Making The Move Upstate: A Buffalo Nickels Story

[Englishtide73]

I just wanna know how to set up a tournament. I set up a league 2 6 team divisions but not sure how to get to the tournament. Also when you set up the euro league did you just start another division or a separate league? This is where I’m confused. Thank you

[dward1]

Originally Posted by Englishtide73

I just wanna know how to set up a tournament. I set up a league 2 6 team divisions but not sure how to get to the tournament. Also when you set up the euro league did you just start another division or a separate league? This is where I’m confused. Thank you

ok, your question is quite confusing but I will try.

Euroleague is just the name of the 12-team European league in my game.

European Cup is a separate, 16-team tournament setup using all European teams in the game (there are 4 in the WBA leagues). I use a custom created schedule (made in text edit) to play the regular season in the European Cup

Cup games happen on Tuesday/Wednesday...4 teams in each group so you play 12 games (each team home and away).

to set up a tournament, you add a tournament from global settings

[dward1]

Set 3, vs Miami
This team has really made me proud this week, starting vs New York. Last weeks set made me a little too focused on this competition and caused that dumb setup in the league but this is why I was thinking ahead: we just beat Miami. Jared Farr made it 3 wins in 3 starts with 6 innings of 2-run ball and Duncan, Mallow and Peterson all drove home a pair as we wound up with a comfortable 6-3 win and moved ahead of the Flamingos in the table.

Game 2 of the set was more like the experts had predicted for the first 5 innings. We saved Justin Carree last week for this, and he didn’t handle it at all: walking 5 and allowing 7 runs while getting just 3 outs. We were down 9-0, the big money man Sauer had hit his 3rd home run of the Cup and Miami was cruising. But we don’t go down easy…a 5 run 6th made the game interesting again. We didn’t come all the way back, but man, what performances we are giving. Maybe we aren’t that far off being a competitive top tier team?

Set Star: Matt Mallow (4-7, 2 HR)

Hartford outslugged New York 14-11 on Wednesday to drop the Americans to 4-2 as well and a 3-way tie. Miami and New York play the final series, we have OKC and Hartford left.

[darkcloud4579]

Great detail, fun story. Will keep following.

[Englishtide73]

Is everything in one big sub league. Like each one of your leagues is a desperate division inside the sub league?

[dward1]

Originally Posted by Englishtide73

Is everything in one big sub league. Like each one of your leagues is a desperate division inside the sub league?

no. each league is it's own entity
WBA
WBA2
USBL
USBL2
Euroleague
Asian Baseball League

the tournaments are (all created as tournaments under Global Settings -> Add a new tournament to this game
Baseball Cup (every team in the world)
Cup of the Americas (only American+Mexican+Canadian)
European Cup (European)
Asian Cup (Asia + Australia + Israel)
Champions League (best teams from WBA/USBL a few others sometimes)
Global Cup ("next best", shot for other leagues to win something)
Super Cup (winners of previous year play in a preseason tournament)
World Cup (6 different regions compete)

[dward1]

Originally Posted by darkcloud4579

Great detail, fun story. Will keep following.

thanks I've always enjoyed your various dynasties...started Cities earlier but my computer struggled, cool to see the combo

[dward1]

Series 21, @Charlotte, win (17-15)
We really blew a big chance in the finale, Las Vegas got shockingly swept by the suddenly top-playing Grizzlies and we had a chance to cut the lead to a single game, but allowed 4 runs in the final 3 innings to lose. Very, very disappointing. I think we had mentally checked out too early, assuming we would finish 2nd. The focus was more on the American Cup, getting ready for playoffs…we still could get into first but it’s tough now. I take the blame here.

Very, very frustrating, I tried to save Zamora a bit and Carree also. It’ll be hard to sleep tonight.

Series Star: Adam Stromgren (3-10, 2B, HR, 6 BB)

Series 22, vs Kansas City, sweep (16-6)
The dumb preparation and lack of mental focus last Sunday didn’t wind up costing us anything really as we finish 2 games back but it still bugs me. We swept KC but the Lights got their act together and swept Madison. The Lakers just barely held onto that final spot. The field is set. We host Madison in a best of 3 to take on the Las Vegas Lights for the USBL2 title and the chance to face Memphis in the Promotion/Relegation playoff.

