Best methods for player development

toddr037 · 11-16-2025, 02:22 PM

Whats the best methods out there for developing your young prospects into future big leaguers? I seem to be struggling a bit. I'm currently entering year 4 in my save and even my top draft pick from my first draft (1st overall Ethan Holliday) is still a AA prospect at best and his potential has drastically dropped from from a 5 star potential to a measly 3.

Ive always put him is good positions to succeed. He's never been a backup on any team Ive had him on. hes getting a ton of playing time and hes putting up good stats. but hes not improving at all.

I'm in a major rebuild so I put a lot of effort into finding a coaching staff that is high in development, aging, hitting, pitching, ect. on all teams in my minor league system. So coaching shouldn't be an issue with him. His moral has always been happy, hes on winning teams (except last year his AA team under performed)

Towards the end of last season, in September when the MLB rosters expanded, I brought him up just to give him some experience and to see what he could do. He almost immediately took over at 3rd base from the minute he got up, and he performed well. Again on a not so good team.

I'm going to start him again in AA this upcoming season and maybe give him a taste of AAA throughout the year, as I know hes not ready yet for full time MLB. I don't want to rush him to the majors and completely ruin him.

Hes not the only one. Ive had quite a few 4 -5 star potential players in my minor league system just completely fall off a cliff (one is now 2.5 star potential). I know even in real life not every top prospect works out but I'm trying to do the right things and develop them well while also being patient, but nothing is working. Any tips?

rwd59 · 11-16-2025, 05:27 PM

I don't believe the settings that the game uses are the best choice for this version of the game. Early on I started using Dr. Satan's settings and found them to be the best I have found for this version. See the following quote:

Quote:

Originally Posted by DrSatan

I'm currently using:

Batter/Pitcher Aging speed .880
Batter Dev speed 1.100
Pitcher Dev Speed 1.300
Dev Age Default
Aging tgt Age Much older
TCR 100
Player Dev Focus Disabled (cuz the AI is dumb AF)
Dev Lab size/Difficulty - 10/Less Difficult

I'm in 2035 of an MLB save using 100% scout accuracy. I just looked for players age 30+ with an overall 50+ rating and this is what I have.

Pitchers
Age 35-42 - 1 SP, 0 RP
Age 30-34 - 7SP, 9 RP (7 of these are age 30, 5 of the 7 are SP

Batters
35-38 - 5
30-34 - 44 (17 are 30)

This isn't great for batters and terrible for pitchers, and I'm seeing this across multiple saves. I don't ever sign any players past arbitration because its not worth it. The vast majority of players crap out before age 30, so no point signing anyone to massive 8 year contracts. If anyone has a suggestion I'd love to hear it. I've tried TCR down to 50 and it doesn't make much difference.

I just looked at 2 test leagues that have about 100 seasons each with default dev settings except aging target age much older, and both leagues have a way better age/overall rating distribution, so I have no idea. Maybe leagues sort themselves out after 30 or 80 years. No idea.

Yankee Hotel Foxtrot · 11-16-2025, 05:47 PM

Hey toddr037, this might help - if nothing else than to reveal that its not just one thing, this is a 'living ecosystem' that has connectivity and things don't happen in isolation.

I don't follow precisely what the reddit thread proposes, but its not dissimilar. I also make tweaks to the settings.
Main things for me that have really improved my development
1. have a plan for scouting - don't just set and forget. cycle change your budget allocations during the year as things change, coming up to draft season, but you scout % to prioritise amateurs, coming up to international free agents, reallocate to a higher international focus.

2. Set up shortlists for your draft. I like to have a 3 tier shortlist. Red - everyone i scout starts here. AS i know more about them i make a decision to move them to either Yellow or Green (Green is my 'rock solid' draft board prospects)

3. There a lots of signs to look for when your scouting draftees that they may not live up to the potential.. none are exact (just like it life), but as my scouting accuracy for a player increases ( I don't make any decisions on a player until i have them at Very high). Are some ratings going backward.. in multiple categories..in your scouts perspective. what does OSA say? Does it differ from you, where does it differ? Does it align with you in any categories? Based on the type of scout you have (Favor tools or Ability) does this line up?

4. Don't let AI control your promotions and demotions - at least not for players you care about developing.
5. Use NOTES and reminders.

6. Accept that you're going to have lots of busts..

7. Comb Reddit and here. and use AI to ask questions. Chat GPT has helped me with all of these aspects of how to] pull together a cohesive strategy and plan for managing my talent development. and one of the things i was careful to say to Chat GPT is I want to play a game and have fun. and fun doesn't mean winning.. it means having a meaningful and rewarding experience developing players, building a team and not min-maxing!

Good Luck.. its not easy and like in life there is no right or wrong approach, just don't keep doing the same things..and expecting something to change. It's a world that has lots of connection points and no one right path..

https://www.reddit.com/r/OOTP/commen...ad_homegrow_a/

toddr037 · 11-16-2025, 06:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Hey toddr037, this might help - if nothing else than to reveal that its not just one thing, this is a 'living ecosystem' that has connectivity and things don't happen in isolation.

