Post by Spencer on Jul 22, 2014 0:43:43 GMT -5
1. Lets start with your team. How is your team performing? Better or worse than expected? Surprised by your record and by your spot in the standings?
My team is ok...we cant beat the elite teams like Florida or SF yet, I might need to make another move to add another ace for that to happen but I like where my team is at. I just have to build FI this seasons so I can keep a payroll of 85-90M for the upcoming seasons. I would say theyre right around where I thought they would be, I saw this team as a WC team and thats where theyre at right now, wish I had some more seperation from Shale but his rotation is a little lackluster, so that should catch up to him at some point.
I like your team alot. You do need a little more depth. Some better pitching. But ya, that offense is nice.
2. More on your team. 3 things you love about it. 3 things you hate about it.
I love my offense, think its really solid and once CJ develops his HRs some more we could be even better, love that most of my guys are under 30 so hopefully that means I can compete with the same team for a few years and love how much power my offense has.
I hate my bullpen, Koji one the back end scares me and hes had a couple of blowups this seasons already and that wont fly in the playoffs. I mean I could upgrade there but relievers are so volatile that even shitty ratings ones can look dominant for a season. I dont like my catching situation, it would be cool if Ianetta developed his homers but hes already 26 so time is running out on him to hit his peak, I would love a Brilliant homers type of catcher but those are hard to find, although hes been better as of late. My LF situation is pretty bad right now also, I love Matt Kemp but hes been probably one of the worst hitters in the NL this season, I like his power speed combo but he simply doesnt get on base/hit enough, ive thought about sitting him down for Byrnes but I think hes going to turn it around soon and if he doesnt then Byrnes will be my new LF.
Kemp is weird. I thought hed be way better. Then I decided it was my park. Maybe it isnt. I thought his combination of ratings would be solid. Guess not.
3. NL West. Whats you overall view of it for this year and the future? Just give a little synopsis on each team and where they are and where they are heading.
In general its the toughest division in the league right now, top to bottom you have teams that could win the WC, its hard to say if any of them can match the Giants because of how ridiculous that rotation is but any team can lose in the playoffs. The Dodgers might be the weakest team in the division right now , thats not a slight against Dale but how much stronger each team is.
Giants-Theyre in the best spot right now, sporting what could possible the greatest rotation ever assembled, in a park that rewards great pitching. Age is an issue with guys like Berkman and Drew heading into the back end of their careers but Spencer always finds a way to retool and keep winning, as evidenced by him acquiring his franchise player in Posey
Rockies-I dont know how much longer Shale can keep this up...he keeps going after old vets that are washed up, eventually his assets will dry up and he wont be able to do that anymore. This season his pitching hasnt been great but it hasnt held him back either, hes put together a nice run in the past couple of weeks to jump ahead of me but im hoping my team can take off. His future isnt great...anyone can hit in that ballpark and hes short on studs that he could sell high on and start a rebuild with. Hart is great but you look at guys like Wright/Taguchi/Glaus etc, theyre numbers on the road are very pedestrian and you have to wonder just how much longer Shale can keep this up.
Padres-Habes has a great squad but for whatever reason his team cant put it together...his offense is amazing and he even has some solid SP. I think his team will take off eventually and if anything he could really make a strong push next season. The future is bright for Habes and as long as he doesnt overreact and blow his team up once again then his team will eventually find success.
Dodgers-Dale's team is in a tough spot right now...his team isnt awful but its not good enough to compete with the big dogs in the West, I think he has to retool for a season or two and hope that his team can compete when everyones window has closed. He has some solid pieces that he could get a nice return for but he has to decide soon on what direction his team is going in, I mean he could make one solid push and trade his prospects for players that could help him now but its probably not the smartest idea. His system isnt that bad either and if he is patient then he could be a team to watch in a few seasons.
Best division in baseball! Weve come a long way gentleman. Congrats to all of us.
4. The league as a whole. What is your view of BBSBL? Anything going poorly? Anything to be concerned with? Whats god? Whats bad?
I love BBSBL in its current state, it hasnt been this active since ive gotten here and no offense to Erbes but I hope the Dynamic Duo are here for the long run...love the job that theyre doing and im glad Erbes picked these guys to take over in his absence. I dont have any complaints right now and I hope when Erbes gets back we still keep up the pace as far as sims go.