Series Star: BJ Peterson (6-11, 3 2B, 3B)

Final Summary


Final Stats
wOBA: .347, 2nd behind Las Vegas Lights
FIP: 4.04, 1st
Zone Rating: +14.8, 3rd

Final Standings


Kansas City has collapsed. Their big project and $10 million expense lists had them dreaming of breaking into the playoffs in the USBL, they now only topped Pittsburgh in all the USBL. Richmond disappointed greatly, the preseason #1 team never threatened and finished below .500 scoring the fewest runs in the league.



Players In Leaderboards
wOBA: Chris Yates-.399 (2nd), BJ Peterson-.396 (3rd), Joe Duncan-.395 (4th), Adam Stromgren-.384 (6th)
WPA: BJ Peterson-2.5 (1st), Adam Stromgren-1.89 (5th), John Stewart-1.84 (7th), Joe Duncan-1.83 (8th)
WAR: BJ Peterson-3.5, (1st), Chris Yates-2.5 (7th), Adam Stromgren-2.4 (8th)

rWAR: Jared Farr-3.8 (2nd)
FIP: Danny Bresnahan-3.79 (4th)
WHIP: Ben Buchanan-1.07 (1st), Jared Farr-1.18 (5th)
K/9: Danny Bresnahan-9.4 (5th)
BB/9: Ben Buchanan-0.9 (1st)
ERA: Ben Buchanan-3.27 (1st), Jared Farr-3.38 (4th), Danny Bresnahan-4.03 (8th)

Final Series Star Count
4: Jared Farr
3: Joe Duncan, Matt Mallow
2: John Stewart, BJ Peterson
1: Ben Buchanan, Adam Stromgren, Justin Carree, Jorge Zamora, Chris Yates, Jaeden Burton

[dward1]

Set 4
Before we head into the USBL2 playoffs there is the large matter of Set 4 of Cup of the Americas to finish, where we have a very strong campaign going. We play at 2-4 Hartford, but they are stacked full of talent, a very scary team. An early 4-0 lead with Farr rolling had us feeling good and sneaking peaks at Miami/New York scores…a 6-run 6th made me toss my phone against the wall. But this team…the belief we are gaining from this Cup is something. A run in the 7th halved the lead and then with 2 outs in the 9th Adam Stromgren drove a game-tying single into right field. The roar he let out was something for a guy who seemed uninterested in hard work at times and uninvested…you can’t fake that emotion.

Jose Rodriguez has waited until the Cup to make his mark on this squad…a go-ahead HR from him in the 12th opened the floodgates at the final was 11-7.

When I finally picked my phone up the scores showed me Miami beat OKC 6-2 and New York took care of Atlanta 7-2. We were all 5-2…maybe that wild card spot could go to our division?

Game 2 was somehow Bresnahan’s first action of the Cup of the Americas. He cruised through 2 but then one of their super-talented bats in the middle of the order, Jay Jones, bashed a Grand Slam in the 3rd. This team though, never dies. 2 in the 7th and then Jaeden Burton tied it in the 8th. We went extras again, into the 11th at 4-4 when Ben Buchanan entered and they pinch hit for Jimmy Steen. Steen might be one of the best players in the world, he has had a 1032 OPS or better each of the past 3 years. But that’s how deep Hartford is, they didn’t want a left on left matchup. Pinch hitter Andy Kennon went deep on the first pitch. We lost and fell to 6-3. ****.

New York beat Atlanta and Miami pummeled OKC. We are now a game back, and far back of Miami in the tiebreaker of run differential. We need to sweep OKC and make up that tiebreaker, or maybe make the wild card.

Set Star: Adam Stromgren (5-11, 2B, HR, 2 RBI)

[Englishtide73]

Thank you! It finally makes sense.

[dward1]

Set 5
OKC had a disappointing year by their standards, finishing 31-35 and featuring a 6.01 rotation ERA and 11th place .630 DEFF. But this is still the #11 globally ranked team…we took a comfortable 2-0 lead early but Farr doesn’t quite have it against these big-hitting teams. A 4-run 5th was the only time they scored against him but 4 runs is 4 runs. Of course that wasn’t the game, that’s all we know how to do now: fight. We scored in the 6th but Zamora gave up a 2-run double in the 7th and it was 6-3. A run in the 8th and then a Peterson HR to lead off the 9th and suddenly we were right back within a run. But it wasn’t to be. Technically we can still make it in via the wild-card but we will have to win by a lot, hope four 6-3 teams lose and no other 5-4 team passes our run differential. There’s basically no way we will know until all the games are done and one of the Princeton guys in the back comes out with his (if,then) functions all running in his spreadsheet.

