Expansion Minor Leaguers

[pizzacutter]

When I go to create an expansion team, one option that the game provides is to create some fictional minor leaguers to stock their minor league system so that you have some players to put in the AA games.

The players that the program creates tend to have weird MLB experience data. You get guys who are listed at 21 years old, at high-A, but somehow have 2 years of MLB experience. Most MLB players have never been at the Majors level and most players who do make it debut at around 24.

It's problematic because at the end of the first season, there are several players who fall under the rules that allow them to depart via minor league free agency.

A real expansion team is generally allowed to field minor league teams a couple of years ahead of playing MLB games so that they have a reasonable minor league system to work with during their first year. They probably would sign some MLB re-treads who are hanging on by a thread, but they wouldn't be 20.

[Le Grande Orange]

Originally Posted by pizzacutter

A real expansion team is generally allowed to field minor league teams a couple of years ahead of playing MLB games so that they have a reasonable minor league system to work with during their first year..

That only started with the 1993 expansion, with Florida and Colorado each allowed to operate a single affiliate in Short-A and a single affiliate in Rookie level in 1992.

For the 1998 expansion, Arizona and Tampa Bay in 1996 each operated a single affiliate in Rookie Advanced and one affiliate in Rookie; in 1997 each added one affiliate in Low-A and a single affiliate in High-A.


EDIT: Upon further investigation, according to the Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (3rd Edition), the two NL expansion teams for 1962 did operate minor league affiliates in 1961. New York had one affiliate in Class AA and one in Class B; Houston had one affiliate in Class A and one in Class D.

Neither 1961 AL expansion team operated minor league affiliates in 1960.

For the 1969 expansion, the two AL teams did operate minor league affiliates in 1968. Kansas City had one affiliate in Low-A and one in Short-A, while Seattle had a single affiliate in Short-A. Neither NL expansion team, Montreal and San Diego, operated minor league affiliates in 1968.

Neither AL expansion team in 1977, Toronto and Seattle, operated minor league affiliates in 1976.