Sorry, I’m back to long posts, I can’t help it.



The MABL’s new season saw a change in offensive strategy thanks to Brooklyn’s Jon Gibbs, whose 61 stolen bases the year prior led to a revival of sorts in the art.  In a supercharged offensive environment already thanks to a lower-than-life mound, the MABL’s total run output is unworldly in the 1948 season.

Brooklyn, for one, is taking advantage. This Jays team is putting together the best season in franchise history thanks to a truly team effort. Brandon Sutton and Heifer Dillard are on a convergent path to be the new face of the Jays alongside Gibbs, but it’s the surprises of the team that have helped them vault to their insane record. Elliot DeAngelo’s 1.093 OPS leads the rest of the supporting cast, while Zach Riley’s incredible defensive output is matched by his stellar ‘48 campaign at the plate. Brooklyn’s top 4 starters each reached the all-star game as well, with Martin Sproul getting the starting spot thanks to the 20 year-old’s 96 strikeouts and sub-3.00 ERA. Bar none, this might be the best team the Jays have ever put on the field, and with first baseman Bobby Lee set to be the oldest in this new core at 29, there’s no telling how far (or long) they can go. This spells doom for the Boroughers, whose offseason additions were told by management that they’d be on a pennant-winning team. Although not an all-star, Castaneda’s performance has been strong, but the rest of the Moles have been performing to expectations. At the break, Dilbert McPherson and David Sandoval hold the Eastern tie for the home run leaderboard at 15, but the rest of the lineup isn’t far behind. Jeremy Maddox has performed well in his new home, but he’ll have to be especially great down the stretch for New York to stay anywhere near the Jays. At the end of June, Eric Follett went down with torn UCL, leaving the star’s future uncertain for when (or even if) he re

1948 MABL Draft 
The First ever MABL draft was held in Brooklyn, New York, home of the Jays and the location of this year’s all-star game in honor of the late Alex Hirsch. The very top of the board featured some surprises, but it’ll be most interesting to see how these players develop over the years. 

Harbor Athletic Club
1st Overall - Pat Roszell, OF/P, Chilhowie, VA
Pat’s case is an interesting one. As a two-way player whose skill set is more suited for a league with a designated hitter, he’s extremely raw but faces multiple jaw dropping upsides if he progresses the right way. His potential as an outfielder comes from his bat, where his flashes of power at the plate have only been matched by his power on the mound. He needs to bulk up and develop into his 6’0 frame, but when he’s ready, the next unicorn will arrive into the MABL. 

Pittsburgh Eagles Baseball Club
2nd Overall - Mike Jordan, 2B, Ruston, LA
Jordan was a surprise pick here, but he flashes all the potential upside one would want in a player. Although just 20 years old, his defensive ability at second base matched with his power potential offers an extremely unique talent for the Eagles. For a team looking to rebuild quickly ahead of Rocky Thomas Jr.’s arbitration in ‘49, hopefully MJ’s expected 1950 arrival comes sooner than anticipated. 

Louisville Baseball Club
3rd Overall - Nick Dodd, 3B, Charleston, SC
[color=#000000]Nick’s potential is obvious, but it’s his character concerns that Pittsburgh passed on him for. An absolute hit machine in semi-pro, Dodd’s on-field trouble lies in his inability to hit breaking pitches and poor defensive play. His off-field troubles aren’t anything beyond interviews with teammates and coaches, but their notes on him are that he’s not motivated to reach his full potential. This

The first team to announce changes to their uniforms was the Brooklyn Baseball Club, following the passing of Adam Hirsch in November. The Jays uniforms had remained unchanged in 10 years, heading back to the introduction of the iconic “Brooklyn” script from 1937 and a modernist blue jay head. The team’s manager, Kevin Denton, advocated for a more modern uniform cut and gray pants for a blue uniform set (which could be subbed with white for home playoff games). Lastly, the squad added a black arm band as a signifier of their lost owner and the man who once again brought a national league back to life. It’ll be hard to see who will help run the new organization, with many different owners and presidents vying to be at the head of the table. 



Cincinnati also made some changes ahead of the season, with a new logo in the fray. Out is the old “Buckeye C” and in comes a more modern representation. The Buckeye leaf has been a symbol of the Reds for some time, but never has it been given its proper form on a Reds uniform. In the center is a baseball, oriented with the letter C for Cincinnati. Their uniforms get a bit of red trim, but the red stockings they’re named after remain elusive. The away uniform features an update as well, with “CINCINNATI” now being arched across the front of the uniform. Team owner Josh Check is encouraged by the player reaction to the new changes, hoping the squad plays well in the new digs. 




[color=#000000]Milwaukee, still in a branding flux after the transition to a members association, splurged a bit to get rid of the last of Pussyfoot’s mark. Gone is the olde english M, as the block M from the uniforms gets converted to primary status. In support of this, Milwaukee native and starting right fielder Vic Laskey convinces team president Kyle Ethrid

ItDoesntMatter wrote:

glad the mabl is back, and it's looking great so far! the brooklyn-nyc writeup was fantastic. that said, I'm curious what happened in the west, since it looks like lakers tied with republic at the top. I assume there was a tiebreaker somewhere in the mix, but it wasn't explained, and I would've thought we would've gotten some sort of highlight of what happened down the stretch with those teams like we got in the east. anyway, this has been enthralling so far and I'm excited for the bees to win all of the championships after 1947

Oh sh-t! Sorry, That's a mix-up in the graphic. Cleveland won the west by a solid 4 games, carrying that lead from early September after a poor Republics August. I'll update that now.

Boston might have to wait a little longer than that, but the prospect pipeline is chugging along just fine. Expect them to compete in a few years, but we'll see what happens in the offseason.

The MABL’s first year finished with a bang in the East, but before we get to the finale, it’s important to shine a light on the top stories and players of the year.



The Eastern League was one of front-runners all year long. Brooklyn and New York City took it down to the wire, and for good reason. Both squads have young cores with players who can’t seem to stop getting better. The MVP race is down to David Dillard, who mashed a monster 27 home runs at a .383/.456/.679 clip, and Jared Kaplan, a consistent extra base machine with stellar defensive play, as well. The leaderboards don’t show the plethora of excess talent in New York right now. Each team is loaded top to bottom and have seemed to provide the rivalry with one more push towards the height of baseball, right before the demise of Adam Hirsch.  Hirsch, nearing 90, has run the Brooklyn Baseball Club since its founding in 1884. Although his mind was still sharp, his body was failing him, and in August, he resigned from his duties as Chairman of Baseball Operations. Although many of the current Jays team are under 25, veterans like longtime manager Kevin Denton, as well as pitchers Angel Mojica and Joe Merza are deeply shaken by the news. As a result, their performance collapsed near the end of the season. At the end of the season, the man who was able to bring back a national league was placed in hospice. The search for the new Jays president begins in the offseason. [color=#000000]Tom Clark led the “best of the rest”, the group of players who simply didn’t have the fortune of playing for the two best teams in their division. Joe Berg in Capital City shined to close out the year, leaving Capital City as a bittersweet hero after he declined a contract extension to stay with the club. If this season is anything to go by, it might not be so bad for Capitals fans as Darren Price still ha