We didn’t need a spreadsheet. Another early crooked number allowed in a Bresnahan start put us behind the 8-ball, 4-0 in the 3rd. We never fought back here, our spirit was sapped a bit knowing we were likely out. Whitebread struck out 10 and we are out of the Cup of the Americas. It’s now time to study up and decide who will start this weekend and get the guys back in the right frame of mind.

Set Star: Joe Duncan (6-9)


Overall takeaways were very positive. To end up with a +8 run differential in such a tough group is excellent. Splits vs Miami, New York and Hartford were very solid. We can hold our heads high with how we've competed with some of the very best.

[Englishtide73]

Ok I thought I had it. I went to the global settings to add a tournament but I can only seem to add the league that I’m in. I created 2 leagues and I was in league 1 and that was the only league I could add. I couldn’t find league 2. So what am I missing to be able to add both leagues?

[dward1]

Originally Posted by Englishtide73

Ok I thought I had it. I went to the global settings to add a tournament but I can only seem to add the league that I’m in. I created 2 leagues and I was in league 1 and that was the only league I could add. I couldn’t find league 2. So what am I missing to be able to add both leagues?

under Tournament and Teams in a new tournament you can see Associated Leagues under League Configuration and then add new leagues

[dward1]

Regular Season Matchups
we won the season series 4-2
(6.3 R/G vs 6 R/G)

Madison were clearly the third best team in the league this year and we were clearly the second. They have this long history in the division, this will be their seventh time to make the USBL2 playoffs, tying Iowa and Rochester for most. Three times they've won it all, but have never won promotion.

They were third in runs for, 26 behind our total in second. They were led by Zach Craggs. Craggs led the league with 19 home runs and a .602 slugging...he destroys lefties which had me thinking Buchanan might not be a good option but then I looked team-wide and their OPS vs lefties is almost 40 points lower than vs righties. That's all I need: Buchanan is slotted in game two. Craggs slaughtered us in the season, going 13-25 with a 1458 OPS.


Their second most valuable player was catcher Ben Carroll. Showing you what a mess Kansas City is, they didn't offer the 22 year old catcher arbitration last year when they could have kept him cheap. Now he's put up 2.4 WAR for Madison. Carroll had a 1009 OPS vs us in the season.

RF Mitch Howser, a 21-year-old good looking rookie, had a 1073 OPS as well. Those are the 3 most dangerous spots, not to say the rest of the lineup is a cakewalk.

Josh St. John can mash lefties, for example. He's also a 2x silver slugger, a Rookie of the Year and a USBL2 Finals MVP.

Their bullpen was great, second best ERA in the league. Closer Frank Blanchard has a career 1.80 ERA and setup man Chris West has a 1.38 ERA this year after having a 11.57 ERA/2.88 WHIP last year.

Game 1 Matchup: Nick Monell (4.17 ERA, 1.30 WHIP in '63, 3.91/1.27 in 7 year career with club) vs Jared Farr (3.38 ERA, 1.18 WHIP in '63, 3.35 ERA/1.21 WHIP in 2 year career with club).

Game 2 Matchup: Felipe Ramirez (5.62 ERA, 1.53 WHIP in '63, 4.50 ERA, 1.36 WHIP in 3 year career with club) vs Ben Buchanan (3.27 ERA, 1.07 WHIP in '63 vs 3.19 ERA, 1.05 WHIP in 6 year career with club)


I feel that our offense is slightly better than their and so is our starting pitching and defense. Their bullpen is better but overall we are the better team. Over a longer series we'd be a big favorite, but in 3 games anything can happen. I've heard vegas has put us in at 60% odds to advance and that sounds about right. Win this series and the world is open, we might be in the big leagues next year and winning the Champions League in a month. Lose this series and the season is over.

Let's go, Buffalo.

[Englishtide73]

Originally Posted by dward1

under Tournament and Teams in a new tournament you can see Associated Leagues under League Configuration and then add new leagues

I think that's where I was at last night. is it a drop down box and the league you're in is there and the word ADD? if that's it I kept clicking enter on the ADD but it wouldn't do anything. I even tried typing and nothing was working. im hoping it's not what im thinking. lol

[dward1]

A juiced up Jared Farr took three deep breaths before stepping onto the mound as 16,000 maroon and white clad fans belted “Let’s Go Buffalo!” for 5 minutes waving their special maroon rally towels. He channeled it well, fanning the first two Lakers and delivering a scoreless first as the crowd just got louder.

