The Base Ball Life of Patrick O'Farrell

[Big Six]

Originally Posted by TexasLonghorns

Seeing Pat drop in ratings is where i'd probably give him a little taste of the fountain of youth. I can't wait to see how you will send Pat off i'm sure we'll all be talking about it at the water cooler the next day.

Believe me, it's very tempting to open up the editor, raise a few ratings, and give Pat a new lease on life! I'm not doing that, though, for several reasons.

You could argue that, by adding Negro League players and Field of Dreams characters to 1920s major league baseball, I have suspended reality enough that I could have Pat O'Farrell regain the abilities he possessed in his prime as many times as I want. Heck, for that matter, Pat is a fictional character himself!

I'm not doing that, because I want Pat's historical totals to have some validity. He'll retire as the all-time leader in several categories, and it will be interesting to see later stars take their best shot at equalling him.

It's safe to say that Pat is one of the two or three greatest players of all time at this point, and again, it will be fun to see if he continues to merit that designation.

Besides, his oldest son is 13 now...so it won't be long...

[John P. Yuda]

I'd kind of like to see his child(ren) be more like marginal-quality major leaguers -- the kind of players who get a shot based on their name as much as anything.

[El Cid Part II]

Maybe instead of having Pat manage, you just skip to when his son is of age, then you have a different writing method of a lesser talent O'Farrell just trying to get a shot at the Majors, instead of being a top 5 player

As for the Plate Discipline should go down with age, but OOTP really stinks in the fact that a players ability to draw walks would not wane, he may strikeout more, but his Eye should never drop as harsh.

If I were you, I'd raise his Eye back up

[StorminZ]

As a fan of the game of baseball ... and certainly of Pat O'Farrell ... it's these days I hate.

Our hero -- who we've admired up close and from afar -- is now squarely facing that which we ... his fans ... the fans of baseball ... hoped ... prayed ... would not have to be. Maybe, just maybe he could continue to rise above the count of counts.

We knew It would come. In advancing years, It would be sooner than later. Damn It! For now It bears down on Pat with no mercy. It does not seem fair. It is not fair! For a man who seemed so much larger than life itself should now be brought to our mortal world by It.

No! He is and shall ever be Pat O'Farrell, the consummate allstar of the perennial force of baseball, the Boston Red Sox. Legendary batsman! Journeyman of the basepaths! Protector of the middle infield! "The" Ambassador for the grand ole game of baseball! A heroes hero!

As a fan, I know to concede. It will win. It always does. Ah, but not without a challenge. Pat -- as he has doen so often ... facing down the greatest of pitchers late into the count only to bang out a hit or draw a walk -- has done likewise to It. Once a champion, always a champion!

I see It now. I know It. I also face It. It is Father Time. And in the grandest of gestures any competitor can give to another on the field, It tips his cap to Pat. It knows who It has faced.

Over the years of playing sports, I have learned that one must win with humility and lose with grace. Pat has been (and still is) a man of great humility. And the day he walks off the diamond one last time, we shall see him leave with fullest of grace. In victory and in defeat, he is ... and shall remain ... my hero!

A Fan

_________________________


As a fan of this thread, I felt compelled to make this post. In this day of "reality TV", well, Pat (and BigSix) has provided a respite we could call "reality postings".

OK, we now return you back to your regular programming!

[StorminZ]

Originally Posted by El Cid Part II

...

If I were you, I'd raise his Eye back up

NO! (Sorry for shouting)

I think one of the inviting -- and great -- aspects of this thread is to see how Pat grew within the game within the game. Yes, inserting some fictional characters and changing the history of the Negro Leagues somewhat (ok, alot!) is one thing. But Pat -- he is this dynasty -- evolved as he did with (I will assume) no interventions along the way. It was treat to read this dynasty understanding it was free of manipulation. To step in now would be a sad departure from that which made this thread so great.

As sad as it always is to see our heroes fade away, no, we should not interfere with the life of Pat.

[Big Six]

I haven't edited Pat's ratings at any point so far. Honestly, if it had looked like he might fizzle out as a minor leaguer, I confess I probably would have stepped in and made him more talented, so he would have a shot at the Show. As any fan of the dynasty knows, I didn't need to give Pat any help at all; he became an all-time great on his own.