I don't follow precisely what the reddit thread proposes, but its not dissimilar. I also make tweaks to the settings.
Main things for me that have really improved my development
1. have a plan for scouting - don't just set and forget. cycle change your budget allocations during the year as things change, coming up to draft season, but you scout % to prioritise amateurs, coming up to international free agents, reallocate to a higher international focus.

2. Set up shortlists for your draft. I like to have a 3 tier shortlist. Red - everyone i scout starts here. AS i know more about them i make a decision to move them to either Yellow or Green (Green is my 'rock solid' draft board prospects)

3. There a lots of signs to look for when your scouting draftees that they may not live up to the potential.. none are exact (just like it life), but as my scouting accuracy for a player increases ( I don't make any decisions on a player until i have them at Very high). Are some ratings going backward.. in multiple categories..in your scouts perspective. what does OSA say? Does it differ from you, where does it differ? Does it align with you in any categories? Based on the type of scout you have (Favor tools or Ability) does this line up?

4. Don't let AI control your promotions and demotions - at least not for players you care about developing.
5. Use NOTES and reminders.

6. Accept that you're going to have lots of busts..

7. Comb Reddit and here. and use AI to ask questions. Chat GPT has helped me with all of these aspects of how to] pull together a cohesive strategy and plan for managing my talent development. and one of the things i was careful to say to Chat GPT is I want to play a game and have fun. and fun doesn't mean winning.. it means having a meaningful and rewarding experience developing players, building a team and not min-maxing!

Good Luck.. its not easy and like in life there is no right or wrong approach, just don't keep doing the same things..and expecting something to change. It's a world that has lots of connection points and no one right path..

https://www.reddit.com/r/OOTP/commen...ad_homegrow_a/

Ok now another question, With all my studs turned into duds prospects, in time and IF I do things correctly with them, will they eventually get back to the 4 or 5 star potential they were when I drafted them? Or are are they now completely ruined prospects that will forever be put in the fairly large bust category of MLB prospects?

Yankee Hotel Foxtrot · 11-16-2025, 11:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by toddr037

Ok now another question, With all my studs turned into duds prospects, in time and IF I do things correctly with them, will they eventually get back to the 4 or 5 star potential they were when I drafted them? Or are are they now completely ruined prospects that will forever be put in the fairly large bust category of MLB prospects?

Without knowing how long they've been percolating for i would say yeah they're probs not going to be what they were,, that is if they ever REALLY were what you thought in the first place, or whether they were busts just waiting to happen.

I had one prospect early before i knew some of this stuff, who had regressed beyond repair. But i have some others who with some help from my Chat GPT advisor I've named 'Geep' who I used alongside my games when I have baseball or OOTP questions. With its help I did salvage one of my prospects I had unwittingly left to AI's devices...but GPT pointed out he had regressed in certain areas that had since capped out (reached max potential) and we needed to prioritise what we could fashion him into instead.

I have found good success teaching Chat GPT about my worlds and the rule-sets and settings and my game philosophy.. (i.e. I am not into min-,maxing - I don't want GPT to find the perfect thresholds under the hood).

My personal view - and i am 100% perfectly okay to be challenged on this, is that the most important and time consuming work happens the day the draft pool is released.. I kind of dread it coming up..because for me anyway I will not advance 1 day further until i have reviewed the pool, moved the first bunch 80-90 who by my eyes I think are are worthy of further scrutiny into various RED, YELLOW, GREEN categories. and i scout them.. only once I've done a full review of the pool will i advance a day.. Its all about getting that scouting accuracy very high for me to feel confident.
I'll also then converse with GPT about a bunch of my prospects.. to get its perspective (again I have been very clear with GPT about what I do want to discuss and know and what I want GPT to ensure remains fog of war).

I have with GPT produced some guides for helping with OOTP which I've posted here https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...d.php?t=365718

I might over coming weeks/months do something similar for player development, but I'm just not sure. I received some feedback on the guides I created so maybe, but my feeling based on overall lack of comment is there isn't much call for these things besides my dumb@rse self .

Yankee Hotel Foxtrot · 11-17-2025, 04:42 AM

Was thinking more about this, and I wonder if more the issue is not development, but having better upfront player evaluation. That is, making sure of your intel ahead of drafting the guy who looks like a 20/80 Stuff Potential 40/60 Movement 20/70 Control Potential monster and maybe seeing some signs that his stuff might crater and then with his little movement you're are left praying his control comes in, otherwise all you will have is a human pie to bat delivery system you are developing!

So I just asked my AI GPT assistant what he thinks about player evaluation..

Maybe this helps you?

Alright, Coach — deep breath, grab the rosin bag — because this is the OOTP question that twists everyone’s brain into a pretzel:

What matters more in scouting & drafting — the ratings, the overalls, or the potentials… and when?

Let’s un-knot this mess once and for all.
And I’ll do it straight, no cutesy GM mysticism.

⚾ THE TRUTH ABOUT RATINGS VS CURRENT/OVERALL
(And why you’re feeling conflicted — because the game is ambiguous by design)

OOTP has three separate but overlapping information streams:

Ratings (the individual bars)

Stuff, Movement, Control

Fastball/Slider/Curve/Change, etc.

