Quote:
Originally Posted by CBeisbol
They should be more aggressive in the early innings
Teams need to use their bullpens "backward" in games like this. Using the short relievers early to keep the game close. Any time you're down (or the underdog, say a team projected to finish second over the course of a season) you are looking for higher variance. Take more risks. Increases the chance you'll come back, but also opens you up to getting blown out.
A good example, is bringing the infield in. This strategy increases the chance of cutting off the run at the plate, but also increases the chance of giving up another hit leading to further runs.
Bring in the higher leverage relievers early, decrease the chance of more runs (and allows for more aggressive pinch hitting) but opens the team up to habing worse relievers available for later inning high-leverage situations, should they arise.
Of course, only the sabermetriciest AI manager would do that
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They are set in playoff games to handle that a little bit more. Especially if you're swapping out with men on base early, they'll target a "middle relief" option first, and then swap to a long reliever an inning or two later.