2065 Hall of Fame Presser
2065 CBA Hall of Fame – 1st Year Candidates
SS Donny Buijs – DC (2050-2056), BAL (2057), TOR (2058-2059), DET (2060-2061), NY (2061-2062)
PL Jason Isley Most Valuable Player: 3 (2050, 2051, 2052), PL Gold Glove Award at SS: 4 ( 2051, 2052, 2053, 2054), PL Silver Slugger at SS: 4 (2050, 2051, 2052, 2053)
League Championships: 0
Tournament of Champions Rings: 0
It was quite a career for the 7th pick in the CBA inaugural draft. Coming into the league as a 27 year old with 5 years of major league service time already under his belt, Buijs was immediately one of the league’s shining stars. He was the MVP of the Premier League in its first three seasons, dazzling both offensively (90 HR, 289 RBI, 20.8 WAR) and defensively (Gold Glove at SS 2051-2054). It will be a long time before we see another SS with such an offensive-defensive combination again.
After turning 30, Buijs continued to be one of the best players in the league, posting an average of 4.3 WAR in his age 30-33 seasons. After that, while his career was clearly in decline, he continued to post productive seasons at a PL level through his age 38 season.
The resume for Buijs is simply fantastic. One of the best offensive infielders of the modern CBA age, and he did it at a position where defense is often the only requirement. 48.8 WAR easily puts him in the upper echelon of players, while his Black Ink (22) and Grey Ink (80) speak for themselves. The only knock on Buijs is his absolute lack of postseason success. He never won a league in the regular season, and never played for a championship, either.
PREDICTION: Barring the unforeseen revelation of some personal life catastrophe, Buijs will easily be enshrined in his first season of eligibility, wearing a DC Eagles cap.
3B Ridley Hill – BOS (2050-2051), PHX (2051-2053), SLC (2054-2060)
2050 BL Sean Milbrandt Most Valuable Player Award, BL Silver Slugger Award at 3B: 3 (2050, 2054, 2056)
League Championships: 2 (1 SL, 1 BL)
Tournament of Champions Rings: 0
It’s altogether fitting that Hill would debut on this ballot. Taken with the 6th pick of the Inaugural Draft (one pick ahead of presumptive Hall of Famer Danny Buijs), Hill also jumped into CBA baseball and hit the ground running, taking home the first ever MVP award in the BL. Hill was also involved in one of the league’s first blockbuster trades, a deal that saw the reigning BL MVP head to Phoenix in the Silver League. Hill would eventually win his first league championship ring with Phoenix in 2053, even though he was only pretty good with the Sun Dogs.
(By the way, the player Hill was traded for in 2051, Dylan Marsh, can be found elsewhere on this ballot)
2054 saw Hill traded back to the Bronze League with Salt Lake City, and he immediately rejuvenated his MVP-caliber career. Hill put up 5.7 WAR in his first season back in the BL and captured his second consecutive League Championship ring, this time in the Bronze League. Hill would have one great season left in the SL in 2055, but would play into the 2060 season before finally hanging it up.
PREDICTION: For better or worse, Hill will be the bellwether upon which future 3Bs are judged. Even in real life voters seem to have a hard time evaluating what a great 3B is. 29.1 WAR is probably on the low side, but Hill’s pedigree may eventually get him over the top. Wearing a Stormbirds cap if he does eventually make it.
1B Arturo Maldonado – DET (2054), SD (2055-2060, 2062), SLC (2061)
2059 BL Gold Glove Award at 1B, 2060 BL Silver Slugger Award at 1B
League Championships: 0
Tournament of Champions Rings: 0
Maldonado’s career began as the 2nd round pick (9th) of the San Diego Steam in 2052. He made his major league debut in the Premier League in 2054 on loan with Detroit, and he showed immediate promise in CBA’s toughest environment, putting up a 122 OPS+. That promise continued in 2055 as Maldonado put up a 155 OPS+ and 5.4 WAR for the Steam en route to helping the team ascend to the Silver League.
