Disabled List Question

RedCup217 · 04-03-2018, 09:07 AM

I've been playing OOTP since about midway through 17. That first year, I pretty much was watching a simulation because I was having the AI do almost everything for me. In 18 I decided to buckle down and figure out how to do this crap! (ie: git gud)
Even though I've watched and enjoyed MLB for the last 35 or 40 years, I suddenly realized that I knew virtually nothing about the game! I went online and read up about how to set up a batting order, what to look for on draft day, and a bunch of other stuff I needed to know. I can't, however, find anything about what to do when someone comes off the DL.
Every time someone comes off, they are already on the 40 man roster, so I can't just put them there. If I called someone up to take their place for that 10 or 60 days, it says that both the DL'd player and his replacement are out of options so I can't send either one of them down! What do I do? So far this year I've just had the AI set up my entire organization. I can't find anything online on what to do. Please help!

Silfir · 04-03-2018, 10:43 AM

Let's start with the difference between the 10-day DL and the 60-day DL:

Players on the 10-day DL can only be recalled after at least 10 days have passed since their injury, and are not on your Active Roster. They do, however, remain on your 40-man roster.

Players on the 60-day DL can only be recalled after at least 60 days have passed since their injury, which is a lot longer, and therefore gives you a lot less flexibility. The reason you may want to use the 60-day DL anyway is because it also frees up a spot on the 40-man roster. That means you can potentially put a 41st player on there to help plug the hole made by a long-term injury.

If you have a player on the 60-day DL and then try to pull them into a minor league team, you will get the message to the effect of "The player has a major league contract and must be on the 40-man roster". In that case, just drag them to the 40-man roster first and then try to send him to the minors. If your 40-man roster is already full (because you've used up the spot you gained temporarily for having a player on the 60-day DL) then you have to free up a spot on the 40-man roster by either trading a player away, waiving them and designating them for assignment, or releasing them.

Now, it sounds like that's where you're getting into trouble, so let's go into that. There are potentially three reasons why a player cannot be assigned to the minors:

a) They are out of minor league option years - you mentioned options so I think you're aware of this. Players can only be switched from minors to majors or vice versa in three seasons if they have a major league contract (i.e. are on the 40 man roster). A player who starts a season with a minor league contract, gets called up during that season (probably when the rosters expand in September), and then stays up, does not use a minor league option.

Players who are out of option years have a plus sign (+) next to their name in the Rosters/Transactions screen.

What's very important to know is that you don't necessarily release those players to get them off your 25 man roster - you can waive and designate them for assignment instead. That means another team can potentially claim him and take the player from you, so only do this with players you don't particularly mind losing anyway.

b) They are MLB veterans - they've accumulated enough major league service time that they can refuse to be optioned to the minors, even if there are still option years in the contract.

MLB veterans have a ^ sign next to their name in the Rosters/Transactions screen.

You can still try to send down those players - sometimes they'll go along with it. If they don't, your only other options are to release and trade.

c) You picked them in the Rule 5 draft - these players can't be sent down; they can only be traded or released (back to the organization you drafted them from).

They have an exclamation mark (!) next to their name in the Rosters/Transaction screen.

Players can be both Major League veterans and out of option years - (^+) - in that case you have to first waive and designate them for assignment, and once waivers have gone through, try to see if they even agree to be sent down.

There is another symbol - # - that doesn't mean anything in this context; that only tells you if a player is Rule 5 draft eligible, which only matters right before the Rule 5 draft.

What does that mean for the Disabled List? Before you even call up a replacement, check if they have either the + or the ^ or even both next to their name. If the answer is "no", you won't run into any problems later sending them back down again.

Keep in mind that you should always try to trade a player before you designate them for assignment or even release them. That way you can sometimes get something in return for the player - like a not entirely hopeless minor leaguer.

RedCup217 · 04-03-2018, 11:11 AM

Awesome! Thanks so much for the very thorough explanation. I saw all those symbols and what they stood for, but didn't really understand what the meant in a "real life" situation.

eck.nicholas · 04-03-2018, 11:43 AM

The other option to help for a few weeks is after they recover from their injury, you can have them go to the minor leagues for a rehab stint. Not only does it buy you a little more time to figure out a plan, but gets the player back into "playing shape".

