What if there were no DH?

uvm87 · 12-21-2015, 10:47 PM

What better use for OOTP than to simulate "what if" MLB scenarios. We were talking about what would have happened if the DH rule had never been implemented. I decided to give it a try. I am starting baseball all over again from 1973 with no DH. All rosters and all transactions are set to be as they were in real life. OOTP will create the alternate universe from this point forward.

uvm87 · 12-21-2015, 11:00 PM

The Reds tie the all-time record for wins with 116. They stand as the only one of the four playoff teams from 1973 to lead their division in this alternate world with the Yankees edging the O's in the AL East, the White Sox finish one game ahead of the A's in the AL West, and the Expos finish with a 10 game winning streak to take the NL East for the first time in team history.

In the NL Playoffs, the hot Expos continue their winning ways and the Reds again fail to capture the 1973 NL pennant.

In the AL Championship, the Yankees sweep the White Sox to advance to the Series.

In a tight World Series, the Yankees put the Expos away 4 games to 2. With an interesting twist of irony and perhaps karma, the World Series MVP is Ron Blomberg, the man who will go down in history as the first ever Designated Hitter.

1973 Season awards to come soon.

uvm87 · 12-21-2015, 11:21 PM

Actual NL MVP: Pete Rose CIN .338/.401/.437 5 HR 64 RBI
Alternate World NL MVP: Joe Morgan CIN .303/.424/.515 29 HR 95 RBI

Actual AL MVP: Reggie Jackson OAK .293/.383/.531 37 HR 117 RBI
Alternate World AL MVP: Dick Allen CHW .292/.388/.527 32 HR 124 RBI

Actual NL Cy Young: Tom Seaver NYM 22-9, 2.38, 243 K
Alternate World NL Cy Young: Don Gullett CIN 21-2, 2.06, 143 K

Actual AL Cy Young: Jim Palmer BAL 22-9 (1 SV), 2.40, 158 K
Alternate World AL Cy Young: Ken Holtzman OAK 25-7, 1.94, 130K

Actual NL Rookie of the Year: Gary Matthews SFG .300/.367/.444 12 HR 58 RBI
Alternate World NL Rookie of the Year: Mike Schmidt PHI .273/.391/.524 37 HR 94 RBI

Actual AL Rookie of the Year: Al Bumbry BAL .337/.398/.500 7 HR 34 RBI
Alternate World AL Rookie of the Year: Bill Madlock TEX .285/.347/.431 16 HR 81 RBI

*Don Gullett threw a perfect game 7/23/1973 vs San Diego

uvm87 · 12-21-2015, 11:38 PM

TheMaus2 · 12-22-2015, 08:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uvm87

^
That has got to be the coolest storyline after the presidential candidacy one.

darkcloud4579 · 12-22-2015, 03:34 PM

This should be great. Love the concept and love the idea of experimenting with a DH-less league for a while. Might have inspired me.

uvm87 · 12-22-2015, 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by darkcloud4579

This should be great. Love the concept and love the idea of experimenting with a DH-less league for a while. Might have inspired me.

Thank you, but credit goes to you people who inspired me. I was torn between which type of league to simulate. If anyone is interested, it would be fun to see the results of the other two DH related options:
1) Both leagues with DH
2) NL has DH, AL does not.

Good luck.

JaBurns · 12-22-2015, 06:38 PM

What a great idea, I wish I would have thought of it, I will follow with interest this dynasty.
OOTP continues to amaze me with the almost endlessly possibilities that can be attempted ....

uvm87 · 12-22-2015, 09:02 PM

For the second year in a row, the Yankees win their division without the DH in play. All other divisions finish as they did in '74. The Reds and Dodgers battled it out until the final week when LA put them away.

uvm87 · 12-22-2015, 09:10 PM

The 88 win Yankees knock off the 105 win A's and capture their second consecutive AL Pennent, while the Dodgers advance to their first World Series since 1966 in a tough 5 game series against the Pirates.

uvm87 · 12-22-2015, 09:46 PM

I found an article on the internet about who supported the DH and who voted against it

The day the DH was born ? January 11, 1973 | Twinstrivia.com

The AL team owners of Cleveland (Nick Mileti), Baltimore (Jerry Hoffberger), Chicago (John Allyn), Texas (Bob Short), Detroit (John Fetzer), Milwaukee (Bud Selig) and Minnesota (Clarke Griffith) led by Oakland owner Charles Finley voted 8 to 4 in favor of the Designated Hitter.

