singapore as those without along with the expansion Hsinchu and Cagayan de Oro squads and the recently added Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru. Pekanbaru was also the first Malacca League team to win the APB title since Batam in 1998.

This also officially was the end of Davao’s great dynasty run. They were the first-ever APB team to earn five finals appearances in seven years and joined Kaohsiung’s 1970s run as the only teams with four overall titles in a six year span. The Devil Rays would only see one playoff appearance in the following 25 seasons.

Other notes: Dedi Dewi passed Vhon Lasam’s 5365 to become the all-time strikeouts leader. Dewi pitched two more seasons and finished with 5721 Ks, which remains the APB top mark in 2037. Eddie Abundez became the 15^th pitcher to reach 4000 strikeouts. Manila’s offense had only 66 total home runs, the lowest single-season in TPA history.

Beau Cabral became the seventh batter to reach 2500 hits. He played two more years and retired with 2802, which was third at retirement and sits sixth in 2037. LF Chang-Fa Lin won his seventh Gold Glove. SS Chi-Chao Shih won his tenth Silver Slugger, making him the record holder at the position.

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For the 2011 season, the Oceania Baseball Association lowered its minimum service time for free agency from six to five years. This made OBA the least restrictive of any of the pro leagues. OBA maintained this until bumping back up to six seasons 20 years later.



Melbourne’s Australasia League dynasty rolled forward with an unprecedented ninth consecutive league title. This tied West African Baseball’s Kano (1997-2005) and South Asia Baseball’s Ahmedabad (1994-2002) as the only nine-year subleague title streaks in pro baseball history. Melbourne now has 14 titles, the most of any OBA team.

The Mets took the title at 105-57, earning a sixth consecutive 100+ win season. Canberra was the closest competitor at 95-67, a new franchise record for the 2006 expansion squad. Melbourne’s offense set a new AL record for walks drawn (566), and doubles (296), while having the second-most runs scored (859) and third-best team OBP (.335).

Tyler Straw became the fourth player in OBA history to be a five-time MVP. The Melbourne infielder had won the award in 2000, 2001, 2003, and 2007 at shortstop. His 2011 win was his first MPV since switching to second base. The 34-year old Australian led in WAR at 7.8 and had 31 doubles, 17 triples, 28 home runs, a .927 OPS, and 152 wRC+. Straw also earned his ninth career Silver Slugger.

Pitcher of the Year went to Christchurch rookie Alison Kila, who shockingly only took third in Rookie of the Year voting. The Papuan righty was the eighth overall pick in the 2010 OBA Draft and debuted with a Gold Glove effort, ERA title (2.45), and the best marks in strikeouts (365), WHIP (0.91), quality starts (31), FIP- (61), and WAR (9.8). Kila had a 22-12 record over 282.1 innings, missing a Triple Crown by two wins.

Kila never had another season quite that dominant, but he still led in strikeouts twice more and put together a second-ballot Hall of Fame run. The Rookie of the Year winner was Perth 1B Tyler Halton with 30 home runs, a .326 average, and 5.4 WAR. Halton went onto have a “Hall of Pretty Good” type run.



Although Tahiti had won 98 or more games in eight consecutive seasons, the Tropics fell just short in the 2009 and 2010 Pacific League standings. Tahiti returned to the top spot in 2011 at 101-61, earning their sixth pennant in nine years. The Tropics earned their 11^th league title with the effort. Defending PL champ Guadalcanal was the closest competitor at 93-69, 20 games worse than their franchise-best 2010 effort. Guam placed third at 91-71.

Timor’s Roe Kaupa won Pacific League MVP, leading in home runs (59), total bases (411), slugging (.712), OPS (1.108), and wRC+ (215). The 24-year old Papuan first baseman added 8.9 WAR, a .328 average, and 122 RBI. The Tapirs would only be able to hold onto Kaupa one more season before he left and signed a record eight-year, $117,400,000 free agent deal with Christchurch.

