This is a consolidation of all of the ideas in the thread Marc posted requesting suggestions for Historical play enhancements.
http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...d.php?t=126963
I tried to break it down by categories although certainly many items could qualify for more than one category. I am not offering my own comments on any of the suggestions here. I simply want to catalogue them in a fairly easy to follow list. If you wish to add something not listed below to this thread feel free but please do not repeat things already mentioned. Ideally we can keep this thread as clutter-free as possible and we can debate the merits of each request elsewhere.
I will also make sure this list gets brought to the attention of Markus and Marc and I will plead with them to get anything feasible included in a patch. However, it is my belief that many of these requests are more future version goals than something that can be added quickly in a patch.
Here they are. Listed in no particular order. For the most part I am just copying and pasting so the comments you read are not from me.
GAME SETUP
1- the ability to have more than two subleagues in a given minor league level
2- The ability to add or delete a league or subleague at any time in your career. Perhaps also an option to allow a league to go dormant for several years and retain it's history when it is restarted.
3- A database that will automatically add real life minor league affiliates for any given year for those choosing to use minors.
4- Built-in or better support for Lahman or other databases. Ideally if a legal solution can be found have them ship with the game to eliminate the need for novice users to have to figure out how to search for the master.csv
5- More varied playoff options. In particular a request for what is known as the Shaughnessy playoff format. For those who have not heard of it the format is essentially a four-team playoff where in the first round, the 1st-place and 3rd-place teams played each other, as did the 2nd-place and 4th-place teams. The winners of those series advanced to the second (final) round to determine the league champion. This playoff format is recognizable as the "Shaughnessy playoffs" since it was developed in 1932 by International League executive Frank Shaughnessy.
6- Allow a Rule V Draft when playing with no minors. Or, said a different way, allow a Rule V Draft from the reserve roster.
7- Let the game draw player photos from the data/photos folder rather than the saved_games/example.lg/news/html/images folder. This would save a ton of time when doing more than one historical replay.
8- Historical leagues either need ghost players back in so we can have minor leagues or some other way to keep fictional players out. They (fictional players) are just way to intrusive upon the leagues and not having minors leagues at all really stunts the way some users play. This, like most other requests should be an option for those who like the current system.
9-Better ratings based on missing data in the standard Lahman database. I like the 3rd party DB's which can help this, but most of the time I dont want two of the same player in the league (Ruth, Wood, etc...) or I dont want Negro League players in the league, or I dont want different debut years, and going through and deleting them from the 3rd party DB's can be a pain in the butt. A more accurate import from the standard Lahman would help that
10- The ability to import individual teams from the Lahman and other databases. (PureSim already has this one. It's very useful.)
11-Instead of having the current option of Adjust hitters with less than X at-bats (in THE IMPORTED SEASON), make it an option that is career based, ie: Adjust Hitters with less than X AB in their CAREER
12- allow players who can hit and pitch to be able to do so automatically. Babe Ruth, Joe Wood, etc.
13- The ability to start a historical league prior to 1901. Sans direct support for that, at least allow me to start a nineteenth century league with a Lahman imported initial draft, rather than having to do the "start a year early" workaround.
14- An option to Delete career statistics - important for those people who want to start a historical league without the lahman-imported career records predating their league
15- Ability to designate which year's rookies import in amatuer drafts. This is important because of the pre-season only limitation on when you can alter the league structure. If you add a team in the pre-season, and then want it to participate in a February/March amateur draft before the season starts, the game will import next year's rookies, causing them to debut a year early. This situation could also be addressed by loosening the rules on when you can edit the league structure
16- The ability to import players age based upon the year imported, rather than having the data compared to the player's birth year relative to the start date of the league.
17- Ability to edit league structure before preseason so we can add the expansion team and have it import the players onto the right team and not into FA
18- Ability to edit career stats in game setup, or in other words while still able to make a quickstart. (I don't want to change simmed results, just want to combine with request "for an Alltime League and be able to modify the year #'s.)
19- Ability to input Stats to get Ratings (as somebody else suggested as well). Extremely helpful for making a custom historical league...but helpful in general as well.
