Realignment in (real life) High-A for 2017

Le Grande Orange · 08-22-2016, 07:08 PM

Those of you doing OOTP leagues based on real-world baseball might be interested in this. Just saw this story over at MILB.com:

MiLB announces Class A realignment

The Carolina League will be expanding to 10 teams, with one of the new clubs being located in Kinston, NC. The home for the other new club is still under consideration.

The California League, in connection with the above change, will be dropping to 8 clubs. The Bakersfield Blaze and High Desert Mavericks clubs will be folding after the conclusion of the 2016 season.

The effective switch of two teams from the California to the Carolina League has been bandied about for years (it came up at about the same time two clubs switched from the South Atlantic to the Midwest League). It seems the powers-that-be finally got all the parties involved to agree.

ohiodevil · 08-22-2016, 07:34 PM

I always wondered if/when the Carolina league would expand to 10 teams, and I am happy to see baseball return to Kinston. Was sad when I head the Indians moved their affiliation after the 2011 season.

I saw many games in Kinston as a kid over the 3 years we lived in North Carolina....it was a bonus that they were affiliated with the Indians at the time so I got to see a few guys that ended up coming to Cleveland in the early 90s (Charlie Nagy, Jesse Levis, Mark Lewis, Albert 'Joey' Belle, Rod Nichols and the late Steve Olin).

BigRed75 · 08-22-2016, 11:06 PM

I just hope all goes well on the database end with the master build. But I have a funny feeling that Kinston and Fayetteville will be playing in-game in the Bakersfield and High Desert stadiums.

swampdragon · 08-23-2016, 02:46 PM

I'm glad to see the Rangers back in the Carolina League with their High-A team. The ballpark at High Desert was too extreme for player development purposes.

bwburke94 · 08-23-2016, 03:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigRed75

I just hope all goes well on the database end with the master build. But I have a funny feeling that Kinston and Fayetteville will be playing in-game in the Bakersfield and High Desert stadiums.

Sometimes it takes months to get a new stadium into the game.

Which is still less time than it's taking the Hartford Yard Goats, mind you.

Le Grande Orange · 08-23-2016, 06:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bwburke94

Sometimes it takes months to get a new stadium into the game.

Which is still less time than it's taking the Hartford Yard Goats, mind you.

That's lead to a couple of interesting attendance stats for this season. Because the stadium isn't ready, the club has had to play home games either in the 'visiting' team's park, or at a 'neutral' site (usually the park of another club in the Eastern League).

Specifically, there's been these:

Thu. June 23: Richmond at Hartford (played at Manchester, NH); attendance, 76
Tue. June 21: Richmond at Hartford (played at Manchester, NH); attendance, 50
Sat. July 30: Harrisburg at Hartford (played at Manchester, NH); attendance, 46
Thu. July 28: Harrisburg at Hartford (played at Manchester, NH); attendance, 26
Fri. July 29: Harrisburg at Hartford (doubleheader; played at Manchester, NH); attendance, 9

BigRed75 · 08-23-2016, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bwburke94

Sometimes it takes months to get a new stadium into the game.

Months? Try years.

Even in OOTP17, the Pensacola Blue Wahoos are listed at Five County Stadium and the Carolina Mudcats are listed in Grainger Stadium. Which, of course, is where the teams played before they moved to their current cities...in 2012...

I know. I just created a new game right now, and sure enough, there's the mistakes. Blue Wahoos Stadium is even listed as an option, but it's unassigned to any team.

Not to mention that the Greenville Drive are still listed as playing in Greenville, N.C. and the Delmarva Shorebirds are listed in Salisbury, N.C. despite the fact that they are in South Carolina and Maryland, respectively. That little stuff up has been in the game for as long as I can remember. Never gets fixed.

So you can understand my skepticism toward the new Carolina League teams being listed in their correct stadiums. I hope I'm pleasantly surprised, though. We shall see.

Orioles1966 · 08-24-2016, 11:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Le Grande Orange

That's lead to a couple of interesting attendance stats for this season. Because the stadium isn't ready, the club has had to play home games either in the 'visiting' team's park, or at a 'neutral' site (usually the park of another club in the Eastern League).

Specifically, there's been these:

Thu. June 23: Richmond at Hartford (played at Manchester, NH); attendance, 76
Tue. June 21: Richmond at Hartford (played at Manchester, NH); attendance, 50
Sat. July 30: Harrisburg at Hartford (played at Manchester, NH); attendance, 46
Thu. July 28: Harrisburg at Hartford (played at Manchester, NH); attendance, 26
Fri. July 29: Harrisburg at Hartford (doubleheader; played at Manchester, NH); attendance, 9

This is why I wish we could schedule neutral site games with the schedule editor. There is plenty of space too do so.

Le Grande Orange · 08-24-2016, 12:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Orioles1966

This is why I wish we could schedule neutral site games with the schedule editor. There is plenty of space too do so.

The schedule files should have a 'park' field which designates the park where the game will be played. Not only does this allow neutral site games, it also allows recreation of cases where clubs switched parks during the regular season, or played their home games at more than one park during the season.

It would be a very useful addition for spring training schedules.

Le Grande Orange · 08-24-2016, 12:14 PM

By the way, for those 'what if' type of OOTP players, I have some info on proposed alternative minor league realignments that, for one reason or another, never took place. I can post those up if anyone's interested.

