1939...A New Beginning

CarolinaSoxfan · 04-24-2009, 05:13 PM

I am a 34 year old die hard Red Sox fan and have been that way since I was 11 years old. I have always had a fascination with Ted Williams and loved the book The Teammates which is all about Dom Dimaggio, Johnny Pesky, Ted and Bobby Doerr. So 1939 was the logical place to start. I also did not want to leave out all of the great players that came before 1939..and the famous or infamous players that came before 1939. I also wanted to make things a little bit different...as I will explain later. The main thing I want to see is what Ted's career numbers might have been without WWII and the Korean War. So let me explain the setup.

I am using Lahman Database. Talent change is set to 25, Recalc is off. I have ratings hidden and all that is visible is talent ratings based on a 1-5 scale. I have trading set to hard and heavily favor prospects. I want to make it hard to win..I will also have some house rules I will describe later.

Settings are set in the modern era...basically the 2007 settings. Still 16 teams but teams will have 5 man rotations, use closers etc etc. Ticket prices and payrolls will also be equal to 2007. These will not change. The plan is to keep these settings the same throughout the history. I think it will be cool to see what Joe Dimaggio wants in free agency etc and also see how teams fare with the current baseball culture of starters going less innnings and closers. The reason for this is so the record book is easier to compare. In real life we always have qualifiers(well he pitched in the deadball era, he played in the roid era, etc etc) This time they all played in the same era so to speak. I also dont plan on expanding..16 teams forever which should make offensive numbers go down as we get into the 1980's and 90's because of all the pitching..the opposite of watered down pitching will take place..at least I think.

The players from before 1939...they will come into the league via free agents. They will be available in order according to Hall of Fame class. After the 1939 season the first Hall of Fame class will hit free agency(Ruth, Cobb etc) I will import them according to their first great year in the majors..for Ruth it will be his first year as a full time hitter.

Before the 1939 season begins I will have another grouping of past players to hit the free agent market. The first group is the infamous players..which are the 8 Black Sox players who were banned from the game..of course Joe Jackson highlights this group. Moonlight Graham will also be a part of this group..I will import him as a young kid(18 years old) and see if he spends his career in the minors(on a side not..a great new book about his life just came out..check it out) Also Ray Chapman who was killed on the field of play by a pitched ball from Carl Mays. Then there are the negro leaguers..well not all of them. The negro league players that eventually hit the major leagues but later than they should have. I will import them as young man so they can have a full career..This includes Satchel Paige, Jackie Robinson, Lary Doby, Monte Irvin, Roy Campanella. No Josh Gibson since he never made it to the Major Leagues..not his fault of course. It will be interesting to see how these guys develop.

Settings:
Ratings- 30
Current Year 15
Last Year 35
2 years Ago 20

Since I have ratings invisible I want to judge guys how most GM's judge guys..by their actual numbers which is why I gave more weight to previous seasons. This also will help out the great Lou Gehrig. 1939 if you remember was his last year and he got sick. This will help him kick the sickness and still be pretty decent and definitely have a shot of being in the 500 Homer club

College Baseball will exist and be a feeder league. I live in Columbia, SC and am an alum of the University of South Carolina and have season tickets to Gamecock Baseball...needless to say I am a fan of the college game..just wish they wwould get rid of the aluminum bats. The college league will consist of 30 teams and 16 of them will get into the playoffs with 8 going to the College World Series. I am kind of excited to lead my Gamecocks in this part of the league. It is set for a 55 game schedule. I also like this because you will see these fictional guys eventually end up in the majors.

I am having a ten round draft with historical players and players from the college league. The draft is set for August 15th. I like that date because you can see some of the young drafted players come up and make an impact down the stretch of the season but still be considered rookies the following season. I know a lot of players dont like historical players making their debuts a year early but I think it would be a cool twist. Like Ellsbury in 2007(I know he was not drafted then).