Yup. Sim consistency is key. People love knowing when a sim will be posted. They look forward to it. Wait for it.
5. How is LBB doing? What are the strengths and weaknesses of it? How long do you anticipate running it?
LBB isnt going as good as I hoped it would, the inactivity is really a buzzkill, but I guess BBSBL has spoiled me with that in a way. We really need a overhaul of GMs and I plan on doing that this offseason, just weeding out the inactives that pop in once every few weeks and getting some solid GMs that post every now and then. I was really hoping that few of the guys from BBSBL would join but they havent shown any interest. I think it still has a really strong appeal with it being a historical league. I think its kind of a boring league also in a sense of how pitching heavy it is, every sim it seems like 4-5 guys are throwing CG shutouts, its hard to remedy this and one of the things ive discussed is possibly ramping up the hitters in the draft but that can be a rocky road since it might make the league unrealistic down the road. I think im going to run it until i feel like its just dragging out and there isnt a point to keep going with it, I think this next season will go a long way in determining that.
Running a good league is hard. So many things come into play. Core GMs. Activities to promote posting. Rewards, but not too many rewards. Really hard to balance it all.
6. Having run a league I always look at other leagues and kinda see what I can use for mine. What do you like in BBSBL that you think would ad to LBB? What from LBB should we adapt to make BBSBL better?
Not gonna lie, ive took a lot of rules/ideas from BBSBL and used them for LBB, BBSBL is such a successful league so why not? One of the things that we've been discussing in LBB is a lotttery draft system, basically the 10 worst teams from the previous season are entered in a lottery and each is assigned a percentage based on their record from last year, number one pick I believe has a 35% chance of getting the 1st overall and it goes down from there. Were trying it for the first time this season and my hope is that it really discourages tanking because you arent guaranted anything by doing so.
Dont like the idea of a lottery for baseball. I do like anti tanking type things. But ya, its always god to look at things and try to fix things. Constant change is here to stay.
7. In an ideal world, if you were about to start a baseball league which 5 GMs would you invite to be your core. Tell me the 5 GMs the teams you would give them and why you'd want them.
Steve - I would give Steve the Brewers because thats his favorite team IRL, only makes sense. Steve is awesome, he brings a lot activity wise and hes sort of like the brains behind this operation and his ability to setup things like CATO and the export tracker go unnoticed but theyre important.
Spencer - Need someone to make up for dead periods of inactivity and with Spence talking to himself in random threads it can make it seem like the league is still alive, and obviously he would take the Giants
Broph - He brings a lot to table as far as his knowledge of OOTP goes, and its nice being able to go to someone who can help out any OOTP newbies and teach them the basics, he seems like a Mariners fan so I would probably give them to him.
Aaron - Habes seems like a cool guy in general and he has his moments where he makes me laugh, things get serious around the boards and its cool having a guy that can lighten the mood, I think hes a Mets fan so they would be all his
Play - Mr. Hammer is definitely one of the more unique personalities ive seen on these forums but you need guys like him, when someone is pulling some shady business in the league Play is usually one of the first to notice and he wont hesitate one second on calling them out on their BS. Play simply does not give a fuck, if you suck he will blatantly tell you to your face and if he doesnt like you then he will tell you that also and sure hes a little controversial but he means well. Im not sure who his favorite team is, I think its the Cardinals?
Love these 5. Surprised there was no Ashes but ya, these 5 are great. Good combination of activity, talent and personality.
8. If you were ever gonna start a league from scratch again with a complete set of active Gms what would be your favorite time period to start from? Why?
My favorite era is the early 60s/70s, I think in this era OOTP has hidden setting where pitchers tend to go deeper in the game and throw more pitches. I love having pitchers that go 8+ innings every start and not needing to carry multiple relievers.
Golden age. Love that era. Im having fun in HOFFBL. Little earlier then the time frame you mentioned but similar. Fun times.
9. Seems like BBSBL is doing pretty well. We could use two GMs at least though. Some real active guys that were knowledgeable. Pick 2 Gms from LBB to replace 2 current GMs here. Tell me why you'd hire the 2 new guys and why youd fire the 2 old guys.
Oh boy, Spence really putting me on the spot here...
I think I would bring over the Texas GM from LBB because for some reason the dude gets under Erbes skin, some really entertaining convos go on over there and I haven't seen anyone troll Erbes that hard since Broph.
