Absolute Blockbuster of a Trade in my 42 year old Historical Random Debut

[actionjackson]

I know David Watts uses Real Stats for his Random Debut Historicals, but do you use Neutralized Stats JaBurns? It seems Neutralized Stats are being phased out without those of us who use them having any say so whatsoever, and I for one feel ripped off. This whole 52 year Random Debut Historical of mine in OOTP16 has demonstrated that Neutralized Stats are the way to go in RD Historicals. Look at Shoeless Joe Jackson (329 HR in 17 seasons) and Home Run Baker (297 HR in 12 seasons). They would never have hit as many HR as they have in my RD Historical had I used Real Stats. If you're going to have RD Historicals in your game, IMHO you've got to also have Neutralized Stats, but none of the players with 2016 stats have any Neutralized Stats for 2016, and if that doesn't get shored up this year, it will continue until they no longer exist altogether. Had I known on Sunday before I ordered my game, I would not have ordered it and would've just carried on with my OOTP16 game. This is very disappointing to say the least.

[JaBurns]

Originally Posted by actionjackson

I know David Watts uses Real Stats for his Random Debut Historicals, but do you use Neutralized Stats JaBurns? It seems Neutralized Stats are being phased out without those of us who use them having any say so whatsoever, and I for one feel ripped off. This whole 52 year Random Debut Historical of mine in OOTP16 has demonstrated that Neutralized Stats are the way to go in RD Historicals. Look at Shoeless Joe Jackson (329 HR in 17 seasons) and Home Run Baker (297 HR in 12 seasons). They would never have hit as many HR as they have in my RD Historical had I used Real Stats. If you're going to have RD Historicals in your game, IMHO you've got to also have Neutralized Stats, but none of the players with 2016 stats have any Neutralized Stats for 2016, and if that doesn't get shored up this year, it will continue until they no longer exist altogether. Had I known on Sunday before I ordered my game, I would not have ordered it and would've just carried on with my OOTP16 game. This is very disappointing to say the least.

I am using neutralized stats for my league. I think we have to ask the question why no neutralized stats for 2016. Maybe an oversight....

[JaBurns]

Saw your post over in bugs forum, doesn't sound promising. ...

[JaBurns]

Don't know how to post a screen shot but I think attached is leader board after the 1906 season.

[JaBurns]

Apparently I do know how to attach a screen shot. This is fun, Happy Opening Day to everyone.

[JaBurns]

Do you think it would be possible to add an Arizona Fall League to this setup to give the guys on the Reserve Roster somewhere to hone or improve their skills?

[actionjackson]

Originally Posted by JaBurns

Do you think it would be possible to add an Arizona Fall League to this setup to give the guys on the Reserve Roster somewhere to hone or improve their skills?

I just imagine some instructional league scenario or something. I don't think rust is an issue, but I don't know.

[JaBurns]

Originally Posted by actionjackson

I just imagine some instructional league scenario or something. I don't think rust is an issue, but I don't know.

I think I may try a 40-60 game schedule from November to the end of year. Thinking 8 teams each sponsored by 2 big league teams. What's the worst thing that could happen?

[actionjackson]

Originally Posted by JaBurns

I think I may try a 40-60 game schedule from November to the end of year. Thinking 8 teams each sponsored by 2 big league teams. What's the worst thing that could happen?

I don't even want to know what the worst thing that could happen is, so I don't bother. I go by the KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) philosophy when setting up my games. I never want to trip the game up with something that it's not used to, or that it thinks shouldn't be there because who knows what can happen. Maybe I'm just paranoid.

[italyprof]

Thanks to you both David Watts and Action Jackson. You are both generous on your advice and sharing of experience and I avidly read both your posts to learn new things. Like you I just can't care enough about fictional players to use them. I get - I think it is Wolf's point that not knowing the player history makes the game more challenging but I lose interest. Random historical or regular historical if I have a particular puzzle-like alternative 1962 mets to try. I like neutralized stats too though I have never been certain if this neutralizes only park effect or also something else like era stats.

[David Watts]

Originally Posted by italyprof

Thanks to you both David Watts and Action Jackson. You are both generous on your advice and sharing of experience and I avidly read both your posts to learn new things. Like you I just can't care enough about fictional players to use them. I get - I think it is Wolf's point that not knowing the player history makes the game more challenging but I lose interest. Random historical or regular historical if I have a particular puzzle-like alternative 1962 mets to try. I like neutralized stats too though I have never been certain if this neutralizes only park effect or also something else like era stats.