Unfortunately, the Silver League was quite a hurdle for Maldonado, and he quickly became “just another guy” on the roster. Eventually, the team returned to the BL where Maldonado won his first piece of hardware – the BL Gold Glove Award at 1B in an otherwise forgettable 2059. He did enjoy a bit of a renaissance year in 2060 for the Steam, however, bashing 37 HRs and taking home the Silver Slugger award.
PREDICTION: It’ll be one and done for the Steam legend, who just never proved his abilities beyond the BL.
1B Noah York – DEN (2050-2054), PHX (2054-2055, 2057), CHA (2056), GAL (2056), DET (2058), TOR (2059), LV (2061), KTY (2062)*
*Did not play in the CBA in 2060
2050 PL Gold Glove Award at 1B
League Championships – 1
Tournament of Champions Rings – 0
Having suited up for eight different franchises, there are few men in CBA history who can claim to be as well-traveled as York. A 6th round pick in the Inaugural Draft, York always seemed to be fighting his way into that upper echelon of great players. His consistency was remarkable: even at the Premier League level, he was always at least a league-average hitter over a full season. In twelve CBA seasons, York was always good but rarely great. There were, however, flashes of something – a transcendent level of play he struggled to sustain. His 2053 season with Denver didn’t win him any hardware, but a .323/.382/.558 slash line in the PL is nothing to sneeze at.
York’s best season came in 2056, but this also turned out to be a turning point in his career. York, having signed a 1-year ‘prove it’ deal with Galveston, put together a monstrous line of .356/.406/.604 in the first 70 games of the season. Understandably, he expected a rich payday to follow this success, but the Gremlins weren’t believers. They shipped York off to Charlotte and the Bronze League for a handful of picks outside of the first round. York, for his part, cratered in Charlotte, and left in free agency.
After accumulating 4.1 WAR in the first 70 games of 2056, York would accumulate just 6.3 WAR over his next 5 seasons and 490 games.
Fun Noah York fact: Despite playing for over 25% of the teams in the league, York never played a single game in the Silver League.
PREDICTION: It seems York was always on the cusp of outperforming his inaugural draft slot, but never could quite get over the hump. He’d be in a shoe-in for the Hall of Very Good, and his Hall of Fame metrics back this up – he falls just short in most metrics. Ultimately, it’s not enough.
2B Ricardo Nava – MIA (2053-2059), NO (2060-2062)
BL Silver Slugger Award at 2B: 3 (2054, 2055, 2057)
League Championships: 0
Tournament of Champions Rings: 0
From the moment he was drafted in the 1st round by Miami, Nava looked the part of a Warrior middle infielder. Most teams prioritize defense in their second basemen and shortstops, but not the Warriors, who featured a middle infield of Ricardo Nava and Jason Stob for the middle of the 2050s. While Nava didn’t have the power bat of Stob, he proved himself more than capable with a bat in his own right.
Nava boasted a .351 on-base percentage for the Warriors over more than 3600 plate appearances for the franchise. His 334 walks are also nearly 50 more than anyone else in franchise history. Though his teams didn’t win any leagues outright, Nava contributed to an offense that helped elevate the Warriors from the BL to the PL in only two years, a feat only accomplished a handful of times.
Ultimately, the biggest questions for Nava will focus on his longevity. It’s hard to have a Hall of Fame worthy career in less than a decade, and Nava fell short of that full 10th season.
PREDICTION: 1st ballot Hall of Famer… in Miami and Miami alone.
1B Julio Goicochea – BAL (2052-2058), NO (2059-2062)
2052 SL Carlos Juarez Rookie of the Year, 2054 PL Silver Slugger Award at 1B, PL Gold Glove Award at 1B: 2 (2056, 2057)
League Championships: 0
Tournament of Champions Rings: 0
A 29th rounder in the Inaugural Draft, Goicochea’s career emerged suddenly when he was traded from Cleveland to Baltimore following the 2051 season. The next season, he immediately went from struggling in Dev-A to Silver League rookie of the year with the Blue Crabs.