Work Ethic, Intelligence, Injury, etc.

Velo band

Stamina, Command, GB%, etc.

Current Ability Rating (20–80 / 1–100)

Overall Potential Rating (20–80 / 1–100)

People assume these are separate pieces of information.
They are not independent.
They are summaries of the underlying ratings you see and the ones you don’t (hidden internal dev curves, volatility, caps, personality modifiers, engine-specific weighting).

And that’s where the trouble starts.

�� WHY YOU SOMETIMES SEE “GOOD RATINGS, TERRIBLE OVERALL”

This is the bit that feels counterintuitive.

You’re looking at guys on that shortlist who have:

Solid individual pitches

A reasonable Stuff number

50 stamina

Decent makings of a pitcher

…and then OOTP slaps a 20/30 current/overall on both.

You’re not crazy — this happens because:

�� Reason 1 — OOTP overall for pitchers is role-weighted

Starters = weighted heavily toward:

Stamina

3+ viable pitches

Command (Control)

Movement strong enough to avoid HR spikes

Velo thresholds

Relievers = weighted toward:

1–2 dominant pitches

Stuff

Split severity

Velo thresholds

So a player with:

2 good pitches

1 trash pitch

Starter stamina
…gets punished in overall because OOTP doesn’t know what he is yet.

Players between roles = low overall
This is a universal quirk of the engine.

�� Reason 2 — Low potentials suppress overall even when the ratings look good

If your scout believes:

Velo will not increase

Command potential is low

3rd/4th pitch potential is weak

…OOTP flattens the overall/pot rating regardless of current usefulness.

The potential rating is affected by:

Age

Work Ethic

Intelligence

Injury proneness

Body type

Hidden development curve

TCR randomness

Expected future role assignment

Two guys with identical visible ratings can have wildly different potentials.

�� Reason 3 — Your universe is in 1965, and scouting accuracy matters even more

You’re using:

Historical engine

Modified development environment

High scouting accuracy targets

Full rescouting

And this means until your scout locks the accuracy to Very High, the visible ratings may lie to you.

OOTP will happily show:

A 50 slider that is actually a 30

A 45 movement that is actually a 60

A 70 stamina that is actually a 40

This is why your draft system (Red → Yellow → Green list + VH accuracy) is absolutely the right workflow.

�� OK, BUT WHAT SHOULD YOU ACTUALLY PRIORITISE?

Here’s the definitive hierarchy for draft evaluation — no more ambiguity, no more contradictions:

�� Tier 1 — Non-negotiables (scout accuracy must be V.High)

These matter more than any overall or current:

�� 1. Role Definability

Can I clearly see:

Starter? (≥50 stamina + 3 pitches projected ≥45)

Reliever? (2 pitches with ≥60 potential stuff, >94 mph)

Specialty arm? (Extreme GB%, big platoon split, sidearm, etc.)

Players without a defined lane almost always grade lower in overall.

�� 2. Stuff + Movement + Velo Bands

These three combine to determine the real effectiveness:

Stuff is the bat-missing power

Movement protects against HR/slugging

Velocity shifts everything up or down by an entire tier in OOTP

A pitcher with:

40 stuff

45 movement

50 control

91–93 mph
…is NOT the same as one with the same bars but 96–98 mph.

Velo is a multiplier.
Movement is a governor.
Stuff is the outcome.

�� 3. Pitch Quality Structure

Ignore “overall” completely — look at:

Pitch 1 potential

Pitch 2 potential

Pitch 3 potential

Any pitch projected to 50–60+

Whether fastball ceiling is >50

Pitch mix determines success FAR more than overall/potential rating ever does.

�� 4. Personality (BIG in 1965 dev environment)

Work Ethic drives dev speed & ceiling

Intelligence drives stability + command gains

Leader / Captain traits help team chemistry

Low Greed affects signability (draft importance)

A 30 overall with:

80 WE

70 INT
…and 50–55 pitch projections?

Draft that guy every time.

�� Tier 2 — Meaningful, but contextual

These matter once the top-tier filters pass.

1. Control potential

Don't let current control scare you off.
A 20 current / 50–55 potential control guy is far more valuable than a 45 current / 45 potential arm.

2. Movement potential

Especially in your 1960s power-suppressed environment.
Movement matters more than “overall” in low-HR meta.

3. Age-relative-to-level

A 17-year-old with 35 overall can be better than a 19-year-old with 45.
Development runway is HUGE.

�� Tier 3 — Use sparingly

These are guides, not drivers.

❗ CURRENT ability

For draft prospects, current ability means only two things:

Can they survive an early assignment?

Are they secretly more advanced than their age?

But it is never a reason not to draft someone.
Ignore it in 95% of cases.

❗ OVERALL

This is the one that lies the hardest.

Overall is:

a weighted summary of the ratings according to your scout’s projection of the ideal role.

It’s a shorthand. Not an evaluation tool.
Great overall = probably good
Bad overall = completely meaningless unless it’s paired with no standout ratings.

�� THE REAL ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION

Should you scout the guys on your screen or trust their low overalls?

