Date: Sat Feb 23 15:41:13 2008
Sender: Red Burley
Alright, I took the plunge . . . and the worst team in the American League!
(Well Im a Red Sox fan, I couldnt take the Yankees! Not even in a make-believe
baseball world!).
What a wonderful opportunity to micro-manage a team into complete and
unredeemable oblivion! LOL
Seriously, Im assuming the only way to proceed is to build up my farm system
and not worry about winning too much for a while. Whether I possess the
discipline and patience to do that remains to be seen, but thats what Im going
to try and do.
So, some questions:
1) I realize there are some unique rules in this league, I saw the section
about limits on players over age 25 in the minors. From quick observation, it
appears that you cant have more then 130 on your roster; but from the welcome
message it sounds like there is more to it then this. Is there?
2) Are there other rules for EPBL not listed in the help pages? Im sure there
must be. For instance, are there limitations regarding moving players within
the minors; for instance are you limited in how often you can promote/demote
players?
3) I read something in a non-related thread about the DH being instituted in
pro leagues. Is the DH in effect? Is it planned for the future?
4) Any general advice for scouting/talent evaluation? Im thinking that
evaluating all these guys with 5 and 6 TR is more of an art then a science, so
I would be grateful for any tips on that particular subject, since I would
imagine that is going to be my main preoccupation with this team for the
forseeable future.
Date: Sat Feb 23 18:44:54 2008
Sender: David Rogers
1) Even I am confused about this - my advice be safe trim to 130, but I think
you can carry more as long as you cut before WW ! runs.
2) Minors are only limited by age, (except for .04 players)
3) No DH yet - but is planned.
4) I don't think so. You can win right away with skill an the Waiver Wire.
Losing lots of games and relying on lots of early drafts is too disappointing.
Especially if your early rounders bust.
Date: Sun Feb 24 07:48:56 2008
Sender: Greg Pearson
Roster size depends on the time of year:
OFF-SEASON (From the end of the World Series up to Game 1): 130. However,
this is a soft limit. There's no penalty for being over (or under) 130, but
you can't make any Waiver Wire signings that will take you over that number (I
think you can still trade, but I've never tested this). Prior to Season Init,
you can also re-sign your own players regardless of the size of your roster.
Practically, this means that you have to cut down to 130 minus however many
free agents you hope to sign before Waiver Wire 1. You could theoretically
carry 175+ through training camp if you were willing to skip free agent bidding
entirely, but that would be idiotic. Note also that there are stat changes at
End of Season, so you definitely don't want to cut before then.
EARLY SEASON (Game 1 through the end of the Draft): 125. This is a hard limit
in that if you don't have exactly 125 players when a game is played, you will
get an illegal roster fine. However, the computer will allow you to make
signings, cuts, and trades that violate this limit. As long as you get back to
125 before a game is played, there is no penalty. Players that have been
drafted don't count against this limit (nor may they be assigned to any teams
yet; they're in a sort of limbo). Injured major league players don't count
towards your roster being over the limit, but don't cause your roster to fall
below 125, either. In other words, an injured major leaguer can be replaced
with a free agent without violating your roster maximum, but you won't violate
your roster minimum if you don't replace him, either. However, injured minor
leaguers DO count against your roster maximum.
LATE SEASON (End of Draft through End of the World Series): 175. Same as
Early Season, except that now your 50 draft picks are also available. Other
rules are identical. I'm pretty sure you only get illegal roster fines for
games you actually play, so you can violate the 175 player limit without
penalty once you're out of the playoffs. At the end of the minor league
season, you also have major league roster expansion, where the size of your
major league roster increases 25 to 30 or 31 (I always thought it was 30, but
the sim let me carry 31 last season, so I must have had that wrong). This
doesn't effect the overall roster limit of 175, however.
Date: Sun Feb 24 08:28:52 2008
Sender: Loren Smith
3) DH is in play in the lower minors. The top available PH is used.
Date: Sun Feb 24 14:09:28 2008
Sender: Red Burley
Thanks guys, Im sure I'll have lots of questions in the coming weeks.
Here's some now:
-Late season roster limit is 175? So some teams have more then 6 farm teams? Or
are you allowed to carry more then 25 players at some levels?
-Why are my rookie league teams named Kansas City-R1 and Kansas City-R2?
Date: Mon Feb 25 05:31:10 2008
Sender: Greg Pearson
6 farm teams plus the majors = 175.
Pretty much all of the low-R teams are just Club-R. Why some of the high-R
teams are, too, is not something I have an answer for.
Date: Mon Feb 25 08:16:02 2008
Sender: Red Burley
I got so focused on the minors, I forgot about the major league team LOL
Date: Tue Feb 26 08:32:39 2008
Sender: Just Oz
Red ... I only put 18 year olds fresh off the draft into my rookie league.
