When addressing team needs, ....

[Clovidequano Dovatha]

Okay, let's try to stick more to the main questions raised in the original post here, please, if we can. And how I might be able to improve my teams, no matter if the players on those teams are historical or fictional, as well. Thank you for your input so far, though, in any case, everyone. CD out.

[Clovidequano Dovatha]

At the moment, as far as I can tell, the biggest needs that each of the teams I'm currently running with the use of human managers/GMs are as follows:

Archers could stand to upgrade the positions of catcher, shortstop, center field, and relief pitcher, at least.

Cardinals could stand to upgrade the positions of catcher, second base, left field, and starting pitcher.

Generals could stand to upgrade the positions of catcher, first base, left field, and starting pitcher.

Chroniclers could stand to upgrade the positions of second base, starting pitcher, and closer.

For the first two teams and/or the Archers' only current farm team, at least, several, if not many or most, of the players on them could still be fictional, but historical players have been entering the game since the 1870 first-year amateur December draft. I don't believe the two different overall leagues that the Generals and the Chroniclers are in currently include historical players in their draft processes, if they ever will, however.

I started the American Baseball Federation that the Archers are part of in 1870, so that the first amateur draft would allow random historical players to start being drafted prior to the1871 season. The original players drafted for MLB in which the Cardinals and seven other teams now play in were fictional, but the drafting of historical players began in that league following the 1876 season in the first amateur draft for first-year players.

To this particular point in time, I really don't think the various teams in either the North American Baseball Association or the Tea and Coffee Union have yet been able to draft any historical players, so any advice you all can provide here would be most appreciated by me, for sure. Thank you for your time and all, so far. CD out.

[CBeisbol]

Are you well?

[Clovidequano Dovatha]

What is that supposed to mean? Please clarify. CD out.

[CBeisbol]

Originally Posted by Clovidequano Dovatha

What is that supposed to mean? Please clarify. CD out.

Because you are...unique.

Not that that's bad.

But, your question as been answered in that it doesn't have an answer, but you're still asking it.

[NoOne]

Originally Posted by Clovidequano Dovatha

Well, free agency isn't a factor at this point, seeing as I have the reserve clause on, and it's still not even 1880 yet in that dynasty. I have Marty Marion able to play all the infield positions, and am even playing him in RF at times, to get him some experience at another position. I have several versatile players, but not many can play CF well, for instance, even considering the time period in question, I think, at present, speaking for my St. Louis Archers team in the ABF.

As for pitching, what should I typically avoid, perhaps? Also catcher is a potential area of need for two or three teams that I'm currently running in the relevant dynasty. When seeking to get players experience there who may not be very good or have ratings yet for the position, how would you likely go about it, if you had to, somehow?

Thank you for your time and all. Looking forwards to more responses here, in due time, if and whenever possible, of course. Please keep an eye on the dynasty forum for a potential new dynasty-related reports thread. One such thread may be created there very soon, if at all possible. CD out.

reserve cluase definitely allows you to stockpile talent. don't overdo it though... you only need enough to overcome most problems without sacrificing too many opportunity costs of what you can trade excess idle players for.

just keep enough to overcome injuries and still make playoffs, assumingn people heal for when it matters. if it's a weak team, i'd be selling any of that extra talent, especially anything approaching 30.

yeah, era will be a big deal and may skew some of what i said. The less power that exists, the less you care about it -- even in most time periods it's still the heaviest weight, even if reduced. i am not as strict about defensive prowess for my CF as SS and SS is less strict than C. this last one is more because of how crappy most catchers are at hitting. if they are anywhere near league average, that's a trash hitter, but somehow a good hitting C.

i'd probably favor offense over defense for CF if push comes to shove. This is a position i like to find a defensive / obp guy. they are cheaper and you need at least a couple in most contexts. Any CF i have with good power is almost certainly my future LF/RF by the end of his 20's due to degredation of defense at CF, so i plan for it.

defintely diversify players' defense... it's a lot easier with a MiL system. you have to sub players to get them experience.. do you have a ST? in spring training players gain defense experience at a faster rate. wihtout these things, all you can do is play them (check manual for tidbits on reserve roster effects)

If they have the ability to play various positions and no experience, it is a temporary problem. it probably won't tank a season on its own if you have to play a guy with little experience, initially. by end of season he'll be more than a bit experienced for when it really matters.

i'd still consider those players as flexible when making roster choices, even if it takes 80 games (just making that number up) to gain competent experience.