Yes — absolutely scout them.

Because:

�� Their individual ratings and pitch potentials matter 10× more than the overall rating does.
�� Overall is NOT a reliable predictor of future value for draft prospects.
�� Your shortlist workflow (Red → VH accuracy → Yellow/Green split) is exactly the correct solution.

You are not wasting scouting time.

The low overall only tells you:

“OOTP doesn’t know what this guy will become yet.”

Your job is to find the ones where:

Pitch 1 = a weapon

Pitch 2 = serviceable

Pitch 3 = has a chance

Movement = doesn’t suck

Velo = trending

WE/INT = high

Accuracy = Very High

That’s the real gold.

Yankee Hotel Foxtrot · 11-17-2025, 10:17 PM

Hey Todd, just circling back now that you’ve added more detail — and hopefully I can clear up some of the frustration you’re feeling with Ethan’s development path and your other draftees.

A lot of us have been exactly where you are: player performs well, you put him in good situations, morale’s healthy, coaching setup is strong… and then OOTP just decides “nah, he’s not that guy anymore.” It feels like the game is punishing you for doing the right things.

But the important thing to know is:
the potential drops you’re seeing don’t always mean the player actually got worse.
Most of the time it means your evaluation of him got corrected.

A couple points from experience that apply directly to what you’re seeing:

1. Early prospect stars are usually inflated until scouting accuracy stabilises

If Ethan was showing 4–5 stars early in your save, and that was off a Low/Normal scouting report, that number was almost certainly optimistic. When the accuracy eventually hit High/Very High, the scout basically “tightened” the projection to something more realistic.

OOTP doesn’t show a “scouting correction” animation — it just drops the stars. Looks like regression, but it’s often just the fog clearing.

2. Stats don’t drive development the way people expect

This one always catches people - it did me!:

Great stats at a level
Playing every day
Happy morale
Good team environment

…none of those guarantee ratings growth.

What actually drives development are:

hidden talent rolls
work ethic
intelligence
health
being at the appropriate level
scouting clarity
how the internal development RNG treats him over time

You can do everything right and still have the talent rolls land low. It’s frustrating, but it’s also OOTP modeling real-life bust rates.

3. Being “held” at one level isn’t automatically safer - I ruined so many early players in my early saves getting this wrong

You said you didn’t want to rush him — totally fair — but a quick thing to consider:

If Ethan’s ratings already aligned with AAA competition, keeping him in AA for too long can actually slow development, not help it. The game looks at ratings vs level difficulty, not stats vs level.

But that also cuts both ways: pushing him too high too early can compress his potential downward.

It’s really about matching the level to where his ratings actually sit, not where you hope his potential lands. This is where using the button that enables you to compare their rating at a A level or AA level or MLB level etc.

4. Personality matters more than people think

Two quiet killers of blue-chip prospects:

Low Work Ethic
Low Intelligence

Even top picks can drift downwards if they don’t have the underlying personality to support growth. You mentioned he’s never been a backup and always got playing time — that’s good — but if WE/INT is mediocre, it’ll limit how well he converts that playing time into actual ratings growth.

If you haven’t checked those yet, it’s worth a look.

5. Not all potential drops mean the player is doomed

One thing I’ve learned: if a prospect drops from “future superstar” to “maybe solid regular,” it doesn’t mean you failed his development — it might just mean the early projection was too optimistic.
What matters more than the stars:
Are his actual ratings still moving?
Is he still young for the level?
Does he have any standout tools left (contact/power/eye for hitters; stuff/movement/control for pitchers)?
Does he still have a realistic big-league role?

If the ratings are still creeping up, you still might end up with an everyday contributor.
If the ratings have basically flatlined for a year+… that’s usually the real sign he’s topped out.

6. You haven’t “ruined” the player

Based on what you’ve described:

You matched his assignments logically
You gave him opportunities
Morale was healthy
Team environment was good
You didn’t rush him to full-time MLB
You’ve built a solid minor-league coaching group

What you’re seeing is much more likely a combination of:

scouting normalising his early inflated projections
hidden development rolls leaning negative
personality × development speed
potential band tightening
volatility that OOTP deliberately builds in so not every #1 pick becomes a franchise cornerstone

It’s not you doing something “wrong.”

It’s just OOTP being OOTP.

Hope that helps.. this one resonates with me.. because i reckon understanding player evaluation and development as two distinct yet connected things was a breakthrough for me.. and my drafting and trading has become objectively better as a result.

Pelican · 11-18-2025, 12:00 PM

With all deference to those who have obviously put way more thought into this (I mean, I learned things just reading the posts above), I can suggest some admittedly basic, maybe dumbed-down, "quick fixes".

I set batter and pitcher development speed to at least 1.15, basically because I'm impatient. That does seem to move things along, both good and bad results. (I also set aging to 1.15, which prevents guys from hanging around too long. It would though tend to prevent the Verlander/Scherzer kind of recent seasons, if you like that.)

I focus on college and juco players in scouting and the draft. There is just too much wild variation in prep guys. They are too hard to project, even with the very best scouts. Good SEC players are about ready to play in MLB after a partial season in the high minors and maybe some Winter ball. If I could access the wood bat Summer league stats, I could predict performance with more confidence.

