Authentic gameplay: A look at one season

[SteveP]

I have now played through an entire season (1960, of course) using all of the settings and tweaks that I’ve mentioned in other threads. This includes the mods I made to bunt and SH ratings, which I suspect most people wouldn’t attempt (though it’s actually pretty safe). My aim was to stop fooling around and just play it out to see what kind of monster I created. (If anyone reading this thread wonders what I am up to here, please take a look at one of the other “authentic gameplay” threads).

IMHO, the lack of a realistic bunting game (both for-hit and SH) is still the biggest shortcoming as far as individual gameplay is concerned. I could make SH better with my tweaks, but bunt-for-hit doesn’t amount to more than a novelty (bordering on comic relief, actually).

Other than that, I’m pretty pleased with the results. When I first started playing OOTP, I found much to enjoy, but also much that made me cringe as I watched the various antics these teams got up to. I found myself cringing a whole lot less, and enjoying the view from the stands a lot more, during this just completed season.

That said, I thought I’d post a checklist of specific things I found impossible to fix, at least in this version of the game. I’ve organized them into a sort of priority ranking – very subjective, so feel free to add to the list, and/or rank them as it suits you.

Gameplay behavior that still make me cringe (because both ugly to see and probably affecting outcomes, stats, etc):

1. Excessive double steal attempts with a relatively high success rate

2. Excessive solo steals of 3rd

3. Defensive substitutions in a tie game.

Not cringe-worthy, but make me twitchy nevertheless:

1. Sac bunting with men on 1st & 3rd (more annoying when done by position players, which is a can-of-worms I opened up with my rating adjustments)

2. Pinch runners only marginally better on the base paths than the guys they replace. Likewise, defensive subs only marginally better on defense (if that).

3. Gross fielding substitution problems (e.g., OFs or Inf playing C) after a round of PHing and PRing (impossible to avoid completely, if you allow anything close to realistic levels of PH and PR)

MIA (as in “why don’t I ever see these things?”)

1. Squeeze plays

2. Pickoff plays at 2nd & 3rd

3. Non-force outs at 3rd and Home on grounders hit to infielders

4. Double steals with men on 1st & 3rd (I know this isn’t in the game, but it should be on the list anyway, as I think it accounts for a majority of SBAs of Home IRL)

There are some other things I’m going to be looking at as I go forward, so this list may grow.

FWIW

[pstrickert]

Last night (I confess), I played a game of Baseball for Windows (APBA). Steve Busby of the '74 Royals locked up in a pitcher's duel with Nolan Ryan of the '74 Angels. They both pitched 10 shutout innings. Both teams scored a single run in the 14th inning. Mickey Rivers, in fact, tied the game when he scored on a squeeze play with one out. It was such a surprise -- and a delight -- to see it happen! (Like you said, SteveP, it doesn't happen in OOTP.) Both teams scored a second run in the 17th inning. One of them occurred on a bases loaded wild pitch. Finally, KC scored in the 18th to win the game, 3-2, when George Brett scored from second on a base hit and error on the left fielder.

Here's what impressed me, though. I chose two very dissimilar micromanagers for the two teams. One of them attempted 9 steals, the other only 1, even though the latter had more baserunners during the game (and who, surprisingly, called for the squeeze bunt). So, as I watched the game play out, I got a "feel" for two very different AI managing styles. It kept me interested because I just didn't know what to expect at any given moment. (Unlike OOTP, I'm sorry to say!)

[thehef]

SteveP: Your 'authentic gameplay' threads have been great reads and very informative. I suggest that - much like you've summarized the things that are impossible to fix - you summarize the various settings and workarounds that you've come up with to get the most authentic gameplay... Certainly, we could read through the threads and get them, individually. Or one of us could summarize them all. But you're the expert on your work, so your summary would be more accurate and less open to interpretation.

Thanks for sharing your work!

[SteveP]

Originally Posted by pstrickert

It kept me interested because I just didn't know what to expect at any given moment. (Unlike OOTP, I'm sorry to say!)

Glad you mentioned that aspect. Along with my desire to reduce the "antics" that I was seeing during games, I was also distressed by how predictable everything was. When a pitcher came up to bat in a possible SH situation, you knew exactly what he was going to do. Runners on third always scored on ground balls hit to infielders (almost always, anyway). I could make a pretty lengthy list of those things. What I am seeing now has a bit more variety and unpredictability to it -- even a touch of excitement(!) believe it or not (I also vary manager and team strategies to ensure each team as some "character"). Even getting more bunt-for-hit attempts -- as incompetent as OOTP batters are at executing one -- adds some interest. Could it be better? Absolutely. I haven't stopped looking at what can be done within the game, especially with team strategy settings.

[SteveP]

Originally Posted by thehef

SteveP: Your 'authentic gameplay' threads have been great reads and very informative. I suggest that - much like you've summarized the things that are impossible to fix - you summarize the various settings and workarounds that you've come up with to get the most authentic gameplay... Certainly, we could read through the threads and get them, individually. Or one of us could summarize them all. But you're the expert on your work, so your summary would be more accurate and less open to interpretation.

Thanks for sharing your work!

Covering distinct topics in separate threads was a deliberate choice on my part. Part of my intention was to give others an opportunity to comment and to challenge my findings. In fact, having other people "interpret" what I've done probably has some benefit. That way, people reading the threads get a fuller idea of what can be done, what the trade-offs are, how these suggestions could be adapted to different eras, etc. The simple reality is that so far I have only really investigated and tested them in the context of 1960s baseball. I intend to do a similar investigation with a much later era at some point. And, of course, there will be new version of OOTP in due time ...

Maybe someone who knows how to do these things could figure out how to make it easier for people to find these threads in the future.