Things I've learned about myself while playing OOTP

[David Watts]

1. I despise free agency. Thank goodness Markus added the reserve clause to OOTP. I like dynasties. I like seeing guys play their entire careers with one team. I don't like seeing guys reach a certain age and then play for a different team every year. Especially relief pitchers.

2. I'm a home run snob. I like home runs to mean something. Think 1974-76. I want team totals to be somewhere in the 60-160 range.

3. I'm not a fan of modern day closers. I like a 5 man bullpen with a stopper instead of a closer. Oh and I like pitchers to pitch complete games.

Oh and I have too much time on my hands.

[Bluenoser]

Small world

Financials I can live with or without, but usually without. Like you, I like guys to play with 1 team for most of their career.

I like the top HR hitters to be in the low to mid 30's. I am a big fan of stolen bases though, and like to see league leaders in the 70 - 90 range.

Same same - I most often go with 4 man rotations, high stamina with relievers and closer usage to rarely. Love to see CG's.

[The Game]

I agree with both of you. I like playing with strategy & finances of the 70's when you ha d a 4 man rotation, 30 HR is tops in the league and guys get to 60 SB. I do like closers but hate every guy in between the SP and the CL. I also like CL to go 2 innings vs 1. That's the thing I love about the customization of OOTP you can play 2 different styles in a modern league. In my EBL vs MLB league MLB tends to still put up modern #'s in 2016 while in my EBL with 1986 strategy my 10/10/10 guy is hitting. 286 13 HR 34 RBI and I am happy with that. My team is hitting .261 (3rd overall) while the Tigers in MLB are hitting .278 leading MLB. I edit the contracts of most of my teams stars so they play their entire career with the team they cam in with. Derek Jeter has played with 5 teams since 1999. A-Roid 6. Andrew McCutcheon signed a 7 yr deal with PIT that should keep him there til he retires.

[TribeFanInNC]

Nice topic. For me...

1) I like the journey, not the destination. I kinda already knew this, but it is magnified in my OOTP playing. I'm the classic "spend all summer with intricate league setups to play a season and a half" OOTP player. I'm also perfectly fine turning a "feature, not a bug" into an in-game story. I could care less about the results coming from the "feature", I like the story better.

2) I like the hometown hero angle, not unlike current Joe Mauer. My leagues all tend to revolve around playing for the community, or the community rallying around a hometown captain or the like. A little more old fashioned, where your town or company or whatever would just travel down play the next town or company or whatever. I also once started to setup a league with current players where they disbanded MLB and just collectively formed teams around their hometown (which I of course never really even got off the ground). Yada, yada...

[Bluenoser]

Originally Posted by TribeFanInNC

Nice topic. For me...

1) I like the journey, not the destination. I kinda already knew this, but it is magnified in my OOTP playing. I'm the classic "spend all summer with intricate league setups to play a season and a half" OOTP player. I'm also perfectly fine turning a "feature, not a bug" into an in-game story. I could care less about the results coming from the "feature", I like the story better.

2) I like the hometown hero angle, not unlike current Joe Mauer. My leagues all tend to revolve around playing for the community, or the community rallying around a hometown captain or the like. A little more old fashioned, where your town or company or whatever would just travel down play the next town or company or whatever. I also once started to setup a league with current players where they disbanded MLB and just collectively formed teams around their hometown (which I of course never really even got off the ground). Yada, yada...

Same here mostly - when I get an idea for a league I spend a couple days just writing everything down in a note pad before I even open OOTP. Then I'll spend the better part of a day getting every little nuance just right. Uniforms/logos take the most time. I like team names to make a bit of sense, something related to the area they are from. Could be a mining community, or maybe it's famous for a specific bird or other animal that's rare. I do spend quite a bit of time playing a league once setup though. Usually 75 - 150 seasons.

[TribeFanInNC]

Originally Posted by Bluenoser

Same here mostly - when I get an idea for a league I spend a couple days just writing everything down in a note pad before I even open OOTP. Then I'll spend the better part of a day getting every little nuance just right. Uniforms/logos take the most time. I like team names to make a bit of sense, something related to the area they are from. Could be a mining community, or maybe it's famous for a specific bird or other animal that's rare.