I use high accuracy in scouting, and I put lots of resources into the scouting department, and hire highly-rated scouts with experience. (My ideal would be a combination of Clint Eastwood and Amy Adams in "Trouble With the Curve".) I understand and do not judge those who prefer the "fog of war" approach. I am not a fan of surprises. The more information, the better.

I also use a now "tried and true" approach with Player AI Evaluation settings of 40% Ratings, 30% current stats, 20% last year stats, 10% previous year stats. That seems to work for me, maybe because I have used it for years in all leagues, and I am accustomed to how it works. Actually, my advice on this critical setting would be to "set and forget" - choose (there are many threads on this choice, and as many options as there are posters, so you can't really go wrong...) one formula and then stick with it, to reduce variability in player evaluation.

I have found, to focus on the original OP dilemma, that it can be true in OOTP that "the night is darkest just before the dawn". Those prospects who show little or no improvement for several seasons, stagnating ratings, can still turn it around, all at once. And in fact this same thing does happen IRL, particularly with the best prospects. (It's a topic for another thread, but updated scouting evaluations can cause a prospect's Potential ratings to go up - and of course down - significantly. So never give up because Current ratings are static and Potential has been reduced. What goes down can still come up.)

I'm a Phillies fan, so I tend to think in terms of Mickey Moniak, a seemingly wasted #1 pick, who eventually developed with the Angels, and had a breakthrough year of sorts last season with the dreadful Rockies. But for every Moniak there will be a Scott Kingery, can't-miss guy who actually had a very solid year in 2019, got a big contract, fell off the map. Right now the Phils have SP Andrew Painter, still highly-rated by some, but a disaster last year at AAA coming back from surgery. Frustrating. And OOTP does a good job IMHO of duplicating that frustration. If all this were predictable, it would be boring.

When all else seems to fail, I like the approach of promoting an underachiever up to MLB (obviously in a context where the team can afford it; not in the midst of a pennant race). There are mysteriously some guys who suck in the minors and excel in the majors, Spencer Strider and Max Freid, for example. (Why are they always Braves?!). My guess is that some guys just cannot stand the minor leagues, but are ready to go when the MLB bell rings. Fine. No way of knowing that unless you try.

Injuries will happen, and that of course tends to blow up development. OOTP is good at this, in terms of frequency (I have it set to low, because in my OOTP world I don't want to lose guys and thus not get to enjoy seeing them play) and the rehab process. I doubt that Painter will ever be a star, and have traded him in several seasons (the AI loves him, and the return has been excellent!). But the Phillies may be right to be patient, and he may pop in that first full year recovering from major arm surgery.

The posts above suggest this may be more science than art, if you know how to deal with it. For me, it seems to be more art (luck) than science, no matter how carefully I nurture the young guys. That of course is what makes it so very cool, when (if) a guy you patiently brought along blooms on the MLB level.

11-17-2025, 10:17 PM	#7
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 154	Hey Todd, just circling back now that you’ve added more detail — and hopefully I can clear up some of the frustration you’re feeling with Ethan’s development path and your other draftees. A lot of us have been exactly where you are: player performs well, you put him in good situations, morale’s healthy, coaching setup is strong… and then OOTP just decides “nah, he’s not that guy anymore.” It feels like the game is punishing you for doing the right things. But the important thing to know is: the potential drops you’re seeing don’t always mean the player actually got worse. Most of the time it means your evaluation of him got corrected. A couple points from experience that apply directly to what you’re seeing: 1. Early prospect stars are usually inflated until scouting accuracy stabilises If Ethan was showing 4–5 stars early in your save, and that was off a Low/Normal scouting report, that number was almost certainly optimistic. When the accuracy eventually hit High/Very High, the scout basically “tightened” the projection to something more realistic. OOTP doesn’t show a “scouting correction” animation — it just drops the stars. Looks like regression, but it’s often just the fog clearing. 2. Stats don’t drive development the way people expect This one always catches people - it did me!: Great stats at a level Playing every day Happy morale Good team environment …none of those guarantee ratings growth. What actually drives development are: hidden talent rolls work ethic intelligence health being at the appropriate level scouting clarity how the internal development RNG treats him over time You can do everything right and still have the talent rolls land low. It’s frustrating, but it’s also OOTP modeling real-life bust rates. 3. Being “held” at one level isn’t automatically safer - I ruined so many early players in my early saves getting this wrong You said you didn’t want to rush him — totally fair — but a quick thing to consider: If Ethan’s ratings already aligned with AAA competition, keeping him in AA for too long can actually slow development, not help it. The game looks at ratings vs level difficulty, not stats vs level. But that also cuts both ways: pushing him too high too early can compress his potential downward. It’s really about matching the level to where his ratings actually sit, not where you hope his potential lands. This is where using the button that enables you to compare their rating at a A level or AA level or MLB level etc. 4. Personality matters more than people think Two quiet killers of blue-chip prospects: Low Work Ethic Low Intelligence Even top picks can drift downwards if they don’t have the underlying personality to support growth. You mentioned he’s never been a backup and always got playing time — that’s good — but if WE/INT is mediocre, it’ll limit how well he converts that playing time into actual ratings growth. If you haven’t checked those yet, it’s worth a look. 5. Not all potential drops mean the player is doomed One thing I’ve learned: if a prospect drops from “future superstar” to “maybe solid regular,” it doesn’t mean you failed his development — it might just mean the early projection was too optimistic. What matters more than the stars: Are his actual ratings still moving? Is he still young for the level? Does he have any standout tools left (contact/power/eye for hitters; stuff/movement/control for pitchers)? Does he still have a realistic big-league role? If the ratings are still creeping up, you still might end up with an everyday contributor. If the ratings have basically flatlined for a year+… that’s usually the real sign he’s topped out. 6. You haven’t “ruined” the player Based on what you’ve described: You matched his assignments logically You gave him opportunities Morale was healthy Team environment was good You didn’t rush him to full-time MLB You’ve built a solid minor-league coaching group What you’re seeing is much more likely a combination of: scouting normalising his early inflated projections hidden development rolls leaning negative personality × development speed potential band tightening volatility that OOTP deliberately builds in so not every #1 pick becomes a franchise cornerstone It’s not you doing something “wrong.” It’s just OOTP being OOTP. Hope that helps.. this one resonates with me.. because i reckon understanding player evaluation and development as two distinct yet connected things was a breakthrough for me.. and my drafting and trading has become objectively better as a result. Last edited by Yankee Hotel Foxtrot; 11-17-2025 at 10:23 PM.