Fiji’s Akira Brady repeated as Pitcher of the Year and posted a historic season. The 24-year old New Zealander earned a Triple Crown with a 25-8 record, 1.37 ERA, and 447 strikeouts while also leading in WAR (14.1), innings (327.2), WHIP (0.69), K/BB (10.6), quality starts (38) and shutouts (7) with a 263 ERA+ and 48 FIP-.

Brady’s 1.37 ERA was the third-lowest season ever by a qualifying starter and the WAR mark was the sixth-best ever by an OBA pitcher. The WHIP mark was the fourth-best season and his .461 opponent’s OPS ranked sixth. The wild thing about Brady’s incredible career is that he would go onto have multiple seasons worth more WAR, although this would be his career best ERA and WHIP seasons.



The 52^nd Oceania Championship renewed the great finals rivalry between Melbourne and Tahiti, marking their sixth battle in nine years. The Tropics won the 2003 and 2008 encounters, while the Mets scored wins in 2004, 2005, and 2007. Melbourne had a shot at its second three-peat of the historic run. For the third time in this incredible rivalry, all seven games would be needed.

The 2011 final shaped up as the most dramatic yet as game seven went ten innings, ending with a 2-1 Tahiti victory. 2B Chase Terrell was finals MVP, going 10-26 with 8 runs, 3 homers, 1 double, 1 triple, and 5 RBI. Fittingly, this evened up the record at 3-3 between the squads. Both Melbourne and Tahiti would make the finals again in the next few years, but wouldn’t face each other. This was the Tropics’ fifth OBA title. (1965, 1975, 2003, 2008, 2011).



Other notes: 2011 would begin a three-year streak without a single no-hitter in OBA. Ryder Murray became the 14^th pitcher to 3500 career strikeouts. CF Ashton Hughes grabbed his ninth Gold Glove. LF Samson Gould and CF Tory Clayton both earned their eighth Gold Gloves. Arjita Gabeja won his eighth Silver Slugger and his second as a DH. He has six others in left field.

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Defending EPB European League champ Moscow finished first in the standings again in 2011 and grew its playoff streak to seven seasons. The Mules finished 103-59, their third 100+ win season of the stretch. Moscow also set a new EPB single-season team record with 476 stolen bases. This mark would only get topped once (by the Mules themselves the following year).

Minsk (96-66) narrowly edged out last year’s wild card Kazan (95-67) and Rostov (94-68) for the wild card. This gave the Miners their third playoff berth in four years. The Rhinos’ 94-win effort was the first-ever winning season since Rostov joined EPB in 2000.

European League MVP was Volgograd first baseman Roman Stachinsky. The 25-year old Russian led in hits (197), runs (98), home runs (46), total bases (364), slugging (.598), and wRC+ (193). Stanchinsky had 8.0 WAR, a .953 OPS, .323 batting average, and 105 RBI. He fell one average point and four RBI shy of a Triple Crown season.

Moscow had the Pitcher of the Year in veteran Nijat Statsky. The 33-year old Uzbek righty was in his third year with the Mules after relatively average production prior with Samara. In 2011, Statsky posted a 2.03 ERA, 17-7 record, 299 strikeouts, and 8.1 WAR over 261 innings with a 154 ERA+.



Reigning Eurasian Professional Baseball champ Omsk repeated as the top team in the Asian league with a 100-62 record. Yekaterinburg took the wild card at 94-68, finishing six ahead of Ulaanbaatar and eight better than Chelyabinsk. The Yaks grew their impressive playoff streak to nine seasons with 12 berths in the last 13 years.

Ufa struggled to 79-83, but they had the Asian League MVP in Nikolay Kargopolcev. The 24-year old Russian right fielder led in runs (95), home runs (43), RBI (103), total bases (348), slugging (.606), OPS (.950), wRC+ (180), and WAR (7.5).

Yekaterinburg ace Matvey Ivanov won a historic tenth Pitcher of the Year, his first since taking nine straight from 1999-2007. He made world history, as no pitcher in any other world league had ever earned ten Pitcher of the Year honors. Ivanov also impressively won his eighth ERA title and led in strikeouts for the eighth time.

