Some advice?

[Huh123]

Hi there, I just recently put iootp 12 on my ipad and so far I'm loving it. However, I'm having some trouble. As GM, I have done very well in my humble opinion. I've traded players before they start demanding big contracts (or just let them walk to grab draft picks for the type A/B players) and lock up young guys with long-term deals throughout their primes. Last season my team had a lineup of whose weakest non-pitcher batter had an OBP somewhere in the mid to low .300 (I believe .330), where my top players all had OPS+ of 150 or higher. My pitching was also stuffed with quality guys, with a legit 75 overall ace and several other high-calibur players with ERAs of 3.3 or lower. With the exception of one outfielder (Adam Dunn, who was ridiculous at the plate), I had guys who defensively ranged from average/slightly above average to outstanding 70+ ratings. I hate to sound like I'm bragging, but I put together what should be a dominate team all three or four seasons I've played.

So what's the problem? On the field, my guys are well below average. I've tried to sim most games as I enjoy the team building more than playing all 162 games, although I do play some important series and most of the playoff games. In four seasons, I have a just slightly above .500 record and have only made the playoffs once (where I lost in the second round of a good series to the Cubs/Chicago (N) ). Only one year did I break 85 wins, with 91, and I missed playoffs by 7 games! (Which I really can't blame my team for as much, although they did slump late in the playoff race.) This is despite having some top quality players, ranking at the top if not the top team in producing runs and having a well above average pitching/defensive team. Also note that injuries, while they have hit my teams, have not been on the scale of season-killing and my backups have done fairly decent.

Now, I know 4 seasons is a really small sample size and slumps and such happen in baseball. I'm also not claiming this is 100% the game's fault: It could very well be something wrong I'm doing. If anyone could give me some advice or tips or just explain to me why I'm getting hammered I would be very grateful. I could give my lineup/rotation or any other more in-depth stats if anyone was interested in helping.

In short, thanks to anyone who just read that mountain of text. I'm completely hooked to this game as of late and love playing games where I can build teams (I'm a huge stathead). I just really want to figure out what I'm doing wrong so I can enjoy this game more and not get taken to the cleaners year in and year out.

[magicspeedo]

Originally Posted by Huh123

Hi there, I just recently put iootp 12 on my ipad and so far I'm loving it. However, I'm having some trouble. As GM, I have done very well in my humble opinion. I've traded players before they start demanding big contracts (or just let them walk to grab draft picks for the type A/B players) and lock up young guys with long-term deals throughout their primes. Last season my team had a lineup of whose weakest non-pitcher batter had an OBP somewhere in the mid to low .300 (I believe .330), where my top players all had OPS+ of 150 or higher. My pitching was also stuffed with quality guys, with a legit 75 overall ace and several other high-calibur players with ERAs of 3.3 or lower. With the exception of one outfielder (Adam Dunn, who was ridiculous at the plate), I had guys who defensively ranged from average/slightly above average to outstanding 70+ ratings. I hate to sound like I'm bragging, but I put together what should be a dominate team all three or four seasons I've played.

So what's the problem? On the field, my guys are well below average. I've tried to sim most games as I enjoy the team building more than playing all 162 games, although I do play some important series and most of the playoff games. In four seasons, I have a just slightly above .500 record and have only made the playoffs once (where I lost in the second round of a good series to the Cubs/Chicago (N) ). Only one year did I break 85 wins, with 91, and I missed playoffs by 7 games! (Which I really can't blame my team for as much, although they did slump late in the playoff race.) This is despite having some top quality players, ranking at the top if not the top team in producing runs and having a well above average pitching/defensive team. Also note that injuries, while they have hit my teams, have not been on the scale of season-killing and my backups have done fairly decent.

Now, I know 4 seasons is a really small sample size and slumps and such happen in baseball. I'm also not claiming this is 100% the game's fault: It could very well be something wrong I'm doing. If anyone could give me some advice or tips or just explain to me why I'm getting hammered I would be very grateful. I could give my lineup/rotation or any other more in-depth stats if anyone was interested in helping.

