Baseball Mogul 2007 Feature Poll

[Jeff Olsen]

New idea for historic careers: incorporate a "HoF eligible but not yet inducted" roster like what's already in for careers stared in 2005 but works no matter where we start.

[robinhoodnik]

Maybe a list in the "News" section of where the potential HOF candidates are at in the voting. Could a tab be added to the corner of the Headlines page in the same to simulate turning the page to make it easier to peruse the Baseball Mogul Times? I'd like to see the News dropdown utilized more and made faster to use. Possibly tabs on the side of the paper to facilitate switching sections quickly. You know, like a real newspaper make it familiar and VERY convenient to use. Everything centralized and at your fingertips.

This and also on page 8 a few more ideas on the subject. Glad to see others want this too.

[ScorpioPrimus]

Features I would like to include:

1. Variable GM/manager tendencies on the computer teams, so that one manager prefers to build a pitching team, another prefers home run sluggers, and a third looks for speedy little slap hitters who can manufacture runs on artificial turf. Similarly, I'd like to see more variation in trends in "future years" -- maybe have decades where a variation on the "dead ball era" returns, and hitting for average or base-running is valued more than home runs. (Perhaps it is better now, as I have only played about 30 seasons, but in BBM2004, the teams were so "homer-centric" that by 2050 Hank Aaron's place in the record book was about 15th, and dozens of players routinely had 55-60 HR seasons throughout their career.)

2. Rule changes/expansion/realignment/franchise shifts become pop-up options for the historical year they are introduced, so I can vote as a GM to block interleague play, or realigning into three divisions, and so on. Similarly, I would like an option added for "future years", so that (to use an example) the computer would query me in 2012 whether I wanted to add expansion franchises in Charlotte & Las Vegas, or if I wanted to allow Tampa Bay to move their team to San Antonio, or something. (And perhaps not only game code that allowed for continued expansion, but contraction as well.)

3. Adjustable roster assignments: I would prefer to carry more position players, as I rarely use all of my pitching staff, so I would like to be able to drop a pitcher for another batter. Related to that, the option to change the rotation size would be nice, so I can use a four-man rotation if I wish.

4. I really would like to see the automatic retirement at 45 done away with, and perhaps replace it with either retirement when overall ability drops below 50, or when a player has no major league appearances for a year, or something ability related. In my experience, most players have already retired by 45 anyway, but for that rare once in a lifetime Iron Man who is still going strong, let him play!

5. A lot of the other options being discussed, such as the Rule 5 draft, waiver wire, expansion of the morale factor, etc: please make these toggle options, so I can choose what to keep & what to set aside. Not everyone is enamored with the same features, after all.

[Outsider]

I would like to see a page with the league scores.
Seperately playoff stats.

[BigBubba]

One feature I just thought of would be an additon to the biography page or maybe a HOF page. That lists their awards and any or maybe only the major catagories they were leading when they retired like Homeruns or hits ect....

[Bgsexy66]

Something that could be cool is maybe in the Biography Page list the Players Favorite Team and the team the Player hates/dislikes. This would be pretty cool to see.

[GSpencer]

Overall, I am very happy with the game, but there are a few things that would make the game more lifelike:

- Trading Block - A feature where you can place the players you are willing to trade on the "block", along with what you are looking to receive in return. That way, the CPU can offer you realistic trades, instead of ridiculous deals.

- Lockable Auto-Sort - Maybe an auto-sort that doesn't affect set parts of your lineup. For example, I had a guy with a contact rating of 96 and a power rating of 65 be sent down and replaced with a guy who had a 65 contact and a 90 power (whom I didn't want as a leadoff guy).

- Stadiums - This isn't really a big deal, but does the game take into account features such as the Green Monster? Or are all stadiums programmed to have 5 foot walls around the outfield? At Fenway, with 310 down the left field line and with 5 foot walls, you are asking for trouble.

- Pitcher as Position Player - That would be fun.

- Interactive Play-By-Play - This would be the best feature in the new Baseball Mogul as you can control yourself how you'd want a playoff game to go, for example.

Hopefully one or more of the ideas in the poll could go into affect, but if they didn't, I certainly wouldn't complain.

Keep up the great work, Clay.

[dolfanar]

Overall, I am very happy with the game, but there are a few things that would make the game more lifelike:

- Trading Block - A feature where you can place the players you are willing to trade on the "block", along with what you are looking to receive in return. That way, the CPU can offer you realistic trades, instead of ridiculous deals.

- Stadiums - This isn't really a big deal, but does the game take into account features such as the Green Monster? Or are all stadiums programmed to have 5 foot walls around the outfield? At Fenway, with 310 down the left field line and with 5 foot walls, you are asking for trouble.

Both already in the game

[GSpencer]

Both already in the game

I should have been more clear...

I like the trading block they give you, but it would be cool to have an option to select which players you are willing to trade (sort of like a rumor mill?) and put them "on the block", so to speak. That way, other teams will see that you are willing to trade those players, and then they can offer you something realistic in return. Basically, it's like giving the CPU their own trading block feature.