New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner must have known what could have been as his Yankees win their second series in a row in this alternate universe. Boston (Thomas Yawkey), Kansas City (Ewing Kauffman) and California (Gene Aury) joined Steinbrenner in voting against.

The Yankees knock off the Dodgers 4 games to 2 with Bobby Murcer winning MVP for the series.

uvm87 · 12-22-2015, 10:10 PM

Actual NL MVP: Steve Garvey LAD .312/.342/.469 21 HR 111 RBI
Alternate World NL MVP: Willie Stargell PIT .303/.368/.558 37 HR 115 RBI

Actual AL MVP: Jeff Burroughs TEX .301/.397/.504 25 HR 118 RBI
Alternate World AL MVP: Reggie Jackson OAK .302/.399/.505 31 HR 111 RBI

Actual NL Cy Young: Mike Marshall LAD 15-12 (21 SV), 2.42, 143 K
Alternate World NL Cy Young: Tom Seaver NYM 20-9, 2.14, 228 K

Actual AL Cy Young: Catfish Hunter OAK 25-12, 2.49, 143 K
Alternate World AL Cy Young: Vida Blue OAK 19-9, 2.06, 164 K

Actual NL Rookie of the Year: Bake McBride STL .309/.369/.394 6 HR 56 RBI
Alternate World NL Rookie of the Year: Gary Carter PHI .267/.355/.401 12 HR 53 RBI

Actual AL Rookie of the Year: Mike Hargrove TEX .323/.395/.424 4 HR 66 RBI
Alternate World AL Rookie of the Year: Bruce Bochte TEX .304/.363/.455 14 HR 76 RBI

*Vida Blue threw a Perfect Game on 7/18/1974 vs Cleveland
*JR Richard threw a No Hitter on 5/15/1974 vs. Los Angeles

uvm87 · 12-23-2015, 05:16 PM

No fun news in the 1974-75 off season, although there were a couple of injuries. Here is a list of the top 10 prospects going into the 1975 season.

uvm87 · 12-23-2015, 05:21 PM

uvm87 · 12-23-2015, 05:23 PM

uvm87 · 12-24-2015, 04:49 PM

As the 1975 season ends, one thing appears certain and that is the DH rule has greatly altered what could have occurred. In this altered universe only one team reached the post-season that had in real life.

The '75 Big Red Machine, regarded by many as one of the best teams in history, struggled with injuries to finish in 3rd, a whopping 23 games behind the Dodgers. Their '75 series opponent, the Red Sox fared worse finishing only a game above .500 and in 4th place. Oakland and Philly led their respective divisions. All four teams led for most of the final month and could not be caught.

Division Series coming up.

uvm87 · 12-24-2015, 05:27 PM

A's owner Charlie O. Finlay pushed for the DH in 1973, but it looks like his A's would get there regardless as they sweep Baltimore. LF Don Baylor wins the series MVP honors despite losing.

In the NL, the 95 win Phillies outmatched their 111 win opponents, the Dodgers, to advance to only their 3rd ever World Series. They have yet to bring the MLB title back to Philly. Could this be the year?

uvm87 · 12-24-2015, 05:42 PM

Harry Kalas couldn't shout it louder. "Phillies Win, Phillies Win" as his beloved team takes home their first ever World Series trophy. After getting shut out by defending Cy Young award winner Vida Blue, the Phillies regrouped and took the next four games of the series.

Mike Schmidt wins MVP honors as he launches HRs in each of the last three games.

