Two Quick Questions Today

Larryk007 · 03-17-2023, 11:21 AM

Does a field playing player "rest" when they are the DH?
and
Is there a max number of innings for a pitcher?

Charlie Hough · 03-18-2023, 02:43 PM

Playing as a DH definitely saves some of a player's fatigue, but it's not the same as 100% resting. They're still being used, so they could eventually need to be rested.

As for a maximum number of innings, do you mean a maximum limit that the game imposes before a pitcher can continue to pitch in a game? Or do you mean a limit on their season innings? In either case, there is no maximum, but pitchers will get fatigued once they throw enough pitches, or they will have increased injury risk if they're overworked during a season. Their threshold depends on what era you're playing in, your league's pitcher fatigue settings, and individual pitcher fatigue ratings.

In individual games, you can pitch them into exhaustion and keep using them, although I would not recommend that. I usually replace pitchers once they start showing fatigue in a game, or shortly thereafter. Their performance will often suffer if you don't. Over a full season, it certainly seems that the risk of late-season injury increases if a pitcher has been worked really hard all season, so I recommend paying attention to pitch counts and taking opportunities to ease some of the workload, particularly toward the end of the season. For example, if I'm managing a team that has secured a playoff spot or is out of the playoffs, then I'll try to ease up on my starters and manage their innings more carefully. Earlier in the season, if we're winning a blowout game, then I might let the bullpen finish out the final few innings. But a lot depends on the pitch count.

Larryk007 · 03-19-2023, 02:06 PM

Thanks for the quick response. I think I am more worried about total season innings. I see fatigue during a game, but I don't see how to connect the seasonal fatigue. I guess I am looking for that "this pitcher is good for about 180 innings a season, and then they are basicly done....." something like that, that we hear from the managers today.

Charlie Hough · 03-20-2023, 03:58 PM

Okay, I did some more research and discovered that OOTP uses the Pitcher Abuse Points system developed by The Baseball Prospectus. This assigns pitcher abuse points once a pitcher reaches a certain number of pitches in a given game.

According to the Injuries and Fatigue section of the OOTP 23 manual, the game considers a pitcher's past usage (Pitcher Abuse Points), pitch count in the current game, rust, and his injury proneness rating to determine the possibility of an injury.

This means that pitch counts in individual games are where you should focus, which makes perfect sense given the huge emphasis on tracking pitch counts in real-life baseball. It's also consistent with my experience in playing OOTP for many years, where I only pay attention to pitch counts in individual games. I have never paid attention to total innings pitched for the season.

Everything will vary based on the era in which you're playing. If I'm managing a team in the modern era, I pay attention to pitch counts. Otherwise, I don't. But I always pay close attention to pitcher fatigue, and I don't like keeping pitchers in the game once they're starting to tire, no matter what era it is. However, in earlier eras of baseball, pitchers in OOTP are able to throw a lot more pitches before they fatigue, so I would imagine that OOTP has scaled its Pitcher Abuse Point thresholds accordingly. But I can't say for sure how it applies that system across different eras.

Syd Thrift · 03-20-2023, 05:20 PM

OOTP doesn't have a specific innings limit after which guys start to fatigue, even adjusted for era (just wanted to make that clear). If you have a guy who gives you 7 innings a night in the modern era without ever dropping into the red zone, I don't see why that guy couldn't pitch 200+ innings without getting hurt. Of course, pitching being what it is, the act of pitching, period, means a player will get hurt and I believe OOTP still makes those chances far, far higher when a guy is tired or rusty (that is, they haven't played in a while - witness the first 3-4 days of spring training being a bloodbath).

Larryk007 · 03-20-2023, 08:40 PM

OK great!!! Thanks for the information, makes sense.

03-17-2023, 11:21 AM	#1
Larryk007 Major Leagues Join Date: Oct 2022 Posts: 412	Two Quick Questions Today Does a field playing player "rest" when they are the DH? and Is there a max number of innings for a pitcher?

03-18-2023, 02:43 PM	#2
Charlie Hough Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 3,640	Playing as a DH definitely saves some of a player's fatigue, but it's not the same as 100% resting. They're still being used, so they could eventually need to be rested. As for a maximum number of innings, do you mean a maximum limit that the game imposes before a pitcher can continue to pitch in a game? Or do you mean a limit on their season innings? In either case, there is no maximum, but pitchers will get fatigued once they throw enough pitches, or they will have increased injury risk if they're overworked during a season. Their threshold depends on what era you're playing in, your league's pitcher fatigue settings, and individual pitcher fatigue ratings. In individual games, you can pitch them into exhaustion and keep using them, although I would not recommend that. I usually replace pitchers once they start showing fatigue in a game, or shortly thereafter. Their performance will often suffer if you don't. Over a full season, it certainly seems that the risk of late-season injury increases if a pitcher has been worked really hard all season, so I recommend paying attention to pitch counts and taking opportunities to ease some of the workload, particularly toward the end of the season. For example, if I'm managing a team that has secured a playoff spot or is out of the playoffs, then I'll try to ease up on my starters and manage their innings more carefully. Earlier in the season, if we're winning a blowout game, then I might let the bullpen finish out the final few innings. But a lot depends on the pitch count. Last edited by Charlie Hough; 03-19-2023 at 11:41 AM.

03-20-2023, 03:58 PM	#4
Charlie Hough Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 3,640	Okay, I did some more research and discovered that OOTP uses the Pitcher Abuse Points system developed by The Baseball Prospectus. This assigns pitcher abuse points once a pitcher reaches a certain number of pitches in a given game. According to the Injuries and Fatigue section of the OOTP 23 manual, the game considers a pitcher's past usage (Pitcher Abuse Points), pitch count in the current game, rust, and his injury proneness rating to determine the possibility of an injury. This means that pitch counts in individual games are where you should focus, which makes perfect sense given the huge emphasis on tracking pitch counts in real-life baseball. It's also consistent with my experience in playing OOTP for many years, where I only pay attention to pitch counts in individual games. I have never paid attention to total innings pitched for the season. Everything will vary based on the era in which you're playing. If I'm managing a team in the modern era, I pay attention to pitch counts. Otherwise, I don't. But I always pay close attention to pitcher fatigue, and I don't like keeping pitchers in the game once they're starting to tire, no matter what era it is. However, in earlier eras of baseball, pitchers in OOTP are able to throw a lot more pitches before they fatigue, so I would imagine that OOTP has scaled its Pitcher Abuse Point thresholds accordingly. But I can't say for sure how it applies that system across different eras. Last edited by Charlie Hough; 03-20-2023 at 03:59 PM.

03-19-2023, 02:06 PM	#3
Larryk007 Major Leagues Join Date: Oct 2022 Posts: 412	Thanks for the quick response. I think I am more worried about total season innings. I see fatigue during a game, but I don't see how to connect the seasonal fatigue. I guess I am looking for that "this pitcher is good for about 180 innings a season, and then they are basicly done....." something like that, that we hear from the managers today.

03-20-2023, 08:40 PM	#6
Larryk007 Major Leagues Join Date: Oct 2022 Posts: 412	OK great!!! Thanks for the information, makes sense.