In general I like to see players with the following ages in the minors:
R -- 18
HR -- 19 / 20
A -- 20
H-A -- 21 / 22
AA -- 22 / 23
AAA -- 24 / 25
I will move players AHEAD of that age schedule, but I'll never have a 24 year
old at AA. I'll just cut him if I have to.
At AAA, at the beginning of the season, I generally keep one 26/27 year old
pitcher, infielder, and outfielder (and sometimes catcher), especially if I
have a rookie up on the major league team. Once the season is about half
done, I'll either move that player up to the bigs or cut him.
After a few seasons, I have also begun to shoot for having all F/D or better
players at AAA. It probably won't work out for me this season, but that's what
I shoot for.
Date: Tue Feb 26 08:46:36 2008
Sender: Red Burley
Thanks Oz,
Thats close to what I was thinking, as far as ages go. Assuming I have read
correctly and you end up with more then 25 draftees, what you do with all the
extras? Unless you start the better prospects at Advanced Rookie?
The big problem I am dealing with right now is, what to do with all the 19-21
year olds in my system. With a few exceptions, they are all FF types-for
whatever that's worth. You mentioned that you shoot for having "all F/D or
better" in AAA, so Im assuming that its normal to have a lot of FF types
around. Is that a logical thing to assume?
Date: Tue Feb 26 16:43:12 2008
Sender: Greg Pearson
There are 50 draft rounds. Your Rookie and Advanced Rookie rosters aren't
available until after the draft, so that's where all 50 of your draftees are
"supposed" to go. Strategies vary on whether or not you actually do this.
Most people promote their top draftees to a higher level and fill out the
High-R roster with demotions from Low-A. Personally, with my perennial pick at
15-20, I will very rarely promote even my first round out of High-R his first
year. I run my minors similarly to Oz, but with some slight variation at the
lowest levels (I also draft almost exclusively 18-year-olds, which is pretty
unusual):
Low-R: My last 25 draft picks. Usually cut after their first season.
High-R: My first 25 draft picks.
Often players show up with abilities slightly different from what you thought
they were when you drafted them. So, sometimes someone picked late in the top
25 who shows up with reduced abilities will get sent to Low-R and replaced with
someone from the beginning of the second 25 who showed up with increased
abilities.
Low-A: Basically, last year's High-R team, regardless of age (but, remember, I
draft mostly 18-year-olds, so almost all will be 19. Often the worst player at
IF, OF, and RP from last year's High-R squad will be cut and the best player at
that position from the Low-R squad. And sometimes someone will be so good that
they go direct to AAA in their second year. Or I'll be short at a position at
one of the upper levels and someone will get a promotion to fill the gap. In
either case, they'd be replaced with the best player at their position from
Low-A. Nobody EVER stays more than one season at Low-A.
After their second season, players are assigned to age-appropriate squads.
This is the most competitive point, as about half the squad will have to be cut
at this point. Like Oz, I'll occasionally promote a player ahead of his age
group (although I think I do this less than Oz does), but I'll cut a player if
he's not ready for the next level when his age demands a promotion (unless I'm
really short at that position/age).
High-A: 20-21.
AA: 22-23.
AAA: 24-25. I pretty much never put anyone over 25 at my AAA squad, even if I
can get a minimum salary veteran. I'd rather save the roster slots for the
kids.
As for the talent ratings, you're right. The computer doesn't do a great job
of predicting development--and most players aren't going to make the majors,
anyway--so most young are F/Fs. I think I have four players in the 19-21 age
group who AREN'T F/Fs, and the Farm Report ranks me in the top half of the
league among 19 to 20-year-olds. In fact, it's not until you get to AAA that
more than half the players are not F/Fs (my minor league system is ranked
15th).
If you look at my roster right now, Group 7 is basically my Low-R team from
last year and Group 5 is largely my High-R group. Those groups contain a
grand total of one D/D player. That's just the way the ratings work for young
guys.
Date: Tue Feb 26 17:40:55 2008
Sender: Red Burley
Very informative, Greg. Makes things a lot simpler as well, since I can for the
most part use ages as a reference for where to place guys in the system. At
least to begin with.
Date: Tue Feb 26 19:57:46 2008
Sender: John Henry
One thing I learned just this season was that players abilities are fogged. In
other words you see the abilities but there is a % of uncertainty + or - that
those are real abilities.
The younger the player the more the fog generally. If you want to see how much
you can go to the archives, the at bat database, do a raw data pull and then an
ability pull. The players are all listed by number not name so it takes some
work but it may give you some insight as to how much value a younger player has
as well as growth potential.
