League Balance w/ Feeders

willboat75 · 05-22-2026, 02:08 PM

I'm trying to start a league in the mid-20th century with feeders. I want to achieve a mid-20th century feel--a top heavy league with big stars and many sub-replacement level players.

I followed the formula on the wiki to get the correct amount of teams, but my league is overrun with talent. I've tried cutting some teams and lowering the PCMs, but there are still way too many 60+ batters for only six major league teams. There are not as many pitchers similarly rated as high and it creates a static and predictable league environment.

Unless I drastically mess with the age and development settings, nearly every batter ages out at 33 and is forced to retire, even if they're still rated well. Minor league clubs are stocked with talent at all times.

I've got 16 feeders for six big league teams, with each having four levels of minors. I don't really care about anything except getting the balance I want.

Hrycaj · 05-23-2026, 07:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by willboat75

I'm trying to start a league in the mid-20th century with feeders. I want to achieve a mid-20th century feel--a top heavy league with big stars and many sub-replacement level players.

I followed the formula on the wiki to get the correct amount of teams, but my league is overrun with talent. I've tried cutting some teams and lowering the PCMs, but there are still way too many 60+ batters for only six major league teams. There are not as many pitchers similarly rated as high and it creates a static and predictable league environment.

Unless I drastically mess with the age and development settings, nearly every batter ages out at 33 and is forced to retire, even if they're still rated well. Minor league clubs are stocked with talent at all times.

I've got 16 feeders for six big league teams, with each having four levels of minors. I don't really care about anything except getting the balance I want.

I'm not an expert but in the past I messed around with feeders a lot before I just gave up on the whole thing. It caused too much frustration for what it was worth. I will try and share my knowledge here if it helps. When you say 16 feeders do you mena 16 feeder teams? Or 16 feeder leagues? If you mean 16 feeder leagues all with their own 4 levels of minors then your issue is that you have way too many feeder league teams that will destroy the balance of your league. If you mean you only have 16 feeder league teams for a 6 team major league (with 4 levels of minors for each organization) then that is a problem. 16 feeder league teams should work and if it isn't then the whole feeder system is just not working at all.

willboat75 · 05-23-2026, 09:13 AM

Teams, not leagues. I started with 20 and cut it down. I'm not sure why the talent pool is so good. I am using only college feeders, so maybe that's why? I changed the age generation to 15-18 so they could act as my academies. That's the main tweak, so I foresee it being a problem. I need to take a break for a bit from the game, though.

low · 05-23-2026, 11:12 PM

I'm beginning to wonder if feeders are even worth it anymore.

Hrycaj · 05-24-2026, 07:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by willboat75

Teams, not leagues. I started with 20 and cut it down. I'm not sure why the talent pool is so good. I am using only college feeders, so maybe that's why? I changed the age generation to 15-18 so they could act as my academies. That's the main tweak, so I foresee it being a problem. I need to take a break for a bit from the game, though.

Yea. 20 teams should not wreck things. What you are seeing though is definitely the problems that led so many to stop using them. I wish I could help more. It’s a bummer because that was my favorite era of OOTP when those were working. Then again, maybe they didn’t and I was just too naive a player at the time to notice.

Baconi · 05-24-2026, 12:14 PM

I think the balance only really works if you have the same number of feeder teams as MLB teams which is unfortunate. I wish there was a way to adjust the distribution of player ratings so that you could have more lower end players and more realistically replicate this setup. I’m thinking of doing a feeder league setup but will likely write a script to drag down player ratings which I’d have to run every sim year.

Hrycaj · 05-25-2026, 06:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Baconi

I think the balance only really works if you have the same number of feeder teams as MLB teams which is unfortunate. I wish there was a way to adjust the distribution of player ratings so that you could have more lower end players and more realistically replicate this setup. I’m thinking of doing a feeder league setup but will likely write a script to drag down player ratings which I’d have to run every sim year.

That has been brought up before as a feature request. I think you are spot on with it. If we had some sort of dial that you could set so you could create as many feeders as you wanted would be a great addition to feeders. It is really a chicken vs. egg argument. Feeders are not being used so why would the devs pour time and resources into making them better. The flip is if it worked really well would more players go back to using them?

willboat75 · 05-25-2026, 09:41 AM

I think the same chicken/egg argument could be made for associations. I think it would unlock another level of gameplay, but not many use them. Accurate winter league roster rules would also help, for permanent loans to LIDOM, etc.

Sweed · 05-25-2026, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by low

I'm beginning to wonder if feeders are even worth it anymore.

When OOTP improved created draft classes with players having stats, real schools, quality of competition, etc. feeders became a thing of the past for me.
I liked my feeders. They provided me good draft classes but.... the improved OOTP created draft classes were giving me the same without having to maintain my feeder leagues. I shut down my feeders and moved on.

WooBallFan43 · 05-25-2026, 11:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by willboat75

I think the same chicken/egg argument could be made for associations. I think it would unlock another level of gameplay, but not many use them. Accurate winter league roster rules would also help, for permanent loans to LIDOM, etc.

An Association revamp would be AMAZING. I could have unified drafts/HOFs, I could run an FA Cup style tournament. The possibilities are endless!

05-22-2026, 02:08 PM	#1
willboat75 Minors (Triple A) Join Date: Aug 2020 Location: Detroit Posts: 232	League Balance w/ Feeders I'm trying to start a league in the mid-20th century with feeders. I want to achieve a mid-20th century feel--a top heavy league with big stars and many sub-replacement level players. I followed the formula on the wiki to get the correct amount of teams, but my league is overrun with talent. I've tried cutting some teams and lowering the PCMs, but there are still way too many 60+ batters for only six major league teams. There are not as many pitchers similarly rated as high and it creates a static and predictable league environment. Unless I drastically mess with the age and development settings, nearly every batter ages out at 33 and is forced to retire, even if they're still rated well. Minor league clubs are stocked with talent at all times. I've got 16 feeders for six big league teams, with each having four levels of minors. I don't really care about anything except getting the balance I want.

05-23-2026, 11:12 PM	#4
low Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2010 Location: Wisconsin, USA Posts: 6,280	I'm beginning to wonder if feeders are even worth it anymore. __________________ My fictional team logos and uniforms

05-23-2026, 09:13 AM	#3
willboat75 Minors (Triple A) Join Date: Aug 2020 Location: Detroit Posts: 232	Teams, not leagues. I started with 20 and cut it down. I'm not sure why the talent pool is so good. I am using only college feeders, so maybe that's why? I changed the age generation to 15-18 so they could act as my academies. That's the main tweak, so I foresee it being a problem. I need to take a break for a bit from the game, though.

05-24-2026, 12:14 PM	#6
Baconi Minors (Triple A) Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 262	I think the balance only really works if you have the same number of feeder teams as MLB teams which is unfortunate. I wish there was a way to adjust the distribution of player ratings so that you could have more lower end players and more realistically replicate this setup. I’m thinking of doing a feeder league setup but will likely write a script to drag down player ratings which I’d have to run every sim year.

05-25-2026, 09:41 AM	#8
willboat75 Minors (Triple A) Join Date: Aug 2020 Location: Detroit Posts: 232	I think the same chicken/egg argument could be made for associations. I think it would unlock another level of gameplay, but not many use them. Accurate winter league roster rules would also help, for permanent loans to LIDOM, etc.