C -- if it isn't obvious, find a defensive wiz that can do "something" offensively... whether that is take a bunch of walks or hit for a decent average or maybe hit 20HR with all the rest of that being below average etc etc... you likely cannot find a total package... and if you do it's likely overpriced and likely to age in a matter of a season or two.

Pitching -- good luck, so many things to learn, so much luck involved - more so than hitters.

era may make this odd, and may not be as relevant in lower-velo time periods. Velocity is important. it covers up inadequacies elsewhere. when it drops, those once hidden inadequacies become very apparent.

start learning that dynamic -- how it impacts stuff rating. then, you can more easily recognize the future dumpster fires when they lose a few MPH on their velocity - use them while they are good, avoid the bad. the raw stuff ratings retain their value longer than velocity, in my experience. so, when you can determine those that have high stuff ratings, regardless of their velo, those guys have a higher probabiltity of lasting longer when aging sets in.

all of this is probability, not guarantees.. if era or something else is different in your league, you may need to shift it around a bit to fit.

as with C, SP need to be rotated out of your lineup starting in their early 30s. the better they are, the further they have to fall, the more likely they last slightly longer, etc etc...

depending on a ~35+ SP retaining their ability even for just the current season in progress is a total crapshoot -- less so if it is less dependent on velocity. in a time period of very low velocity, this may not be relevant whatsoever, because a drop from 90 to 85 isn't the same as 95 to 90 in magnitude of effect, but still has a similar effect. But, ratings start dropping like crazy after ~35.

if my better SP are all 30-32+, i'm looking to space out that insipient catastrophe when they all blow a tire. i'll lose 1-3 years of quality returns in order to avoid losing all three at once.

5 SP - no other position has 5 players starting. you need to rotate through these guys before they break down. even elite pitchers only have ~10 years of quality returns for their cost, before you start paying elevated costs for previous season's stats and a player degrading before your eyes.

never pay for yesterday.

[Clovidequano Dovatha]

Spring Training, yes, I have it in all my major leagues. The ABF in the related dynasty is now going to expand its minor league system for the 1878 season after the first of the year.

As of the current time, in the Majors, at least for the ABF, the standard rotation size is three. That will change later, of course, but for now, it's three starters. Several of my players are older, and approaching 30, if not already at or over it. However, a number of them are quite popular, at least, so I don't want to get rid of them if I don't have to, for attendance reasons, among other things. Some I would like to see remain Archers lifers as much as possible, at least as players.

Yet, I need new blood in the mix for several teams, including the Archers. And Jim Bottomley, among others, needs more lineup support, at least, for them. More information about the Archers and their organization has been, and will continue to be, posted in my "Who would you draft?" thread.

In that thread, I will discuss the four teams in the dynasty that I currently have human managers running in as many leagues, and their likely needs and all in the soon-to-be-conducted first-year amateur drafts. Please feel free to check it out, and comment, if you so choose, whenever you like and can. Thank you for your time and attention and all here and elsewhere, everyone. CD out.

[NoOne]

attendance stays high with a high win-percentage, as it does in real life. no worries there.

fewr pitchers, longer time between cycling them out.. every 3-4 years you should be looking to get a younger one (from wherever, doesn't matter) and hopefully get something in return when you trade the oldest one. the more you delay it, the more certainly you face a rebuild.

they key is to rotate what you can, when the opportunity arises. that allows you to pay elsewhere efficiently.

stockpiling talent with reserve clause can lead to very high win percentages every year. you should be able to find ways to accumulate an abundance of talent under those settings.

[Clovidequano Dovatha]

I'd like to see your thoughts in my draft-related thread, please, if I may, NoOne. And other people's thoughts as well, too, come to think of it. Thanks for your advice and all earlier. CD out.