Yep, I do a lot of that too, especially the naming. Sometimes it makes it tough to find/make a good logo/uni to match a unique name.

[The Game]

Originally Posted by Bluenoser

Same here mostly - when I get an idea for a league I spend a couple days just writing everything down in a note pad before I even open OOTP. Then I'll spend the better part of a day getting every little nuance just right. Uniforms/logos take the most time. I like team names to make a bit of sense, something related to the area they are from. Could be a mining community, or maybe it's famous for a specific bird or other animal that's rare. I do spend quite a bit of time playing a league once setup though. Usually 75 - 150 seasons.

Thats why I love the uniform makers. Without them I doubt OOTP would be as much fun. I have uniforms for all my teams, sometimes too many uniforms for on team. I tired to make all my ABF team names unique to the city/area they play. Chicago Fire, New York Knights, Atlanta Rebels, Las Vegas Aces, etc. My EBL is based off of MLB and their are no Parrots or Cougars on Endor.
My IBL - Illinois Baseball League also has names that are unique for the city the teams play in.
Every January 1st I change some of the teams uniforms in my main league for MLB & EBL teams. Sometimes just a cap sometimes an alt uniform.
I have yet to get to 20 seasons for any league except historical MLB. I am in 1931 for that.

[Bluenoser]

Originally Posted by The Game

That's why I love the uniform makers. Without them I doubt OOTP would be as much fun. I have uniforms for all my teams, sometimes too many uniforms for on team. I tired to make all my ABF team names unique to the city/area they play. Chicago Fire, New York Knights, Atlanta Rebels, Las Vegas Aces, etc. My EBL is based off of MLB and their are no Parrots or Cougars on Endor.
My IBL - Illinois Baseball League also has names that are unique for the city the teams play in.
Every January 1st I change some of the teams uniforms in my main league for MLB & EBL teams. Sometimes just a cap sometimes an alt uniform.
I have yet to get to 20 seasons for any league except historical MLB. I am in 1931 for that.

101% agree with you.

[David Watts]

Originally Posted by The Game

Thats why I love the uniform makers. Without them I doubt OOTP would be as much fun. I have uniforms for all my teams, sometimes too many uniforms for on team. I tired to make all my ABF team names unique to the city/area they play. Chicago Fire, New York Knights, Atlanta Rebels, Las Vegas Aces, etc. My EBL is based off of MLB and their are no Parrots or Cougars on Endor.
My IBL - Illinois Baseball League also has names that are unique for the city the teams play in.
Every January 1st I change some of the teams uniforms in my main league for MLB & EBL teams. Sometimes just a cap sometimes an alt uniform.
I have yet to get to 20 seasons for any league except historical MLB. I am in 1931 for that.

This is why I love the nickname project that's available in Add on Central. So many great uniforms.

[D-BacksJosh]

I've learned that I have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

EDIT: Also that I really dislike the DH, as that is the first thing to be removed when I start a league.

[MizzouRah]

Even a modern day league I started back with OOTP 12, I see some dominance from teams, Boston has been just a top notch team, they have the top payroll too - they are 5 stud SP's deep and that's carried them for many years.

I like those crappy teams who have that one good season, all for nothing type years.

[BaseballAddict32]

Originally Posted by David Watts

1. I despise free agency. Thank goodness Markus added the reserve clause to OOTP. I like dynasties. I like seeing guys play their entire careers with one team. I don't like seeing guys reach a certain age and then play for a different team every year. Especially relief pitchers.

2. I'm a home run snob. I like home runs to mean something. Think 1974-76. I want team totals to be somewhere in the 60-160 range.

So you learned you are a communist that does not like capitalism and prefer everyone work for the same portion at the same job, even rationing homeruns.


By the way, I am kidding. Hope nobody gets worked up over a joke

[Déjà Bru]

Here are the things that I have learned about myself:

1. I definitely like fictional play. No disparagement meant to historical players, but knowing or expecting performances and outcomes holds no interest for me.
   
2. As much as I think I would like developing a fictional league along historical MLB lines, I find that approach to be tedious in maintaining logos and uniforms, financials and strategy, etc. I usually just start a league in 2001, calling it the Millennial League, and develop it from there, making changes when I feel like it, not when a timeline calls for it.
   
