Incredible comeback season!

batsfan · 04-28-2016, 01:20 PM

So I had pretty high expectations for my 2028 Cincinnati Reds going in to the season. Despite having the lowest payroll in the game due to a recent rebuild, they had loads of young, if yet unproven, talent. But after a mediocre 8-11 April start, the wheels fell off in May, when, as players began to complain about the clubhouse, they played only to a 6-22 record that month. I tried to shuffle the selfish players out of the roster, and fired my pitching coach (the whole staff was terribly under-performing), but 16 games behind the division leading cardinals and with a league worst .292 record, I did not have high hopes for the season.

But from that point forward, the Reds would go 61-27 (.693) with a .292 batting average and a 3.62 era. They would finish the regular season with 91 wins, and half a game behind the Cardinals in the division. They had clinched a wild card spot, but their division fate lay in the hands of a make up game, in which the Pirates would come from behind in the 8th inning to beat the Cardinals and force a game 163 between the Cardinals and Reds for the division. The Reds would use this game to win the division, on a 6th inning grand slam!

Has anyone else experienced an incredible comeback season like this?

sol_phenom · 04-28-2016, 01:42 PM

My 2016 season with the Orioles came down to us being 8 games out of the wild card with 18 games remaining.

We won 14 in a row to pull within a game of the final wildcard spot. Then we dropped a game and won one, staying one game out.

With two games left in the season, we faced the Yankees, who were out of contention. Despite our improbable 14 game win streak and winning 15 of our last 16...we dropped both games to the Yankees and finished the season 1 game out of the wild card (the team ahead of us lost too, making it all the more frustrating).

So more of a "comeback that wasn't".

I'd have to dig back into that season, but if I remember correctly we actually played well and were in second place until a couple weeks before the all-star break. Then we completely collapsed before our resurgence late in the season. I think at one point we strung together three separate five-game losing streaks.

bigsmooth · 04-28-2016, 02:32 PM

Selfish players - shuffle them off the roster. How do you find these players?

Why did you fire the pitching coach?

Great read though, what an incredible turn around!!

04-28-2016, 01:20 PM	#1
batsfan Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 135	Incredible comeback season! So I had pretty high expectations for my 2028 Cincinnati Reds going in to the season. Despite having the lowest payroll in the game due to a recent rebuild, they had loads of young, if yet unproven, talent. But after a mediocre 8-11 April start, the wheels fell off in May, when, as players began to complain about the clubhouse, they played only to a 6-22 record that month. I tried to shuffle the selfish players out of the roster, and fired my pitching coach (the whole staff was terribly under-performing), but 16 games behind the division leading cardinals and with a league worst .292 record, I did not have high hopes for the season. But from that point forward, the Reds would go 61-27 (.693) with a .292 batting average and a 3.62 era. They would finish the regular season with 91 wins, and half a game behind the Cardinals in the division. They had clinched a wild card spot, but their division fate lay in the hands of a make up game, in which the Pirates would come from behind in the 8th inning to beat the Cardinals and force a game 163 between the Cardinals and Reds for the division. The Reds would use this game to win the division, on a 6th inning grand slam! Has anyone else experienced an incredible comeback season like this?

04-28-2016, 01:42 PM	#2
sol_phenom Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: NYC Posts: 47	My 2016 season with the Orioles came down to us being 8 games out of the wild card with 18 games remaining. We won *14 in a row* to pull within a game of the final wildcard spot. Then we dropped a game and won one, staying one game out. With two games left in the season, we faced the Yankees, who were out of contention. Despite our improbable 14 game win streak and winning 15 of our last 16...we dropped both games to the Yankees and finished the season 1 game out of the wild card (the team ahead of us lost too, making it all the more frustrating). So more of a "comeback that wasn't". I'd have to dig back into that season, but if I remember correctly we actually played well and were in second place until a couple weeks before the all-star break. Then we completely collapsed before our resurgence late in the season. I think at one point we strung together *three separate* five-game losing streaks.

04-28-2016, 02:32 PM	#3
bigsmooth Major Leagues Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Tennessee Posts: 437	Selfish players - shuffle them off the roster. How do you find these players? Why did you fire the pitching coach? Great read though, what an incredible turn around!!