The Longest Season: David Artemiw's Stratomatic Baseball Universe
About the Hall of Fame League
The Hall of Fame League is presently comprised of two leagues: the six-team Buck O’Neil League (BOL) and the four-team Bud Fowler League (BFL). It exists to give some structure to Strat-o-matic seasons that are not replays of actual seasons. Seasons played here will be played using card sets like the Hall of Fame sets or Diamond Gems.
The inaugural season of the Hall of Fame League was HF16, played using the 2016 Hall of Fame card set. What the set provides in terms of superstars, it lacked in structure.
Given the makeup of the Hall of Fame, using actual major league teams was not an option. There was no one team, let alone two, that could be made up of players who had played for it in real life. Further, had I relied on existing teams, former Negro Leagues players who had been banned from organized baseball in real life would find themselves once again on the outside looking in.
With approximately 255 cards in the set, I decided to create ten teams, each with a roster of 24 players, 8 pitchers and 16 position players. Each team was required to ensure that each defensive position could be covered by two players. A utility guy who could play three infield positions would count towards that requirement.
Finally, I tried to create threads among the teams so that there was some logic and coherence to the arrangements, something that rooted this fantasy in reality. While I would not be replicating existing teams for this, I wanted the teams to have some connection to real baseball geography and identities and so, in addition to meeting the roster requirements, players also had to have some real life connection to the team or city to which their team was affiliated.
I have undoubtedly made errors. I leave it to the historians to explain them.
Buck O’Neil League
Boston and the Braves
The team is comprised of players who played for any of the Boston franchises and/or for the Braves franchise in any of its cities.
The logo consists of an Old English “B” coloured Boston Red Sox red and Boston Braves blue. The “B” was the Braves’ primary logo from 1941-1945, though it had appeared their caps earlier.
The Dodgers, Detroit and Southern California
The team is comprised of players who played for the Dodgers in any of its cities, ball players who played in Detroit, whether for the Tigers or any other team, and those who played for any of the teams that have been located in Southern California.
The logo consists of the 1917 Tigers' Old English "D" that flows into a cursive "odgers" from the primary logo of the Brooklyn Dodgers that was used from 1945-1957. San Diego Padres brown outlines the state of California as depicted in the logo of the California Angels. An Angels-style halo and Dodger blue text completes the logo.
Ohio
The Ohio team is made up of those Hall of Famers who played professional baseball in the state of Ohio.
This logo is an original creation consisting of a letter “O” coloured Cincinnati Red and Cleveland blue.
Philadelphia and the Royal Athletics
The Philadelphia and the Royal Athletics are a team drafted from amongst those Hall of Famers who played for any of the Philadelphia teams, the Kansas City Royals or the Kansas City Monarchs, or the Athletics when they were in Kansas City or Oakland.
The 1920 version of Connie Mack’s white elephant logo represents the Athletics franchise wherever it called home. The elephant has been coloured Phillies maroon. The Kansas City Royals’ crown sits atop the elephant’s head.
Real Baltiwashingsota
The name of this team took its inspiration from the football clubs of Europe. Its members played in Montreal, Baltimore, Washington, or Minnesota.
The logo is an original concept and design. A four-quadrant shield houses four symbols representing the teams four founding franchises.
In the top left an Expos blue fleur-de-lis sits against an Expos red background.
The Calvert checkerboard pattern of Lord Baltimore sits in the top right quadrant.
At the bottom left against a backdrop of red and white stripes sits an image of the United States Capitol.
Finally, at bottom right, the blues of the Minnesota state flag are used to colour the background and the image of the state that sits upon it.
Yankees
The Yankees are made up of those who played for any Yankees franchise before being inducted into the Hall of Fame.
The team’s logo is inspired by the logo of the New York Black Yankees. The navy blue “NY” is outlined in white and sits against a navy blue background.
Bud Fowler League
Chicago
Professional ball players who plied their trade in the Windy City are eligible to be members of the Chicago Hall of Fame League franchise.
The team’s logo is built around the “C” employed by the White Sox in 1908 and 1909. The navy blue of the original has been preserved as an outline. The “C” has been filled with the baby blue of the Chicago city flag. A red star from the same flag sits in the bowl of the “C”.
Giants
The Giants’ roster is made up of those Hall of Famers who at one time donned a uniform with “GIANTS” across the chest, regardless of which city they were in when they played.
To represent the team visually, the 1994 San Francisco Giants Batting Practice logo has been recoloured so that San Francisco Giants orange letters are outlined by New York Giants red against a New York Giants blue background.
Pittsburgh
The Pittsburgh organization is made up of baseball players who called this city home during their careers.
The original “P” logo of the 1923 Pirates has been retained and placed on a backdrop of Pirates’ yellow. The red of the “P” is the same red that was also used by the Pittsburgh Crawfords.
St. Louis
The St. Louis ball club was created to provide an outlet for the Hall of Famers who played in the Gateway city.
The team is using the logo of the 1925 St. Louis Stars.
Season Statistics
Seasons played in this league will appear in players’ career statistics as having occurred chronologically before any real season replays, and will be noted as having the year HF16. Statistics earned in these leagues count towards a player’s in-universe career statistics.
Should you have any questions about my replays or the website, feel free to email me at david [at] davidartemiw [dot] com.