I don't see anyone else worth bring over here, most of the other guys don't have interest or aren't active enough to last over here honestly.
Ugh I hate calling out people like this but I would probably get rid of Don and HF...Don has really been MIA for a while now and whatever life is throwing at him, I hope hes well but it might be time to find a new Texas GM. HF was actually really active for a while but hes dissapeared all of a sudden, he came on LBB a few days ago so im guessing hes been around but just hasnt been posting and thats fine. Don would be the guy I would seriously think about replacing while giving HF a chance to come back and be active once again.
Poor Don. LOLd.
10. Seems like Florida is running away with everything this year. Does anyone have a shot at them? If yes, who?
I really dont think anyone has a realistic chance but if its anyone its you Spence, your pitching can go toe to toe with his staff but Miggy is a monster, I dont see anyone slowing down that offense not even your pitching staff. Playoffs are a crap shoot though so maybe Miggy and the Marlins offense goes cold you can squeak out some wins.
Go me. Giants are the cinderfella teams! WEE!
11. So many amazing players in BBSBL currently. If you could add any 2 players to your roster to make you more competitive right now who would they be?
Beckett - Truly think he might be the most dominant pitcher in the league right now, one of stutters few bright spots, he had an incredible run last year and hes picking up where he left off. Just imagine if he was A duration, could set some records I tell ya.
Miggy - One of the best hitters ive ever seen in a sim league, whats thes story behind Miggy anyway? How good was he in the draft and how many PDs did he get, either Ashes is really lucky or Ashes is really lucky. Could you imagine him in COL, if only Shale had the assets to trade for him and even if he did I wonder if Ashes would ever consider trading him.
Good choices. Id love to add those two. For me personally Id really love a big time LF with OBP and speed/D. Then probably I fully developed Buster Posey.
12. How has the transition to Ashes and Steve been for you? How is their simming schedule working? Do you prefer them to Erbes simming solo?
The transition has been amazing, were getting bonus sims and consistent sims also. Erbes did a phenomenal job and I can see why he got burnt out for doing it as long as he did but Ashes/Steve have made it seem like he never left. I really dont think I prefer one to the other, as long as we get sims then I dont care whos doing it.
Things havent been better in BBSBL. Things are smooth and the 2 simmers have allowed Erbes some freedom to start to enjoy the league again. Good stuff.
My team is ok...we cant beat the elite teams like Florida or SF yet, I might need to make another move to add another ace for that to happen but I like where my team is at. I just have to build FI this seasons so I can keep a payroll of 85-90M for the upcoming seasons. I would say theyre right around where I thought they would be, I saw this team as a WC team and thats where theyre at right now, wish I had some more seperation from Shale but his rotation is a little lackluster, so that should catch up to him at some point.
I like your team alot. You do need a little more depth. Some better pitching. But ya, that offense is nice.
2. More on your team. 3 things you love about it. 3 things you hate about it.
I love my offense, think its really solid and once CJ develops his HRs some more we could be even better, love that most of my guys are under 30 so hopefully that means I can compete with the same team for a few years and love how much power my offense has.
I hate my bullpen, Koji one the back end scares me and hes had a couple of blowups this seasons already and that wont fly in the playoffs. I mean I could upgrade there but relievers are so volatile that even shitty ratings ones can look dominant for a season. I dont like my catching situation, it would be cool if Ianetta developed his homers but hes already 26 so time is running out on him to hit his peak, I would love a Brilliant homers type of catcher but those are hard to find, although hes been better as of late. My LF situation is pretty bad right now also, I love Matt Kemp but hes been probably one of the worst hitters in the NL this season, I like his power speed combo but he simply doesnt get on base/hit enough, ive thought about sitting him down for Byrnes but I think hes going to turn it around soon and if he doesnt then Byrnes will be my new LF.
Kemp is weird. I thought hed be way better. Then I decided it was my park. Maybe it isnt. I thought his combination of ratings would be solid. Guess not.
3. NL West. Whats you overall view of it for this year and the future? Just give a little synopsis on each team and where they are and where they are heading.
In general its the toughest division in the league right now, top to bottom you have teams that could win the WC, its hard to say if any of them can match the Giants because of how ridiculous that rotation is but any team can lose in the playoffs. The Dodgers might be the weakest team in the division right now , thats not a slight against Dale but how much stronger each team is.
