I recently did something I've never heard of. I altered the Lahman database and did a lot of math to make it so that every player would come up in the year that he turns 18, but at a level far below his potential. His potential, however, was based on his real life totals. I started in 1901 and am currently in 1920.
What's amazing to me is how many guys never hit their potential and how many get way better than they ever really were. Ty Cobb, for instance, ended up as a .270 hitter, but Homer Hillenbrand ended up having a Hall Of Fame career.
In this way, it's like playing a fictional league because you really don't know how good they'll get, but you are dealing with guys who really existed.
|