Advice on realigning a league

munson66 · 02-24-2008, 03:18 PM

I'd posted a schedule request in that forum, but gmo suggested that I first seek advice about the proper way to align my league.

Here's the deal: I'm in the sixth year of a fictional all-Canadian league. First season was the Centennial year of 1967, and I'm currently in the 1972 pre-season.

At the major-league level, I started out with 10 teams, four in the west (Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg) and six in the east (Windsor, Hamilton, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City). Montreal kept losing money, so we put it in London.

Two expansion franchises have been granted for 1972: a new Montreal club and Halifax.

My initial thought was to set up three divisions of four teams each:

West: Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg
Central: Windsor, London, Hamilton, Toronto
East: Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec, Halifax

But can OOTP 2007 handle an odd number of divisions in a single league? Will playoffs work? And I guess I'll have to forgo an All-Star Game for a while.

An alternative I'm considering is to have a league with two sub-leagues. One would have four teams (the western cities) in a single division, while the other would consist of two four-team divisions. I was looking for a schedule that might serve that set-up, but gmo didn't think OOTP would be able to schedule playoffs for an alignment like this.

I realize the easy way out is to have a single league of two six-team divisions, with Windsor and London joining the four western clubs, since those lengthy road trips would span imaginary miles only, but part of me would like to set this league up in a way that approximates reality. (Perhaps, as commissioner, I should've accepted those bids from Saskatoon and Victoria instead of the two eastern cities!)

Anyway, does the three-division single-league setup work? Any thoughts?

Syd Thrift · 02-24-2008, 03:24 PM

Yes, OOTP can handle odd divisions in a single league. It is, after all, the current configuration of both the AL and NL. Whether you choose them or not, you will have one wild card because the game always creates single-elimination power-of-two tournaments for the playoffs. That also means that if you have nine divisions you will have seven wild cards. And so on.

munson66 · 02-24-2008, 03:39 PM

Ah, that settles it, then. I'll go with the three-division arrangement. And it kills two birds with one stone, as I don't need to worry about the schedule -- I've got a ready-made one I'm happy enough with.

But am I correct in assuming there's no possibility of an All-Star Game? Not that it's essential.

munson66 · 02-24-2008, 03:48 PM

I have to say also that the expansion draft was quite an experience. The nuts and bolts went smoothly enough, but I'm managing the Toronto franchise and it didn't occur to me to protect a player who was on the 60-day DL. Oops. Fortunately, I was able to swing a trade with Halifax to get him back. For a challenge, I'm thinking of resigning (two championships, five playoff appearances in five years) at the end of this year and taking over one of the new teams.

Syd Thrift · 02-24-2008, 03:51 PM

You do need two subleagues for an All-Star game, sorry.

02-24-2008, 03:18 PM	#1
munson66 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 25	Advice on realigning a league I'd posted a schedule request in that forum, but gmo suggested that I first seek advice about the proper way to align my league. Here's the deal: I'm in the sixth year of a fictional all-Canadian league. First season was the Centennial year of 1967, and I'm currently in the 1972 pre-season. At the major-league level, I started out with 10 teams, four in the west (Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg) and six in the east (Windsor, Hamilton, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City). Montreal kept losing money, so we put it in London. Two expansion franchises have been granted for 1972: a new Montreal club and Halifax. My initial thought was to set up three divisions of four teams each: West: Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg Central: Windsor, London, Hamilton, Toronto East: Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec, Halifax But can OOTP 2007 handle an odd number of divisions in a single league? Will playoffs work? And I guess I'll have to forgo an All-Star Game for a while. An alternative I'm considering is to have a league with two sub-leagues. One would have four teams (the western cities) in a single division, while the other would consist of two four-team divisions. I was looking for a schedule that might serve that set-up, but gmo didn't think OOTP would be able to schedule playoffs for an alignment like this. I realize the easy way out is to have a single league of two six-team divisions, with Windsor and London joining the four western clubs, since those lengthy road trips would span imaginary miles only, but part of me would like to set this league up in a way that approximates reality. (Perhaps, as commissioner, I should've accepted those bids from Saskatoon and Victoria instead of the two eastern cities!) Anyway, does the three-division single-league setup work? Any thoughts?

02-24-2008, 03:39 PM	#3
munson66 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 25	Ah, that settles it, then. I'll go with the three-division arrangement. And it kills two birds with one stone, as I don't need to worry about the schedule -- I've got a ready-made one I'm happy enough with. But am I correct in assuming there's no possibility of an All-Star Game? Not that it's essential.

02-24-2008, 03:48 PM	#4
munson66 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 25	I have to say also that the expansion draft was quite an experience. The nuts and bolts went smoothly enough, but I'm managing the Toronto franchise and it didn't occur to me to protect a player who was on the 60-day DL. Oops. Fortunately, I was able to swing a trade with Halifax to get him back. For a challenge, I'm thinking of resigning (two championships, five playoff appearances in five years) at the end of this year and taking over one of the new teams.