As some of you may recall (or not), back in OOTP 17 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the year of The Bird, I followed Mark "The Bird" Fidrych's career in OOTP. While it didn't go quite as planned I still had fun with it.
So, with OOTP 19 I'm going to do it again. This time it should be even better with all the historical minor league graphics I helped Tiger Fan assemble. Any here are the same two Wikipedia quotes for those aren't familiar with the legend that is "The Bird":
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The son of an assistant school principal, Fidrych played baseball at Algonquin Regional High School in Northborough, Massachusetts, and at Worcester Academy, a day and boarding school in central Massachusetts. In the 1974 amateur draft he was selected in the 10th round by the Detroit Tigers and later joked that when he got a call saying he had been drafted he thought he was drafted into the military not thinking there were any teams looking at him. In the minor leagues one of his coaches with the Lakeland Tigers dubbed the lanky 6-foot-3 right-handed pitcher "The Bird" because of his resemblance to the "Big Bird" character of the Sesame Street television program.
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Fidrych also captured the imagination of fans with his antics on the field. He would crouch down on the pitcher's mound and fix cleat marks, what became known as "manicuring the mound", talk to himself, talk to the ball, aim the ball like a dart, strut around the mound after every out, and throw back balls that "had hits in them", insisting they be removed from the game. Mark Fidrych also was known for shaking everyone's hands after a game. On June 28, 1976, he pitched against the New York Yankees in a nationally televised game on ABC; the Tigers won the game 5–1. After a game filled with "Bird" antics in which he and his team handily defeated the Yankees, Fidrych became a national celebrity.
Every time he pitched, Tiger Stadium was jam-packed with fans who became known as "Bird Watchers". Fidrych's fan appeal was also enhanced by the fact that he had his own "personal catcher". Because Tigers coaching and managerial staff were somewhat superstitious about "jinxing" Fidrych's success, Bruce Kimm, a rookie catcher, caught each of Fidrych's outings.
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This time around I'll do this differently. Instead starting in 1974 with him already in the Tigers organization, I'll start in 1973 and allow him to be drafted by a team. I'll first try running his career using the OOTP development agent. If he doesn't reach the majors then, I'll restart and edit his ratings so it is guaranteed he reaches the majors one way or another, just like last time. Either way, I'll follow his career until he retires, whenever that may be.
As always sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride!