HAL and relief decisions

I am pretty new to SOM Online, but since complaining about HAL seems to be a sport within a sport here, I'd like to throw in my latest sad story.

Regular season game, Koufax pitching, leading 2-1 through the 8th inning. He was set to slow hook, nothing in "don't Rel B4." He had given up 5 hits, no BB, was still at F9 and the pitch count exactly 100. HAL of course, decided to put in my rather mediocre closer (set to closer normal in team strategy) who promptly gave up a single and HR in the bottom of ninth, losing 3-2.

I have seen posts on both sides of the issue of setting the Don't Rel B4 to blank or F1, F2, etc. I have had better luck leaving it blank, or I think I have. Are my settings wrong or does HAL keep a flask in the dugout for stressful situations?

I would set Koufax at F8 (maybe lower, to your taste) and quick hook. That way he won't come out before F8, but as soon as he does fatigue HAL will pull him

I agree with SteveF's suggestion.

If Koufax had a pitch count of 100 and was still at F9 before being pulled by a slow hook, then, a fast hook might have pulled him out at 97 pitches. Perhaps, 9 out of 10 times, Koufax would have been pulled by a slow hook after 104 pitches and you got unlucky.

Who knows?

Thanks, guys! Your advice makes sense, although I've read somewhere that it may be better to leave it blank to give HAL more options; perhaps that only applies to pitchers who aren't of Sandy's caliber. I will set him as F7 or F8, with a quick hook and I'm sure HAL will cooperate.

Thanks again.

I set my stud starters to F8, but I do not check anything beyond that (no slow or quick hook).

With all other starters, I leave their F-settings blank.

If I have a strong reliever(s), I'll set a weak starter (or sometimes two) to Max 6 innings.

I set my stud starters to F8, but I do not check anything beyond that (no slow or quick hook).

With all other starters, I leave their F-settings blank.

If I have a strong reliever(s), I'll set a weak starter (or sometimes two) to Max 6 innings.

That's my usual strategy as well

Thanks again everyone! Didn't realize you had to think about this stuff; thought you just sent the guys out there. I'll try to think through the settings for HAL.

Can I ask an even more basic question, now that I have seven days of strat under my belt?

I gather from the above that there is some pitch count (or maybe PC+ H/W) setting where starters will begin to tire. What are the implications of a guy going from F9 to F8 and onward down? I understand that at F0 a guy will be giving up a lot of hits, but does that start immediately at F8, and he'll become increasingly less effective as the F's go down?

Can I ask an even more basic question, now that I have seven days of strat under my belt?

I gather from the above that there is some pitch count (or maybe PC+ H/W) setting where starters will begin to tire. What are the implications of a guy going from F9 to F8 and onward down? I understand that at F0 a guy will be giving up a lot of hits, but does that start immediately at F8, and he'll become increasingly less effective as the F's go down?

Exactly right.

Even at F0, if a pitcher gets left in to face more batters, the pitcher's performance will get increasing bad. The longer he gets left in while tired, the worse his performance gets.

Thanks.

So when we failed to score for 7.1 innings against Greg W. Harris, the last guy available in my opponent's bullpen who was F0 for the last 3 2/3 innings of our extra-inning game last night, that was just bad luck on our part?

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