Date: Wed Feb 27 06:32:28 2008
Sender: Just Oz
Being the complicated guy that I am, I do it a bit differently.
My STARTING POINT is this:
I keep sixteen 19 year olds on my A roster at the beginning of the season and
six 20 year olds.
I keep nine 20 year olds on my A roster at the beginning of the season.
On my high-A roster at the beginning of the season, I keep another four 20 year
olds and then a mix of 21 and 22 year olds.
This stays this way until the END of the draft.
DURING THE DRAFT:
I pick twenty-eight 18 year olds (25 for my rookie team and 3 of the best
pitchers for the high rookie).
I pick a couple of 19 year olds, about ten 20 year olds, and about five each of
21 and 22 year olds.
I pull back most of my 19 year olds from A to high rookie and add a few 20 year
olds in to even it out.
I put all my 22 year olds at high-A and push a few 20/21 year olds down to A.
I put my 21 year olds at A ball for the most part.
CAVEATS:
Players who do well get pushed up halfway through the season (figure halfway
between the end of the draft and end of the minor league season).
Not all 19 year olds get pushed back to High-R. For instance, on my team this
year, I have the following 19 year olds that did pretty well at high-R last
year:
Hamilton, Melvin and Kane all had Offense Ratings over .280. Assuming they do
well at single A during the draft, there is no real reason to push them back
down to high-R.
Anyone who tears up their start-of-the-season level won't be pushed down even
if they are in that kind of "slot" for me.
I adjust my end of the draft strategy and pick a slightly younger person for
that slot, i.e. another 18 or 19 year old OF instead of a 20 year old since
Kane will be filling the roster slot of the 20 year old.
After the draft, I pull back all sixteen of my 19 year olds from A ball which
gives me 22 players on my advanced rookie.
Date: Thu Feb 28 13:31:43 2008
Sender: Red Burley
Wow, Oz.
Thats a bit complicated for me at this point, although I suspect that its like
many things and is more complex to explain then to do.
I'll be happy to get enough players to fill all my teams this season. Assuming
I get trampled underfoot when I try to get any major league talent tommorrow (I
do in every pro league I play in), I'm sure I'll be filling my big roster with
scrubs and concentrating on whatever good minor leaguers I can sign. No, Im not
being negative, Im just looking at the realities.
Date: Thu Feb 28 13:58:44 2008
Sender: Just Oz
The first season in any league is always a challenge.
My approach with Milwaukee was to remake my FARM teams in the first waiver wire
plus some medium level vets (good, boring pitchers especially relievers with
low Dr since they go cheaper) and bank a lot of money.
Season 2, I came out and fixed the infield ... a solid 3B to go with my okay 2B
and defensive stud SS plus an okay 1B.
Season 3, finished off the pitching staff.
Date: Thu Feb 28 15:36:07 2008
Sender: Red Burley
Well I should do ok with the "bank a lot of money" part. The only big offers Im
making are for starting pitchers, and Im sure my bids wont be competitive, due
to budget constraints.
Date: Fri Feb 29 05:33:29 2008
Sender: Greg Pearson
The other thing to remember when reading this advice is that Oz's and my minor
league systems are ranked solidly in the middle of the pack (12th and 15th) on
the Farm Report. Now the Farm Report is based on computer scouting which, of
course, is somewhat questionable. Still, it's not like we're the
super-geniouses of minor league operations. Other people use different
strategies and, while most of them are worse than ours, some of them are
better.
In particular, since you draft before me, I encourage you to eschew my strategy
of drafting nearly all 18-year-olds. In fact, I think you'd do very well to
draft no 18-year-olds at all. :-)
Date: Fri Feb 29 15:15:30 2008
Sender: James Mathis
6th ranked farm system here. I think the key to drafting is to pay more
attention to the scouting combine stats than to the attributes. That doesn't
mean that you should ignore the attributes, mind you. It's just that with the
"fog" on attributes, stats become an important way to decide between players
with similar attributes. I like OPS for hitters as a rough indicator
(adjusting for age, of course), and K/BB rate and HR for pitchers.
Date: Sat Mar 1 13:40:02 2008
Sender: Red Burley
James:
Combine stats? Are those the stats shown on the draft list?
What is OPS? I looked through the list of sort options, I dont see that listed
. . .
Date: Sat Mar 1 19:09:51 2008
Sender: Just Oz
Red --
1) Their "combine" stats are listed on the draft page.
2) OPS stands for onbase percentage plus slugging. It's not avaliable in DEL
because Andy feels that Offensive Rating is a better measure.
I use OPS in some spreadsheets myself for how I draft players although there
are a few things that I take into account especially early on in the draft.
Dolphin Simulation Games is not responsible for the content of posts.
Please report any offensive messages to help@dolphinsim.com.
