Base running mistake by HAL...

[magnotti]

Hi all,

Take a look at this book score:

http://fantasygames.sportingnews.com/stratomatic/league/boxscore.html?group_id=87621&g_id=128

Especially:

*** TOP OF INNING 9 ***
0 D.Bichette 1-5 Single (CF) b-1 F5
0 1 G.Anderson 2-5 Ground Out (SS) Double Play 1-o b-0 F3
2 J.Thome 1-9 Walk b-1 F2
2 1 B.Mayne 2-10 Single (LF) 1-2 b-1 F0
SUBSTITUTE P - Tim Crabtree
SUBSTITUTE PH- Willis Otanez
2 12 W.Otanez 6-6 Single (LF) 2-o 1-2 b-1 F4

I assume (hope) Thome was thrown out at home and not just being slow getting to third.

Why would HAL send a lumbering base runner like Thome home? Velarde was up next and he already had 2 RBIs. I think I would rather take my chances with the bases loaded.

Base running is set to normal and Thome's individual settings have nothing checked.

[magnotti]

Or how about another strange base running decision in the same series:

http://fantasygames.sportingnews.com/stratomatic/league/boxscore.html?group_id=87621&g_id=140

Specifically:

*** TOP OF INNING 9 ***
0 C.Jones 3-9 Walk b-1 F9
0 1 Stolen Base 1-2 F9
0 2 D.Bichette 3-6 Single (RF) 2-3 b-1 F9
0 1 3 G.Anderson 6-10 Sac Fly (CF) 3-H b-0 fly(CF)x F8
1 1 Stolen Base 1-2 F8
1 2 J.Thome 2-4 Fly Out (CF) b-0 F8
2 2 D.Erstad 1-5 Single (RF) 2-H b-1 F0
SUBSTITUTE P - Pedro Borbon
2 1 Stolen Base 1-2 F9
2 2 R.Velarde Int Walk b-1 F9
2 12 B.Mayne 5-7 Walk 2-3 1-2 b-1 F9
2 123 D.Jeter 3-6 Walk 3-H 2-3 1-2 b-1 F9
2 123 V.Guerrero 1-9 Pop Out (SS) b-0 F9


Top of the ninth down by two and HAL steals three bases? I call that aggressive. I won, so I guess I shouldn't complain, but this seems odd to me.

[apolivka]

On the Thome play at the plate, it was about a 50/50 chance to score from 2nd on that single. You were down by 1 run with two outs in the 9th inning. Scoring on that play would have tied the game. Good call by HAL in my book. If you don't try to score there your next hitter, even if he's Babe Ruth, has less than a 50/50 shot at driving in the run.

For the Steals. HAL must have got good jumps. I didn't look, but I would guess the relievers had bad holds and Mayne is a +1 armed catcher, so it was just good odds to steal.

Looking at your box score, I noticed you were playing Dante Bichette. Thankfully he was at DH. :) I don't think a lf-5(+1)e15 really does him justice as he was one of the worst major league fielders I ever saw. Not only that, he was probably the absolute worst baserunner I have ever seen in my lifetime. Strato can't take that into account, I guess, but he should be nailed about 20-30 times on the basepaths for making stupid baserunning mistakes! He sure could hit, though...

[magnotti]

How did you figure out it was a 50/50 shot at home plate?

I remember good old Dante that way as well. :) But this is 1999 and I just needed offense.

[apolivka]

Thome's running is 1-10. Left Fielder's arm was 0. His attempt to get home was a twenty sided dice roll. 1-10 safe, 11-20 out.

This assumes Thome was not being held at 2nd (good assumption since he _is_ a slug) and that the opposing team didn't try to "cut off" the throw and nail the trailing runner which is another good assumption since this was the tying run.

Dante was quite a character. :) He was basically horrible at everything in baseball _except_ hitting. So, what does that add up to? A 14 year career, 4 all-star games, and even almost getting an MVP!

[apolivka]

I hate to respond to my own post here, but when Bichette was a Brewer, I recall a game where someone hit a ball to the right field corner. Bichette chased after it an then stepped on the ball trying to field it. This caused him to twist his ankle and lay there writhing in pain.

By the time Robin Yount made it over to field the ball, some lumbering 1st baseman crossed the plate with an inside the park home run. Might have been Mo Vaughn or someone like him.

Why on earth did we have him playing right field anyway???

[coyote303]

Rememeber, too, that there is a +2 bonus to baserunning with two outs.

[TomSiebert]

Whoa, coyote! I didn't know that! Thanks!

I'd love to find some site that lays out all these esoteric rules, like which ballparks don't have the "save HR" option, like Fenway's Green Monster in left, because of height.

tws