How would the USBL2’s innings leader, Nick Monell, deal with big stage? He’s done it many times before, and showed it by inducing a Yates double play after Duncan and Peterson had singled.

He induced another in the 3rd, neither team had seriously threatened since those back-to-back singles in the first. It was 0-0.

But then that trio struck twice. Duncan-Peterson-Yates (and truly Stromgren also) has been devastating to the opposition all year and it continued into the playoffs. A Yates single in the 4th scored Duncan and then they would thrive again in 6th when after Duncan and Peterson reached, Yates hammered a double into left to score both.

It was all the Jared Farr show after that, the man set a season high in striketous with 9 and fired his first complete game of his Buffalo career on the biggest stage. Only the 3rd ever. 9 innings, 6 hits, 1 run, 0 walks, 9 striketous. Game 1 to Buffalo.


Player of the game: Jared Farr


One win away from the finals, one win away from global competition, one win away from the chance to make the USBL. All of our goals are still out there.

We didn't wait long to get going, a 2-out, 3-run bomb from Adam Stromgren in the first had us going, but this one wasn't going to be nearly as easy. Ben Buchanan departed in the 4th inning with the score 5-3, Nickels. Then it seemed no one stopped scoring,
bottom 4th: we get a run on a Burton home run. 6-3.
Top 5th: they get a run. 6-4.
Bottom 5th, we get a run. 7-4
Top 6th, they get a run. 7-5 and most dangerously Jorge Zamora tapped out. He'd thrown 57 pitches over 2 ineffective innings and we were into our shaky part of our pen in the 6th inning of a playoff game. If we lost, we'd be in danger tomorrow without Zamora and without a clear starter. But that's how players make their reputation. John Tucker, drifting since we tried to make him a starter, made his stamp on this season ending the run of runs with 2.2 shutout innings. Then recently emerging bullpen rock Rieger closed it out.


Player of the game:

In year 2, we are headed to the finals.

[dward1]

by Brian Brick for Buffalo Ball


So we get it. The series that we deserve, the two best teams going at it. Best of 7 games. Las Vegas Lights v Buffalo Nickels Do Buffalo deserve the title? The WBA fans among you say the team that earns it over 66 games is the true champion, we've seen how dramatic that can be with the latest Brooklyn-LA drama. But there's something about the playoffs, the guarantee of this late drama, man against man, best against best, you have to beat the other guy to lift the trophy. Even this year it felt a little odd seeing Brooklyn play Houston and Dallas at the end. No problem here, it's Las Vegas Lights vs our Buffalo Nickels.

If it was fair, Las Vegas would probably win. 18 runs better in the differential, 2 games better in the table. But it's not "fair", it's baseball.

It's the two best offensive teams, the Lights scored 11 more runs. It's the two best defensive teams, the Lights allowed 7 fewer runs. 3-3 was the season tally.

In the nature of the famous Guardian "Combined 11" for big soccer matches, I've got a "Combined 14" of 9 players on the field, a DH, 2 more starters and 2 relievers. We will put the best team on the field using only Lights and Buffalo players and see which team I use more of.


Buffalo players: 8
Lights players: 6

So according to your unbiased journos call, Buffalo might be the favorite. I'd say this is the biggest series as a Buffalo fan...ever, and my dad who has been there from the beginning in 2041 (he was at opening day), agrees.

"The relegation playoff in '57 against Richmond was more depressing than anything. This time it actually feels like we are building something, this is why we brought in Gerry Thomas."

there you go, I even went out and got a quote for ya...it's my own dad sure but this is true journalism. Buffalo heads to Vegas for Game 1.

My big question is who will start Game 3, we've already heard that Buchanan will start Game 2, even after his ineffective start vs Madison. There have been rumors that Josh Rieger could get the nod. Rieger has just 25.1 top level innings to his name but does have 21 starts in Portland the last two years with a 2.91 ERA, 0.94 WHIP. Vegas knows they've got 3 reliable starters. I'd go Vegas with a 60% chance...but don't take that to the RF casino please, if you do don't blame Brian Brick.

[dward1]

I've been in so many huge games, playing New York with the WBA title on the line, all kinds of Champions League winner takes all games, Cup finals, etc...but this was the first time I was nervous in a long time. Maybe since that first CL back in '52 vs Jacksonville. My team wasn't though. They were prepped and ready.

