Sheng, Esparza, Samps, MacWhannel join the Rio de Janeiro Hall of Fame

[Echo127]

SS Lu-shan Sheng -- Sheng is still with Rio and could potentially still get some important ABs for the club, but there's no reason to delay the induction. A 15th-rd pick in the 2124 draft, Sheng shocked everyone but the Rio scouts when he blossomed into an all-time great player. He anchored the Rio infield at Shortstop for 11 seasons before transition to 3rd and then 1st base in his later years. He's second in the WBA in career WAR at SS and leads Rio all-time in Games Played, Runs Scored, and RBI's, among other categories. He's an MVP, 2-time Gold Glover, and 9-time silver slugger.

SP Jose Esparza -- Esparza is still active, as well, and hopes to carry Single-A Belem to a Championship in his age 40 season :-). Esparza was drafted with 2-way player aspirations, and although his bat never developed quite enough to be a regular position player it was more than enough to make him a regular Silver Slugger contender (eventually winning 6 of the awards). While not dominant by ERA standards, Esparza was always near the top of the league in innings pitched and is the Rio de Janeiro all-time leader in that category. He was a reliable presence in the Rio rotation for 14 seasons, and far more valuable than the numbers might suggest.

SP Heriberto Samps -- Like Esparza, Samps was a pitcher who provided significant value to the team with his bat. Samps was fleeced from Sao Paulo in 2126 and became a mainstay in the Rio rotation for the next decade. While only earning 26.5 career pitching WAR with Rio, he added another 6 WAR (and 7 Silver Sluggers!) at the plate. Samps is here for all the same reasons Esparza is.

SP Kenneth MacWhannel -- MacWhannel is far and away the best pure pitcher being inducted today, having accumulated 35.9 WAR over the 9.5 prime seasons of his career. He was a Strikeout pitcher, typically finishing his seasons with ~9 K/9. Unfortunately, he lost his fastball velocity at age 30 and he was forced off of the big league roster by age 32. But rather than calling it quits, MacWhannel spent 3 seasons in the minors re-tooling his game and emerged for a late career renaissance in 2142 at the age of 35. He added 3 more strong pitching seasons to his resume and firmly established his place in the Rio Hall of Fame. MacWhannel is now the Rio de Janeiro career leader in both Strikeouts and pitching WAR.


I would also like to extend an Honorable Mention to the following players who are not being inducted but are hopeful to eventually be upgraded:

LF Jose Cabrera -- A prototypical leadoff batter, he converted walks into doubles better than any other player in Rio history. Over the course of 7 seasons (plus some "legacy" appearances in his twilight years) he accumulated 597 BBs and 292 SBs (at a success rate of just over 85%; highest in Rio history and possibly highest in WBA history... cannot find a good way to confirm).

3B Christian Blanchard -- Only spent 4 years with Rio, but they were truly dominant. He led the league in HRs 3 times, accumulated 23.7 WAR and carried Rio to a surprise 2140 WBA Championship. Seems likely to be inducted, eventually.

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Sheng, Esparza, Samps, and MacWhannel join:

3B Ricardo Peralta,
CL Kumanosuke Shimizu,
RF Jorge Tapia,
SP Gaudencio Bobadilha,
1B Ze Vargas,
2B Ricardo Ramirez,
3B Ernesto Colon,
SS Piero Folena,
CL Justin White,
SP Bob Turner,
1B/2B Alfredo Ruiz.

[Dan Farnell]

"Blood On Your Hands" Say Protesters Outside Rio Jags HOF Ceremony

RIO -- Jaguars fans and executives honored hall of fame inductees yesterday. But the attendees could hardly ignore the chants of "SHAME! SHAME! SHAME!" coming from protesters outside the banquet hall.



"It was jarring. We tried to enjoy ourselves, but it was definitely jarring," said ceremony attendee Nelson Ackland, who drew the crowd's particular ire, receiving chants of "Nelson's schemes crush children's dreams."

Asked why the crowd had assembled, protester Dan Farnell said simply, "Because we can't let them continue to get away with this."

Wow. Well put, Dan. Well put.

Dan Farnell