His first three seasons with Baltimore were nothing short of a revelation. Though his defense left a lot to be desired at 2B, his offense carried him to 10.8 WAR through 2054. Even more impressive, Goicochea posted his best season to date in 2054 (137 OPS+, 3.9 WAR), which was his first in the Premier League.
Unfortunately, it was also his best season for a while. Goicochea’s bat took a step back in 2055, which only served to highlight his defensive deficiencies. Following a slide over to 1B, Goicochea thrived defensively, but his offense deteriorated to a nadir of 53 OPS+ in 2058.
Goicochea did revitalize his career with a successful stint in New Orleans, but he retired following the 2062 season having only completed 8 major league seasons. He was, at times, one of the best infielders in his league, but the questions about longevity will always be at the forefront of any discussion about the Hall of Fame.
PREDICTION: Ultimately, I think he just needed two or three more seasons of 3+ WAR to make this a serious discussion. As it is, he’ll probably fall off the ballot quickly.
SP Scottie Golden – AUS (2051-2062)
League Championships: 2 (2051 SL Champion, 2053 PL Champion)
Tournament of Champions Rings: 0
Two words come to mind with Scottie Golden: quiet consistency. One of the few players to spend an entire career with one team, and it just so happens to be one of the more anonymous teams in the league in Austin. In addition, there’s never a point in time where he was arguably the best pitcher in his own league. His best season came in 2053, when he went 15-1(!) with a 1.96 ERA in the Premier League, and led his team to the PL Championship, but he wasn’t even top-5 in WAR at his position that season.
Indeed, there are no individual accolades to point to with Golden. He struggled a bit in the seasons immediately following 2053, but rejuvenated his career once Austin returned to the Silver League. When he did eventually return to the PL, he put up arguably his second best season ever at age 32, despite finishing with a losing record (8-12).
Interestingly, despite spending only five seasons in the Silver League, Golden is undoubtedly one of the greatest pitchers in the history of that league. He boasts impressive Black and Grey Ink totals in the SL (SL Grey Ink of 82!), but it’s fair to wonder if it will be enough.
PREDICTION: I think it’s almost impossible for a player to get into the Hall without any individual awards, but Golden gives me pause. If there was a CBA All Star game, I could see Golden finishing with at least 6 appearances, and quite possibly a 7th in 2062 (when he could have made it on reputation alone)
I think it’s unlikely, but I think Golden might make it. Wearing a Gauchos hat, obviously.
SP J.D. Shelgren – SLC (2050-2057, 2061-2062), MIN (2059), ATL (2060)
League Championships: 2 (2054 and 2060 BL Champion)
Tournament of Champions Rings: 0
Drafted in the 7th round of the Inaugural Draft, Shelgren walked into the unenviable situation of being one of the few major-league ready players drafted by Salt Lake in a draft that is widely-regarded as one of the biggest disasters in CBA history. Through his first two seasons, Shelgren was the anchor of those Stormbirds teams, but he was 12-25 with an ERA north of 4.00.
Shelgren’s best season came in 2054 when he helped to lead the Stormbirds to their first BL Championship. Shelgren was worth 4.2 WAR that season and posted his first winning season with 11 wins against 5 losses. Though Shelgren would again win the BL in 2060, this time with the Atlanta Swarm, he was never among the best players on a team again.
PREDICTION: One and done, but not a bad career all things considered.
CL Arcibaldo Briz – NO (2050-2058), PHX (2058-2060), LA (2060-2061), GAL (2062)
League Championships: 0
Tournament of Champions Rings: 0
One of the best players ever from Portugal, Briz was a mainstay in the 9th inning across all three leagues for a decade. He is one of the few players in league history to rack up more than 200 career saves (209). His 14.3 Career WAR as a reliever is also impressive.