I thought very seriously about manipulating his Eye rating, too. Most veteran players improve their ability to control the strike zone, and Pat did this through most of his 30s without me playing Great OOTP Deity and invoking any "divine" intervention. His Eye rating rose as high as 106 in the late 1910s and early 1920s.

When Pat's Eye rating went down the tubes, I chalked it up to the fact that a pitcher no longer had to work carefully to him. Pat's ability to get around on a good fastball isn't what it used to be, so a pitcher facing him can usually throw him hard stuff in the strike zone and let him hit it, the way he might work to a pitcher. Unlike a truly lousy hitter, however, Pat won't chase a cheesy breaking pitch out of the strike zone, so the pitcher can't get him out that way. Consequently, Pat doesn't draw many walks. He mentioned this in his letter to his wife.

As far as continuing the dynasty goes, I'm going to keep playing it out, season by season. There are still some stories that interest me--players whose careers I want to follow in their entirety; a Hall of Fame that will continue to induct retired stars; the rise and fall of great teams like Pat's Red Sox and the Cincinnati Reds of the 1910s. Besides, I've NEVER had an OOTP dynasty reach 20 years and develop meaningful career totals, so I think it's cool to have a league with a "real" history.

I have a few ideas about Pat's future, and those of his sons and daughters. And, even if I set up a particular kind of storyline, the OOTP engine might have "ideas" of its own. That's what happened with Pat, who began his career as a 3.5 star talent.

If you stay with the story, you'll see what I have in mind, and we'll all see how it plays out.

[ctorg]

Originally Posted by John P. Yuda

I'd kind of like to see his child(ren) be more like marginal-quality major leaguers -- the kind of players who get a shot based on their name as much as anything.

Yeah, it would be interesting to read about the son having to deal with being expected to continue on the legacy his father left.

[John P. Yuda]

Originally Posted by Big Six

a Hall of Fame that will continue to induct retired stars

Speaking of...

[sflcat]

Pat calling it quits, say it ain't so....Carrigan should beg him to stay around until the end of the season, if for no other reason than to provide veteran leadership for the club.

Then again, since Carrigan has shown in the past that he has no qualms about trading off longtime players (perhaps even a good friend) if he thinks such a move will strenghen his club...maybe we'll see Pat finish the season with another team (i.e. Babe Ruth and his stint with the Braves).

[Level]

For what its worth, I think Pat should finish out the season. A player of his caliber should have a Cal Ripken esque final season, not quit a third of the way through. Also, I wouldnt be surprised if Pat gets his numbers up a little higher statistically. I've had older players go way down in ratings and still have decent seasons at age 40. He won't be an all-star but after all he is basically the captain of the team. Team captains don't quit at the beginning of the season after they said they would be there regardless of how poorly they play.

[William4192]

Bix Six,

If we are not going to be Play a "deity", then why not let Pat decide when he will retire? That is the best way to handle it in my eyes.

[Level]

I agree with william but then again its not my story and I will still love it either way. I'd just like to see Pat stick to the commitment he made to his team and to his fans all over the country.

[William4192]

I don't see Pat as a "Ryno" where he gave up on his teammates in the middle of a season. What ever you pick is fine Big Six, I'm going no where!

[Big Six]

Boston Globe, June 11, 1928


O'FARRELL'S FOUR HITS PACE SOX
Browns Fall Victim To Potent Boston Bats

BOSTON--On an afternoon that was once rumored to bring the final appearance of Pat O'Farrell's storied Boston Red Sox career, the veteran showed that rumors of his demise might just have been premature.

O'Farrell smashed four safe hits, including a double, stole a base, and scored three runs as the Red Sox defeated St. Louis, 8-1. Thousands of fans who had donned red ties and scarves in support of the popular O'Farrell would not be silent until their hero emerged from the Boston dugout at the end of the contest to acknowledge them.