Giants-Theyre in the best spot right now, sporting what could possible the greatest rotation ever assembled, in a park that rewards great pitching. Age is an issue with guys like Berkman and Drew heading into the back end of their careers but Spencer always finds a way to retool and keep winning, as evidenced by him acquiring his franchise player in Posey
Rockies-I dont know how much longer Shale can keep this up...he keeps going after old vets that are washed up, eventually his assets will dry up and he wont be able to do that anymore. This season his pitching hasnt been great but it hasnt held him back either, hes put together a nice run in the past couple of weeks to jump ahead of me but im hoping my team can take off. His future isnt great...anyone can hit in that ballpark and hes short on studs that he could sell high on and start a rebuild with. Hart is great but you look at guys like Wright/Taguchi/Glaus etc, theyre numbers on the road are very pedestrian and you have to wonder just how much longer Shale can keep this up.
Padres-Habes has a great squad but for whatever reason his team cant put it together...his offense is amazing and he even has some solid SP. I think his team will take off eventually and if anything he could really make a strong push next season. The future is bright for Habes and as long as he doesnt overreact and blow his team up once again then his team will eventually find success.
Dodgers-Dale's team is in a tough spot right now...his team isnt awful but its not good enough to compete with the big dogs in the West, I think he has to retool for a season or two and hope that his team can compete when everyones window has closed. He has some solid pieces that he could get a nice return for but he has to decide soon on what direction his team is going in, I mean he could make one solid push and trade his prospects for players that could help him now but its probably not the smartest idea. His system isnt that bad either and if he is patient then he could be a team to watch in a few seasons.
Best division in baseball! Weve come a long way gentleman. Congrats to all of us.
4. The league as a whole. What is your view of BBSBL? Anything going poorly? Anything to be concerned with? Whats god? Whats bad?
I love BBSBL in its current state, it hasnt been this active since ive gotten here and no offense to Erbes but I hope the Dynamic Duo are here for the long run...love the job that theyre doing and im glad Erbes picked these guys to take over in his absence. I dont have any complaints right now and I hope when Erbes gets back we still keep up the pace as far as sims go.
Yup. Sim consistency is key. People love knowing when a sim will be posted. They look forward to it. Wait for it.
5. How is LBB doing? What are the strengths and weaknesses of it? How long do you anticipate running it?
LBB isnt going as good as I hoped it would, the inactivity is really a buzzkill, but I guess BBSBL has spoiled me with that in a way. We really need a overhaul of GMs and I plan on doing that this offseason, just weeding out the inactives that pop in once every few weeks and getting some solid GMs that post every now and then. I was really hoping that few of the guys from BBSBL would join but they havent shown any interest. I think it still has a really strong appeal with it being a historical league. I think its kind of a boring league also in a sense of how pitching heavy it is, every sim it seems like 4-5 guys are throwing CG shutouts, its hard to remedy this and one of the things ive discussed is possibly ramping up the hitters in the draft but that can be a rocky road since it might make the league unrealistic down the road. I think im going to run it until i feel like its just dragging out and there isnt a point to keep going with it, I think this next season will go a long way in determining that.
Running a good league is hard. So many things come into play. Core GMs. Activities to promote posting. Rewards, but not too many rewards. Really hard to balance it all.
6. Having run a league I always look at other leagues and kinda see what I can use for mine. What do you like in BBSBL that you think would ad to LBB? What from LBB should we adapt to make BBSBL better?
Not gonna lie, ive took a lot of rules/ideas from BBSBL and used them for LBB, BBSBL is such a successful league so why not? One of the things that we've been discussing in LBB is a lotttery draft system, basically the 10 worst teams from the previous season are entered in a lottery and each is assigned a percentage based on their record from last year, number one pick I believe has a 35% chance of getting the 1st overall and it goes down from there. Were trying it for the first time this season and my hope is that it really discourages tanking because you arent guaranted anything by doing so.
Dont like the idea of a lottery for baseball. I do like anti tanking type things. But ya, its always god to look at things and try to fix things. Constant change is here to stay.
7. In an ideal world, if you were about to start a baseball league which 5 GMs would you invite to be your core. Tell me the 5 GMs the teams you would give them and why you'd want them.
Steve - I would give Steve the Brewers because thats his favorite team IRL, only makes sense. Steve is awesome, he brings a lot activity wise and hes sort of like the brains behind this operation and his ability to setup things like CATO and the export tracker go unnoticed but theyre important.
