United States Baseball Association

The United States Baseball Association is a fictional baseball league currently running OOTP11.  The league began in 1985 (2001 in real time).  The USBA started out using OOTP3 and has moved all the way up through the current version.  The USBA consists of 24 professional teams with three levels of minor league teams for each franchise.

1985

It was the inaugural season of the USBA. It all came down to a battle of two powerhouses in Memphis and Philadelphia. Memphis brought the 4th ranked lineup and 5th ranked rotation to the table. They were led by Hall of Fame pitcher Mark Jacoby who turned in a 20-5 record with a 2.59 ERA. George Welch stepped up to the plate to lead the team with 40 homers. The Riversharks went on to defeat the Philadelphia Mavericks 4 games to 1.

1986

The Chicago Mafia became the first team to win over 100 games in a single season. Many wins were thanks to star closer Terry Wells. Wells had an impressive 45 saves with a 10-1 record and a 2.89 ERA. Shigeo Oh was the leading batter with a .324 average with 31 homers. They were pitted against a strong L.A. team and Hall of Famer Cade Laurel. Even with the Natives 3rd ranked pitching staff, the Mafia still managed to pull out the USBA Championship 4 games to 2.

1987

The New Orleans Ragin' Cajuns eclipsed the mark that the Mafia left the previous season by winning 107 games. Pittsburgh put up a fight for the Championship, but the Cajuns took it 4 games to 3. New Orleans was led by their league leading pitching staff and 1987 Pitcher of the year Randy Oaks.

1988

Defending champ New Orleans broke the win record yet again by notching 109 victories. However, that regular season success didn’t translate into a 2nd straight title and they were upset by Chicago in the Divisional series. Pittsburgh made it to their 2nd straight championship series, but lost in 7 again, this time to the Richmond Cannons, who were led by the bat of Mark Stewart.

1989

Again a team sets a record for wins in a season, this time it was the Alaska Pipeliners and their 110 wins. But, just like New Orleans the year before, they stalled out in the playoffs. Boston reached the championship series for the first time and battled the Ragin’ Cajuns for the title. The Cajuns, led by Bill Williams and his 3 victories, were too much for the Pilgrims, winning in 7.

1990

Once again the record for wins in a season was broken, this time by Richmond with 116. However, the Cannons would choke, losing to Detroit in the LLDS. Alaska led the FL with 107 wins and cruised to the USBA title (the first for the Freedom League), beating Boston, San Diego, and Houston in a total of 14 games. The Pipeliners were propelled by the pitching of Donald Utt and Dallas Edmonds (6-1 in the playoffs) and the great hitting of Silver Slugger Paul Russell, Felipe Lopez, and Carson McGraw.

1991

For the first time in league history the record for wins in a season wasn't broken, but the regular season's best team once again struggled in the playoffs with 107-win Houston falling in the divisional series, and Atlantic division champion Boston would take home the 2nd USBA title for the Freedom League. Star pitchers Sandy Pacifico and Elijah Mohammad combined to go 7-0 in the playoffs as the Pilgrims topped New York, Los Angeles, and Memphis.

1992

Birmingham won their first league title in the first clash of 100-win teams (BIR-107, ALA-108), beating Alaska in 5. In the playoffs Dwayne Cunningham, Michael Faulk, and Roger Underhill would all hit over 3 HR with 10+ RBI and Hilton Hightower would toss 6.2 shutout innings, going 7-7 in save opportunities, as Birmingham would topple Chicago, New Orleans, and the Pipeliners.

1993

Boston beat New York, Alaska (who had the Silver Slugger and Bronze Arm winners), and Birmingham on the way to becoming the first team in USBA history to win multiple championships. Once again, the Pilgrims would lean heavily on their pitchers in the post-season with Nick Rolston, Sandy Pacifico, and Elijah Mohammad combining for an 8-2 record with Brendan Denali tossing 8.1 shutout innings on his way to going 7-7 in save opportunities.

1994

With just 85 wins the defending USBA champion Boston Pilgrims surprised San Diego and Seattle in the playoffs to find themselves in the finals for the second consecutive season. Facing the Pilgrims would be the Detroit Sparkplugs who dominated the Liberty League with a still team record 107 wins and defeated Chicago and Birmingham in the playoffs before taking care of the Pilgrims in just five games to claim the franchise's first USBA crown. OF Roger Underhill of the Birmingham Bandits was named the LL Silver Slugger winner for the fourth consecutive season.

1995

The Stingrays rebounded from the disappointing ending (2nd round defeat to Boston) to the best season in club history by winning their 2nd straight Pacific division crown, getting revenge on the Pilgrims, and the USBA Championship. Seattle was propelled to victories over Boston, San Diego, and Birmingham by Chris Williams and all-stars John Miltenberger, Brett Giovacchini, and Tommy Pew.