Motorhead667 · 08-24-2016, 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Le Grande Orange

By the way, for those 'what if' type of OOTP players, I have some info on proposed alternative minor league realignments that, for one reason or another, never took place. I can post those up if anyone's interested.

I'm interested

BigRed75 · 08-24-2016, 07:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Le Grande Orange

By the way, for those 'what if' type of OOTP players, I have some info on proposed alternative minor league realignments that, for one reason or another, never took place. I can post those up if anyone's interested.

It would be interesting to see.

Well, I think it'd be interesting to see, anyway.

And so does Motorhead.

And obviously LGO does, too.

Le Grande Orange · 08-25-2016, 01:26 AM

The short version, for now (details to follow later on for the pedants).

Following the 1973 season, in response to the Energy Crisis, realigning AAA from three 8-team leagues into four 6-team leagues was considered
In 1995, as a result of the move by MLB to expand to 30 teams, one realignment plan for the minors would have seen three 10-team leagues in AAA; three 8-team and one 6-team league in AA; two 8-team and one 14-team league in High-A; a 14-team and 16-team league in Low-A; two 8-team and one 14-team league in Short-A; and two 8-team and one 14-team league in Rookie
Sometime around 2007 (I can't find the source file unfortunately), Short-A would have been expanded to bring its total to 30 teams, and the season lengthened somewhat; Rookie would have also been adjusted to have 30 teams

Le Grande Orange · 08-31-2016, 01:21 AM

Something I just realized with the 2017 realignment is that the California League's playoff format will probably be changed. Currently it takes six of its ten teams in the post-season; with a drop to eight teams, I would expect the playoffs will be cut back to four teams. Whether the Carolina League will expands its playoff format from the current four teams is an open question; I'd guess it won't.

For those interested, the California League has announced its 2017 schedule.

08-22-2016, 07:08 PM	#1
Le Grande Orange Hall Of Famer Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Up There Posts: 15,642	Realignment in (real life) High-A for 2017 Those of you doing OOTP leagues based on real-world baseball might be interested in this. Just saw this story over at MILB.com: MiLB announces Class A realignment The Carolina League will be expanding to 10 teams, with one of the new clubs being located in Kinston, NC. The home for the other new club is still under consideration. The California League, in connection with the above change, will be dropping to 8 clubs. The Bakersfield Blaze and High Desert Mavericks clubs will be folding after the conclusion of the 2016 season. The effective switch of two teams from the California to the Carolina League has been bandied about for years (it came up at about the same time two clubs switched from the South Atlantic to the Midwest League). It seems the powers-that-be finally got all the parties involved to agree.

08-22-2016, 11:06 PM	#3
BigRed75 Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 2,423	I just hope all goes well on the database end with the master build. But I have a funny feeling that Kinston and Fayetteville will be playing in-game in the Bakersfield and High Desert stadiums. __________________ Mainline team SPTT team Was not a Snag fan...until I saw the fallout once he was gone and realized what a good job he was actually doing. - Ty Cobb

08-23-2016, 02:46 PM	#4
swampdragon Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2002 Location: The Lonely Mountain Posts: 2,506	I'm glad to see the Rangers back in the Carolina League with their High-A team. The ballpark at High Desert was too extreme for player development purposes. __________________ “Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies." -- C.S. Lewis

08-25-2016, 01:26 AM	#13
Le Grande Orange Hall Of Famer Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Up There Posts: 15,642	The short version, for now (details to follow later on for the pedants). Following the 1973 season, in response to the Energy Crisis, realigning AAA from three 8-team leagues into four 6-team leagues was considered In 1995, as a result of the move by MLB to expand to 30 teams, one realignment plan for the minors would have seen three 10-team leagues in AAA; three 8-team and one 6-team league in AA; two 8-team and one 14-team league in High-A; a 14-team and 16-team league in Low-A; two 8-team and one 14-team league in Short-A; and two 8-team and one 14-team league in Rookie Sometime around 2007 (I can't find the source file unfortunately), Short-A would have been expanded to bring its total to 30 teams, and the season lengthened somewhat; Rookie would have also been adjusted to have 30 teams

08-22-2016, 07:34 PM	#2
ohiodevil OOTP Roster Team Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Rocky River, Ohio Posts: 2,443	I always wondered if/when the Carolina league would expand to 10 teams, and I am happy to see baseball return to Kinston. Was sad when I head the Indians moved their affiliation after the 2011 season. I saw many games in Kinston as a kid over the 3 years we lived in North Carolina....it was a bonus that they were affiliated with the Indians at the time so I got to see a few guys that ended up coming to Cleveland in the early 90s (Charlie Nagy, Jesse Levis, Mark Lewis, Albert 'Joey' Belle, Rod Nichols and the late Steve Olin).

08-24-2016, 12:14 PM	#10
Le Grande Orange Hall Of Famer Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Up There Posts: 15,642	By the way, for those 'what if' type of OOTP players, I have some info on proposed alternative minor league realignments that, for one reason or another, never took place. I can post those up if anyone's interested.

08-31-2016, 01:21 AM	#14
Le Grande Orange Hall Of Famer Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Up There Posts: 15,642	Something I just realized with the 2017 realignment is that the California League's playoff format will probably be changed. Currently it takes six of its ten teams in the post-season; with a drop to eight teams, I would expect the playoffs will be cut back to four teams. Whether the Carolina League will expands its playoff format from the current four teams is an open question; I'd guess it won't. For those interested, the California League has announced its 2017 schedule.