House Rules: The main rule I have is dealing with the pre-1939 guys who I have come in as free agents each year. If I sign any of these players I then have to trade my first round pick for $1 to the team with the worst record in the AL the previous season. If I sign 2 in the same offseason then it is my first two picks to the 2 worst teams in my league the previous season etc etc. I also have the owner deciding over my budget. I think this is fair and it helps out the lower teams in a hurry and makes me think about signing those guys to huge contracts and giving away draft picks...but I am already thinking about the possiblities of Ruth and Ted Williams in the same outfield...lol

That is the basic set up. I like to play out all my games but I will post major news stories as the dynasty goes along. So be on the lookout and if any of youhave questioned about certain players or teams let me know

Oh..one more thing..the teams. I have moved some around.

The Giants and Dodgers are staying in NY because that is where those franchises should be. St. Louis Browns are now the Baltimore Orioles because that is where in my mind they should be. The Boston Braves are in Milwaukee..and will stay there. Sorry Atlanta but when you think of the Braves you think of Hammerin' Hank in Milwaukee. The Philadephia A's are in Oakland...need to give the west coast some love. Once again...not planning any expansion ..16 teams..no playoffs..all the way through.

CarolinaSoxfan · 06-02-2009, 04:10 PM

Trying to Buy Then Pennant?

In 1939 there are no wildcards..you need to win it to be in it and with the Yankees in your league that is tough..so the Red Sox sacrificed draft picks to sign some big time talent. The first priority was pitching and the Red Sox bolstered their rotation by signing Eddie Cicotte and Lefty Williams. A weakness has now become a strength. Cicotte and Williams join Grove in the rotation making for a terrific top of the rotation

The Red Sox then went out and signed RF Joe Jackson. This young kid has the makings of greatness and will be in the same outfield of another big time prospect, Ted Williams. Will this be enough to compete with and overtake the Yankees? It sure got a lot more interesting. The Red Sox relinquished their first three draft picks of the upcoming draft(house rules when signing legendary free agents) Their first pick will be in the fourth round and the draft will take place in mid August...in time for September call ups and a chance for these prospects to have a say in pennant races but still keep their rookie status for the following season.