It was an amazing bounce-back for the 36-year old Russian lefty, as elbow ligament reconstruction surgery had severely limited him in the prior two seasons. Ivanov led in ERA (1.96), strikeouts (285), and WHIP (0.84). He had 6.9 WAR and a 163 ERA+ over 252.1 innings with a 19-7 record, falling two wins short of a Triple Crown.

Ivanov also threw two no-hitters in 2011, the only ones of the season. Both had 10 strikeouts and 2 walks with the first on May 14 against Irkutsk and the second on September 16 versus Ulaanbaatar. This gave Ivanov five no-hitters for his career, the most of any EPB pitcher.

For the third time in four years, Moscow met Minsk in the European League Championship Series. Just like in 2008 and 2009, the wild card team pulled off the upset win. The Miners rolled the Mules 4-1 for their second pennant in four years. This also gave Minsk 20 EL pennants over EPB’s 57 seasons.

The Asian League Championship Series was also a rematch, although top seed Omsk repeated and swept Yekaterinburg. This gave the Otters their sixth-ever pennant and gave the Yaks their third straight ALCS defeat. The 57^th EPB Championship would be the fourth time Omsk met Minsk. The Miners were the victors in the prior three encounters in 1966, 1985, and
2002.



Minsk made it 4-0, taking the championship in six games against Omsk. Finals MVP was 1B Kehinde Tali, a Nigerian journeyman who came to EPB after flaming out of WAB. In 11 playoff starts, Tali had 12 hits, 7 runs, 1 double, 4 home runs, and 8 RBI.



The Miners ended an eight-year title drought; the second-longest gap for the perennial powerhouse behind the 15-year stretch from 1970-1984. With the title, Minsk is now 13-7 all-time in the finals. Their 13 league titles stand alone as the most by any team in any pro league. They were previously tied at 12 with SAB’s Ahmedabad.

Other notes: Markiyan Konoplya became the fourth pitcher in EPB to reach 300 career wins and the fifth to 5000 strikeouts. Konoplya pitched one more season and ended with 323 wins and 5213 Ks, retiring third in wins and fourth in strikeouts. C Eduard Melnychenko won his seventh Silver Slugger.

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Cologne finished with the best record among the EBF Elite in 2011, earning the Northern Conference’s top seed at 110-52. This was a franchise best for the Copperheads, who won the North Central Division for a third division title in four years. The #2 seed went to last year’s #1 seed Brussels at 105-57, giving the Beavers repeat Northwest Division titles.

It was an intense battle in the British Isles Division with Birmingham (102-60) outlasting the defending European Champion Dublin (100-62). The Bees got repeat playoff berths, but it was their first division title since 1996. It snapped a three-year division title streak for the Dinos. However as the first wild card, Dublin earned its sixth playoff berth in seven seasons and a fourth consecutive 100+ win campaign.

The fight for the second wild card was in the Northwest Division with Luxembourg (92-70) ultimately topping Amsterdam (90-72) and Paris (89-73). The Lancers grabbed their second berth in three years. Oslo won a weak Baltic Sea Division for the third consecutive season. The Octopi finished 84-78 with their closest competitor being 80-82 Copenhagen.

The worst time by far and the biggest shock was Kyiv at 52-110 suffering relegation. The Kings had won 87 games the prior year and before that had a six-year playoff streak with three conference titles and two EBF rings. It was an absolutely stunning collapse for one of the historically most successful franchise. No other teams from the NC were dropped as they all avoided 100+ losses. The closest to relegation was Frankfurt at 65-97.

Oslo may have been the weakest playoff team, but SS Harvey Coyle delivered an all-time season. The 24-year old Englishman won his third consecutive Northern Conference MVP and made history with 16.6 WAR. This set a world record for single-season WAR by a non-pitcher or two-way player and still holds as of 2037. Coyle broke his own EBF record of 15.7 that he set the prior season.

Coyle was the leader in home runs (62), RBI (142), slugging (.779), and OPS (1.190). On top of being the best hitter, he won his fourth Gold Glove with a blistering 37.1 zone rating and 1.146 EFF. He fell only narrowly short of the single-season ZR record of 39.9 set by Saul Santiago in 1982.

Brussels righty Gustav Rosengren became a two-time Pitcher of the Year winner, having also won it in 2008. The 27-year old Swedish righty was the WARlord (8.4) and led with 5 shutouts. Rosengren added a 2.57 ERA over 244.2 innings, a 19-8 record, 253 strikeouts, and 143 ERA+. In the offseason, the Beavers locked up their ace to a six-year, $63,100,000 extension.

Dublin rolled Oslo and Birmingham bested Luxembourg with first round sweeps. The defending champ Dinos then upset top seed Cologne 3-1 in round two, while the Bees outlasted Brussels 3-2. This was Birmingham’s first Northern Conference Championship berth since 1996. Despite the Bees being the division champs, Dublin crushed them with a conference finals sweep. With the repeat, the Dinos earned their sixth pennant (1962, 67, 68, 95, 2010, 11).



Barcelona again was the Southern Conference’s top seed, improving upon their 100-win 2010 with a 108-54 mark. They needed to be stronger to repeat in a loaded Southwest Division that had both wild cards. Marseille (101-61) and Lisbon (99-63) had the next two best records in the whole conference. The Musketeers earned a third consecutive playoff berth, while the Clippers ended an 11-year playoff drought. Lisbon had been stuck in the middle tier, winning 83.6 games per year during the drought.

At 98-64, Athens won the Southeast Division for the third straight year and earned a fourth straight playoff berth. Their closest foe was Yerevan at 88-74. In the East Central Division, Prague completed an impressive turnaround. The Pilots had gotten relegated in 2009, but earned a spot back with the Elite after winning the Second League title in 2010. At 87-75,

Prague edged out Budapest (83-79) for the spot. It is the first playoff spot for the Pilots since joining EBF and their first since the 1980 EPB season. The South Central Division was historically bad with Milan taking first at a mere 79-83. That ended a nine-year postseason skid for the Maulers. Zurich, last year’s conference champ, dropped to second place at 76-86.

Lyon and Naples tied for the worst record at 66-96. The tiebreaker saved the Nobles and dropped the Lords back down after only two years in the top tier. Also of note, Munich dropped to 70-92 to end their impressive ten-year playoff streak. The Mavericks hadn’t posted a losing season since 1997.

Marseille LF Jean-Luc Tapie won his fourth Southern Conference MVP in five years. The 26-year old Frenchman was the leader in runs (129), home runs (61), RBI (141), walks (97), total bases (414), OBP (.446), slugging (.754), OPS (1.200), wRC+ (217), and WAR (10.6). Tapie added 189 hits and a .344 batting average. The Musketeers gave him a mammoth eight-year, $88,300,000 extension in August.

His Marseille teammate Mitja Kovacic won Pitcher of the Year in his seventh season. The 28-year old Slovene led in wins (21-2) and quality starts (23). Kovacic added a 2.43 ERA in 237 innings, 243 strikeouts, a 159 ERA+, and 6.6 WAR. The Musketeers also spent big on Kovacic with a seven-year, $92,400,000 extension signed after the 2012 campaign.

The high powered wild cards both won in round one, but had to work for it with Marseille over Milan 2-1 and Lisbon over Prague 2-1. Top seed Barcelona would surprisingly sweep the Musketeers to earn repeat appearances in the Southern Conference Championship. Athens outlasted the Clippers 3-2, giving the Anchors their second SCC in three years. The Bengals rolled Athens 4-1 in the final for their third pennant in six years. It was Barcelona’s ninth SC pennant overall, tying them with Madrid and Zurich for the most.



Dublin dominated Barcelona 4-1 in the 62^nd European Championship, making the Dinos only the fourth-ever team to repeat as champ (Copenhagen 2004-05, Marseille 1985-86, Amsterdam 1983-84) Dublin now had four EBF titles, having also won in 1962 and 1967. LF Sergio Cipolla was finals MVP in his tenth season for the Dinos. The 32-year old Italian had 21 hits, 13 runs, 5 triples, 5 home runs, 14 RBI, and 10 stolen bases in 15 playoff starts.



Other notes: Romano Piredda became the 13^th batter to reach 600 career home runs. Antonio Massolo and Francisco Cruz made it 27 batters to reach 2500 hits. Zachary Berg became the ninth reliever to 300 saves. CF Paiz Bazarbaew and 1B Wilfried Keilbach won their seventh Gold Gloves. Two-way player Atanas Kalkanov won his 12^th Silver Slugger (11^th as a pitcher) and 3B Ben Springer won his seventh.

Promotion/Relegation: With no additional teams losing 100+ games, only the worst record in each conference (Kyiv and Lyon) were relegated. The Kings easily slotted into the Second League’s Eastern Conference and the Lords went to the Western Conference.

Promoted was the E2L finalists Antwerp and Chisinau. The Airedales were slotted right into Kyiv’s former North Central Division spot. The Moldova-based Counts were moved into the Southeast Division, which required additional shuffling.

Skopje was moved from the Southeast to the East Central, Prague was moved from the East Central to the South Central, and Milan was sent from the South Central to the Southwest. That had the unique impact of moving two defending division champs (although Milan won theirs with a sub-.500 record.

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Barquisimeto’s playoff streak grew to four seasons with their third Venezuela Division title in that stretch. For the first time in that run, they earned the Bolivar League’s #1 seed. At 107-55, the Black Cats had their first 100+ win season since 1981. They needed to be strong to fend off Valencia at 100-62. The Velocity took the first wild card for their third playoff berth in five years.

The Colombia-Ecuador Division was top heavy as well with a surprise winner in Medellin. The Mutiny hadn’t posted a winning season or playoff berth since 1998 and won only 55 games two years prior. In 2011, Medellin earned the #2 seed at 102-60. It was also their first division title since 1994.

They fended off Guayaquil (98-64) and Quito (95-67) for the division title. The Golds took the second wild card to extended their playoff streak to four years. The Thunderbolts fell short of the playoffs, as did solid efforts in Venezuela by Ciudad Guayana (91-71) and Caracas (89-73). The Giants had their own impressive turnaround, having won only 67 in 2010.

Defending Copa Sudamerica winner and three-time defending BL champ Santa Cruz was the weakest playoff team, but they extended their impressive Peru-Bolivia Division title streak to six seasons. The Crawfish took it at 93-69, besting Callao by three games. The Cats had their playoff streak ended at three years. Arequipa, a wild card last year, dropped to 82-80.

Leading Medellin’s turnaround was RF Manuel Marquez, who won his second Bolivar League MVP. The Colombian lefty had previously taken the top honor in 2008. The 27-year old slugger led in 2011 in runs (137), RBI (158), total bases (447), average (.363), slugging (.734), OPS (1.137), wRC+ (197), and WAR (9.0). Marquez smacked 60 home runs, falling two short of a Triple Crown season. In the winter, the Mutiny locked up their superstar to an eight-year, $87,700,000 extension.

Pitcher of the Year was Guayaquil’s Ulisses Natividad. The 29-year old Ecuadoran led in WAR (9.4), FIP- (53), and quality starts (24). Natividad had a 2.61 ERA over 238.1 innings with a 16-10 record, 290 strikeouts, and 156 ERA+.

Santa Cruz’s four-peat hopes were dashed as Guayaquil ousted them 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs. Barquisimeto dropped the Golds 3-1 in the Divisional Series, while Valencia outlasted Medellin 3-2. The Black Cats ended a Bolivar League Championship Series drought dating back to 1982, while the Velocity’s last BLCS was their 2007 pennant.

Valencia started hot by winning the first three games of the series. Barquisimeto avoided the sweep by winning the next three. In a decisive game seven, the Velocity was the road winner for their seventh Bolivar League title. The 2011 crown joins their 2007 win and the 1974-78 five-peat.



