Spring Training is Over!

Okay, a little time on your hands before the first pitch and you are wondering what one should be doing. Well, there are a few things to do, so lets cut to the chase.

First thing I do is find out how well the players did in Spring Training. The first ratings bump of the season ya know. Well if you don't know, players get ratings advancements every now and then throughout the season and this is the first one. Most generally the young players are the only ones affected, those under the age of 27. But sometimes older players may see an increase or a resettling though rare. Older players may even go down the drain a bit but not usually during Spring Training. Other ratings bumps happen about every 30 games and show progress through playing time.

Now is the time to solidify the rosters, you may want to move players up to fill holes in the minors as they will be ready to play in a couple days. Ahh Hah thought you only needed to worry about the majors huh? If you want to move a player from the minors to the ML roster, you might want to reconsider that for teensy bit. There is this thing about minor league options and ML service time you should read and know about. If a player is not on the 40-man roster his clock hasn't started ticking yet. After three years of ML service time a player can file for arbitration. To stall the arbitration a little, owners wait until the 23rd game of the the minor league season before promoting to the ML level. I usually wait until the player has had his first playing bump.

If I still have some holes to fill in the minors I will check the tryout camp attendees. They may not be all that great but make great fillers. Might want to check out the Free Agent market also, prices will have dropped fanatically.

After all that I usually go to the Management Console and click on Recs at the bottom of the page for each level. This is a quick way to get everything set up and ready to go.

After that it is time to check the ML lineups, two lineups you don't have to worry about right at the moment but depends in which league you are in. Look them over and see if that is how you want them. Normally your best non power hitter with speed is in the first slot. Power hitters usually occupy slots three thru six. I think they still use low eye - high contact over high eye - low contact in the order also if it comes to that. Make sure that Rest, Pinch Hitting and Defensive Replacements are to your liking also. I won't go into great detail about those, just remember if you replace a player or a player goes on the DL at any time those areas need to be updated.

You will need to change the Manager settings to regular season play also. Whether to play areas as Average, Aggressive or other is your choice. Some of them is usually self evident like Base Stealing. If you only have one or two speed guys (remember base running IQ is also involved as well as coaches) then maybe you don't want to go aggressive. But maybe you have a bunch of 60-75 type guys and want to go aggressive on Base Running.

As for the runs and innings, some use 3 and 7th, 3 and 8th, others use 5 and 7th. Basically it depends on the depth of the bench and your personal preferences. If you have better defense on the bench with a lead or maybe a better hitter when behind.

As for Mop Up, I rarely have a guy in this position so I don't use it. I only use my closer in save situations and 9th inning also.

Now for the pitching staff. Check to make sure it is set the way you want, seldom is it the way you envision it or should be for that matter. Then go to the Edit Player Settings section and make sure the pitch counts are the way you want, the call pen setting and the right relief boxes checked. OOps almost forgot about the innings thing in relief. Make sure there is at least one pitcher in relief set to any or 1, as I am sure there will be a starter that can't get past the first inning.

I usually don't look at the minors that much right now. I will run through and check the lineups to make sure the best players are in the right spot in the lineup. Check the pitching staffs and make sure my stars are where they need to be. Remember that players advance with playing time, that means more AB's and innings pitched. But you also can't ignore their stamina and durability. Normally you won't have any problems with that until All_Star break.

After each game you will need to rest pitchers in the pen that have become fatigued. For some reason the Sim will pick on them even though they shouldn't Happens more in the minors that the majors). Normally, if they are not 100%, I rest them til they are. Starters you will need to keep an eye on if they are not recovering from fatigue well enough to make their next start at 100%. Lowering the TPC and MPC will fix that.

I know, some of you have no way of checking after each game and that can become problematic. Having extra pitchers on the Inactive roster helps.

The Newest Hot Pocket

That might be one Hot Pocket alright! But not the Hot Pocket we are interviewing today.
Focus guys..Here!!! Yoooohooo Down here!! Finally got your attention.



AAAhemmmm!!!! So Funny

This is Linda Loo reporting live from Hot Pocket headquarters in Helena where they just announced the signing of Ruben Mota for a miniscule amount of $3.5M. I swear I would have been a cheaper and more productive buy for the money . Any way the talent does possess some nice hands and some very handsome peepers. Has the stamina, well he will I tell ya and a little power in his speed stroke but let me tell ya he just doesn't muster up. Could make a decent outfielder in time but nothing in the HOF category.

International Scouts at Work

International Scouts are hard at work finding players to fit in your organization. Like this possible prospect:



Never fear as Linda Loo is all set finding and reporting the intrinsic value of each prospect:

Early Season Trades

Was the world shaken with early season trades? One way to find out is to take a look.

The first trade of the season between Little Rock and Montreal didn't exactly set the tone. Edwin Webster was sent to Little Rock and is a decent starting pitcher. In return Montreal got Yorman Reyes a 2B prospect of questionable quality. A cost cutting move perhaps.

Karim Pulido was sent to Mexico City for Pedro Saez who winds up on the Louisville roster. Pulido is another starting pitcher of questionable quality while Pedro may be a good hitter but lacks the ability to be a good catcher.

The Twins sent Magglio Palacios to Louisville and received Louie Hanson in return. Magglio is a 3B on the low end of the scale and might be better in RF. Louie is still young and hasn't performed well out of the pen.

Little Rock sent Tony Takada and Luis Cervantes to Mexico City for Clint Olson. Takada is a prospect that is iffy at 1B but may possess some nice hitting skills. Cervantes is a decent pitcher and holds his own. Olson just never looked good in Mexico City and maybe a new home will work out for him.

