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Maybe there is a way to do this, but I have yet to figure it out.
There have been games -- usually in the late or extra innings -- where using a pitcher as a pinch hitter would make more sense than burning one of my bench players.
It might be because I have some good hitting pitchers -- The Cardinals use Adam Wainwright as a pinch hitter maybe a couple of times a month -- or I have two outs and don't want to burn one of my bench players so I can use him later.
ya, carlos zambrano pinch hits all the time... so does micah owings... i love pitchers that can hit well...
There's no way to do this now, but I would like to see it implemented since I would use it a lot.
Absolutely need this. There are too many good hitting pitchers these days to ignore, and it's quite common to use a pitcher as a pinch-runner. I carry three lead-footed catchers and could really use a good pinch-runner.
Absolutely need to do this because 'if it's in the game, it's in the game'
Agree, there's definitely a need for this. Another scenario...not sure if this would apply as much to Mogul, but in general starting pitchers can bunt much better than relievers, and I know I've seen a manager bring in an SP with less than 2 outs just to lay down a bunt that the reliever he subbed for couldn't handle.
In addition, you should be able to make a pitcher into a position player (like Ruth or Ankiel) or vice versa.
you can do that in commish mode but id like to be able to do that out of commish mode as well
agreedQuote:
Originally Posted by Steve13
I am more likely to want to use a pitcher as a pinch runner than as a hitter.
It would be nice to be able to do this also.
Not sure why you'd want to since the majority of pitchers are EXTREMELY slow (at least according to their speed rating) and it would increase the chance they could end up injured, but to each his own.
The ratings are wrong. Pitchers certainly should not be much of a threat to steal, but they are often faster than catchers, etc. and are a much better bet to score from second, etc. Teams in real life do use young pitchers as pinch-runners; injuries on the basepaths aren't that common if you're not trying to steal. Having every pitcher rated in the 50's for speed is absurd for any purpose other than stealing.Quote:
Originally Posted by BINGLEBOP
Agreed. Maybe someone better at baseball-reference than I am can show that pitchers do, occasionally, appear as pinch runnersQuote:
Originally Posted by Lex Logan
Just used retro-sheet to look at the Cubs record from last year. Only looking at their home games (just the way the files are broken up), they used Jason Marquis as a pinch-runner 6 times last year - more than anyone else on the team. Ronny Cedeno was second with 5.
Similarly, Jair Jurrjens was a pinch runner 5 times in home games for the Braves. It isn't very common, but common enough that it should be added. It also seems to be a lot more common than pinch-hitting with pitchers (though those are a little more memorable).
The Reds have in past years used Bronson Arroyo regularly as a pinch-runner. Haven't seen them use a pitcher that way this year.
Bobby Cox uses hit pitchers as pinch-runners a lot. Partly becaues he makes sure that his pitchers can both bunt well and be smart on the basepaths. There's no sense in wasting a bench player with just average speed who can hit to pinch run for your slow as mollasses catcher when you can have an average footed, smart running pitcher do the job.
There's no reason a pitcher shouldn't be a pinch runner, unless he's slow, or they need him as a pitcher in the game
I agree with that in real life, but in the game, 98% of them have VERY low speed ratings, and compared to catchers, much, much lower still.
Maybe those need to be adjusted as well. There are maybe a couple of pitchers who have even a MEDIOCRE speed rating, and it's likely because they have a predicted triple or something.
On the other hand, you have a handful of players with at least AVERAGE hitting ratings (especially power).
So, the way the game is right now, pinch-hitting with a pitcher would make more sense than pinch-running for one. Sure, you could pinch-run with one if you want, but with how low their speed ratings are currently, it would make zero sense, unless somehow miraculously, the rest of your bench was even SLOWER. I wish there was a way to show a pitcher's speed rating (baserunning) in Sortable Stats instead of having to look on the Skills Tab for it.
OK, I was bored and decided to look up all of the pitchers' speed (and base stealing) ratings, as well as their steal tendencies.
Using the standard rosters and viewing the ratings via commissioner mode, there are 1,457 pitchers. None of them have a speed rating at even 70 or above, and here are the numbers for the ones that are even above 60:
69: 4 total (0.27%)
67: 2 total (0.14%)
66: 3 total (0.21%)
65: 1 total (0.07%)
64: 5 total (0.34%)
63: 2 total (0.14%)
62: 7 total (0.48%)
61: 13 total (0.89%)
60: 18 total (1.24%)
That's a total of 3.77% of pitchers who have speed ratings in the 60's, which is still below average. The rest of them are all in the 50's! I highly doubt anybody would ever use a player like that as a pinch-runner, unless there were in-game injuries, which there are not. The circumstances where one of your pitchers will be faster than even the backup catcher is rare, and that's what has to be changed (more of a variation).
Here are the base stealing ratings for all of the same pitchers (because as we all know "speed" doesn't just equate to stolen bases, but could be referring to triples as well):
66: 1 total (0.07%)
65: 1 total (0.07%)
64: 1 total (0.07%)
61: 6 total (0.42%)
So a total of nine pitchers (0.62%) have a base stealing rating in the 60's, with the highest being a 66.
There are more "good hitting" pitchers that you could use to pinch hit than there are pitchers who are good (or even average) baserunners.
Good work Bing,
I would say that this is an area where BM strays from IRL baseball
And it is the problem with generating speed ratings from predicted stats. Most pitchers don't hit well enough to have the doubles/triples needed to generate a high speed rating - and they don't steal bases for a variety of reasons. I'm not sure how the game should generate speed numbers for pitchers - as there seems to be no way to do it that isn't arbitrary. I guess it could be done for pitchers just using height, weight and age or something like that.
Funny thing in a game was one of those 50-something speed pitchers stole a base in a game against Yadier Molina! Maybe it was a busted hit-and-run, but still.
We need the option to sub a pitcher in anywhere, or to replace the pitcher on the mound with a position player. As it stands now, you could get stuck with your closer on the mound in an extended game, have him get shelled and be way over his pitch limit, and you can't replace him until the inning is over. Once the game was out of hand, no real life manager would let the guy blow his arm out, but it could happen in Mogul.
Once we have the option to use any player anywhere, then we need realistic base-running ratings for pitchers.
We should probably have realistic base running ratings for pitchers anyway - they do hit, they do get on base occasionally. And while most pitchers aren't very good on the bases - they aren't all ridiculously slow.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lex Logan
No surprise, it happens once in awhile. I had David Wells steal a base once.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lex Logan
I had often heard that Ron Guidry was one of the fastest men on the team. When the infamous pine-tar game was resumed Guidry was playing centerfield. If I remember right, Billy Martin did use him as a pinch runner also.