Favorite year to start

[Lekter]

I'm really into doing inaugural drafts in historical leagues for my single player careers, and I was wondering what are some of your favorite years to start and do an inaugural draft? And what is the reasoning? For example, starting in 1989 because Ken Griffey Jr is a rookie this year, and such and such are just starting their careers. I thought it'd be interesting to see what people like and maybe convince me to start that year also!

[AESP_pres]

1871 because I like to start with no history. Also it's fun to not know who are the players and what they can do (with some exceptions of course).

[Lekter]

Not a bad idea. Do you then import historical rookies?

[AESP_pres]

I let them come as they arrived in the database (I use the Gambo database). I don't let the rookie import in their real team I do a draft every seasons in november. I know it isn't really realistic since the draft start way later in real life and certainly not in november, but it's the way I'm used to play.

[CONN CHRIS]

Originally Posted by AESP_pres

1871 because I like to start with no history. Also it's fun to not know who are the players and what they can do (with some exceptions of course).

Same here. I use the HS DB with negro and Japanese league players (which also includes some career minor leaguers and others) - that DB is great fun. It provides enough players to expand reasonably well at an earlier date. The Federal League merged with the AL/NL in my little fake world so along with four other expansion teams I have 28 ML teams in 1937 with AAA,AA,A,R (ghost players used).

[Dan Kalvoski]

I tend to do what-if starts ... 1918 but don't let Boston trade Ruth to the Yankees, or keep the Black Sox from happening; 1939, then play through WWII as if the war didn't happen.
My last one was a 1901, but I played with no house rules to restrict trades, etc. and lost interest after my Cleveland Spiders/Naps/Indians won 13 of 15 World Series.
Next I think I'll do 1936, with Joe Dimaggio playing for the Red Sox and Ted Williams joining the league in 1939 with the Yankees ...

[Gern44]

1986 for me. 78 and 75 are also good years as well as 72. I almost always use 1986 rosters and game settings. I let the OOTP engine determine all the progression. I don't import anything from future seasons.

I graduated High School in 87... and I could name almost every MLB'r of the time.

[scott1964]

1871

[stevebydac]

I sim for a long number of years to build up history, then I usually personally start playing the league in 2001. That's the lazy way for me to remember how many years I've been active in it. (1st year 2001, 10th year is 2010 etc)

[JohnMcGraw]

My last one was 1963. I created a fictional pitcher whose career I wanted to progress through the heart of the pitcher's era.

I did 1901 a few times (I would have done 1871 but the 19th century schedules were not accurately depicted).

[Bluenoser]

Originally Posted by AESP_pres

1871 because I like to start with no history. Also it's fun to not know who are the players and what they can do (with some exceptions of course).

True, there's no history starting in 1871, but you can start in any year and have no history. Just don't load it when creating the league.

Use fictional players, then you'll have no idea who the players are or what they can do.


I don't have a favourite year per se, I start at different periods in time depending on what style of baseball I want to play such as deadball, or maybe the 20's when HR's became more prominent. I like the 70's because I'm a fan of the stolen base, hit & run. I was a fan of Whitey Herzog and the way he "manufactured" runs with stolen bases and hit & run.

[AESP_pres]

I like to have at least the name of the people who played for real. I'm far from a baseball expert, so every now and them I'll go check who was so and so in real life when someone impress me in my game (imagine my surprise when I saw that the strikeout king of my league played only one inning in real life). It isn't the goal of the game but I love to learn something while I have fun, something I would miss with fictional names.

[Carlton]

1901 of course! Cy Young, Jesse Burkett, Nap and Crawford? Plus NOODLES HAHN...my man!

I also create the American Association, Pacific Coast League and International League, as AA independent leagues filling them with fictional players and only a 3 round draft. hey usually pick up the releases in MLB...and sometimes a really talented fictional player will get a season or two in the bigs
T

[jesuiscris]

1994!
If one year that should get replayed IRL, that must be 1994 when Baseball almost died because of player's greed...and I would probably still get to a major league Park each week also

[HerbD]

I like to start the year before expansion and then not expand. It is interesting to see which players didn't make it to the big leagues due to limited number of spots.

[Marberi]

1979. For no other reason other than that was the year I started understanding baseball and remembering it clearly for real (I was 8 at the time).

[jmckinney559]

I like starting in 1997 for two reasons:

1, I graduated highschool that year, so I put myself in the 1998 draft

2, there is an expansion the next year, so I apply to be the manager of one of the expansion teams (usually Arizona) and I conduct the expansion draft as the manager.... so basically I spend 1 year as the manager of the braves, do not "protect" Greg Maddux, then make him my first selection in the expansion draft as Arizona's manager.... oh and then I draft myself (SS) in the draft. It's lots of fun

[TribeFanInNC]

oops...double post

[TribeFanInNC]

Originally Posted by Dan Kalvoski

I tend to do what-if starts ... 1918 but don't let Boston trade Ruth to the Yankees, or keep the Black Sox from happening; 1939, then play through WWII as if the war didn't happen.
My last one was a 1901, but I played with no house rules to restrict trades, etc. and lost interest after my Cleveland Spiders/Naps/Indians won 13 of 15 World Series.
Next I think I'll do 1936, with Joe Dimaggio playing for the Red Sox and Ted Williams joining the league in 1939 with the Yankees ...

I tend to do the exact same thing. I played one starting in 1960 with Rocky Colavito and Norm Cash remaining in Cleveland. I started another in 1956 with development on where Herb Score didn't get hurt.