In short, thanks to anyone who just read that mountain of text. I'm completely hooked to this game as of late and love playing games where I can build teams (I'm a huge stathead). I just really want to figure out what I'm doing wrong so I can enjoy this game more and not get taken to the cleaners year in and year out.

It would help if you post ur line up and rotation/bullpen. Maybe just screen shots so you don't have to type for hours and hours...

and a 75 overall isn't a good enough ace to be dominant, unless you have 5 75 overall guys in ur rotation. A dominant ace would be 80/80 as it's the one position you cant really skim on. 75/80 overall would be a #2 or #3 guy in a dominant rotation.

[phillupi]

Do you set the team lineups, rotation and the like or let computer set up all? Maybe you need to check the strategy for your team and how quick you pull or not pull starters. Just some suggestions. Sounds like your team is very good. Check lefty and righty splits.


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[Huh123]

Some (hopefully) quick notes:
*Gonzales has only pitched 1.2 (terrible) inning this season, thus leading to his ridiculously inflated ERA. Betancourt and McClellan are just having bad seasons, although my McCellan has an overall rank of 57. Hopefully Betancourt will be replaced by one of my many young relievers developing in the minors, but I really don't see him or his replacement having a huge effect on the team, positive or negative.
*Grienke, my ace, is a 79. Haren is 76. Lee is a 67 and Chatwood is a 65 with a 70 potential (He's only 25 years old).
*Headley just came off the DL, ditto for Figgins.
*Ryan and Hill are both in a season-long slump and are ranked 42 and 62 respectively. They are both terrific fielders, ranking 78 at SS and 86 at 2B respectively, so they at least help out there.
*I do let the AI set my team roster/lineups/rotations/etc., just because that level of micromanagement can get a tedious at times, especially with minor injuries and whatnot. Sometimes I force some younger guys into the lineup as subs or injury replacements if I feel like I want them to develop, but I usually trade guys to open up spots in that case.
*I'm actually doing surprisingly well early this season. I'm at 32 - 27 and I'm only 2 1/2 out of 1st.

[Huh123]

Some (hopefully) quick notes:
*Gonzales has only pitched 1.2 (terrible) inning this season, thus leading to his ridiculously inflated ERA. Betancourt and McClellan are just having bad seasons, although my McCellan has an overall rank of 57. Hopefully Betancourt will be replaced by one of my many young relievers developing in the minors, but I really don't see him or his replacement having a huge effect on the team, positive or negative.
*Grienke, my ace, is a 79. Haren is 76. Lee is a 67 and Chatwood is a 65 with a 70 potential (He's only 25 years old).
*Headley just came off the DL, ditto for Figgins.
*Ryan and Hill are both in a season-long slump and are ranked 42 and 62 respectively. They are both terrific fielders, ranking 78 at SS and 86 at 2B respectively, so they at least help out there.
*I do let the AI set my team roster/lineups/rotations/etc., just because that level of micromanagement can get a tedious at times, especially with minor injuries and whatnot. Sometimes I force some younger guys into the lineup as subs or injury replacements if I feel like I want them to develop, but I usually trade guys to open up spots in that case.
*I'm actually doing surprisingly well early this season. I'm at 32 - 27 and I'm only 2 1/2 out of 1st.

[Huh123]

Some (hopefully) quick notes:
*Gonzales has only pitched 1.2 (terrible) inning this season, thus leading to his ridiculously inflated ERA. Betancourt and McClellan are just having bad seasons, although my McCellan has an overall rank of 57. Hopefully Betancourt will be replaced by one of my many young relievers developing in the minors, but I really don't see him or his replacement having a huge effect on the team, positive or negative.
*Grienke, my ace, is a 79. Haren is 76. Lee is a 67 and Chatwood is a 65 with a 70 potential (He's only 25 years old).
*Headley just came off the DL, ditto for Figgins.
*Ryan and Hill are both in a season-long slump and are ranked 42 and 62 respectively. They are both terrific fielders, ranking 78 at SS and 86 at 2B respectively, so they at least help out there.
*I do let the AI set my team roster/lineups/rotations/etc., just because that level of micromanagement can get a tedious at times, especially with minor injuries and whatnot. Sometimes I force some younger guys into the lineup as subs or injury replacements if I feel like I want them to develop, but I usually trade guys to open up spots in that case.
*I'm actually doing surprisingly well early this season. I'm at 32 - 27 and I'm only 2 1/2 out of 1st. I'm afraid that my team will falter like they did the past several seasons.
*Sorry the pictures are flipped, I tried to fix them on my iPad but it didn't work for whatever reason.