For something a little different, I will post the Award winners, the real life award winners and how the real life award winners performed this season.

uvm87 · 12-24-2015, 07:13 PM

Actual NL MVP: Joe Morgan CIN .327/.466/.508 17 HR 94 RBI
Alternate World NL MVP: Mike Schmidt PHI .270/.389/.560 345 HR 104 RBI
Alternate World Joe Morgan: .239/.407/.377 16 HR 74 RBI

Actual AL MVP: Fred Lynn BOS .331/.401/.566 21 HR 105 RBI
Alternate World AL MVP: Bobby Grich BAL .295/.414/.486 19 HR 75 RBI
Alternate World Fred Lynn: .308/.382/.460 12 HR 76 RBI

Actual NL Cy Young: Tom Seaver NYM 22-9, 2.38, 243 K
Alternate World NL Cy Young: Andy Messersmith LAD 20-9, 2.14, 228 K
Alternate World Tom Seaver: 15-10, 3.46, 178 K

Actual AL Cy Young: Jim Palmer BAL 23-11 (1 SV), 2.09, 193 K
Alternate World AL Cy Young: Vida Blue OAK 23-7, 2.28, 180 K
Alternate World Jim Palmer: 17-13, 3.08, 157 K

Actual NL Rookie of the Year: John Montefusco SF 15-9, 2.88, 215 K
Alternate World NL Rookie of the Year: Ed Halicki SF 18-9, 3.30, 186 K
Alternate World John Montefusco: Not eligible. Met rookie requirements in 1974.

Actual AL Rookie of the Year: Fred Lynn BOS .331/.401/.566 21 HR 105 RBI
Alternate World AL Rookie of the Year: Dennis Eckersley CLE 19-7, 2.65, 229 K
Alternate World Fred Lynn: .308/.382/.460 12 HR 76 RBI

*Jim Palmer threw a No Hitter on 7/22/1975 vs. California
**Fred Lynn finished 3rd in Alternate World AL ROY voting
***Dennis Eckersley finished 2nd in Alt. World AL Cy Young voting
****LA Dodgers finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd in Alt. World NL Cy Young voting
*****Vida Blue wins his 2nd straight Alt. World AL Cy Young award

uvm87 · 12-24-2015, 11:02 PM

I'll update as reports come in on Bacsik's career.

12-21-2015, 10:47 PM	#1
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	What if there were no DH? What better use for OOTP than to simulate "what if" MLB scenarios. We were talking about what would have happened if the DH rule had never been implemented. I decided to give it a try. I am starting baseball all over again from 1973 with no DH. All rosters and all transactions are set to be as they were in real life. OOTP will create the alternate universe from this point forward. Last edited by uvm87; 12-21-2015 at 11:21 PM.

12-21-2015, 11:00 PM	#2
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1973 Season non-DH Recap The Reds tie the all-time record for wins with 116. They stand as the only one of the four playoff teams from 1973 to lead their division in this alternate world with the Yankees edging the O's in the AL East, the White Sox finish one game ahead of the A's in the AL West, and the Expos finish with a 10 game winning streak to take the NL East for the first time in team history. In the NL Playoffs, the hot Expos continue their winning ways and the Reds again fail to capture the 1973 NL pennant. In the AL Championship, the Yankees sweep the White Sox to advance to the Series. In a tight World Series, the Yankees put the Expos away 4 games to 2. With an interesting twist of irony and perhaps karma, the World Series MVP is Ron Blomberg, the man who will go down in history as the first ever Designated Hitter. 1973 Season awards to come soon.

12-21-2015, 11:21 PM	#3
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1973 Season Awards Actual NL MVP: Pete Rose CIN .338/.401/.437 5 HR 64 RBI Alternate World NL MVP: Joe Morgan CIN .303/.424/.515 29 HR 95 RBI Actual AL MVP: Reggie Jackson OAK .293/.383/.531 37 HR 117 RBI Alternate World AL MVP: Dick Allen CHW .292/.388/.527 32 HR 124 RBI Actual NL Cy Young: Tom Seaver NYM 22-9, 2.38, 243 K Alternate World NL Cy Young: Don Gullett CIN 21-2, 2.06, 143 K Actual AL Cy Young: Jim Palmer BAL 22-9 (1 SV), 2.40, 158 K Alternate World AL Cy Young: Ken Holtzman OAK 25-7, 1.94, 130K Actual NL Rookie of the Year: Gary Matthews SFG .300/.367/.444 12 HR 58 RBI Alternate World NL Rookie of the Year: Mike Schmidt PHI .273/.391/.524 37 HR 94 RBI Actual AL Rookie of the Year: Al Bumbry BAL .337/.398/.500 7 HR 34 RBI Alternate World AL Rookie of the Year: Bill Madlock TEX .285/.347/.431 16 HR 81 RBI Don Gullett threw a perfect game 7/23/1973 vs San Diego Last edited by uvm87; 12-22-2015 at 10:14 PM.*

