Draft Strategy

gmburns2000 · 10-13-2005, 10:42 AM

It would be really nice if there was a pre-set option for setting up draft preferences. I have found the "computer finish draft" option to be useless for the amateur draft. In one instance, I let the computer finish and it drafted 4 catchers that were age 29 years or older but still eligible. I would never have drafted those players for several reasons, not the least of which one of these players would have been more than enough.

But one great benefit of this would be to allow users to expand the amateur draft. I currently have it set only at 7 rounds. This is just enough for me to widthstand the searching for decent players before I want to move on. But I am constantly finding that there are not enough young players to fill my minor leagues (I dont like the "fill minors" option). If I could confidently let the computer finish my draft for me (knowing that I am not going to end up with 4 catchers that will never make it beyond AAA) then I would use the amateur draft more than I do now.

I think that there could be two ways to do this -

1) Use the Team Strategies page to allow users to set which type of players they want to draft. I have seen this in other games and I think it works well. It could be a simple grid that allows you to click a maximum and minimum age and the positions you want to stress. To stress the position preferences, a system similar to Spring Training could be used where 100% is allocated among all positions. To make things easier, the options could be limited to OF, Middle Infield, Corner Infield, C, SP, and MR.

2) With the expansion pack came the option of having your team rebuild or chase the pennent. If a team is rebuilding, then it would probably want to have more interest in working the draft board. By rebuilding, a team would spend more time thinking about amateur players and thus have an advantage over teams looking to compete today. Therefore, teams competing today may look at older players who can add depth in the current season while rebuilding teams would restrict thier draft picks to those who will need time to develop.

SandMan · 10-14-2005, 03:02 PM

Excellent post. I just joined an online league and the AI drafted 5 MR in the last 10 picks and they all had contracts over 2.5M a year and 4 or more years of contract left..... they are all sitting in my minors and one player is collecting a salary of 4.8M for the next 5 years..... and he is 34 years old..... no way any GM would draft like this.....

gmburns2000 · 10-14-2005, 04:04 PM

I could not have said it better myself. I would really only want to do the first few rounds to get the best players out there. After that, if I can let the computer take charge then that would be better.

I have read elsewhere on here that this has been a concern for a long time now. Not sure why it has not been resolved.

Jonzard · 10-16-2005, 12:04 AM

I really like the draft strategy stuff. In my last draft, I had a catcher drafted in 3 consecutive rounds!

Fungo King · 10-16-2005, 03:49 PM

Anything that can be done to allow for draft preferences is an upgrade. In the later rounds the talnet is thin. Either you have to take the time to sort through ratings to find the type of players you want or fall at the mercy of the auto-complete. In online leagues this would be a great feature. Do you prefer to draft younger or older players? Do you prefer guys that have fielding range, at the expense of a great bat, or a big bat with little concern about their fielding skills? You get the idea.

bp_ · 10-30-2005, 03:23 PM

agreed, I hate the auto-draft but most online leagues have to use it for at least half the draft. Anything to have more influence on what type of picks are made by the computer.

battists · 11-03-2005, 03:48 PM

Incidentally, if you have any skill at Access, Commish Joe's exporter is a godsend.

I just make a linked table in access, and create a query that selects only players with the criteria I select. Then I can pretty easily sort through the handful that meet my criteria, and make my selection.

You just rerun the exporter after each round of the draft.

Of course, this is a lot easier for solo leagues, or for leagues where a new league zip is provided after each round.

10-13-2005, 10:42 AM	#1 (permalink)
gmburns2000 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 27	Draft Strategy It would be really nice if there was a pre-set option for setting up draft preferences. I have found the "computer finish draft" option to be useless for the amateur draft. In one instance, I let the computer finish and it drafted 4 catchers that were age 29 years or older but still eligible. I would never have drafted those players for several reasons, not the least of which one of these players would have been more than enough. But one great benefit of this would be to allow users to expand the amateur draft. I currently have it set only at 7 rounds. This is just enough for me to widthstand the searching for decent players before I want to move on. But I am constantly finding that there are not enough young players to fill my minor leagues (I dont like the "fill minors" option). If I could confidently let the computer finish my draft for me (knowing that I am not going to end up with 4 catchers that will never make it beyond AAA) then I would use the amateur draft more than I do now. I think that there could be two ways to do this - 1) Use the Team Strategies page to allow users to set which type of players they want to draft. I have seen this in other games and I think it works well. It could be a simple grid that allows you to click a maximum and minimum age and the positions you want to stress. To stress the position preferences, a system similar to Spring Training could be used where 100% is allocated among all positions. To make things easier, the options could be limited to OF, Middle Infield, Corner Infield, C, SP, and MR. 2) With the expansion pack came the option of having your team rebuild or chase the pennent. If a team is rebuilding, then it would probably want to have more interest in working the draft board. By rebuilding, a team would spend more time thinking about amateur players and thus have an advantage over teams looking to compete today. Therefore, teams competing today may look at older players who can add depth in the current season while rebuilding teams would restrict thier draft picks to those who will need time to develop.

10-14-2005, 04:04 PM	#3 (permalink)
gmburns2000 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 27	RE: Draft Strategy I could not have said it better myself. I would really only want to do the first few rounds to get the best players out there. After that, if I can let the computer take charge then that would be better. I have read elsewhere on here that this has been a concern for a long time now. Not sure why it has not been resolved.

10-30-2005, 03:23 PM	#6 (permalink)
bp_ Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 2,407	agreed, I hate the auto-draft but most online leagues have to use it for at least half the draft. Anything to have more influence on what type of picks are made by the computer. __________________ "al Qaeda wouldn't last a day in parts of Philadelphia" - Mayor Michael Nutter

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10-14-2005, 03:02 PM	#2 (permalink)
SandMan All Star Starter Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Kenosha, Wisconsin Posts: 1,868	Excellent post. I just joined an online league and the AI drafted 5 MR in the last 10 picks and they all had contracts over 2.5M a year and 4 or more years of contract left..... they are all sitting in my minors and one player is collecting a salary of 4.8M for the next 5 years..... and he is 34 years old..... no way any GM would draft like this.....

10-16-2005, 03:49 PM	#5 (permalink)
Fungo King Bat Boy Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Rochester, NY Posts: 8	Anything that can be done to allow for draft preferences is an upgrade. In the later rounds the talnet is thin. Either you have to take the time to sort through ratings to find the type of players you want or fall at the mercy of the auto-complete. In online leagues this would be a great feature. Do you prefer to draft younger or older players? Do you prefer guys that have fielding range, at the expense of a great bat, or a big bat with little concern about their fielding skills? You get the idea.

11-03-2005, 03:48 PM	#7 (permalink)
battists Administrator Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 14,255	Incidentally, if you have any skill at Access, Commish Joe's exporter is a godsend. I just make a linked table in access, and create a query that selects only players with the criteria I select. Then I can pretty easily sort through the handful that meet my criteria, and make my selection. You just rerun the exporter after each round of the draft. Of course, this is a lot easier for solo leagues, or for leagues where a new league zip is provided after each round.