Never cry wolf- The Wolf interview

[Padreman]

Introducing the man known as The Wolf
Well deserved Hall Of Fame status
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 8,502
Thanked 1,821x in 1,091 posts

You may ask MR. Wolf any addition or follow-up questions just don't invade his privacy and be respectfu.


When and what version did you start playing OOTP?

6.5, and what an awesome version it was!

What's the feature of the game you love most?

The DIPS-based game engine.

What's your favorite baseball team (any league)?

Texas Rangers. But I greatly admire what they are doing with the Red Sox and the A's.

How old you?

Thirties.

Where are you originally from?

The Mescalero Apache Reservation. That's near Ruidoso in New Mexico.

Are you a family man?

Married, no children.

What do you for a living?

Consulting engineer. I get paid to solve problems and give advice. Life is good.

Besides OOTP do you have any other hobbies or interests?

I'm in a local soccer league, I hunt when I can, and I am a big history buff.

Your go-to baseball movie?

Tied between Major League and For Love Of The Game, for different reasons.

You have about 8,500 post been thanks almost 2,000 times why are you so social and popular here? And are you this social in person would you say?

I am far, far more social and friendly in person. I talk to everyone, have friends everywhere and I go to a lot of parties and host at least one a week.

If the OOTP team asked you be a consultant what will you change, add or remove for new version of the game?

I would design a fully functional spring training and winter league system, add the ability to save and load lineups, and fix the tiebreaker problem.

Baseball is called "America's Past Time" sadly the last decade or so baseball has taken a back seat to the NBA and NFL why do you think that is and your feelings on the current state of MLB?

I blame ESPN's deliberate deprioritization of baseball for that. If you look at the hard data, like attendance, baseball is just as popular as ever.

Is there any other game or show your currently enjoying you would like to let us know about?

FM, MLB The Show, and, believe it or not, Skyrim (well, at least until I took an arrow to the knee)

[The Wolf]

I would like to note that since I answered those questions Markus has apparently fixed the tiebreaker problems.

[eriqjaffe]

Originally Posted by The Wolf

I would like to note that since I answered those questions Markus has apparently fixed the tiebreaker problems.

Now that's service!

[The Wolf]

Originally Posted by eriqjaffe

Now that's service!

I hope that you complained about Spring Training in yours!

[Déjà Bru]

Originally Posted by The Wolf

I am a big history buff.

Aside from OOTPB, we have this in common.

[The Wolf]

Originally Posted by Déjà Bru

Aside from OOTPB, we have this in common.

I suspect that we have a great deal in common.

[D-BacksJosh]

Hey, The Wolf is human after all!

Originally Posted by Padreman

Baseball is called "America's Past Time" sadly the last decade or so baseball has taken a back seat to the NBA and NFL why do you think that is and your feelings on the current state of MLB?

I blame ESPN's deliberate deprioritization of baseball for that. If you look at the hard data, like attendance, baseball is just as popular as ever.

Spot on.

[TribeFanInNC]

Originally Posted by Padreman

Baseball is called "America's Past Time" sadly the last decade or so baseball has taken a back seat to the NBA and NFL why do you think that is and your feelings on the current state of MLB?

[b]I blame ESPN's deliberate deprioritization of baseball for that.[b] If you look at the hard data, like attendance, baseball is just as popular as ever.

Admittedly, I haven't thought much about the bolded comment before (probably because I consume baseball on MLB.tv/Gameday Audio and don't really care about the ESPN content). I wonder if it is because we don't consume it enough (i.e. ratings) or the wrong people consume it (i.e. demographics). I can't believe they would deliberately not show/hype/produce a product that would make them money. I'm sure there is an underlying reason.

[chucksabr]

If baseball made more money than football or basketball, baseball would be prioritized above them. But it doesn't, so it's not.

Personally, I don't care that MLB is not the biggest dog in the cage. There is more awesome baseball content available to us than there was before ESPN ever came onto the baseball scene, and by a factor of multiples. I never even watch a game on ESPN now that I have Extra Innings, anyway. In fact, I don't watch anything on ESPN now that I have MLB Network.

I wouldn't change anything about the situation, except for the stupid blackout rules.

[shawa666]

Originally Posted by eriqjaffe

Now that's service!

Eh, Wolfie's bitching and moaning is useful, sometimes.

[Le Grande Orange]

Originally Posted by D-BacksJosh

Hey, The Wolf is human after all!

Only until the moon is full. Then, well, lock your doors!

[Cryomaniac]

Originally Posted by Le Grande Orange

Only until the moon is full. Then, well, lock your doors!

Warren Zevon - Werewolves of London - YouTube

[The Game]

Nice to see another For The Love Of The Game fan.

[The Wolf]

Originally Posted by shawa666

Eh, Wolfie's bitching and moaning is useful, sometimes.

So is YOUR bitching and moaning. Sometimes.

[The Wolf]

Originally Posted by Cryomaniac

Warren Zevon - Werewolves of London - YouTube

And my hair IS perfect.

[Elysian Fields]

I've been to Ruidoso a number of times. It's a beautiful place. I also skied at what used to be called Ski Apache, but now I think it is Ski Ruidoso.

Cloudcroft is cool too. That part of New Mexico is a neat place.

[The Wolf]

Yes, it is. Especially in the fall.

[Honorable_Pawn]

You make a good point about how ESPN is creating a false image that baseball is less popular than football and thugetball by citing attendance.

I agree with you that ESPN prioritizes football and "shall-not-mention-that-sports-name" but I think it has more to do with television ratings than actual attendance. The Superbowl is the king of ratings along with the hype of March Madness.

Baseball is probably less popular than football but only because 97.5 percent of the population is to the left of the average baseball fan's location on the bell-shaped curve.

[Raidergoo]

Baseball is more popular than football because football is bloodsport and easy to gamble on. Concussions and CTE will destroy football shortly.

[The Wolf]

Craig Calcaterra on the subject:

"Major League Baseball attendance for 2013 exceeded 74 million, which is the sixth highest ever. There have been 30 teams in baseball since 1998 so perhaps the relevant comparisons for attendance should focus on the past 15 years, but even then the past ten years have seen the ten highest-attended seasons in that time frame, which is a pretty good trend line, especially considering the 2008 recession from which we’re still not really recovered.

MLB has achieved record revenue for ten consecutive years with last year reaching $7.5 billion.

Competitive balance, which many who like to slam baseball enjoy citing, actually favors baseball these days. Indeed, 26 of the league’s 30 clubs have made the playoffs at least once in the last 10 years."

Read the whole thing:

Doomsayers be damned: Baseball is healthy and ratings are strong | HardballTalk