Q&A: How do I get better at the game?

[kq76]

Note: I initially made this post in response to someone's question, but I'm now reposting it for my Q&A series (link in my sig). So I myself am not looking for help, but if you have anything you'd like to add or you disagree with me, please feel free to reply below.

Q: How do I get better at the game?

A: That's such an open-ended question.

Maybe the first thing to do is to evaluate all aspects of your team. How's your offense? How's your pitching? How's your defense? Identify your weaknesses and then try to rectify them. And don't expect to replace a replacement level player with a superstar overnight, just acquire someone a bit better if that's all you can do right now. Maybe find players you can platoon at that position, one who hits well against righties while the other hits well against lefties, or maybe one guy who has a good bat, but no glove, while also having a good glove no bat guy at the position. And don't just look at upgrading your weaknesses either. Maybe your pitching is good, but there's a deal out there that will make it even better while not hurting your organization that much in other ways.

Also look at how you're playing the game. Are you fast simming through much of the season and not interacting enough with the game? Look at the League Events screen (Lg > Lg News > Lg Events). Are you putting enough effort into your organization at all points of the season? Are you putting enough work into free agent & personnel acquisitions, extensions, releases, trades, draft scouting / picking / negotiating, offseason and spring training development, roster manipulation? Do you want to?

How are you playing the actual games? Are you simming them or making all the moves or something in-between? If you don't think you're that good at making all the moves, maybe just watch the games play out, or maybe just take on the substitutions. There's no shame in biting off less. I've watched baseball for decades yet I'm still only really comfortable making substitutions and even that took some to get comfortable with. I have no clue when it comes to fielder positioning, but I'm okay with that.

But better yet, the best advice might be to not put so much pressure on yourself to win a lot of games, but to just find joy, however you might, in playing the game. That is, ask yourself what aspects about the game do you particularly like, what do you not like? If you like, for example, the stats of baseball, just spend more time poring over them. If you don't like dealing with the minor leagues or scouting, delegate them or turn them off. We all play the game differently and your way will be unique to you too.

To really know what to improve, you need to ask yourself what you're doing and not doing. And what you want to do and not want to do too.

[biggerme]

Originally Posted by kq76

Note: I initially made this post in response to someone's question, but I'm now reposting it for my Q&A series (link in my sig). So I myself am not looking for help, but if you have anything you'd like to add or you disagree with me, please feel free to reply below.

Q: How do I get better at the game?

A: That's such an open-ended question.

Maybe the first thing to do is to evaluate all aspects of your team. How's your offense? How's your pitching? How's your defense? Identify your weaknesses and then try to rectify them. And don't expect to replace a replacement level player with a superstar overnight, just acquire someone a bit better if that's all you can do right now. Maybe find players you can platoon at that position, one who hits well against righties while the other hits well against lefties, or maybe one guy who has a good bat, but no glove, while also having a good glove no bat guy at the position. And don't just look at upgrading your weaknesses either. Maybe your pitching is good, but there's a deal out there that will make it even better while not hurting your organization that much in other ways.

Also look at how you're playing the game. Are you fast simming through much of the season and not interacting enough with the game? Look at the League Events screen (Lg > Lg News > Lg Events). Are you putting enough effort into your organization at all points of the season? Are you putting enough work into free agent & personnel acquisitions, extensions, releases, trades, draft scouting / picking / negotiating, offseason and spring training development, roster manipulation? Do you want to?

How are you playing the actual games? Are you simming them or making all the moves or something in-between? If you don't think you're that good at making all the moves, maybe just watch the games play out, or maybe just take on the substitutions. There's no shame in biting off less. I've watched baseball for decades yet I'm still only really comfortable making substitutions and even that took some to get comfortable with. I have no clue when it comes to fielder positioning, but I'm okay with that.

To really know what to improve, you need to ask yourself what you're doing and not doing. And what you want to do and not want to do too.

But better yet, the best advice might be to not put so much pressure on yourself to win a lot of games, but to just find joy, however you might, in playing the game. That is, ask yourself what aspects about the game do you particularly like, what do you not like? If you like, for example, the stats of baseball, just spend more time poring over them. If you don't like dealing with the minor leagues or scouting, delegate them or turn them off. We all play the game differently and your way will be unique to you too.

Simple but probably not a very useful answer in short term, countless hours of testing out different aspects of the game, create fictional player based leagues because then you dont have any contaminated opinions about what should be certain players profile and performance.
Try out modifiers,player development adjustments, etc. One by One to get better understanding of whats going on.
Sometimes you just cant skip that learning curve.
.