Tampa Bay sent Edwin Milner, Nicholas Velarde and Heinie Laffey to Montreal for Kane North, Tony Prior and Sticky Russell. A trade of Gold Glove SS's is always something to take notice of, like Milner and Kane. Tampa Bay got a power DH in Prior and a decent hitting catcher in Russell. Jokes are already spreading in Montreal about the laughing ass, err Heinie Laffey. His young Heinie could be a nice pitching prospect of the future. Meanwhile Velarde could yet grace the majors as a DH.

Philly sent 2 time Cy Young winner, Pedro DeSoto, to Houston for three young talents in Jesus Mendez, Alan Ellis and Ralph Taylor. A cost cutting and rebuild start for Philly. Ellis and Mendez could be good in the pen one day while Taylor has enough skill to be a great hitting catcher. Houston solidifies it pen for another run for sure.

Chicago sent Matt Wiltse, a so-so 2B that may look better in RF and a possible top of the order hitter to Washington. In return Chicago got the services of Trevor Gibson, Lew Yates, and Shawn Sexton. All three are prospect pitchers with varying degrees of talent.

Changing Positions

This post is for the newbies more or less. Position players are a tricky lot sometimes. They may have their skill set to one position or multiple positions. They may or may not carry the skill set needed for a position. Alas, here to the rescue is how to change that interesting bumbling.

To change a position players primary position or secondary set, click on GM's Office-Roster Management-Edit Rosters. You can go through each roster and perform many functions as outlined at the bottom of the page. Any function selected and action taken on a player will give you a second chance for you to execute the function. It will not happen until you submit the action for processing. So be sure that is what you want to do. Be warned that you should thoroughly read the help section on this, especially the GM's Basic.

As for changing a players position, click on the position next to the player involved after that interruption. It was brought on by the wife, "What's this for?", her version of 'Are we there yet?'. Anyway, it will bring up a pop up mini page that outlines the so called minimums for a position along with the players current and projected ratings. The last line is for the primary and secondary positions. You can change them manually or select one of the buttons below. I normally go with Show Recs (proj) and edit if not to your liking before hitting the Save button.

The reason for this is to easily set up lineups thru the Management Console so you don't have to do it manually, it can be such a burden in the minors. If you use the Management Console on the ML team, at the beginning of the season is okay, but trust me, you will need to go edit the lineups and pitch settings manually afterwards.

When a player becomes injured and needs to be put on the DL, holes will exist in the rest, defensive replacements and pinch hitting settings that need to be addressed. I am always forgetting those.

Also players playing a position that is not on their resume brings on 'out of position minuses' I believe in the sim. Whether he can actually play the position or not.

International Report

With the start of Spring training so goes the scouting in International waters. For the newbies on this, just because they show up doesn't mean they are any good. You also don't have to bid on them either. Scouts are only as good as the money spent and even then they lie a little bit, sometimes a lot. Sometimes you see the good ones and sometimes you don't, kind like pot luck in that arena. Getting into a nasty bidding war for the good ones is common so hang onto your wallet. Anyway on to the news in this area.

The first IFA signed is Albert Velazquez, who signed for $1M by Dover. Even with my ugly scouting, oh wait I don't have any in the IFA market and advanced is not looking hypoallergenic either, I don't see the justification anyway, unless minor league pitching is a dire need. Control maybe good and has a deep set of above average pitches in the future but the splits look to be severely impoverished.

Albert Chavez was the second whatever he is to be taken. The Baltimore Orioles shelled out 50K for a so called 1B that disillusionment says he can't even find the locker room let alone 1B. Doesn't have the hitting prowess for a DH either. Okay, so now that ya got your feet wet...

The Free Agent Market

George Atkins became the first Type A player and starting pitcher to sign. He made no bones about wanting out of New York. The Mutts will be compensated with the first sandwich pick when draft time arrives. Little Rock gets what I would call a SP3, good control, decent splits and decent pitches but not overwhelming.

Florida picks up Victor Beltran after the loss of Dwight Hall. Victor doesn't have the velocity most want in a closer. With that assumption in mind, he will be used in short relief in which he is very good at.

Dwight Hall was picked up by Little Rock also. He is 5th all time in saves and looks to hold onto that status.

Benji Franco signed an unusual mega deal with Pittsburgh. He is not your prototypical closer with his stamina but is very good at it. So who will be closing for the Pirates?

Winston Maxwell was the prize in Free Agency as he was the best starter available. Texas rewarded him with an all out super deal. Already with 2 Cy Young awards, garnering a third could be tough in Texas but likely. The question remains why, did Winston not like the move to Montreal?

Omar Elcano was one of the best but his age is catching up with him. Still viable as a starter for at least another year and maybe the pen for another, the third year might be a bit high priced to keep, hopefully that is an option year. It looks like a good contract if that is the case and Little Rock is hoping.

With a closer already on board Little Rock went for a short reliever with style and found Pedro Marichal. Rounding out the pitching staff with aces is a sure fire way to win, hopefully the offense clicks also.

Boston had to replace Chang and chose Mark James. Mark had some great years in Salem and should again in Fenway. Signing a mega deal and his ratings mean more expensive dents in the Green Monster.

With the loss of James. Salem spent money on Cookie Eyre and Tony Lansing to replace him. Neither is overwhelming on the mound and may take both to get the job done.

Paul Berroa was the remaining star at the end of Free Agency. The Mutts tried but couldn't contend with the mega deal he got. He joins a very good and deep pitching staff and an offense that can shell the opponents.

Detroit decided to add some power to the offense with Steve Clifton and the hitting abilities of Santo Martin. They both are the first Type A position players taken in the FA Market. Both will help a beleaguered offense but problems still exist with the so-so pitching staff.

Texas needed some offensive help also and went after Eric LaRocca and Andy Fassero. Both haven't been all that productive with their former employers and a new start somewhere fresh may be what the doctor ordered.