04-24-2009, 05:13 PM	#1
CarolinaSoxfan Minors (Triple A) Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 245	1939...A New Beginning I am a 34 year old die hard Red Sox fan and have been that way since I was 11 years old. I have always had a fascination with Ted Williams and loved the book The Teammates which is all about Dom Dimaggio, Johnny Pesky, Ted and Bobby Doerr. So 1939 was the logical place to start. I also did not want to leave out all of the great players that came before 1939..and the famous or infamous players that came before 1939. I also wanted to make things a little bit different...as I will explain later. The main thing I want to see is what Ted's career numbers might have been without WWII and the Korean War. So let me explain the setup. I am using Lahman Database. Talent change is set to 25, Recalc is off. I have ratings hidden and all that is visible is talent ratings based on a 1-5 scale. I have trading set to hard and heavily favor prospects. I want to make it hard to win..I will also have some house rules I will describe later. Settings are set in the modern era...basically the 2007 settings. Still 16 teams but teams will have 5 man rotations, use closers etc etc. Ticket prices and payrolls will also be equal to 2007. These will not change. The plan is to keep these settings the same throughout the history. I think it will be cool to see what Joe Dimaggio wants in free agency etc and also see how teams fare with the current baseball culture of starters going less innnings and closers. The reason for this is so the record book is easier to compare. In real life we always have qualifiers(well he pitched in the deadball era, he played in the roid era, etc etc) This time they all played in the same era so to speak. I also dont plan on expanding..16 teams forever which should make offensive numbers go down as we get into the 1980's and 90's because of all the pitching..the opposite of watered down pitching will take place..at least I think. The players from before 1939...they will come into the league via free agents. They will be available in order according to Hall of Fame class. After the 1939 season the first Hall of Fame class will hit free agency(Ruth, Cobb etc) I will import them according to their first great year in the majors..for Ruth it will be his first year as a full time hitter. Before the 1939 season begins I will have another grouping of past players to hit the free agent market. The first group is the infamous players..which are the 8 Black Sox players who were banned from the game..of course Joe Jackson highlights this group. Moonlight Graham will also be a part of this group..I will import him as a young kid(18 years old) and see if he spends his career in the minors(on a side not..a great new book about his life just came out..check it out) Also Ray Chapman who was killed on the field of play by a pitched ball from Carl Mays. Then there are the negro leaguers..well not all of them. The negro league players that eventually hit the major leagues but later than they should have. I will import them as young man so they can have a full career..This includes Satchel Paige, Jackie Robinson, Lary Doby, Monte Irvin, Roy Campanella. No Josh Gibson since he never made it to the Major Leagues..not his fault of course. It will be interesting to see how these guys develop. Settings: Ratings- 30 Current Year 15 Last Year 35 2 years Ago 20 Since I have ratings invisible I want to judge guys how most GM's judge guys..by their actual numbers which is why I gave more weight to previous seasons. This also will help out the great Lou Gehrig. 1939 if you remember was his last year and he got sick. This will help him kick the sickness and still be pretty decent and definitely have a shot of being in the 500 Homer club College Baseball will exist and be a feeder league. I live in Columbia, SC and am an alum of the University of South Carolina and have season tickets to Gamecock Baseball...needless to say I am a fan of the college game..just wish they wwould get rid of the aluminum bats. The college league will consist of 30 teams and 16 of them will get into the playoffs with 8 going to the College World Series. I am kind of excited to lead my Gamecocks in this part of the league. It is set for a 55 game schedule. I also like this because you will see these fictional guys eventually end up in the majors. I am having a ten round draft with historical players and players from the college league. The draft is set for August 15th. I like that date because you can see some of the young drafted players come up and make an impact down the stretch of the season but still be considered rookies the following season. I know a lot of players dont like historical players making their debuts a year early but I think it would be a cool twist. Like Ellsbury in 2007(I know he was not drafted then). House Rules: The main rule I have is dealing with the pre-1939 guys who I have come in as free agents each year. If I sign any of these players I then have to trade my first round pick for $1 to the team with the worst record in the AL the previous season. If I sign 2 in the same offseason then it is my first two picks to the 2 worst teams in my league the previous season etc etc. I also have the owner deciding over my budget. I think this is fair and it helps out the lower teams in a hurry and makes me think about signing those guys to huge contracts and giving away draft picks...but I am already thinking about the possiblities of Ruth and Ted Williams in the same outfield...lol That is the basic set up. I like to play out all my games but I will post major news stories as the dynasty goes along. So be on the lookout and if any of youhave questioned about certain players or teams let me know Oh..one more thing..the teams. I have moved some around. The Giants and Dodgers are staying in NY because that is where those franchises should be. St. Louis Browns are now the Baltimore Orioles because that is where in my mind they should be. The Boston Braves are in Milwaukee..and will stay there. Sorry Atlanta but when you think of the Braves you think of Hammerin' Hank in Milwaukee. The Philadephia A's are in Oakland...need to give the west coast some love. Once again...not planning any expansion ..16 teams..no playoffs..all the way through.

06-02-2009, 04:10 PM	#2
CarolinaSoxfan Minors (Triple A) Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 245	Trying to Buy Then Pennant? In 1939 there are no wildcards..you need to win it to be in it and with the Yankees in your league that is tough..so the Red Sox sacrificed draft picks to sign some big time talent. The first priority was pitching and the Red Sox bolstered their rotation by signing Eddie Cicotte and Lefty Williams. A weakness has now become a strength. Cicotte and Williams join Grove in the rotation making for a terrific top of the rotation The Red Sox then went out and signed RF Joe Jackson. This young kid has the makings of greatness and will be in the same outfield of another big time prospect, Ted Williams. Will this be enough to compete with and overtake the Yankees? It sure got a lot more interesting. The Red Sox relinquished their first three draft picks of the upcoming draft(house rules when signing legendary free agents) Their first pick will be in the fourth round and the draft will take place in mid August...in time for September call ups and a chance for these prospects to have a say in pennant races but still keep their rookie status for the following season.