Unfortunately, there’s just not much more to say about his career. Drafted by New Orleans in the 9th round of the Inaugural Draft, he was along for the ride for their rise from the BL to the PL, always there in the 9th inning to slam the door shut. The closest he came to winning an individual award was in 2059 when he finished a distant 2nd to Denver’s Carlos Romero for Reliever of the Year.
PREDICTION: Like I said, being one of the best players in CBA history to come from Portugal has to mean something. In addition, it would probably be fitting if his number was retired by New Orleans. Hall of Famer? Unfortunately, no.
For the remaining members on the ballot:
2B Asjita “Big Dumb” Pandit (Galveston, Los Angeles, Indianapolis, Philadelphia, Houston, Tampa Bay, Mexico, and Cleveland) – 19 year career (~9 seasons prior to 2050), .265/.382/.431 slash line, accumulating 28.3 WAR in the major leagues – Pandit was one of the big prizes of the Inaugural CBA draft, but he did sink to the 2nd round due to his age (already 30 in 2050) and the prohibitive cost attached to him (42,500,000 in 2050). Still, Pandit proved to have one of the best Eyes in the game, accumulating 630 walks in his career. His 257 PL BBs ranks 20th all time, while his 211 SL BBs are good for 18th all time. His career WAR is probably a little lower than a typical Hall of Famer, but we can only see statistics for 10 seasons of his 19-year career. If we could see the whole picture, Pandit would likely be a slam dunk Hall of Famer. As it stands, he’ll probably garner some votes but struggle to win enshrinement.
LF Rico Santellan (Retired 2058) – Santellan only has 20 career WAR, but his career in the CBA started at age 27 and he spent the heart of his career on contending teams in the Silver League and Premier League. Santellan led the league in HRs and BBs twice.
RF Jeremy Nadeau (San Diego, Toronto, Mexico City) – 9 year career, .252/.351/.505 slash line, 24.3 WAR – Nadeau, who spent the bulk of his career with the San Diego Steam, was never really on a lot of radars. He’s almost certainly not a Hall of Famer, but his peak was something to behold. From 2052 through 2056, Nadeau was worth 19.5 WAR, bashed 173 home runs, helped the Steam get over the hump and into the Silver League, and was unquestionably one of the most feared hitters in the game. The rest of his career, unfortunately, failed to live up to the lofty heights of this peak.
CF Alberto Avila (SEA/SD/DC) – If we look solely at 2053, Avila is a shoe-in Hall of Fame talent: .318/.383/.618 slash line to go with 37 home runs, 24 steals, and 107 hits, the most in the league. Until you look at the big picture and see he finished with a slash line of .281/.346/.490; and that he only had 80 hits in a season one more time. Oh, and that big 2053 season only resulted in a BL Silver Slugger Award (MVP: Chicago’s Jose Villa). It’s unfortunate that the bulk of his career was spent on a San Diego team that was asleep at the wheel, but as it stands right now there’s just not a lot to make him stand out.
1B Dylan Marsh (Phoenix, Boston, Denver, Toronto, Philadelphia, Detroit, and Las Vegas) – 9 year career, .321/.359/.490 slash line, 18.4 WAR – Marsh’s career can’t help but feel like a case of “What could have been?” A 12th round pick in the Inaugural Draft, Marsh hit the ground running for Phoenix in 2050 at the age of 23, slashing .373/.405/.594 to earn black ink in each category and accumulating 4.9 WAR. That would be the most he would accumulate in a eason until 2054 with Boston when he hit .342/.383/.564 for the Shoremen. The big problem for Marsh was always his defense – he was an incapable fielder, which kept him on the bench too often. Unfortunately, this will likely be a brief stay on the ballot.