[Disco Dog 13]

Power seems to be better than the standard defence approach - I've been getting 10 -15 runs on a regular basis and must have got 20+ at least 4 times a season if not more

I have gone for Power over contact and it's worked for me so far anyway

Like you I get rid of players once they want too much money as the trade picks come in handy

[Disco Dog 13]

Uploaded the pic via Tapatalk and now I can't edit my post ?!?

Wanted to add that I haven't mucked about too much with the strategy settings

Stealing bases is at about 60%
Sacrifice Bunting at 40%
No changes to the Pitching, Defense or Substitutions options at all

I think the timing of when to either bring in someone or more importantly when to get rid is key

I had Kendrys Morales as my DH for 2 years. He hit 80 HRs and 250 RBIs but wanted a lot to stay on for another few years. Some how I manged to bring in Prince Fielder on deadline day so Morales was thanked and moved on. In the 3 years I had Fielder as DH (during the entire 5 years I had Eric Hosmer as my 1B) he hit 140 HRs, 250 RBIs ... again I got rid of him when I realised that $23.7M a season was alot for someone soon to be entering their mid thirties
Got shot of Prince and Hosmer and now have Dan Foster (2013 trade) who has 19 Power
Used this approach for Iain Kinsler, CC Sabathia, Cespedes & Gardner to name but a few ... 2 good years then trade if they are reaching a certain age

My batting lineup now shows the following

(1) Con 12 Pow 16
(2) Con 14 Pow 9
(3) Con 20 Pow 19
(4) Con 17 Pow 18
(5) Con 18 Pow 17
(6) Con 15 Pow 19
(7) Con 15 Pow 15
(8) Con 14 Pow 18
(9) Con 11 Pow 15

For the last 2 season whoever has batted at 3, 4 and 5 have got 40+ HRS with the leadoff, 2 6, and 7 getting 20 - 25 HRs. Even 8 & ( have managed to get at least 15 !

Fielding positions are

C - 14
1B - 14
2B - 12
SS - 13
3B - 15
RF - 16
CF - 16
LF - 17

I played Mike Trout out of position in the first season (had Cespedes and Harper to also fit into the team) and he made quite a few errors but what this enabled me to do was within 2 years he was at 20/20 for all 3 Outfield positions .. did the same for Bryce Harper too

Decided (a bit accidently if I'm honest) that sacrificing the first season to ensure I would be much stronger in the second worked for me.

Pitching I've found is the easiest to get right as the relievers are available for some silly offers - I guess nobody is sure if the 35 year old can have another good season. I went for olders guys in the first season (Nathan, Wheeler, Saito etc and some of the other over 35s). The drafts allow you to get strong relievers who will be a force to be reckoned with within a few years .. sometimes even sooner

I've now got 3 of my SPs performing as MRs as I can't fit them into the rotation.

Again as soon as rating and performance slump then get rid of them
Won the WS with Kershaw then traded him for 2 prospects who will fill his shoes by the end of the season

As soon as I have realsed that I've got someone earning quite a bit but stuck in the Minors then I've looked to trade them ASAP

I haven't had much money for Free Agents so not sure whether this is a good route to take. I traded Michale Pineda when he was no longer performing at a high enough level to justify his $13.5M contract. a year and a half later and he's a FA and I sign him up for $4.6M a year for 3 years .... and his ratings have improved

I started as the Yankees but by the beginning of the 2014 season I didn't have a single player who was on the roster when the game starts in 2012
Total rebuild in 2 years

[magicspeedo]

Huh123 I couldn't see your pictures, not sure why or if I'm the only one.

Anyway, wanted to say in response to discodog, I've had plenty of success with pure contact hitters over power.

It's all about how you set up your strategy. Are you taking advantage of your base runners? Leaving your starters in too long or not letting them work their way out of jams?

