this really stinks !!!!

[MFL536]

my first 2008 season in the finals all tied 3-3 game 7 was tonight my bullpen is J.P.Howell,Bruney,Joba as set up and Rivera as closer.my other 2 relievers are putz and rodney I set them both to avoid lh and rh batters quick hook etc .starts out ok bruney comes in with 2 outs in the 6th ,no runs pitches a scoreless 7th,so I am leading 6-5 going into the 8th still I have Joba to pitch the 8th and Rivera for the 9th no for some stupid reason hal puts in rodney as my set up and closer and blows the lead rivera and joba never get to pitch and I lose 7-6
I have just been cheated out of 1 add'l credit and a championship
I am now done with this site I will play 1 more team to use my credit but this stinks

[RICHARDMILTER]

Try having a stein of mead, and taking a series of deep breaths. To make it to the championship playing against this kind of competition is no small feat. You should proud.

Were either of the relievers whom you expected to pitch tired? You should give the game one more chance. It may not be perfect but it is still pretty good. We all have to deal with the crazy computer manager(Hal), and I am sure there were many instances were Hal did similar things to your various opponents.

And, Bernie said new(better) bullpen logic is coming any day.

[LMBombers]

The bullpen logic I'm sure will be a great improvement but still don't expect your closer to close every game if you have a winning streak going and he has pitched several games in a row. The same goes for any other RP that has pitched in consecutive games. This is also true in real life. Also even if your best RP comes into a game it is still possible for them to blow the lead and the game even if fully rested. Unfortunately that is part of life and baseball.

[KEITHLAMONT]

Not too mention that is quite a bit of money spent on relief pitching. Joba as a set-up guy is not a good value. The money could have been spent on hitting & you would have had possibly more than a 1 run lead. I feel your frustration on being the runner up in the finals, Ive been to the playoffs 21 times & just won my 2nd championship last week. Let it go & go on, the championships will come! :)

[MFL536]

you guys are right but it is not losing that bothers me as much,if I would have lost with Rivera in as my closer I could have accepted that(game 7 world series 2003 vs Marlins) but rodney and putz who were my mop up guys and were set to avoid rh & lh batters mop up quick hook,everything I could do to keep them out of the game
oh well I made the finals in my first 2008 league

[apolivka]

Check who pitched in game 5 and 6. If Joba appeared in both, he will _NOT_ pitch in game 7 unless everyone else is already used. Then, if he does pitch, he is automatically tired and will probably get rocked.

HAL, even with the current bullpen logic, almost always puts in your selected setup guy in the 8th with a 1 run lead.

I've lost in the finals before in much worse fashion. 9th inning error by an e4 outfielder...check. Blown save by 7+ Million dollar reliever with a three run lead in the 8th....check. Having a team with 110 wins lose in 5 games to a 81 win team...check. Having 5 guys get injured in the playoffs so you need to have an outfielder play 2nd base...check.

You made the finals! It's always tough to lose in finals, but you play for free next time.

[ArrylT]

This is why I use Speed Stick whenever I play SOM ... so that my teams don't stink! :wink:

[geekor]

I feel you, I just lost in 6 games to a teams I beat 8/9 times during the regular season, 3 by 1 run losses, it hurts when the bullpen management isn't great and it costs you :(

[longgandhi]

HAL is a killer and you never know when he will strike, but at least you didn't have a 3 games to none lead and then lose 4 straight due to all number of reasons including your team's best hitter, who hit .350+ during the season, going 0 for his last 20. (raises hand, then shrugs).

Just an FYI, Rivera lost Game 7 to the Diamondbacks in 2001. In 2003, the Marlins won in 6, with Beckett throwing the complete game in the final.

[paul.czarnecki]

HAL's mismanagement of my bullpen has consistently cost me in the playoffs, and it did again with my first 2008 playoff team. It appears they will never solve this problem. :?