1996

Denver had never won more than 87 games before 1996 when the Diamond Demons won only their 2nd division crown and 106 games on their way to a league championship (they captured their only other Pacific division crown with a 78-84 record). Denver dispatched Boston in 4 games, defending champion Seattle in 6, and swept Birmingham. They were led by Platinum Rookie Robert Lafferty and all-stars Casey Zaks, Dean Cowden, and Cody Tobin.

1997

After winning their eighth consecutive Yankee Division title the Detroit Sparkplugs took home their second USBA Championship in four seasons by dropping just four postseason games defeating the Seattle Stingrays 4-1 in the finals. The Sparkplugs laid low during the regular season winning only 91 games but could go down as one of the greatest teams of all time with nine or ten possible Hall of Famers on the roster.

1998

New York and Denver finished 1-2 in wins in 1998 but ran into a hot Phoenix team, who eliminated each of the favorites, winning the Freedom League crown. In the LL, Houston led the Liberty in wins and cruised to victories over Detroit (3-1) and Birmingham (4-0) before dispatching the Scorchers in 6 games. The Apollos rode their offense in the playoffs, including 10+ RBI efforts from Joel Rome, Joel Denton, Ben Rawlings, and Patrick Dvorak winning the first USBA title in team history.

1999

It was a season of parity in the USBA as 7 teams finished with between 91-94 wins, including evental champion Birmingham. Propelled by the hitting of back-to-back Silver Slugger winner Jeb Clines and star Rafe Mullins in the playoffs, the Bandits swept Fort Wayne (tattooing Bronze Arm winner Kevin Hunter in his first career playoff start) in the first round, then beat both Houston and New York in 6 to capture their 2nd title.

2000

New York was the only team in the USBA to reach the 100-win plateau and the only team in the FL to top 90 in 2000, but they still nearly lost to Denver in the opening round. After the 3-2 scare with the Diamond Demons, the Gothams beat San Diego in 6 games and swept San Antonio for the title. Pierre Cisco, Carlos Villa, William Vansant, and Johnny Cooper would all play key parts in the post-season run.

2001

In a clash of USBA Titans the 113 win New York Gothams faced off against the 105 win Detroit Sparkplugs for the 2001 USBA Championship. Detroit SP Jarvis Turnbow pitched his team to their third championship starting three games and giving up just four runs in 24 IP with 20 strikeouts earning Post Season MVP honors. The defending champion Gothams boasted four pitchers with 18 or more regular season wins but were done in by Turnbow and his great postseason run.

2002

Fort Wayne would set a club record for wins, and lead the USBA, with 109. Behind the dominance of back-to-back-to-back-to-back (99-02) Bronze Arm winner Kevin Hunter (who set a USBA record for wins in 2002 with 26), the Wizards cruised through San Antonio, Birmingham, and Las Vegas (11-3) for their first USBA title.

2003

The Gothams would cruise to the Atlantic division crown, winning by 29 games over Philly, and was the only FL team with over 95 victories at 111. The squeaked out series victories in the fist two rounds over Las Vegas and Los Angeles before sweeping Fort Wayne for the USBA Championship. They were lead by 30+ HR sluggers John Sims, Donny Fink, Michael Tibbetts (who combined for 9 HR and 46 RBI in the playoffs). Amazingly, none of New York's starting pitchers had an ERA below 5.00 during the post-season as they slugged their way to the title.

2004

The 2004 New York Gothams found themselves in a familiar position in the 2004 USBA finals. Just as they did three years prior they had won 113 regular season games and were facing Liberty League Champion Detroit Sparkplugs for the title. This time around the Gothams were overwhelming favorites as the Sparkplugs had won just 93 games and made the postseason merely as a wildcard. In one of the most stunning upsets in USBA finals history the Sparkplugs swept the mighty Gothams oustscoring them by a total of 26-12 in the four games. 2001 finals hero Jarvis Turnbow only got to pitch one game in the series but he made it a good one with a complete game 5-1 victory to open the series and set the tone for Detroit's fourth USBA Championship.

2005

Boston led the USBA in wins with 113, but struggled in the first two rounds, barely advancing against LA and NY before sweeping San Antonio for the title. James Francisco, Luther Brogan, and Bernardo Ibañez carried the offensive flag while Howard Janes, Chris Caudell, and back-to-back Bronze Arm winner (04-05) Keith Starcher led the rotation.

2006

The Detroit Sparkplugs won their fifth USBA Title in grand fashion as they did not lose a single postseason game sweeping the Birmingham Bandits(3-0), San Anotonio Gunslingers(4-0), and the Alaska Pipeliners(4-0). Detroit ace Jarvis Turnbow won two more postseason games adding to his postseason legend(18-3, 2.07 ERA, 29 GS, 4 USBA Titles). The Pipeliners had won just 88 games in the regular season but managed to knock out the FL favorite Boston Pilgrims and their 108 wins during the LCS.