12-21-2015, 11:38 PM	#4
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	Strange off season news

12-22-2015, 03:34 PM	#6
darkcloud4579 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jun 2003 Posts: 8,712	This should be great. Love the concept and love the idea of experimenting with a DH-less league for a while. Might have inspired me. __________________ ------ My Mods OOTP Advanced Stats & DFS Suite Managerial Strategy Pack Competitive Balance Tax Calculator Major League Women's Baseball (OOTP24) quickstart Indian Premier League \| 300+ years of baseball quickstart \| Expatriate League quickstart \| Off-Field Injuries Update \| Women's Name File for OOTP \| ---- Dynasty classics: Centurion comes to OOTP5 \| DC Moneyball Dynasty (2004)

12-22-2015, 06:38 PM	#8
JaBurns All Star Starter Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: Kelowna, British Columbia Posts: 1,301	Nice What a great idea, I wish I would have thought of it, I will follow with interest this dynasty. OOTP continues to amaze me with the almost endlessly possibilities that can be attempted ....

12-22-2015, 09:02 PM	#9
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1974 Season in the books For the second year in a row, the Yankees win their division without the DH in play. All other divisions finish as they did in '74. The Reds and Dodgers battled it out until the final week when LA put them away.

12-22-2015, 09:10 PM	#10
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1974 Playoffs The 88 win Yankees knock off the 105 win A's and capture their second consecutive AL Pennent, while the Dodgers advance to their first World Series since 1966 in a tough 5 game series against the Pirates.

12-22-2015, 09:46 PM	#11
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	Yankees win second Series in a row. What did Steinbrenner know? I found an article on the internet about who supported the DH and who voted against it The day the DH was born ? January 11, 1973 \| Twinstrivia.com The AL team owners of Cleveland (Nick Mileti), Baltimore (Jerry Hoffberger), Chicago (John Allyn), Texas (Bob Short), Detroit (John Fetzer), Milwaukee (Bud Selig) and Minnesota (Clarke Griffith) led by Oakland owner Charles Finley voted 8 to 4 in favor of the Designated Hitter. New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner must have known what could have been as his Yankees win their second series in a row in this alternate universe. Boston (Thomas Yawkey), Kansas City (Ewing Kauffman) and California (Gene Aury) joined Steinbrenner in voting against. The Yankees knock off the Dodgers 4 games to 2 with Bobby Murcer winning MVP for the series.

12-22-2015, 10:10 PM	#12
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1974 Season Awards Actual NL MVP: Steve Garvey LAD .312/.342/.469 21 HR 111 RBI Alternate World NL MVP: Willie Stargell PIT .303/.368/.558 37 HR 115 RBI Actual AL MVP: Jeff Burroughs TEX .301/.397/.504 25 HR 118 RBI Alternate World AL MVP: Reggie Jackson OAK .302/.399/.505 31 HR 111 RBI Actual NL Cy Young: Mike Marshall LAD 15-12 (21 SV), 2.42, 143 K Alternate World NL Cy Young: Tom Seaver NYM 20-9, 2.14, 228 K Actual AL Cy Young: Catfish Hunter OAK 25-12, 2.49, 143 K Alternate World AL Cy Young: Vida Blue OAK 19-9, 2.06, 164 K Actual NL Rookie of the Year: Bake McBride STL .309/.369/.394 6 HR 56 RBI Alternate World NL Rookie of the Year: Gary Carter PHI .267/.355/.401 12 HR 53 RBI Actual AL Rookie of the Year: Mike Hargrove TEX .323/.395/.424 4 HR 66 RBI Alternate World AL Rookie of the Year: Bruce Bochte TEX .304/.363/.455 14 HR 76 RBI Vida Blue threw a Perfect Game on 7/18/1974 vs Cleveland JR Richard threw a No Hitter on 5/15/1974 vs. Los Angeles Last edited by uvm87; 12-22-2015 at 11:00 PM.

12-23-2015, 05:16 PM	#13
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1974-75 Off Season No fun news in the 1974-75 off season, although there were a couple of injuries. Here is a list of the top 10 prospects going into the 1975 season.

