Creating Major Junior Baseball With Feeder Leagues?

[Charlie Hough]

Do minor league teams sign undrafted feeder league free agents to help fill out their rosters? Or would they have to be signed by a major league team first and then assigned to the minors?

I'm interested in constructing a league with a major junior baseball system in Canada, similar to the major junior hockey system that exists in real life. Unfortunately, feeder leagues cannot function in the way that major junior and college hockey teams do. In both cases, players can be drafted once they reach 18, but they can choose to keep playing at the collegiate level or they can be assigned to continue playing for their junior team until they reach the age limit or are ready for the NHL. In the case of junior players, they can even attend pre-season training camps and be returned to their junior teams. Players don't lose their collegiate or junior eligibility or playing time by being drafted.

But none of this is possible in OOTP. So it seems like my only option would be to create a feeder league to represent a national system of major junior baseball in Canada. But that's what leads to my question.

I'd have to set a fixed age for players to finish their feeder league career, and that number would need to be 18 or maybe 20. Players could be created and begin playing at the age of 16, much as they do in junior hockey. Once they reach the age limit, they'll be drafted or go into free agency. So what happens if they're undrafted and a major league team doesn't sign them? Can a minor league team sign them? Or do they disappear or retire after going unsigned?

Is there anything I'm missing or that I should consider in trying to construct a junior system that would feed talent to the majors and minors? Are there any tricks I could use to get my system closer to the real life major junior hockey system than I think is possible? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[shawa666]

Originally Posted by Charlie Hough

Do minor league teams sign undrafted feeder league free agents to help fill out their rosters? Or would they have to be signed by a major league team first and then assigned to the minors?

I'm interested in constructing a league with a major junior baseball system in Canada, similar to the major junior hockey system that exists in real life. Unfortunately, feeder leagues cannot function in the way that major junior and college hockey teams do. In both cases, players can be drafted once they reach 18, but they can choose to keep playing at the collegiate level or they can be assigned to continue playing for their junior team until they reach the age limit or are ready for the NHL. In the case of junior players, they can even attend pre-season training camps and be returned to their junior teams. Players don't lose their collegiate or junior eligibility or playing time by being drafted.

But none of this is possible in OOTP. So it seems like my only option would be to create a feeder league to represent a national system of major junior baseball in Canada. But that's what leads to my question.

I'd have to set a fixed age for players to finish their feeder league career, and that number would need to be 18 or maybe 20. Players could be created and begin playing at the age of 16, much as they do in junior hockey. Once they reach the age limit, they'll be drafted or go into free agency. So what happens if they're undrafted and a major league team doesn't sign them? Can a minor league team sign them? Or do they disappear or retire after going unsigned?

Is there anything I'm missing or that I should consider in trying to construct a junior system that would feed talent to the majors and minors? Are there any tricks I could use to get my system closer to the real life major junior hockey system than I think is possible? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

As any other draft eligible player, if they go undrafted, they're free agents.

[Charlie Hough]

Originally Posted by shawa666

As any other draft eligible player, if they go undrafted, they're free agents.

Yes, I had read that from the manual. But the question is whether minor league clubs can and will sign them or if only major league clubs can sign them. In real life a minor league team can sign a player if he is undrafted or a minor league free agent who is unsigned by a major league club. But my guess is that OOTP does not replicate this rare but existing minor league free agency in real life.

[Righty Groove]

In my experience, only unaffiliated minor league teams do sign free-agents. Specially if you have finances turned on in this league.

However, I don't see how you would set an age limit for this Major Junior league. Can you?

[Cinnamon J. Scudworth]

Originally Posted by Charlie Hough

Yes, I had read that from the manual. But the question is whether minor league clubs can and will sign them or if only major league clubs can sign them. In real life a minor league team can sign a player if he is undrafted or a minor league free agent who is unsigned by a major league club. But my guess is that OOTP does not replicate this rare but existing minor league free agency in real life.

I don't quite understand the practical distinction you are making. In OOTP, these free agents can be signed to minor league contracts. In a player's history, I've seen lines for either "signed a minor league contract with <major league team name>" or "signed a 1-year minor league contract with <minor league team name>."

[Charlie Hough]

Originally Posted by Cinnamon J. Scudworth

I don't quite understand the practical distinction you are making. In OOTP, these free agents can be signed to minor league contracts. In a player's history, I've seen lines for either "signed a minor league contract with <major league team name>" or "signed a 1-year minor league contract with <minor league team name>."

The distinction is exactly as you described. I almost always play historical leagues with no minors, so I had no idea whether minor league teams can sign free agents. But, as Righty Groove pointed out, I suspect that only unaffiliated minor league teams can sign free agents. And this is completely unrealistic, because minor league teams sign unattached free agents for veteran leadership or depth in real life.

[Righty Groove]

Originally Posted by Charlie Hough

The distinction is exactly as you described. I almost always play historical leagues with no minors, so I had no idea whether minor league teams can sign free agents. But, as Righty Groove pointed out, I suspect that only unaffiliated minor league teams can sign free agents. And this is completely unrealistic, because minor league teams sign unattached free agents for veteran leadership or depth in real life.

I'm not 100% sure, but I'm quite sure of that.

I have never seen an affiliated team sign a free agent. Unaffiliated, however, they do quite well in that regard. With or without financials.

[Cinnamon J. Scudworth]

Originally Posted by Charlie Hough

The distinction is exactly as you described. I almost always play historical leagues with no minors, so I had no idea whether minor league teams can sign free agents. But, as Righty Groove pointed out, I suspect that only unaffiliated minor league teams can sign free agents. And this is completely unrealistic, because minor league teams sign unattached free agents for veteran leadership or depth in real life.

In the situation I described, the minor league team was affiliated. So it seems to happen.

Edit: My confusion about your question came because I've always used minor leagues, and I've always seen the AI teams sign players to fill out their minor league rosters, but I've never noticed whether OOTP records the transaction as being done at the organizational level or the affiliate level -- it seemed sort of irrelevant in a gameplay sense. But it seems that they are recorded as signings at the affiliate level.

[shawa666]

Originally Posted by Cinnamon J. Scudworth

In the situation I described, the minor league team was affiliated. So it seems to happen.

Edit: My confusion about your question came because I've always used minor leagues, and I've always seen the AI teams sign players to fill out their minor league rosters, but I've never noticed whether OOTP records the transaction as being done at the organizational level or the affiliate level -- it seemed sort of irrelevant in a gameplay sense. But it seems that they are recorded as signings at the affiliate level.

Because OOTP doesn't have have the feature of multiple teams having rights over a player, Affiliated minors are just an extension of the main team's roster. Therefore, every player on an affiliated team's roster de facto is owned by it's parent. So, If a player signs a minor league contract with an affiliated team, it really signs with the parent club.