11-18-2025, 12:00 PM	#8
Pelican Hall Of Famer Join Date: Mar 2021 Location: Wilmington, Delaware Posts: 2,978	With all deference to those who have obviously put way more thought into this (I mean, I learned things just reading the posts above), I can suggest some admittedly basic, maybe dumbed-down, "quick fixes". I set batter and pitcher development speed to at least 1.15, basically because I'm impatient. That does seem to move things along, both good and bad results. (I also set aging to 1.15, which prevents guys from hanging around too long. It would though tend to prevent the Verlander/Scherzer kind of recent seasons, if you like that.) I focus on college and juco players in scouting and the draft. There is just too much wild variation in prep guys. They are too hard to project, even with the very best scouts. Good SEC players are about ready to play in MLB after a partial season in the high minors and maybe some Winter ball. If I could access the wood bat Summer league stats, I could predict performance with more confidence. I use high accuracy in scouting, and I put lots of resources into the scouting department, and hire highly-rated scouts with experience. (My ideal would be a combination of Clint Eastwood and Amy Adams in "Trouble With the Curve".) I understand and do not judge those who prefer the "fog of war" approach. I am not a fan of surprises. The more information, the better. I also use a now "tried and true" approach with Player AI Evaluation settings of 40% Ratings, 30% current stats, 20% last year stats, 10% previous year stats. That seems to work for me, maybe because I have used it for years in all leagues, and I am accustomed to how it works. Actually, my advice on this critical setting would be to "set and forget" - choose (there are many threads on this choice, and as many options as there are posters, so you can't really go wrong...) one formula and then stick with it, to reduce variability in player evaluation. I have found, to focus on the original OP dilemma, that it can be true in OOTP that "the night is darkest just before the dawn". Those prospects who show little or no improvement for several seasons, stagnating ratings, can still turn it around, all at once. And in fact this same thing does happen IRL, particularly with the best prospects. (It's a topic for another thread, but updated scouting evaluations can cause a prospect's Potential ratings to go up - and of course down - significantly. So never give up because Current ratings are static and Potential has been reduced. What goes down can still come up.) I'm a Phillies fan, so I tend to think in terms of Mickey Moniak, a seemingly wasted #1 pick, who eventually developed with the Angels, and had a breakthrough year of sorts last season with the dreadful Rockies. But for every Moniak there will be a Scott Kingery, can't-miss guy who actually had a very solid year in 2019, got a big contract, fell off the map. Right now the Phils have SP Andrew Painter, still highly-rated by some, but a disaster last year at AAA coming back from surgery. Frustrating. And OOTP does a good job IMHO of duplicating that frustration. If all this were predictable, it would be boring. When all else seems to fail, I like the approach of promoting an underachiever up to MLB (obviously in a context where the team can afford it; not in the midst of a pennant race). There are mysteriously some guys who suck in the minors and excel in the majors, Spencer Strider and Max Freid, for example. (Why are they always Braves?!). My guess is that some guys just cannot stand the minor leagues, but are ready to go when the MLB bell rings. Fine. No way of knowing that unless you try. Injuries will happen, and that of course tends to blow up development. OOTP is good at this, in terms of frequency (I have it set to low, because in my OOTP world I don't want to lose guys and thus not get to enjoy seeing them play) and the rehab process. I doubt that Painter will ever be a star, and have traded him in several seasons (the AI loves him, and the return has been excellent!). But the Phillies may be right to be patient, and he may pop in that first full year recovering from major arm surgery. The posts above suggest this may be more science than art, if you know how to deal with it. For me, it seems to be more art (luck) than science, no matter how carefully I nurture the young guys. That of course is what makes it so very cool, when (if) a guy you patiently brought along blooms on the MLB level. __________________ Pelican OOTP 2020-? ”Hard to believe, Harry.” Last edited by Pelican; 11-18-2025 at 12:16 PM.