I love talking random debut. AJ probably wants to tell me to shut up at times. I tend to pm his ears off I love historical as well, but random debut is so much easier to edit and therefore, I'm able to create my very own baseball world.

[actionjackson]

Originally Posted by italyprof

Thanks to you both David Watts and Action Jackson. You are both generous on your advice and sharing of experience and I avidly read both your posts to learn new things. Like you I just can't care enough about fictional players to use them. I get - I think it is Wolf's point that not knowing the player history makes the game more challenging but I lose interest. Random historical or regular historical if I have a particular puzzle-like alternative 1962 mets to try. I like neutralized stats too though I have never been certain if this neutralizes only park effect or also something else like era stats.

Thanks for the kind words. Neutralized Stats basically fill in the gaps (think Ted Williams' two separate deployments in WWII and the Korean War), by giving a player his type of stats during any seasons that are missing. I'm collecting any neutered stats seasons that are missing from players to present them in a spreadsheet for Sir Spritze. It's one hell of an undertaking, but it needs to be done because there are a lot of missing neutered fielding stats seasons, which can lead to fielders that are much crappier than they were IRL. The batting and pitching stats look to be in good shape, but fielding is another matter. I would guestimate that 10-15% of the guys in the MLB database have gaps in their fielding stats, and that has to be cut down on a bit IMHO.

@David Watts: You don't bug me at all. It's good to have a fellow random debut enthusiast to spread the word about (what I think is) the best way to play historical OOTP.

[JaBurns]

That is good point brought up by italyprof, does neutralizing the stats also neutralize the ballparks? Therefore every park becomes cookie cutter with no wind and a 70 degree temperature? Just finished 1912 in my random debut; the only thing that is annoying to me is I have too many pitchers winning both the Cy Young and MVP. Just had a rookie run the trifacta ROY, Cy Young, and MVP. Going to have to change the CY Young since he has not yet come into my league. May be the Curt Schilling award as he tearing up at over 200 wins in 10 years, at 37 he may retire soon. Also noticed today AI changed Albert Spalding to a 2B two years ago, moved back to P this off season. Only other annoying thing is I can't get the award symbols to upgrade.
Again thanks to both of you for showing me this extraordinary way to play OOTP!

[actionjackson]

Originally Posted by JaBurns

That is good point brought up by italyprof, does neutralizing the stats also neutralize the ballparks? Therefore every park becomes cookie cutter with no wind and a 70 degree temperature? Just finished 1912 in my random debut; the only thing that is annoying to me is I have too many pitchers winning both the Cy Young and MVP. Just had a rookie run the trifacta ROY, Cy Young, and MVP. Going to have to change the CY Young since he has not yet come into my league. May be the Curt Schilling award as he tearing up at over 200 wins in 10 years, at 37 he may retire soon. Also noticed today AI changed Albert Spalding to a 2B two years ago, moved back to P this off season. Only other annoying thing is I can't get the award symbols to upgrade.
Again thanks to both of you for showing me this extraordinary way to play OOTP!

As I said in my answer to italyprof, neutralized stats aren't really neutralized. They're used to fill in the gap seasons in a player's career. Ted Williams is the best example of a guy with lots of gap seasons that I can think of off the top of my head. What you do when Ted goes off to war is give him "Ted Williams type" seasons in the gaps in between seasons. That's why I like to use them because I don't want to see Ted Williams hit the bench for two or three seasons.

If you want neutralized ballparks, you can do that in game or use my era_ballparks.txt file that I posted in David Watts "1921" thread (I think that's where I put it - yep). I like to neutralize everything because I want to see the best ballplayers regardless of park effects and weather and all that. I figure that the stats that are being used have already been affected by the weather and the home park of the player, so why would I do it again? I customize the hell out of everything in my games though and not everybody wants to bother with that.

There's a reason so many pitchers are winning Cy Young/MVP all the time in your game JaBurns. You're playing in an era where pitchers used to throw 300ish innings per season, and the WAR formula was formulated in an era where the best of the best throw 200 per season. That's around a 50% boost in playing time (in some cases much more), which will boost their WAR numbers to a point where you kind of have to pick them for Cy Young and MVP. Not that WAR is the only thing, but I think it's a large part of what the game looks at when choosing award winners. It's part of the reason I use 1984 for my stats output and strategy settings. I don't like modern bullpen usage, but 1984 is just far back enough that all of the LaRussa specialization tricks hadn't started yet. I also don't like all complete games back in the days when "Men were men" (right around where you're at in your random debut now and before that) and blah, blah, blah. It's a nice balance between the two, and the stats output is about where I want it as far as offense/defense balance goes.