CL Sean Johnson (Houston, San Diego, Kentucky, Carolina, and Phoenix) – All time leader in Saves for the Silver League, 14-year career, 20.6 Pitching WAR, 2056 and 2057 SL Reliever of the Year Award – You’re forgiven if this name is surprising to you. Johnson spent the bulk of his career on Kentucky during a time when the franchise was exceptionally quiet, but he was absolutely one the best relievers in the entire CBA, and perhaps the best reliever in the Silver League period. His 156 Silver League Saves is 50 more than 2nd place, and 53 more than the highest active total. His career ERA of 2.73, outstanding K/9 of 13.1, and career ERA+ of 152 speak to his sustained dominance, and he should be an easy selection for enshrinement.
SP Juan “Rash” Gonzalez (Austin, Salt Lake City, and Houston) – 14 year career (~2 prior to 2050) 35.8 Pitching WAR, 2054 PL Pitcher of the Year Award – Not a lot of ink has been dedicated to one of Mexico’s greatest baseball products, but that somehow seems appropriate. Gonzalez spent nearly his entire career on Austin and Salt Lake City teams that were better at winning baseball games than earning headlines, and Gonzalez’s brilliance was rarely blinding. He won the Chad Armbruster award in 2054, and deservedly so, but he rarely did it with flash. He was always very good – he’d show up, stay healthy, pitch 150-170 high quality innings a season – but he was less-frequently great. He was never the highest-paid player on his team, nor was he ever the consensus best player on his team. In essence, he’s the first Hall of Fame candidate to be much more of a stat accumulator than a star, and his candidacy will be a good litmus test for the future.
SP Javier Jimenez (PHI/TB/DET/ATL) – Entering the CBA at age 30 as a pitcher, Jimenez was a reliable force at the front of the rotation for the entirety of his career in the CBA. He was the PL’s best pitcher in 2052, but only put up 18.0 WAR for his CBA career. One must wonder what his resume would look like if we could see the other 5 years.
SP Sean Wheeler (Minnesota, Cleveland, Toronto, Boston, Denver) – 14 year career (~2 prior to 2050) 21.0 Pitching WAR – I’ll be blunt: this is going to be Wheeler’s first and last year on the ballot (unless something unforeseen happens), but that is not to say he’s undeserving. Though not quite the pitcher Juan Gonzalez is, Wheeler mostly spent his career doing the exact same thing: showing up and being good enough. Most seasons he was a league-average innings eater, but he was a different beast in 2055 with Cleveland. In that season, he posted an ERA of just 2.59, struck out 185 batters, and gave up only 7 home runs in total. His Career ERA+ of 108 suggests he was a slightly-above-average innings eater outside of that season, which is likely not Hall material.
RP Guan-cai Guo (Toronto and Tampa Bay) – 9 year career, 10.0 Pitching WAR – Relief Pitchers are always going to have a strange relationship with the Hall of Fame. While there are relievers, like Xavier Owens, who are already Hall of Fame locks, there’s always going to be a huge cluster of relievers like Guo: Really good reliever who was absolutely one of the best in the league each year, but who just really didn’t have a commensurate impact on the game. When he entered the league in 2051 as an International Major League Free Agent, he was seen as one of the best free agent relievers, and he had a career befitting of that. It was a great career, but it probably wasn’t a Hall of Fame career.
CL Volkmar Arikan (GAL/AUS/DEN/DET) – Arikan had an impressive peak to his career from 2052 to 2054, winning the PL Reliever of the Year award in 2053 with Austin. Arikan was never truly dominant, but he was definitely one of the best handful of relievers in the PL during his career, and his candidacy will be a great litmus test for future relievers.
SP Nick Vitale (ATL/SD/SEA/MEX) – Nick Vitale was pretty good for a pretty long time. He won the ERA crown in the Bronze League in 2058 as a 35 year old (that 2.17 ERA is seriously impressive, but his BABIP was .047 below career average). He did win the Bronze League with Atlanta in 2055, and while he was a workhorse, Sandy Torres was clearly their best starter.