12-23-2015, 05:21 PM	#14
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	AL Preseason Predictions

12-23-2015, 05:23 PM	#15
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	NL Preseason Predictions

12-24-2015, 04:49 PM	#16
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1975 Regular season ends As the 1975 season ends, one thing appears certain and that is the DH rule has greatly altered what could have occurred. In this altered universe only one team reached the post-season that had in real life. The '75 Big Red Machine, regarded by many as one of the best teams in history, struggled with injuries to finish in 3rd, a whopping 23 games behind the Dodgers. Their '75 series opponent, the Red Sox fared worse finishing only a game above .500 and in 4th place. Oakland and Philly led their respective divisions. All four teams led for most of the final month and could not be caught. Division Series coming up.

12-24-2015, 05:27 PM	#17
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1975 Division Series both end in sweeps A's owner Charlie O. Finlay pushed for the DH in 1973, but it looks like his A's would get there regardless as they sweep Baltimore. LF Don Baylor wins the series MVP honors despite losing. In the NL, the 95 win Phillies outmatched their 111 win opponents, the Dodgers, to advance to only their 3rd ever World Series. They have yet to bring the MLB title back to Philly. Could this be the year? Last edited by uvm87; 12-25-2015 at 10:51 PM.

12-24-2015, 05:42 PM	#18
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1975 World Series Championship Harry Kalas couldn't shout it louder. "Phillies Win, Phillies Win" as his beloved team takes home their first ever World Series trophy. After getting shut out by defending Cy Young award winner Vida Blue, the Phillies regrouped and took the next four games of the series. Mike Schmidt wins MVP honors as he launches HRs in each of the last three games. For something a little different, I will post the Award winners, the real life award winners and how the real life award winners performed this season. Last edited by uvm87; 12-24-2015 at 05:44 PM.

12-24-2015, 07:13 PM	#19
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1975 Award winners and news, plus something new Actual NL MVP: Joe Morgan CIN .327/.466/.508 17 HR 94 RBI Alternate World NL MVP: Mike Schmidt PHI .270/.389/.560 345 HR 104 RBI Alternate World Joe Morgan: .239/.407/.377 16 HR 74 RBI Actual AL MVP: Fred Lynn BOS .331/.401/.566 21 HR 105 RBI Alternate World AL MVP: Bobby Grich BAL .295/.414/.486 19 HR 75 RBI Alternate World Fred Lynn: .308/.382/.460 12 HR 76 RBI Actual NL Cy Young: Tom Seaver NYM 22-9, 2.38, 243 K Alternate World NL Cy Young: Andy Messersmith LAD 20-9, 2.14, 228 K Alternate World Tom Seaver: 15-10, 3.46, 178 K Actual AL Cy Young: Jim Palmer BAL 23-11 (1 SV), 2.09, 193 K Alternate World AL Cy Young: Vida Blue OAK 23-7, 2.28, 180 K Alternate World Jim Palmer: 17-13, 3.08, 157 K Actual NL Rookie of the Year: John Montefusco SF 15-9, 2.88, 215 K Alternate World NL Rookie of the Year: Ed Halicki SF 18-9, 3.30, 186 K Alternate World John Montefusco: Not eligible. Met rookie requirements in 1974. Actual AL Rookie of the Year: Fred Lynn BOS .331/.401/.566 21 HR 105 RBI Alternate World AL Rookie of the Year: Dennis Eckersley CLE 19-7, 2.65, 229 K Alternate World Fred Lynn: .308/.382/.460 12 HR 76 RBI Jim Palmer threw a No Hitter on 7/22/1975 vs. California Fred Lynn finished 3rd in Alternate World AL ROY voting Dennis Eckersley finished 2nd in Alt. World AL Cy Young voting LA Dodgers finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd in Alt. World NL Cy Young voting ***Vida Blue wins his 2nd straight Alt. World AL Cy Young award

12-24-2015, 11:02 PM	#20
uvm87 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Dec 2015 Posts: 42	1975-76 Offseason news: The crazy saga of Mike Bacsik I'll update as reports come in on Bacsik's career. Last edited by uvm87; 12-24-2015 at 11:11 PM.