I have built plenty of teams that win 5 world series in a row purely by simulating. It's all about your starting rotation. If you have the best 5 starters in baseball, you can win with any strategy.

I have yet to win 6 in a row, thats my next goal. My current team might be able to do it, I have 5 of the top 8 SP, all under the age of 28 and fully developed (My starters ERA last season were all under 3.2 with 2 guys in the 2's). My entire outfield has at least 95 for their position ratings (including harper at RF and choice at LF) and they all are 5/5 stars. My entire infield is at least 4 1/2 star, all with 95 or above at their positions, including Profar at 3B because he's got a cannon for an arm. The kicker is they are all under 27 at this point and most are signed for at least another 2 years after my current season.

That's another trick, when your players get to their last years of arbitration you can sign them for 2 year contracts worth about 12M. If they ask for 12.5M you can usually get them for 12.3M for 2 years. BUT YOU HAVE TO SIGN THEM BEFORE ARBITRATION RUNS OUT. If you let their arbitration run out they will usually ask for DOUBLE that amount. This gives you an extra 2 years with everyone. It also gives you more time to find a replacement to trade for.

Also, I don't draft MR's unless they have 3 pitches or have potential to be 5 star closers. Any pitcher with 3 pitches can turn into a starter.

[Disco Dog 13]

I only ever used the 1-5 stars rating for Actual and Potential Rating, plus 1-20 for the Other Player Ratings

I've changed to the 1-100 scale and its amazing to see how guys you though were at a certain point (Starter or maybe very near to being promoted to the Major) are actually quite a bit deiiferent

Does the numbers rather than stars lead to a better ratings scale then ?

(apologies for going a bit off topic but this is my "some advice?" question please )

[magicspeedo]

Originally Posted by Disco Dog 13

I only ever used the 1-5 stars rating for Actual and Potential Rating, plus 1-20 for the Other Player Ratings

I've changed to the 1-100 scale and its amazing to see how guys you though were at a certain point (Starter or maybe very near to being promoted to the Major) are actually quite a bit deiiferent

Does the numbers rather than stars lead to a better ratings scale then ?

(apologies for going a bit off topic but this is my "some advice?" question please )

I use 1-100 for the fielding/pitching/batting ratings, but I use stars to determine quality. Basically it looks like the stars ratings and 20-80 ratings determine potential and current ability. From there it looks like the best players at each position are bumped up to 5/5 stars or near 80/80 potential ratings. If you notice, there always seem to be 2 catchers (no more not less) with 5/5 stars and similar number ratings. That also takes into consideration how they have played the last few years.

[nolushhere]

Originally Posted by Disco Dog 13

Uploaded the pic via Tapatalk and now I
I started as the Yankees but by the beginning of the 2014 season I didn't have a single player who was on the roster when the game starts in 2012
Total rebuild in 2 years

can I ask how you traded arod and jeter, cause they say they veto the trade to me everytime.

[Disco Dog 13]

Did the following deals ...

Mark Teixeira & 2 prospects traded for Eric Hosmer & a prospect
Robinson Cano traded for Iain Kinsler & a prospect
Nick Swisher traded for Mike Trout
Curtis Granderson + 2 Minor League guys traded for Bryce Harper
Hiroki Kuroda traded for Kendrys Morales
Phil Hughes, Ivan Nova & Andruw Jones traded for Madison Bumgarner, Melky Cabrera & a prospect
Joba Chamberlain & prospect traded for Mike Montgomery, Greg Holland & a prosepct
David Robertson traded for Jonny Venters

Cano was the only player I kept for the first season

Can't locate Russell Martin so not sure what I got for him but I ended up with both Johnny Montell & Carlos Santana so guess he must have been a part of one of those trade

Released
Derek Jeter Nov 2012
Alex Rodriguez Nov 2012
CC Sabathia April 2015
Michael Pineda April 2015 (re-signed Dec 2016)

(Had to do this as I was WAY over budget and this was the only way that I could sign any contract extensions. Jeter and A-Rod were demoted to the Minors when I started the game whilst Sabathia & Pineda were in my Rotation for 2 years)
Pineda & CC were the only guys from 2012 who made it to 2015 with my team

Brett Gardner, Rafael Soriano became free agents

Complete overhaul of the team within 3 years (not 2 as I originally thought)

[phillupi]

Well how you doing with the new Yankees and does your payroll still go up even though you are spending less?