Game 1
The Lights looked like the nervous ones early. In the second inning a walk, an error, a wild pitch and a passed ball sandwiched around a couple singles got us out to a 3-0 lead. Farr was laboring, mightily and successfully through 4. Just 1 run over the 79 pitches and 7 baserunners. Then the Lights gave us more, a Lemings throwing error scored 2 more, we had a 4 run lead.

We were calm and making the plays, wriggling out of another jam with solid defense in the 5th. Nate Davis and Lemings hit solo bombs and the tying run reached in the 9th but Zamora slammed the door shut, finally.

We played solid, fundamental baseball and they didn’t. I really think those big games with a lot on the line in the Cup of the Americas helped our guys. The Lights took a while to get going on the big stage. It took a monster 4 hours in regulation but it's 1-0 good guys.

Player of the game: Victor Zavala (2-3, 2B, 2 BB)


Game 2

They came out a little more focused in Game 2. Quinn Reed took Buchanan deep to open the game and they weren’t making any of the mistakes they made in game 1. We tied it on a Duncan single in the 3rd but this looked like a game we’d have to win and not just wait for them to give us.

In the 5th, Buchanan served up three straight hits to open the inning and got pulled, they’d opened a 2-1 lead with no one out and we brought in Bresnahan and held our breath.

We got good Danny, he retired the next three without a run scoring. We got bad Danny in the 6th with a walk and a wild pitch but a great throw after catching a fly ball by Rodriguez turned into a double play and we moved to the 7th, 2-1 Lights.

We got vintage, early-20s Maple Leaf Danny in the 7th as he struck out the side.

Sergio Mejia, 15/16 on saves, came in in the 8th looking for a 2-inning save. After retiring Duncan, Peterson unloaded on a curve ball, blasting one deep through the cigarette smoke and pink neon lights in the right center lounge for a game-tying home run.

Without anyone catching a breath, Yates singled and then Mejia threw a wild pitch and the go-ahead run was on second. A visit tried to settle him down, with the blaring ad for the Bruno Mars Vegas residency playing for the 20th time at max volume. The soothing sounds of Uptown Funk must have calmed him as he retired Stromgren and Zavala. 2-2.

Bresnahan got his 10th out before departing for Jason Kuruc. Kuruc had given up no fewer than 3 devastating HRs during the season, we didn’t really believe in him a ton but Zamora was exhausted and Rieger we wanted to start game 3. No worries, two quick outs.

We went easily in the 9th and so did they. Extra innings in Sin City.

The speedy Weeden singled with 1 out in the bottom of the 10th and we made the call to put in the drooping and Red Bull fueled Zamora (our bullpen coach said he saw 2 empty cans and 4 tabs of ibuprofen next to his locker). Our metrics said he was in the Red Zone fatigue wise after throwing 100 pitches the past 3 days…but it’s Jorge Zamora. He's the man, he's our best.

He was in to face 2 righties, he struck out the first in Jason Lemings. On a 1-2 count vs their big threat McGill, Weeden took off and swiped 2nd. 23 steals, only caught twice. Now in scoring position to win the game. Ball 4 to McGill meant Zamora was out and Rieger in…Game 3 can come later, we need to win now.

Well Game 3 is coming now, Art Rivera lashed a single into right on the 2nd pitch and Weeden raced around third to win it. The series is even at a game apiece…we head back to Buffalo and Sahlen Park for the next three games.

Player of the game: Danny Bresnahan 3.1 scoreless IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 5 K

[dward1]

by Brian Brick for the Buffalo Ball


I saw Zamora warming up before the game, he could barely throw the ball base distance. It looked like me throwing a baseball. We all love Jorge and know we wouldn't be where we are without him, but he threw 57 pitches game 2 vs Madison, had a day off, and then threw 43 pitches vs Vegas in game one.

These were the highest-stress of pitches, long innings in crucial situations...he was throwing 25 pitches an innings. baserunners everywhere. To bring him in the 10th inning was malpractice, both for the team as he had nothing, and for him as it raised his risk of injury massively. He walked McGill and was lucky he didn't throw one across the plate...this was reckless managing. I hope he's fine and we get away with it.

[Englishtide73]

Originally Posted by dward1

under Tournament and Teams in a new tournament you can see Associated Leagues under League Configuration and then add new leagues

I finally figured out how to have the leagues intertwine in one universe. I’m thinking about going with an association cuz I wanna have everyone drawing from the same player pool. Unless that happens anyway without joining the association? Thanks for your help!