[actionjackson]

Originally Posted by JaBurns

That is good point brought up by italyprof, does neutralizing the stats also neutralize the ballparks? Therefore every park becomes cookie cutter with no wind and a 70 degree temperature? Just finished 1912 in my random debut; the only thing that is annoying to me is I have too many pitchers winning both the Cy Young and MVP. Just had a rookie run the trifacta ROY, Cy Young, and MVP. Going to have to change the CY Young since he has not yet come into my league. May be the Curt Schilling award as he tearing up at over 200 wins in 10 years, at 37 he may retire soon. Also noticed today AI changed Albert Spalding to a 2B two years ago, moved back to P this off season. Only other annoying thing is I can't get the award symbols to upgrade.
Again thanks to both of you for showing me this extraordinary way to play OOTP!

Al Spalding's change between positions is recalc at work. The benefit of recalc is that Spalding will tend to be Spalding instead of fictional guy. The detriment is that in the days Spalding played, guys are going to bounce between pitcher and position players as that's the way it was back then due to a general lack of players.

[JaBurns]

Thanks for the reply, I think I will stay with historical parks for a "home field advantage". Not sure if AI is smart enough to draft to a park, left handed hitters to Yankee Stadium and righties to Fenway. I will have to check to make sure that the parks change according to history, not sure if that is an automated feature in the game.
I am moving finances and strategies to match the year, ie next year I will use 1913 strategies and finances. Want to see if that has an effect with the player's over time. Have Barry Bonds Jr. in the dead ball era. I am glad because I believe there should be an '*' beside his real life home run numbers.
Stephen Dunn is another surprise to me, played one season in 1880's but has stolen over 100 bases twice and hit over .300 every year in my simulation. Nice thing I found out checking him out was that he was born in Canada, London Ontario. His stats may be out of whack like the guy mentioned in this forum but don't want bother Sir Spritze with it yet, let me see how his career plays out..

[actionjackson]

Originally Posted by JaBurns

Thanks for the reply, I think I will stay with historical parks for a "home field advantage". Not sure if AI is smart enough to draft to a park, left handed hitters to Yankee Stadium and righties to Fenway. I will have to check to make sure that the parks change according to history, not sure if that is an automated feature in the game.
I am moving finances and strategies to match the year, ie next year I will use 1913 strategies and finances. Want to see if that has an effect with the player's over time. Have Barry Bonds Jr. in the dead ball era. I am glad because I believe there should be an '*' beside his real life home run numbers.
Stephen Dunn is another surprise to me, played one season in 1880's but has stolen over 100 bases twice and hit over .300 every year in my simulation. Nice thing I found out checking him out was that he was born in Canada, London Ontario. His stats may be out of whack like the guy mentioned in this forum but don't want bother Sir Spritze with it yet, let me see how his career plays out..

Parks will change over time according to the game's era_ballparks.txt file in the database folder of your OOTP Baseball 18 folder. With Mr. Dunn, are you using recalc + development? Development can make a real life dud turn into a stud. Once the real life stats run out, anything can happen. I had Tillie Shafer make my HoF, and as you can see at BB-Ref, he wasn't exactly an all-time great.

[JaBurns]

Using recalc + development also have set the TCR to 140 to increase the variability, like a little randomness in my league so far.

[actionjackson]

Originally Posted by JaBurns

Using recalc + development also have set the TCR to 140 to increase the variability, like a little randomness in my league so far.

That could partly explain Mr. Dunn's explosion.

[Jamee999]

Originally Posted by actionjackson

Parks will change over time according to the game's era_ballparks.txt file in the database folder of your OOTP Baseball 18 folder. With Mr. Dunn, are you using recalc + development? Development can make a real life dud turn into a stud. Once the real life stats run out, anything can happen. I had Tillie Shafer make my HoF, and as you can see at BB-Ref, he wasn't exactly an all-time great.

Tillie Shafer was also a great player in the classic Pat O'Farrell dynasty thread.