Recife won the Southern Cone League title in 2010 as a wild card. In 2011, the Retrievers had the top overall seed at 103-59 atop the North Division. It was their third straight playoff berth, but first division title since 2000. Last year’s division winner and LCS runner up Fortaleza was a distant second at 86-76, which ended their playoff streak at three.

Cordoba won the South Central Division at 98-64. The Chanticleers earned repeat playoff berths, but they hadn’t been a division champ in 25 years. Both wild cards came out of the division with Santiago (94-68) and Concepcion (92-70). The Chiefs snapped a 19-year playoff skid while the Saints ended a five-year drought. Asuncion’s five-year playoff streak ended as they struggled to 70-92. It was only the third playoff miss since 1997 for the Archers.

Sao Paulo repeated in the Southeast Division at 94-68 and set a new league record with 122 team triples. That remains the Southern Cone’s top mark as of 2037. Rosario (89-73) and Rio de Janeiro (85-77) were their closest foes in the divisional race. The Robins ended up three games short of Concepcion for the second wild card spot.

Recife 3B Niccolo Coelho was the Southern Cone League MVP. The 28-year old Brazilian led in runs (117) and RBI (139). Coelho added 190 hits, 53 home runs, a 1.065 OPS, 191 wRC+, and 9.2 WAR. The Retrievers would give Coelho a seven-year, $68,900,000 extension signed in August 2012.

Buenos Aires veteran lefty Fernan Murillo won his second Pitcher of the Year in three seasons. The 33-year old Colombian led in WAR (10.1), strikeouts (329), WHIP (0.82), K/BB (13.2), FIP- (53), and quality starts (25). Murillo added a 16-11 record over 253 innings, a 2.31 ERA, and 165 ERA+. He also became the 29^th Beisbol Sudamerica pitcher to reach 4000 career strikeouts.

Sao Paulo swept Concepcion in the first round, then took Recife to the limit in the Divisional Series. The defending champ Retrievers held on 3-2 over the Padres, while Cordoba defeated Santiago 3-1. The Chanticleers earned their first Southern Cone Championship appearance since their 1985 pennant. Recife wouldn’t be denied the repeat, rolling Cordoba 4-1 in the final. The Retrievers have impressively won five pennants since joining in the 1974 expansion (1984, 1995, 1996, 2010, 2011). They’re the first repeat LCS winner since Asuncion from 2000-01.



However, Recife would come up short in Copa Sudamerica for back-to-back seasons. Valencia won 4-2 in the 81th finale for their third Cup win, joining the 1977 and 1978 titles. They’re also the first Venezuelan team to win it all since Ciudad Guayana in 1984, which was the longest drought in any division. 1B Nicolas Aquino was finals MVP with 18 playoff starts, 23 hits, 8 runs, 3 doubles, 4 home runs, and 7 RBI.



Other notes: Owen Arcia became only the ninth BSA batter to 3000 career hits. Arcia also became the 34^th to reach 1500 runs scored. Vincente Sainz became the 14^th member of the 600 home run club. He played one more season and retired with 644, which ranks 18^th as of 2037.

Jose Antonio Saenz won his tenth consecutive Gold Glove at second base. Saenz is also the record holder at the position in BSA. 3B Oliver Mejia became a seven-time Gold Glover. Two-way player Oliver Ichminya won his eighth Silver Slugger as a pitcher.

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The Japan League’s West Division was stacked, but only one could advance. Kumamoto repeated and earned the #1 overall seed with a franchise-record 100-62. The Frogs held off 95-67 efforts by Kitakyushu and Hiroshima. The Central Division was also strong with reigning East Asian Champion Kyoto (99-63) prevailing by one game over Nagoya (98-64). By contrast, the other two divisions were very weak.

Chiba won the Capital Division at 84-78 to end a five-year playoff drought. Last year’s Capital winner Kawasaki fell from 102 wins to 83-79, missing the title by one game. Sapporo snagged the North Division at 82-80, posting their first division title or winning season since 2000. Sendai finished four back at 78-82. Niigata fell to 72-90, ending a five-year playoff streak with their first losing season since 1998.