04-03-2018, 09:07 AM	#1
RedCup217 Bat Boy Join Date: Apr 2017 Posts: 9	Disabled List Question I've been playing OOTP since about midway through 17. That first year, I pretty much was watching a simulation because I was having the AI do almost everything for me. In 18 I decided to buckle down and figure out how to do this crap! (ie: git gud) Even though I've watched and enjoyed MLB for the last 35 or 40 years, I suddenly realized that I knew virtually nothing about the game! I went online and read up about how to set up a batting order, what to look for on draft day, and a bunch of other stuff I needed to know. I can't, however, find anything about what to do when someone comes off the DL. Every time someone comes off, they are already on the 40 man roster, so I can't just put them there. If I called someone up to take their place for that 10 or 60 days, it says that both the DL'd player and his replacement are out of options so I can't send either one of them down! What do I do? So far this year I've just had the AI set up my entire organization. I can't find anything online on what to do. Please help!

04-03-2018, 10:43 AM	#2
Silfir Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2016 Posts: 138	Let's start with the difference between the 10-day DL and the 60-day DL: Players on the 10-day DL can only be recalled after at least 10 days have passed since their injury, and are not on your Active Roster. They do, however, remain on your 40-man roster. Players on the 60-day DL can only be recalled after at least 60 days have passed since their injury, which is a lot longer, and therefore gives you a lot less flexibility. The reason you may want to use the 60-day DL anyway is because it also frees up a spot on the 40-man roster. That means you can potentially put a 41st player on there to help plug the hole made by a long-term injury. If you have a player on the 60-day DL and then try to pull them into a minor league team, you will get the message to the effect of "The player has a major league contract and must be on the 40-man roster". In that case, just drag them to the 40-man roster first and then try to send him to the minors. If your 40-man roster is already full (because you've used up the spot you gained temporarily for having a player on the 60-day DL) then you have to free up a spot on the 40-man roster by either trading a player away, waiving them and designating them for assignment, or releasing them. Now, it sounds like that's where you're getting into trouble, so let's go into that. There are potentially three reasons why a player cannot be assigned to the minors: a) They are out of minor league option years - you mentioned options so I think you're aware of this. Players can only be switched from minors to majors or vice versa in three seasons if they have a major league contract (i.e. are on the 40 man roster). A player who starts a season with a minor league contract, gets called up during that season (probably when the rosters expand in September), and then stays up, does not use a minor league option. Players who are out of option years have a plus sign (+) next to their name in the Rosters/Transactions screen. What's very important to know is that you don't necessarily release those players to get them off your 25 man roster - you can waive and designate them for assignment instead. That means another team can potentially claim him and take the player from you, so only do this with players you don't particularly mind losing anyway. b) They are MLB veterans - they've accumulated enough major league service time that they can refuse to be optioned to the minors, even if there are still option years in the contract. MLB veterans have a ^ sign next to their name in the Rosters/Transactions screen. You can still try to send down those players - sometimes they'll go along with it. If they don't, your only other options are to release and trade. c) You picked them in the Rule 5 draft - these players can't be sent down; they can only be traded or released (back to the organization you drafted them from). They have an exclamation mark (!) next to their name in the Rosters/Transaction screen. Players can be both Major League veterans and out of option years - (^+) - in that case you have to first waive and designate them for assignment, and once waivers have gone through, try to see if they even agree to be sent down. There is another symbol - # - that doesn't mean anything in this context; that only tells you if a player is Rule 5 draft eligible, which only matters right before the Rule 5 draft. What does that mean for the Disabled List? Before you even call up a replacement, check if they have either the + or the ^ or even both next to their name. If the answer is "no", you won't run into any problems later sending them back down again. Keep in mind that you should always try to trade a player before you designate them for assignment or even release them. That way you can sometimes get something in return for the player - like a not entirely hopeless minor leaguer. Last edited by Silfir; 04-03-2018 at 11:39 AM.

04-03-2018, 11:43 AM	#4
eck.nicholas Major Leagues Join Date: Aug 2015 Posts: 484	The other option to help for a few weeks is after they recover from their injury, you can have them go to the minor leagues for a rehab stint. Not only does it buy you a little more time to figure out a plan, but gets the player back into "playing shape". __________________ Chop On: Atlanta Braves

04-03-2018, 11:11 AM	#3
RedCup217 Bat Boy Join Date: Apr 2017 Posts: 9	Awesome! Thanks so much for the very thorough explanation. I saw all those symbols and what they stood for, but didn't really understand what the meant in a "real life" situation.