[thenewchuckd]

I am about to make a positive post - so maybe things are going in the right direction.

I actually think this update to talent change almost has things right or at least close to real. There still seems to differences I don't quite understand between pitchers and batters, but I think it is there

(with the caveat that I create a special minor league for U20s and turn the Dominican into a U21 league).

When I invest fully into development and hire the best coaches: Also keep them in a minor league where they are performing well (as soon as they struggle, they drop in ratings - how they perform seems to be the most important factor in everything)

Pitchers:
-I am developing and bringing late round picks (like 10th round plus) into my team as starting pitchers that are 60 rated,
-There does seems to be a weird thing where their ratings accelerate from A to AAA, then once they hit the majors they hit a wall. Although, I remember this from previous versions as well. It is a weird thing, they'll hit the majors like gangbusters (both rating and stats wise) before dropping off and levelling around 25-26.
-It is a bit tricky to develop high rated high schoolers. Their ratings will drop in rookie ball. You have to hope they can hit A ball still highly rated so they can accelerate and still be studs when they make it to the bigs.
-Relievers seem harder to develop. There must be something on the hood there. It is so bad, I'm 10 years in and the AI is throwing 30 million per season at good free agent relievers. Maybe something to look in to.

Batters
-High schoolers and internationals have the drop-drop-drop mechanism in rookie ball and likely at the international complex as well. I think you can mitigate it by creating leagues where they can play and perform, but it is still a thing. Unless you get some lucky rolls (at the development lab or elsewhere), they're not going to be as good as when you signed them.
-Again, if you can get them performing at A ball you're golden. The progression from A ball to the majors is usually pretty fast.
-Good defensive catchers and center-fielders are almost non-existent at a certain point; there seems to be something off with defense development/regression

Overall, I can now draft and sign and be pretty confident things will work out. I get the occasional dud but its offset by surprises.

I feel the game is off in development in the balance between how long players play in rookie ball vs A-AAA. 17-18 year olds in OOTP can spend a long time in rookie ball and a short time in A-AAA; it should be the opposite.

Internationals are more of a crap shoot, although this seems realistic. Usually I just sign the best rated international that I can, although maybe it is a strategy now to splash cash around. I would have to experiment.

So overall, not bad. Certainly a very major improvement.

I know someone complained that their top rated prospect dropped down the board. I actually wish guys didn't show up on the top prospect list until they've "proven" themselves in the minors.

One negative: I still feel like this makes scouting half-baked. I know when drafting, especially young guys, that they'll never turn out the way my scout says. Usually they're worse. The scouts certainly don't give any indication of the guys who will eventually get better (as it is pure random from what I see). I wish there were ways to get rid of this random stuff as much as possible; make the game more based on decisions.