11-16-2025, 02:22 PM	#1
toddr037 Minors (Single A) Join Date: Aug 2018 Location: Brooks, AB. Posts: 78	Best methods for player development Whats the best methods out there for developing your young prospects into future big leaguers? I seem to be struggling a bit. I'm currently entering year 4 in my save and even my top draft pick from my first draft (1st overall Ethan Holliday) is still a AA prospect at best and his potential has drastically dropped from from a 5 star potential to a measly 3. Ive always put him is good positions to succeed. He's never been a backup on any team Ive had him on. hes getting a ton of playing time and hes putting up good stats. but hes not improving at all. I'm in a major rebuild so I put a lot of effort into finding a coaching staff that is high in development, aging, hitting, pitching, ect. on all teams in my minor league system. So coaching shouldn't be an issue with him. His moral has always been happy, hes on winning teams (except last year his AA team under performed) Towards the end of last season, in September when the MLB rosters expanded, I brought him up just to give him some experience and to see what he could do. He almost immediately took over at 3rd base from the minute he got up, and he performed well. Again on a not so good team. I'm going to start him again in AA this upcoming season and maybe give him a taste of AAA throughout the year, as I know hes not ready yet for full time MLB. I don't want to rush him to the majors and completely ruin him. Hes not the only one. Ive had quite a few 4 -5 star potential players in my minor league system just completely fall off a cliff (one is now 2.5 star potential). I know even in real life not every top prospect works out but I'm trying to do the right things and develop them well while also being patient, but nothing is working. Any tips?

11-16-2025, 05:47 PM	#3
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 154	Hey toddr037, this might help - if nothing else than to reveal that its not just one thing, this is a 'living ecosystem' that has connectivity and things don't happen in isolation. I don't follow precisely what the reddit thread proposes, but its not dissimilar. I also make tweaks to the settings. Main things for me that have really improved my development 1. have a plan for scouting - don't just set and forget. cycle change your budget allocations during the year as things change, coming up to draft season, but you scout % to prioritise amateurs, coming up to international free agents, reallocate to a higher international focus. 2. Set up shortlists for your draft. I like to have a 3 tier shortlist. Red - everyone i scout starts here. AS i know more about them i make a decision to move them to either Yellow or Green (Green is my 'rock solid' draft board prospects) 3. There a lots of signs to look for when your scouting draftees that they may not live up to the potential.. none are exact (just like it life), but as my scouting accuracy for a player increases ( I don't make any decisions on a player until i have them at Very high). Are some ratings going backward.. in multiple categories..in your scouts perspective. what does OSA say? Does it differ from you, where does it differ? Does it align with you in any categories? Based on the type of scout you have (Favor tools or Ability) does this line up? 4. Don't let AI control your promotions and demotions - at least not for players you care about developing. 5. Use NOTES and reminders. 6. Accept that you're going to have lots of busts.. 7. Comb Reddit and here. and use AI to ask questions. Chat GPT has helped me with all of these aspects of how to] pull together a cohesive strategy and plan for managing my talent development. and one of the things i was careful to say to Chat GPT is I want to play a game and have fun. and fun doesn't mean winning.. it means having a meaningful and rewarding experience developing players, building a team and not min-maxing! Good Luck.. its not easy and like in life there is no right or wrong approach, just don't keep doing the same things..and expecting something to change. It's a world that has lots of connection points and no one right path.. https://www.reddit.com/r/OOTP/commen...ad_homegrow_a/