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[Disco Dog 13]

Originally Posted by phillupi

Well how you doing with the new Yankees

Have won 2 WS in the last 3 years

Originally Posted by phillupi

and does your payroll still go up even though you are spending less?

Well not spending less as such - payroll is $186M but sure that'll increase when I trade some players later in the season. Plus I've got about 3 players who have Arbitration years so that'll kick it up for next season

On a seperate note my Fan Interest has gone from 100 to 56 within a few months of the post season as I had to trade a lot of the players that were taking me about $100M over payroll

Somehow I managed to bring in Puyols when my Interest was at 100 already ... when I traded him a few days for 3 prospects it dropped to the low 90s or maybe even high 80s !!

Still .... I can't get fired can I
Plus I'm sure once the winning recommences those numbers will jump anyway

Great game this

[phillupi]

Nice update. Thanks. Interested to know what the high priced players were paid after you cut them and someone else picked them up.


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[nolushhere]

Originally Posted by Disco Dog 13

Did the following deals ...

Mark Teixeira & 2 prospects traded for Eric Hosmer & a prospect
Robinson Cano traded for Iain Kinsler & a prospect
Nick Swisher traded for Mike Trout
Curtis Granderson + 2 Minor League guys traded for Bryce Harper
Hiroki Kuroda traded for Kendrys Morales
Phil Hughes, Ivan Nova & Andruw Jones traded for Madison Bumgarner, Melky Cabrera & a prospect
Joba Chamberlain & prospect traded for Mike Montgomery, Greg Holland & a prosepct
David Robertson traded for Jonny Venters

Cano was the only player I kept for the first season

Can't locate Russell Martin so not sure what I got for him but I ended up with both Johnny Montell & Carlos Santana so guess he must have been a part of one of those trade

Released
Derek Jeter Nov 2012
Alex Rodriguez Nov 2012
CC Sabathia April 2015
Michael Pineda April 2015 (re-signed Dec 2016)

(Had to do this as I was WAY over budget and this was the only way that I could sign any contract extensions. Jeter and A-Rod were demoted to the Minors when I started the game whilst Sabathia & Pineda were in my Rotation for 2 years)
Pineda & CC were the only guys from 2012 who made it to 2015 with my team

Brett Gardner, Rafael Soriano became free agents

Complete overhaul of the team within 3 years (not 2 as I originally thought)

did you start harper and trout, reason I ask is because their ratings are really not good at the start, still need some developing from what I see.

I already did some trades to get cabrera, trout, montero.

I might start over based on some of your trades not sure yet.

I know I signed a lot of guys to minor league deals at the start, and oswalt for my rotation.

And I used some of those minor league deals to get some of those other deals to go through. Kind of a cheat I guess if you ask me, but hey, the iphone doesnt do force trade, so it is what it is.

[Disco Dog 13]

Originally Posted by phillupi

Nice update. Thanks. Interested to know what the high priced players were paid after you cut them and someone else picked them up.


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Jeter signed for the Reds for $1.2M for 1 year
A-Rod signed for the Astros for $20.3M over 2 years
CC signed for the Rockies for $5.8M for 1 year
Pineda signed for the Pirates for $2.6M for 1 year

[Disco Dog 13]

Originally Posted by nolushhere

did you start harper and trout, reason I ask is because their ratings are really not good at the start, still need some developing from what I see.

I already did some trades to get cabrera, trout, montero.

I might start over based on some of your trades not sure yet.

I know I signed a lot of guys to minor league deals at the start, and oswalt for my rotation.

And I used some of those minor league deals to get some of those other deals to go through. Kind of a cheat I guess if you ask me, but hey, the iphone doesnt do force trade, so it is what it is.

I started Trout immediately but used Harper in and out for first season but an every day starter from 2013

[nolushhere]

how did trout do if you dont mind.

I just traded teixera for three prospects, then traded two of them and betances for ian kennedy.

Did you keep baneulos or betances and how did they do if you did.