The Secret Formula 2009

[Knerrpool]

Thanks, J-Pav. I did view your 2008 and 2007 posts but I don't think there was a link to the 2006 post in your 2007 article. No big deal, I'll just search for it. I like these kinds of articles as I need all the help I can get.

Regarding the ratings books, in "The Store" I see you can buy the most recent ratings book, but I don't see where you can buy years previous to that. I'd like to see the 2003 data as that is the league I am currently playing (losing) in.

[J-Pav]

[b:5466a8f722]Knerrpool[/b:5466a8f722]:

Just call the 800 number for The Store, I'd be shocked if they did not have back issues.

My older posts are likely gone forever, lost when they updated these boards a few years ago. Also gone are all the great posts and discussions from the early years - the new players to the game don't even know what they've missed!

[Palmtana]

Here's your one-stop shop for Secret Formulas:

[url=http://forums.sportingnews.com/viewtopic.php?t=584337]Secret Formula 2009[/url]

[url=http://forums.sportingnews.com/viewtopic.php?t=484906&start=0]Secret Formula 2008[/url]

[url=http://forums.sportingnews.com/viewtopic.php?t=295022&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0#comments]Secret Formula 2007[/url] - the SF is on page 2 of the thread

[url=http://forums.sportingnews.com/viewtopic.php?t=160988]Secret Formula 2006[/url] - introduction of Salary Structure; 7 pages of comments :shock:

[url=http://forums.sportingnews.com/viewtopic.php?t=9972]Secret Formula 2005[/url] - great back and forth with luckyman

These new boards started up the summer of 2005 so the first Formulas will truly remain Secret.

[J-Pav]

Wow, thx for the links - too funny.

:D

[Jerlins]

I think Palmtana has every post ever written on file and in alphabetical order. I recall mentioning an obscure post written 2 years previous a while back and he came up with the actual post less than 24 hours later. The guy is a walking library I tell ya.

[krgrecw]

I've played in about two dozen leagues and some how have managed to win two of them.. My question is if a closer is r1/c6 how do you get him to come in and pitch more than one inning or do you not want him to pitch more than one? If so isn't taking a decent closer half the price of a good one a better move since you just want a guy with a c/3 instead of a c/6?

thanks for all the help

[MARCPELLETIER]

@krgrecw

When building your team, you might conclude that you won't need more than, say 80-100 innings, from your closer. This would be the case if you build a pitching staff with extremely solid SPs, especially in a pitcher's park, or if you plan to rely on an extremely solid set-up man who could close a few games (someone like Balfour, for example, can be used as your main set-up man and closer, with your "closer" set as the 2nd closer in your bullpen set-up, such that he will come in when your set-up man is used earlier). In this scenario, spending for a mid-price closer makes perfectly sense.

You can limit a closer to the ninth inning if you set him up as a closer, without giving him any other role. You can further restrict his usage by clicking the option "don't come before the 8th". By doing so, Hal will limit your closer only to closing situations, except when no other reliever will be available to throw the 8th inning.

This said, I see little reason in Strat for limiting your closer, if he's a good one, to the 9th inning. If you introduce your closer in the 8th, there is of course a risk that he allows three hits/walks in the 8th, which will make him unavailable for the 9th. But this is a small risk for the greater advantage to have a very good pitcher when the game is on the line.
Personally, I would limit the usage of a closer to the 9th, in the fashion explained in the preceding paragraph, only for a cheap closer, in a context of a cheap bullpen, where everyone has a specific assigned role.

[Jeepdriver]

In no way am I downplaying the importance of [i:e386338790]TSF[/i:e386338790] with this post, but to me the single most important element of Strat is the [u:e386338790]autodraft[/u:e386338790].

IMO, there's a technique, a strategy to having a good autodraft and it's often overlooked. When I look at waiver claim positions (prior to looking at my team) I want to be as far down the list as possible. Dead last and I'm happy.

If I'm high up, especially the first four spots or so I know it could be a long season.

And even if you're way down the list for waivers, you'll stand a good chance of getting who you're targeting because you're going to have less needs than most players.

Now obviously you'll need to know how to play the game after constructing your team, that's where all of the other strategies come into play, and you can't go wrong in following [b:e386338790]J-Pav's[/b:e386338790] [i:e386338790]TSF.[/i:e386338790]

But before the season starts you need a good strategy, too, and that's the autodraft. Have a good one...

[pcbaseballsims]

well said Jeep...well said. I concur.

I'm enjoying the two '99 leagues we're in with a 3rd one down the road.

Speaking of 1999 & CLs you gotta love $7M+ Wags w/ his R2-C6!

Emphasis on the R2. $5M Rocker also has an awesome card, perhaps better than Wagner's .82 whip & RockOn is 4L.

[J-Pav]

I agree with the importance of the autodraft. Like everything else, the manager who plays the most stands the most to gain here. I draft a bunch of different ways (SPs first, SPs last, alternating SPs and hitters, etc). You learn to "feel" how low you can go with certain players.

I planned to leave autodraft strategy for the Theory in Action post; however, I'm finding the newbs aren't being attracted to either of these posts. There's just not that much discussion...

:?