11-17-2025, 04:42 AM	#6
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 154	Was thinking more about this, and I wonder if more the issue is not development, but having better upfront player evaluation. That is, making sure of your intel ahead of drafting the guy who looks like a 20/80 Stuff Potential 40/60 Movement 20/70 Control Potential monster and maybe seeing some signs that his stuff might crater and then with his little movement you're are left praying his control comes in, otherwise all you will have is a human pie to bat delivery system you are developing! So I just asked my AI GPT assistant what he thinks about player evaluation.. Maybe this helps you? Alright, Coach — deep breath, grab the rosin bag — because this is the OOTP question that twists everyone’s brain into a pretzel: What matters more in scouting & drafting — the ratings, the overalls, or the potentials… and when? Let’s un-knot this mess once and for all. And I’ll do it straight, no cutesy GM mysticism. ⚾ THE TRUTH ABOUT RATINGS VS CURRENT/OVERALL (And why you’re feeling conflicted — because the game is ambiguous by design) OOTP has three separate but overlapping information streams: Ratings (the individual bars) Stuff, Movement, Control Fastball/Slider/Curve/Change, etc. Work Ethic, Intelligence, Injury, etc. Velo band Stamina, Command, GB%, etc. Current Ability Rating (20–80 / 1–100) Overall Potential Rating (20–80 / 1–100) People assume these are separate pieces of information. They are not independent. They are summaries of the underlying ratings you see and the ones you don’t (hidden internal dev curves, volatility, caps, personality modifiers, engine-specific weighting). And that’s where the trouble starts. �� WHY YOU SOMETIMES SEE “GOOD RATINGS, TERRIBLE OVERALL” This is the bit that feels counterintuitive. You’re looking at guys on that shortlist who have: Solid individual pitches A reasonable Stuff number 50 stamina Decent makings of a pitcher …and then OOTP slaps a 20/30 current/overall on both. You’re not crazy — this happens because: �� Reason 1 — OOTP overall for pitchers is role-weighted Starters = weighted heavily toward: Stamina 3+ viable pitches Command (Control) Movement strong enough to avoid HR spikes Velo thresholds Relievers = weighted toward: 1–2 dominant pitches Stuff Split severity Velo thresholds So a player with: 2 good pitches 1 trash pitch Starter stamina …gets punished in overall because OOTP doesn’t know what he is yet. Players between roles = low overall This is a universal quirk of the engine. �� Reason 2 — Low potentials suppress overall even when the ratings look good If your scout believes: Velo will not increase Command potential is low 3rd/4th pitch potential is weak …OOTP flattens the overall/pot rating regardless of current usefulness. The potential rating is affected by: Age Work Ethic Intelligence Injury proneness Body type Hidden development curve TCR randomness Expected future role assignment Two guys with identical visible ratings can have wildly different potentials. �� Reason 3 — Your universe is in 1965, and scouting accuracy matters even more You’re using: Historical engine Modified development environment High scouting accuracy targets Full rescouting And this means until your scout locks the accuracy to Very High, the visible ratings may lie to you. OOTP will happily show: A 50 slider that is actually a 30 A 45 movement that is actually a 60 A 70 stamina that is actually a 40 This is why your draft system (Red → Yellow → Green list + VH accuracy) is absolutely the right workflow. �� OK, BUT WHAT SHOULD YOU ACTUALLY PRIORITISE? Here’s the definitive hierarchy for draft evaluation — no more ambiguity, no more contradictions: �� Tier 1 — Non-negotiables (scout accuracy must be V.High) These matter more than any overall or current: �� 1. Role Definability Can I clearly see: Starter? (≥50 stamina + 3 pitches projected ≥45) Reliever? (2 pitches with ≥60 potential stuff, >94 mph) Specialty arm? (Extreme GB%, big platoon split, sidearm, etc.) Players without a defined lane almost always grade lower in overall. �� 2. Stuff + Movement + Velo Bands These three combine to determine the real effectiveness: Stuff is the bat-missing power Movement protects against HR/slugging Velocity shifts everything up or down by an entire tier in OOTP A pitcher with: 40 stuff 45 movement 50 control 91–93 mph …is NOT the same as one with the same bars but 96–98 mph. Velo is a multiplier. Movement is a governor. Stuff is the outcome. �� 3. Pitch Quality Structure Ignore “overall” completely — look at: Pitch 1 potential Pitch 2 potential Pitch 3 potential Any pitch projected to 50–60+ Whether fastball ceiling is >50 Pitch mix determines success FAR more than overall/potential rating ever does. �� 4. Personality (BIG in 1965 dev environment) Work Ethic drives dev speed & ceiling Intelligence drives stability + command gains Leader / Captain traits help team chemistry Low Greed affects signability (draft importance) A 30 overall with: 80 WE 70 INT …and 50–55 pitch projections? Draft that guy every time. �� Tier 2 — Meaningful, but contextual These matter once the top-tier filters pass. 1. Control potential Don't let current control scare you off. A 20 current / 50–55 potential control guy is far more valuable than a 45 current / 45 potential arm. 2. Movement potential Especially in your 1960s power-suppressed environment. Movement matters more than “overall” in low-HR meta. 3. Age-relative-to-level A 17-year-old with 35 overall can be better than a 19-year-old with 45. Development runway is HUGE. �� Tier 3 — Use sparingly These are guides, not drivers. ❗ CURRENT ability For draft prospects, current ability means only two things: Can they survive an early assignment? Are they secretly more advanced than their age? But it is never a reason not to draft someone. Ignore it in 95% of cases. ❗ OVERALL This is the one that lies the hardest. Overall is: a weighted summary of the ratings according to your scout’s projection of the ideal role. It’s a shorthand. Not an evaluation tool. Great overall = probably good Bad overall = completely meaningless unless it’s paired with no standout ratings. �� THE REAL ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION Should you scout the guys on your screen or trust their low overalls? Yes — absolutely scout them. Because: �� Their individual ratings and pitch potentials matter 10× more than the overall rating does. �� Overall is NOT a reliable predictor of future value for draft prospects. �� Your shortlist workflow (Red → VH accuracy → Yellow/Green split) is exactly the correct solution. You are not wasting scouting time. The low overall only tells you: “OOTP doesn’t know what this guy will become yet.” Your job is to find the ones where: Pitch 1 = a weapon Pitch 2 = serviceable Pitch 3 = has a chance Movement = doesn’t suck Velo = trending WE/INT = high Accuracy = Very High That’s the real gold.