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Historical pitchers MUST be addressed.
Now, admittedly, I play a lot of Historical Exhibition. Teams from different years and even different eras play each other. But something is definitely not right with the pitching.
Example: In a recent 5-game replay between the 1992 Blue Jays and the 1986 Astros, the Blue Jays' rotation struck out only 6 (*six*) Astros batters, while walking 26. I should add that the Astros LOST the series, despite their amazing walk-to-strikeout ratio. The Blue Jays drew 15 walks, and struck out 26 times.
Astros RHP Mike Scott had a dazzling 1986 Cy Young season. Yet his ratings were barely above average: Stuff 11, Movement 14, Control 12 -- while playing in 1992 settings! 1992 was arguably an even bigger "pitcher's year" than 1986. He had an 8.18 ERA in 11 innings pitched against the 1992 Blue Jays. No, it's not impossible — pitchers can have slumps against good teams — but this is a trend, not an outlier.
In a 5-game series between the 1997 Mariners and the 1992 Blue Jays — again, played in 1992 settings — the Mariners struck out only 18 times, and walked 24 times.
In another series, St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson (1967), had ratings of: Stuff 7, Movement 14, Control 14 while pitching in 1976 settings against the 1976 Reds. Phillies LHP Steve Carlton, from 1977, had similar ratings (7-14-14) pitching against the 1965 Twins in a 1965 setting. We're talking about Hall of Fame pitchers in their prime! Why are their ratings so .... middling? Indeed, they pitched down to those ratings every time.
It just does not feel right, okay? I've played tons of OOTP since 2012, and these pitcher ratings and performances feel WAY off base.
I am not an engineer or a programmer. But it does not take one to know that these ratings are wildly inaccurate.
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