Use of OOTP as a strict historical season simulation

bogert53 · 04-12-2018, 10:41 AM

I'm looking for a statistically accurate game that plays on the Mac. I had an earlier version of OOTP - 15 or something - and found it hard to set up a season so that it was purely an historical simulation, just like playing Strat-O-Matic or Replay or one of the other sims that are only available for the PC.

I had a back-and-forth with an OOTP user who had done a replay of the 1962 season without the owner/gm/financial stuff - just a pure simulation of the season where he managed one team.

How hard is it to set up the OOTP 19 for this? His stats seemed spot on after his replay. Have other users found this to be true as well? Are there directions in the game?

Hate to spend $40 and be disappointed because Al Kaline gets traded to the Yankees in the middle of a 1964 replay or something like that.

Help/comments appreciated!!

Orcin · 04-12-2018, 11:07 AM

Select "new historical game". I would say "no thanks" to Challenge Mode for this type of league.

Step 1: Choose the year that you want and whether you want to import history (you probably do). Do not select "import real minor leagues" or "use random players". Go to next step.

Step 2: Select "use real historical transactions" and 'real historical lineups". Do not select anything else on this step.

Step 3 and Step 4: Use the default selections.

Final step: select your team and play as manager or GM/manager . It really won't make any difference in this mode. but I would choose manager.

After the game starts, make a backup! Then go about adding historical ballparks, player images, uniforms, etc. if you wish. You could go into the league settings and find the checkbox to disable storylines as a precaution. I am not sure they are even active in this mode but you would not want them. By the same token, you probably want to disable personalities and the morale system if it is on by default.

The only thing to question in this mode is the rosters. You will have every player available to you, even if he did not play that day. So will the AI. So you will face the correct opposing lineup to begin, and you will be prompted with yours. You can change yours, and the AI can substitute after the game starts as it chooses. So you may see a player in the game that did not play that day in real life. It doesn't bother me, but it might bother you.

You manage your team and the AI runs the rest. There will be trades, but only those that match the real life trades. There will be no injuries. If a player is hurt in real life, he won't be in the lineup but he will be available to substitute (see above). The game will continue after you complete a season, and the offseason trades will occur as they did in real life. Or you can just start a new season.

After you have some experience, you can try setting up this type of game in the advanced mode (skips the wizard and takes you directly to the game options). There you could choose to have the ratings based on a three-year recalc with double weight on the current year or even a one-year recalc for greater accuracy. I think you will be pretty happy with default (three year average) unless you are looking to replicate an outlier like Maris in 1961.

bogert53 · 04-13-2018, 10:59 AM

That is perfect. Thanks. Hope to pick up the game in the next few days. This tells me that I can do what I had hoped. Much appreciated!!

04-12-2018, 10:41 AM	#1
bogert53 Bat Boy Join Date: Apr 2018 Location: Center Valley, PA Posts: 6	Use of OOTP as a strict historical season simulation I'm looking for a statistically accurate game that plays on the Mac. I had an earlier version of OOTP - 15 or something - and found it hard to set up a season so that it was purely an historical simulation, just like playing Strat-O-Matic or Replay or one of the other sims that are only available for the PC. I had a back-and-forth with an OOTP user who had done a replay of the 1962 season without the owner/gm/financial stuff - just a pure simulation of the season where he managed one team. How hard is it to set up the OOTP 19 for this? His stats seemed spot on after his replay. Have other users found this to be true as well? Are there directions in the game? Hate to spend $40 and be disappointed because Al Kaline gets traded to the Yankees in the middle of a 1964 replay or something like that. Help/comments appreciated!!

04-12-2018, 11:07 AM	#2
Orcin Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Indiana Posts: 9,844	Select "new historical game". I would say "no thanks" to Challenge Mode for this type of league. Step 1: Choose the year that you want and whether you want to import history (you probably do). Do not select "import real minor leagues" or "use random players". Go to next step. Step 2: Select "use real historical transactions" and 'real historical lineups". Do not select anything else on this step. Step 3 and Step 4: Use the default selections. Final step: select your team and play as manager or GM/manager . It really won't make any difference in this mode. but I would choose manager. After the game starts, make a backup! Then go about adding historical ballparks, player images, uniforms, etc. if you wish. You could go into the league settings and find the checkbox to disable storylines as a precaution. I am not sure they are even active in this mode but you would not want them. By the same token, you probably want to disable personalities and the morale system if it is on by default. The only thing to question in this mode is the rosters. You will have every player available to you, even if he did not play that day. So will the AI. So you will face the correct opposing lineup to begin, and you will be prompted with yours. You can change yours, and the AI can substitute after the game starts as it chooses. So you may see a player in the game that did not play that day in real life. It doesn't bother me, but it might bother you. You manage your team and the AI runs the rest. There will be trades, but only those that match the real life trades. There will be no injuries. If a player is hurt in real life, he won't be in the lineup but he will be available to substitute (see above). The game will continue after you complete a season, and the offseason trades will occur as they did in real life. Or you can just start a new season. After you have some experience, you can try setting up this type of game in the advanced mode (skips the wizard and takes you directly to the game options). There you could choose to have the ratings based on a three-year recalc with double weight on the current year or even a one-year recalc for greater accuracy. I think you will be pretty happy with default (three year average) unless you are looking to replicate an outlier like Maris in 1961. Last edited by Orcin; 04-12-2018 at 11:39 AM.

04-13-2018, 10:59 AM	#3
bogert53 Bat Boy Join Date: Apr 2018 Location: Center Valley, PA Posts: 6	Thanks! That is perfect. Thanks. Hope to pick up the game in the next few days. This tells me that I can do what I had hoped. Much appreciated!!