20-Ability to edit all league (& hopefully in future team) records, preferably with a simple txt or csv file as well as in-game.
HISTORICAL PROGRESSION
1- Expansion. Perhaps an option where the user can select for the game to automatically add the expansion teams and populate them with players in the proper seasons they debut or allow the user to expand when he chooses. Going hand in hand with this would be options on how to run the expansion draft. How many players can each established team protect? Do they get to pullback a player when one is lost? Is there a maximum that can be taken from any one team? etc.
2 - "era" settings that change automatically over time, i.e. bullpen usage, starting pitcher endurance, closer usage, stealing and bunting frequency
3- The ability to automatically update stadiums with changed dimensions and park effects
4- Add historical manager/GM models for the AI to emulate tendencies in the way real teams were managed or run.
5- An option to either manually change or automatically have the league financial structure evolve through the years.
ADD-ONS
1- Historical quickstarts, say one per decade, that come with the game or as a gamer created add-on.
2- Add a Baseball Timeline feature that incorporates actual baseball and real-world historical news to replays
HISTORICAL BALLPARKS AND WEATHER
In addition to the one listed in game setup to have the new ballparks automatically enter the game in the real life season they debuted there were several other park related requests.
1-The ballpark factors of historic stadiums could be improved, especially in earlier stadiums here the game is kinda cookie-cutter in its approach even though the dimensions are known
2- Stadium capacity: 42,000. That default number needs to change. You can edit it now but I wish it were more "intelligent". Every stadium now seats 42,000 or something. Of course, this isn't THAT big a deal since you can control the "average" attendence anyway. BUT, I've simmed the early 1900's and when teams make the World Series you often get 42,000 fans watching the game in a stadium that could not hold that many even with standing room only
3-what about reading and importing ballpark info from a txt/csv file? I think we can create that file so that each year, the game can read that file and assign the appropriate ballpark, dimensions, seats, and park factors to the relevant team. We can work out the details if you are interested.
4- Weather would be nice. I will go one step beyond OOTP6.5 and suggest rainouts rather than just rain delays be incorporated into the game.
STATS, AWARDS AND LEAGUE HISTORY
1- Incorporate player-chosen awards/ASG selections. Better yet, add an option to select "All-League" players for those who choose not to have an ASG.
2-Simulate the voting by writers/HOF committee members on the HOF as well as the above areas, with the player being able to vote/override as he sees fit. News articles annoucing the voting results. Also consider having a waiting period before HOF induction rather than have the players immediately eligible. Along this lines an option to turn the HOF on whenever you choose.
3-An option to have historically accurate past records and league leaderboards. If I import in 1983 I want to see the league records up to that point (even if there was a cutoff of say 1901)
4-Probably impossible without some kind of sponser from baseballreference or a like site, but how about a stat split called "in real life". That way, we can immediately compare a players ootp career with his in real life.
His career totals vs in real life, what they did in a given year vs what the did in real life that year, etc.
5- OOTP continues to improve the stats and history related to individual players, which is great. What I hope to begin seeing is more emphasis on team history -- a better comparison of team results over a period of years so that dynasties and rivalries can arise and be noted.
6- Tracking of manager and coach career stats
7- Postseason playoff leaderboards
8- Descriptions and histories of stadiums, together with the ability to build new stadiums or expand old ones, would also be nice.
TRANSACTIONS
1- Allow pure cash sales of players, especially from unaffiliated minor league teams to major league teams. In conjunction with (1), improve financial AI so that financially distressed teams will be forced to sell off their players (or at least try to dump expensive contracts).
2- For teams with no minors, make it possible to fix the size of the reserve roster or disable reserve rosters entirely
3- Unaffiliated minors that work a little better. They shouldn't be able to sign major league stars.
4-Shop player feature with an option to turn it on or off for those who do not like it
IN GAME MANAGER OPTIONS
1- I just want more specific on-field options. Roided up sluggers only need to know how to swing away, but us deadball fans should be able to call for delayed double steals, baltimore chops & other odd plays the 1890s Orioles pulled off. Just basic control of the on-field style of the older eras. Doesn't seem like any sim really has that