Repeating as Japan League MVP was Kumamoto LF Sang-Jun Gang. The 29-year old South Korean lefty led in average (.342), total bases (398), slugging (.701), OPS (1.085), wRC+ (234), and WAR (11.2). Gang added 48 home runs and 111 runs. Gang stayed with the Monsters for one more season before leaving for a five-year, $90,800,000 deal with Daegu in 2013.

Chiba’s Hongchen Le won Pitcher of the Year, leading in wins at 24-7. The 24-year old Chinese righty had a 2.68 ERA over 262 innings, 253 strikeouts, a 125 ERA+, and 6.5 WAR. This was the one real standout year in Le’s career, although he was a respectable arm for another eight years for the Comets.

82-win Sapporo shocked #1 seed Kumamoto 3-1 in the first round, giving the Swordfish their first Japan League Championship Series appearance since 1999. Defending EAB champ Kyoto defeated Chiba 3-1 on the other side. The 2011 JLCS was an all-timer that required an extra-innings game seven. The Kamikaze won the finale 3-2 in 12 innings to repeat and win their fifth Japan League title.



Last year’s runner-up in the Korea League Championship Series Gwangju ended up with 2011’s top seed at 97-65. The Grays extended their playoff streak to four seasons, but it was their first South Division title since 1993. The North Division saw Goyang narrowly take first at 94-68, ending their own division title drought dating back to 1992. The Green Sox did grab their second playoff berth in four years, having won the 2008 pennant as a wild card.

Behind them were Suwon and Hamhung both at 92-70. They both were wild cards with the Heat winning a tiebreaker game for the #3 seed. The Snappers earned a third straight playoff berth, while Hamhung ended a 20-year drought. Just short in the wild card race were Busan and Daegu at 90-72 and Bucheon at 89-73. Reigning KL champ Yongin missed the cut at 86-76.

Suwon LF A-Min Bae won his fourth Korea League MVP in five seasons. The 26-year old lefty led in slugging (.684), OPS (1.086), wRC+ (190), and WAR (10.4). Bae added 45 home runs, 122 RBI, 116 runs, and a .349 average. He played one more season for the Snappers before leaving for America, signing a historic eight-year, $185,600,000 deal in 2013 with MLB’s Los Angeles.

Pitcher of the Year was sixth-year Daegu righty Jae-Ha Jung. He led in wins (21-10), innings (278), strikeouts (311), complete games (22), and shutouts (4). Jung added a 2.56 ERA, 145 ERA+, and 6.7 WAR. He stayed with the Diamondbacks one more year, then cashed in with a six-year, $87,000,000 free agency deal with Seongnam.

Gwangju survived 3-2 over Suwon in the first round, while Goyang outlasted Hamhung 3-2. The Grays earned repeat Korea League Championship Series berths, but couldn’t end its 17-year title drought. The Green Sox took the KLCS 4-1 for their second pennant in four years and their third overall (1991, 2008, 2011).



Goyang was one of the original franchises without an East Asian Championship win in EAB’s 91 seasons to date. That streak continued as Kyoto defeated the Green Sox 4-2, becoming the first Japanese team to repeat as EAB champs since 2000-01 Kawasaki. The Kamikaze were now 4-1 in the finals, also having won in 1974 and 1976. Pithcher Soji Ebisu was finals MVP, posting a 2.02 ERA and 3-1 record over five playoff starts with 45 strikeouts in 35.2 innings.



Other notes: Pyongyang’s offense only drew 243 walks all season, a new Korea League worst. Koji Iwasaki became the 11^th member of the 700 home run club. Iwaski, Soo-Geun Yim, and Dong-Uk Choi all crossed 1500 RBI in 2011, making 37 players to do so. Yim became a ten-time Silver Slugger winner with five wins in RF, five as a DH, and one at 1B. Yoo Sen won his ninth Silver Slugger, although it was his first at 1B. He had won eight straight at 2B previously.