3. I love feeder leagues. Thank goodness for those guys who developed NCAA logos and uniforms.
   
4. I do not like too many international players. Some, but not as many as MLB these days.
   
5. I love savvy catchers with great defensive skills and high marks in intelligence, work ethic, and leadership as long as they can bat above .200. My favorite type of player (followed by "scrappy" shortstops of the same nature).
   
6. I also like players who spend their entire careers with one team, particularly mine, of course. If they do so in this day and age of free agency and bloated contracts, so much more the sweeter.
   
7. I have a soft spot for such long-term players, putting up with their declines long after I should have let them go.
   
8. Unlike David Watts, I have too LITTLE time on my hands, both now and in the future, to suit my needs for OOTPB play.

[as5680]

Originally Posted by Déjà Bru

1. I definitely like fictional play. No disparagement meant to historical players, but knowing or expecting performances and outcomes holds no interest for me.

This one is definitely true for me too. When I first discovered OOTP the obvious thing to do seemed to be to play an MLB game, but I haven't done that for some time now. Playing entirely fictional leagues means I don't have to worry about whether player performances or league stats etc. are 'realistic', as there is no reality with which to compare.

[The Wolf]

Originally Posted by David Watts

1. I despise free agency. Thank goodness Markus added the reserve clause to OOTP. I like dynasties. I like seeing guys play their entire careers with one team. I don't like seeing guys reach a certain age and then play for a different team every year. Especially relief pitchers.

2. I'm a home run snob. I like home runs to mean something. Think 1974-76. I want team totals to be somewhere in the 60-160 range.

3. I'm not a fan of modern day closers. I like a 5 man bullpen with a stopper instead of a closer. Oh and I like pitchers to pitch complete games.

Oh and I have too much time on my hands.

Small world.

[The Wolf]

And the logo/uniform modders deserve tons of credit. Especially Justafan.

[David Watts]

Originally Posted by D-BacksJosh

I've learned that I have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

EDIT: Also that I really dislike the DH, as that is the first thing to be removed when I start a league.

Not sure if it qualifies as OCD, but I hate it when I get a little "bug up my butt" (for lack of a better thing to call it) and no matter what it eats at me until I basically have to scrap a league. I have a 36 year random debut league that I've hit the wall with. Hoping a little time away from it will keep me from scrapping it altogether.

[Bluenoser]

To add to what The Game said about uniform and logo makers -

I've owned every version of this game, and it's always been immersive to some degree. But the thing that brought this game to life for me, is FaceGen and the Uni/Logo flexibility.

That's not to say that all the other improvements to functions, stats, finances, etc etc haven't brought a lot of life to the game as well, but stats and game play were always in OOTP in some form.

When I could actually look at fictional players and give teams cool logos and unis was when immersion went to a whole new level.


I think all Mods add a lot to this game, but it's the ability to put a face to a name in a custom uniform that adds life.

[actionjackson]

Originally Posted by David Watts

Not sure if it qualifies as OCD, but I hate it when I get a little "bug up my butt" (for lack of a better thing to call it) and no matter what it eats at me until I basically have to scrap a league. I have a 36 year random debut league that I've hit the wall with. Hoping a little time away from it will keep me from scrapping it altogether.

What happened that made your pride and joy of a league "hit the wall"? Maybe some of us can help with suggestions to get you back on your way again. It isn't too long since you were really excited about it, and it'd be great to see you back there again.

[D-BacksJosh]

Originally Posted by David Watts

Not sure if it qualifies as OCD, but I hate it when I get a little "bug up my butt" (for lack of a better thing to call it) and no matter what it eats at me until I basically have to scrap a league. I have a 36 year random debut league that I've hit the wall with. Hoping a little time away from it will keep me from scrapping it altogether.

Fictional leagues are the worst for me. Trying to get everything exactly right. Teams, leagues, divisions, playoff format, talent, logos, uniforms, team names, team cities, league rules, etc. And then, just when I get it where I want it and start the season, I realize I missed something somewhere and have to start over again. I do have a MLB quickstart that I play, I've noticed that my desire for everything to be perfect is not as overwhelming in that one as my fictional leagues. The fact this game can get me so engrossed in it proves its worth!

I hope you are able to salvage your league.