O'Farrell, hitting in the number two spot in Bill Carrigan's lineup for the second straight day, scored the first two runs of the ballgame, and the Red Sox, behind the marvelous moundsmanship of Neal Brady, never looked back. Pat singled in the first inning, swiped second base, and then scored on a booming double off the wall by Lou Gehrig. In the third frame, the Irishman himself walloped a two-bagger, and after Gehrig advanced him to third on a ground out to second, Frank Frisch lined one neatly over shortstop to drive him home.

O'Farrell, smiling and relaxed, looked years younger than he did the last time he appeared in Boston. "I will be honest with you," he told reporters in the clubhouse. "I did consider ending my career as an active player this very week. In fact, I had just about made up my mind in that direction. But I realized that I would have to explain to my children that I quit before I finished the job, and I couldn't figure out how I would do that. I am almost certain that this will be my final season as a player, but unless I'm traded or released, I'll finish the season with the Boston Red Sox."

The resurgent O'Farrell has boosted his batting average, which had slipped to a very un-O'Farrellesque .229, a full fifteen points in the past week. The Red Sox have been just as lively, winning five of their last six games to increase their advantage over the second-place New York Yankees to a full seven games...

*********
As if Pat could hear our debate, he decided to voice his own opinion by starting to hit the ball again.

It dawned on me this afternoon that imposing a career-ending injury on Pat, which would be just about the only way I can think of to force him to retire, would be the same kind of manipulation as raising his ratings so he could keep on playing like he always has. I'm not going to do either one. If Pat slips back into oblivion, I'll run the computer manager on the Red Sox and see if they let him go or trade him. Otherwise, Pat O'Farrell will remain the second baseman for the Boston Red Sox.

[BigCity]

Excellent Big Six !! The way it should be. Pat will decide how to end this himself

[NCBeachBum]

I agree that this is the right way to do things.... but if the Red Sox attempt to trade him, I think the deity should make an appearance to impose that injury. He's made it to 40 as a 1-team player, and IMO should stay the same.

[ctorg]

I think you made the right choice, but I do think it would be fine - and maybe a good idea - to give him the CEI in any of these cases:

- At the end of the season
- If he gets shipped to the minors
- If the Sox trade him

I don't see him as the kind of guy who would go back to the minors. He's already been on the fence about retiring. Certainly, if the Red Sox said he'd be sent to the minors, he'd retire instead. I also think he'd want to go out with some dignity and not try to come back for another season after this one.

[NCBeachBum]

Originally Posted by ctorg

I think you made the right choice, but I do think it would be fine - and maybe a good idea - to give him the CEI in any of these cases:

- At the end of the season
- If he gets shipped to the minors
- If the Sox trade him

I don't see him as the kind of guy who would go back to the minors. He's already been on the fence about retiring. Certainly, if the Red Sox said he'd be sent to the minors, he'd retire instead. I also think he'd want to go out with some dignity and not try to come back for another season after this one.

Unless, of course, he came back after this season as a coach/bench player. Sort of a breaking-in period transitioning a coaching career.

[seth70liz76]

While I apprecitate the passion people show to keep Pat a one-team player: being traded/sent to minors could open new avenues. The minors could be him latching on with Dunn's Baltimore IL club, or going PCL to keep playing. The trade could be an interesting twist, Pat wanting to stay with the Sox and being treated to the cold reality of the business. We assume his next phase would be with the Sox--it could be the Browns or Reds he ends his career with and have new opprotunities to explore. Let Pat and the game decide what shape the arc of the story takes.

[Big Six]

Thanks to all of you who have expressed your opinion about what you'd like to see happen next. It's very gratifying to see that there are people besides me who have taken an interest in Pat's story and care enough about what might happen next to post your thoughts.

Pat's ratings held steady for the remainder of June, so it might be the case that he will plateau where he is for a while. The Red Sox have the best record in baseball, and Pat has emerged from the horrendous slump he was in a month ago. His manager is his best friend in baseball; his teammates regard him as their leader, as you might expect since he's won eight rings; he's been with the Red Sox for 20 years. At this point, it would be highly unlikely that Pat would be let go. The people of Boston would probably lynch Bill Carrigan for trading him, and I don't think it's very likely that he would be attractive trade bait, anyway.