Spencer - Need someone to make up for dead periods of inactivity and with Spence talking to himself in random threads it can make it seem like the league is still alive, and obviously he would take the Giants
Broph - He brings a lot to table as far as his knowledge of OOTP goes, and its nice being able to go to someone who can help out any OOTP newbies and teach them the basics, he seems like a Mariners fan so I would probably give them to him.
Aaron - Habes seems like a cool guy in general and he has his moments where he makes me laugh, things get serious around the boards and its cool having a guy that can lighten the mood, I think hes a Mets fan so they would be all his
Play - Mr. Hammer is definitely one of the more unique personalities ive seen on these forums but you need guys like him, when someone is pulling some shady business in the league Play is usually one of the first to notice and he wont hesitate one second on calling them out on their BS. Play simply does not give a fuck, if you suck he will blatantly tell you to your face and if he doesnt like you then he will tell you that also and sure hes a little controversial but he means well. Im not sure who his favorite team is, I think its the Cardinals?
Love these 5. Surprised there was no Ashes but ya, these 5 are great. Good combination of activity, talent and personality.
8. If you were ever gonna start a league from scratch again with a complete set of active Gms what would be your favorite time period to start from? Why?
My favorite era is the early 60s/70s, I think in this era OOTP has hidden setting where pitchers tend to go deeper in the game and throw more pitches. I love having pitchers that go 8+ innings every start and not needing to carry multiple relievers.
Golden age. Love that era. Im having fun in HOFFBL. Little earlier then the time frame you mentioned but similar. Fun times.
9. Seems like BBSBL is doing pretty well. We could use two GMs at least though. Some real active guys that were knowledgeable. Pick 2 Gms from LBB to replace 2 current GMs here. Tell me why you'd hire the 2 new guys and why youd fire the 2 old guys.
Oh boy, Spence really putting me on the spot here...
I think I would bring over the Texas GM from LBB because for some reason the dude gets under Erbes skin, some really entertaining convos go on over there and I haven't seen anyone troll Erbes that hard since Broph.
I don't see anyone else worth bring over here, most of the other guys don't have interest or aren't active enough to last over here honestly.
Ugh I hate calling out people like this but I would probably get rid of Don and HF...Don has really been MIA for a while now and whatever life is throwing at him, I hope hes well but it might be time to find a new Texas GM. HF was actually really active for a while but hes dissapeared all of a sudden, he came on LBB a few days ago so im guessing hes been around but just hasnt been posting and thats fine. Don would be the guy I would seriously think about replacing while giving HF a chance to come back and be active once again.
Poor Don. LOLd.
10. Seems like Florida is running away with everything this year. Does anyone have a shot at them? If yes, who?
I really dont think anyone has a realistic chance but if its anyone its you Spence, your pitching can go toe to toe with his staff but Miggy is a monster, I dont see anyone slowing down that offense not even your pitching staff. Playoffs are a crap shoot though so maybe Miggy and the Marlins offense goes cold you can squeak out some wins.
Go me. Giants are the cinderfella teams! WEE!
11. So many amazing players in BBSBL currently. If you could add any 2 players to your roster to make you more competitive right now who would they be?
Beckett - Truly think he might be the most dominant pitcher in the league right now, one of stutters few bright spots, he had an incredible run last year and hes picking up where he left off. Just imagine if he was A duration, could set some records I tell ya.
Miggy - One of the best hitters ive ever seen in a sim league, whats thes story behind Miggy anyway? How good was he in the draft and how many PDs did he get, either Ashes is really lucky or Ashes is really lucky. Could you imagine him in COL, if only Shale had the assets to trade for him and even if he did I wonder if Ashes would ever consider trading him.
Good choices. Id love to add those two. For me personally Id really love a big time LF with OBP and speed/D. Then probably I fully developed Buster Posey.
12. How has the transition to Ashes and Steve been for you? How is their simming schedule working? Do you prefer them to Erbes simming solo?
The transition has been amazing, were getting bonus sims and consistent sims also. Erbes did a phenomenal job and I can see why he got burnt out for doing it as long as he did but Ashes/Steve have made it seem like he never left. I really dont think I prefer one to the other, as long as we get sims then I dont care whos doing it.
Things havent been better in BBSBL. Things are smooth and the 2 simmers have allowed Erbes some freedom to start to enjoy the league again. Good stuff.