In a world... where Mookie Wasn't Traded...

PM5K · 09-24-2020, 08:34 AM

Hey all. Loooongtime OOTP player here. I just picked up OOTP21 and I have a goal: Simulate an alternate universe in which the Red Sox opted to NOT trade their franchise icon and best player since Yaz (or maybe since Teddy Ballgame).

Ideally, I'd like to begin in 2020, but set things up such that the Sox/Dodgers trade simply never happened. And I'm trying to figure out the best/easiest way to do this.

I have two ideas:

1) Simply begin with 2019 instead of 2020. I started setting up a historical league starting in 2019, but I don't think the rest of the league setup is going to really be what I'm looking for. For example, I want to include a few foreign leagues, enable scouting, etc. Also, when I start in 2019, Mookie's ratings aren't quite where I think they should be. When I start a game in 2020, for example, his contact and power ratings are much more reflective of the player he is today. This leads me to my second idea...

2) Begin in 2020. Go into commish mode and manually reverse the Sox/Dodgers trade, putting all pieces back on their original teams. I'd almost assuredly have to edit the Red Sox financials to allow for the significantly higher payroll they'd be carrying if they still had Mookie and Price on the team.

I'm leaning towards option #2. Can you all think of any other manual steps I might need to take, or details I might have missed, that will get me the results I want without screwing up the rest of my OOTP universe?

Thanks in advance!

BIG17EASY · 09-24-2020, 09:06 AM

Sounds like you have a solid plan with option 2. Definitely check the Red Sox financials to make sure they aren't way over budget and look to make salary dump moves. I'd also check the Dodgers' financials in case they suddenly have a ton of cash on hand without Betts and Price on the payroll.

Hrycaj · 09-24-2020, 01:33 PM

It is a reach but maybe fan interest in all organizations? I don't even know how you would really go about measuring such a thing to change it. It sounds like you have a solid plan.

thehef · 09-24-2020, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PM5K

1) Simply begin with 2019 instead of 2020. I started setting up a historical league starting in 2019, but I don't think the rest of the league setup is going to really be what I'm looking for. For example, I want to include a few foreign leagues, enable scouting, etc. Also, when I start in 2019, Mookie's ratings aren't quite where I think they should be. When I start a game in 2020, for example, his contact and power ratings are much more reflective of the player he is today. This leads me to my second idea...

2) Begin in 2020. Go into commish mode and manually reverse the Sox/Dodgers trade, putting all pieces back on their original teams. I'd almost assuredly have to edit the Red Sox financials to allow for the significantly higher payroll they'd be carrying if they still had Mookie and Price on the team.

I don't know about the scouting and foreign league issues, or if your #2 plan solves them. At any rate, I would wonder about what it is about Mookie's 2019 ratings that you don't like, compared to the 2020 ratings that you do like.

What I would do is start it out (as a test) in 2014, Mookie's rookie year, and just let it run until after the 2019 season completes. And then:

1) See if you like how Mookie has developed in your league (much will depend upon your recalc & development settings. I would turn off development and do 1-year recalc for this scenario), and then if all looks good...

2) Once historical transactions (which I presume you have enabled) make the Mookie/Price/Verdugo trade happen, go in and edit those players back to their pre-trade teams, and then have fun with your 2020 "what if"

thehef · 09-30-2020, 05:20 PM

Not exactly related to the subject at hand, but as a kid I became a Dodger fan with the '75 season, and thus hated the Reds. So I strongly rooted for the Red Sox in the '75 series, and subsequently liked Boston for a few years. Therefore, one of these days I want to do a "what if the Sox hadn't disassembled some of the core of that team?" IOW:

- What if they had kept Fisk, Lynn, Burleson, Cooper, Tiant, Lee, Wise, and (in some of those guys' cases) they had remained healthy... and could that team have remained a contender straight through to when the '86 team made the World Series?

09-24-2020, 08:34 AM	#1
PM5K Bat Boy Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 17	In a world... where Mookie Wasn't Traded... Hey all. Loooongtime OOTP player here. I just picked up OOTP21 and I have a goal: Simulate an alternate universe in which the Red Sox opted to NOT trade their franchise icon and best player since Yaz (or maybe since Teddy Ballgame). Ideally, I'd like to begin in 2020, but set things up such that the Sox/Dodgers trade simply never happened. And I'm trying to figure out the best/easiest way to do this. I have two ideas: 1) Simply begin with 2019 instead of 2020. I started setting up a historical league starting in 2019, but I don't think the rest of the league setup is going to really be what I'm looking for. For example, I want to include a few foreign leagues, enable scouting, etc. Also, when I start in 2019, Mookie's ratings aren't quite where I think they should be. When I start a game in 2020, for example, his contact and power ratings are much more reflective of the player he is today. This leads me to my second idea... 2) Begin in 2020. Go into commish mode and manually reverse the Sox/Dodgers trade, putting all pieces back on their original teams. I'd almost assuredly have to edit the Red Sox financials to allow for the significantly higher payroll they'd be carrying if they still had Mookie and Price on the team. I'm leaning towards option #2. Can you all think of any other manual steps I might need to take, or details I might have missed, that will get me the results I want without screwing up the rest of my OOTP universe? Thanks in advance!

09-24-2020, 01:33 PM	#3
Hrycaj All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2010 Posts: 1,769	It is a reach but maybe fan interest in all organizations? I don't even know how you would really go about measuring such a thing to change it. It sounds like you have a solid plan. __________________ Click on my signature to read about the great game of baseball in Normington.

09-24-2020, 09:06 AM	#2
BIG17EASY Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 3,291	Sounds like you have a solid plan with option 2. Definitely check the Red Sox financials to make sure they aren't way over budget and look to make salary dump moves. I'd also check the Dodgers' financials in case they suddenly have a ton of cash on hand without Betts and Price on the payroll.

09-30-2020, 05:20 PM	#5
thehef Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 5,380	Not exactly related to the subject at hand, but as a kid I became a Dodger fan with the '75 season, and thus hated the Reds. So I strongly rooted for the Red Sox in the '75 series, and subsequently liked Boston for a few years. Therefore, one of these days I want to do a "what if the Sox hadn't disassembled some of the core of that team?" IOW: - What if they had kept Fisk, Lynn, Burleson, Cooper, Tiant, Lee, Wise, and (in some of those guys' cases) they had remained healthy... and could that team have remained a contender straight through to when the '86 team made the World Series?