2007

The Phoenix Scorchers upset defending champions Detroit to claim their first USBA World Championship in just 5 games. It was an amazing turnaround for Phoenix, who had won just 69 games in 2006 and hadn’t had a winning season since 2000. Luke Kalakaua became just the 9th player to collect 2,500 hits, Jarvis Turnbow collected his 200th victory, just the 15th player to do so, and Drew Cane became the career leader in saves when he passed Colin Boyer’s 534.

2008

Amazingly, 3 teams from the Frontier League’s Pacific Division won more than 95 games! One of those teams, the Denver Diamond Demons, rose up and claimed the title beating Jacksonville in 7 games. Cody Tobin became the career leader in HR, passing Michael Faulk’s previous record of 487. There were 3 players that passed 400 HR in 2008: Ron Buckwalter, Donatello Marrero, and Lowell Burger. Burger also became just the 3rd man in league history to pass 1,500 RBI. Neal Washington became the 4th player with 800+ stolen bases, and Carlton Yates became the 16th player with 200 victories.

2009

The Chicago Racers, led by Jason Hammond, defeated the Phoenix Scorchers in 7 games to claim the 2nd title in the club’s history. Many milestones were reached in ’09. Devon Haskell and Luke Kalakaua eclipsed 3,000 hits, while Alberto Macedo and Lowell Burger passed 2,500. Ibanez also went over 400 home runs and became the 2nd 400/400 player in USBA history. But the most noteworthy accomplishments were achieved by John Sims, Raymond Hendley, and Cody Tobin; all three became the first hitters in USBA history to hit 500 homeruns.

2010

The Columbus Knights seized the moment in their first ever visit to the USBA Championship Series. It was an impressive season overall setting a new club record by going 105-57 on the season. The Knights had an extremely power lineup with Stinson, Booth, and Parkin right there in the center. Stinson was the first Knight ever to hit 60 homers in a single season. All five starters in the pitching rotation were overpowering. But there is no greater story than Tim Culp. Seeing all the dismal years of the Knights in his 18 year career, Culp went out on top and retired just after winning the USBA Championship.

2011

Lead by 23 game winner Tyler Bombardier, and past Silver Slugger award winners Chris Horne and Mario Mayo. Phoenix followed-up their record 118 win season with their Second Title in 5 years. Phoenix got a bit of revenge with beating a tough Chicago Racers team that defeated them on the same stage two years earlier.

2012

Phoenix bowled through the regular season winning a record 119 games, but they ran into a buzz-saw called New York in the playoffs. Phoenix gave the Gothams their only losses in the playoffs as they rolled to the USBA Championship in 13 games (11-2 post-season record). New York rode the arms of the best rotation in baseball. Ralph Molina, Edward Alston, Tory Peacock, Demarion Rhodes, and Samuel Ramirez combined for 79 victories and a 2.33 ERA. John Billings carried the offense in the playoffs with a .352 average and .962 OPS.

2013

A season of change for New Orleans, the Cajuns made many draft-day trades, including one that sent star Jeff Kifer for Tung Liu (who would go undefeated in 2013, including playoffs). After being let down multiple times by the offense in the playoffs; the Cajuns bats, led by LL Silver Slugger Michael Sharp (.367, 4 HR), woke up in the post season and beat Alaska in 6 for the title.

2014

The Jacksonville Suns, once USBA doormats (only 1 winning season in the league's first 21 years), had an amazing run in 2014. Led by young players such as pitchers Rhett Hawkins and Walt Peterson, and sluggers Alonso Rowe and Joe Collins, they set a team record with 93 victories, winning their 3rd Dixie title. Still they had the lowest record of any LL team in the playoffs. The Suns dispatched 101 win Columbus and 110 win New Orleans on their way to a championship showdown with Seattle where they handled the heavily favored Stingrays in 5 games.

2015

Jacksonville did the unthinkable, winning back-2-back USBA championships (the first team to do so in the league's 31 seasons)!! Jacksonville pulled a huge upset over the Wizards in the LLDS after winning the Dixie title over Birmingham on the last day of the season. They then went on to beat the 2013 champion Ragin' Cajuns for the 2nd straight year in the LLCS. It took Jacksonville 7 games to dispatch of the Alaska Pipeliners, but 20-year-old Gil Miller closed the series with a complete game shutout, earning him the nickname "Big Game" due to his ability to seemingly turn up his game in the post-season. Collins and Watanabe provided the only offense with all of the other 5 starters hitting below .230 in the playoffs..

2016

After losing to eventual champion Jacksonville two consecutive years, New Orleans got over the hump (possibly mainly because Jacksonville didn't make the playoffs) and won their 2nd title in 4 seasons. Led by a 40/40 season from Fernando Alfaro, another great offensive year out of Michael Sharp, and LL Bronze Arm winner Anami Yukio, the Cajuns paced the LL in both runs scored and runs allowed. There was very nearly another Cinderella story in 2016 with LA winning the FL pennant (LA had finished 3rd or 4th in the Southwest each year from 2007-2013); however, LA fell to the Cajuns in 5 games.