The stadium thing was just a general question. I was just wondering if the game took into account the Green Monster and everything. In play-by-play, it shows the dimensions symmetrical.

[QHowes]

Just a suggestion; What about a new engine for generating news headlines. Instead of reading the same articles with different scores, make it new and interesting to read. This is probably not an easy task...With my limited knowlege of computer programming I certainly coundnt do it

[BigBubba]

How about the use of team logos (with ability to change) and use of Stadium logos (with ability to change)

[Rand]

Just a suggestion; What about a new engine for generating news headlines. Instead of reading the same articles with different scores, make it new and interesting to read. This is probably not an easy task...With my limited knowlege of computer programming I certainly coundnt do it

No, it's easy. First it randomly imports one of a group of canned article templates, then it generates fills in player names to fit the template, and finally it adjusts the team and player stats to fit what the article says. So all they really need is more templates. Of course that also means more rigged games, but you have around a 50/50 chance of it being rigged in your favor.

You didn't think BBM ran real sims, looked for interesting results in real games, and then wrote articles about them?

[Clay Dreslough]

No, it's easy. First it randomly imports one of a group of canned article templates, then it generates fills in player names to fit the template, and finally it adjusts the team and player stats to fit what the article says. So all they really need is more templates. Of course that also means more rigged games, but you have around a 50/50 chance of it being rigged in your favor.

You didn't think BBM ran real sims, looked for interesting results in real games, and then wrote articles about them?

I'm not sure if this is a joke or not. So excuse me if I'm missing the point.

Mogul doesn't rig any games. We run the sim, look for interesting results (e.g. 10+ strikeouts, 3+ homers, change in the standings) and then write a story about it.

Clay

[Clay Dreslough]

So the articles are made from SENTENCE templates, not entire news story templates. It's easy to add to these templates. In fact if you have sentences you'd like to see, just post them and/or e-mail them and I'll include them (this in fact would be a good new thread IMHO).

The harder part is looking for new interesting things. If you write sentences about how the Angels defense turned 5 double plays, or Manny Ramirez won the game with a walk-off homer in the 11th, or the Yankees stranded 17 runners, then we have to write some more code that looks through the game recaps for these kinds of events.

Clay

[Rand]

I'm not sure if this is a joke or not. So excuse me if I'm missing the point....
Clay

It was half joking, and don't worry yourself about points. Anyone who has ever watched in horror as the 83 win wildcard team with a BA of .236 and ERA of 4.22, wipes out everything in it's path on the way to the WC, knows that random results is BBM's stock in trade. May the AI gods so favor my 5-1 underdog team in it's coming WS bid.

The harder part is looking for new interesting things.
Clay

Some interesting new things might include teams moving to a new city or building a new stadium, something I'm surprised still isn't done. Even renovations, adding seats, improving sight lines, et al. That's news. So is raising ticket prices, or lowering them.

Some other things I don't see, or don't see much of, would include: a string of innings or appearances without giving up a HR (one reliever in my league didn't give up a single homer all season in 78 games and 93 innings of setup work and not a word about that made the news), ten or more strikeouts in a game (that's still a milestone), consecutive hitless ABs, same for homer-less with power hitters. Babe Ruth in his prime not hitting a homer for five games in a row is as much news as him hitting three in one game. And these should be stand alone headlines, not a factoid buried in a story about the game's outcome.

The trick is to think like it's your home town newspaper, not USA Today which only gives a broad overview of everything that's happening. You've gotten closer to that, but you're not quite there yet.

You also have fan favorites now, so almost anything that they do, or don't do, is news. If they go three for four with 6 RBIs (which you have covered), or go hitless for the second day in a row. If a guy steals three bases in a game, or steals his tenth without getting caught, that's news to home team fans.

I doubt you have code in place for spectacular defensive plays (I'd hope I'm wring about that, but), so no help there, but you do have some defensive occurrences that would be news worthy.

Maybe a catcher threw out a man attempting to steal third (it must happen), or threw out four attempted steals in one game. Maybe an outfielder threw out a runner at home, or third, or even second (as also has to happen once in a while). Or one player made three errors. That's a headline even over the W-L. Can't Fieldmuch bobbles three in Knights loss to the Round Robins.

There are also RBIs that counter errors, or errors that counter RBIs. As in a line like Can't Fieldmuch made up for his second inning error, which allowed a runner to score, by belting a two run homer run in the seventh.

Then there's the relievers section. You show starter's success, but how about Catfish Hunter slams the door on Yankees? Or Hoyt Wilhelm gets 25th save of the season?

As a long time (and ex) Met fan, I can tell you that most of the team "news" I grew up reading was about Bud Harrelson digging one out of the hole, Tom Seaver (Gooden) getting 12 Ks, Ron Swododa making a diving catch, etc. And those things were on the front of the sports section no matter who won, as they still are today in cities where the team isn't going to break .500 let alone win the WC.