Four man rotations vs. five man rotations

I have tried to put a couple teams together with five man rotations but have not had a lot of luck. I'm beginning to think the non* starters are generally over-priced, use of the five man rotation takes away your flexibility to use spot non* starters to counter specified teams with stacked lineups, and the pool of quality of non* starters rapidly diminishes once you get away from the few big name expensive non* starters when seeking replacement players. There simply seems to be a better and deeper pool of * starters.

I'd like to hear what you guys thinks about four man rotations vs. five man rotations.

I guess I should have noted in my original post that I'm trying this in a '90s league. But I've encountered the same problems in '70s leagues as well.

The selection of non-* starters in the 70s is pretty limited, and the supply of quality starters with a * is more than ample. So, I always used a 4-man rotation in 70s.

I have had good luck in the 90s with a 5-man rotation if I'm in a league where almost all of the other managers go with a 4-man rotation. If not, you're going to have a busy preseason converting to a 4-man rotation!

It is easier to find 4 solid starters than 5 under any circumstances. One thing I will say about the 70s set is that there seems to me to be a better pool of non * starters who can also relieve than in the other sets. What I have occasionally tried to do is draft 6-8 non * starters in the 70s, most or all of whom can also relieve, and then used at least a couple of them in the bullpen until I can figure out who would be better where. Guys like Jim McGlothlin and Pete Vukovich, for example, can sometimes work as solid bullpen pieces, not just as starters. It is also worth noting that HAL seems to ignore the pitcher's rest rules for a starter/reliever if you don't have a 4 man rotation. Frequently I have seen a Vukovich type guy pitch an inning or 2 in relief one day, then start and go 6+ innings the next game.

[quote=" I have seen a Vukovich type guy pitch an inning or 2 in relief one day, then start and go 6+ innings the next game.[/quote]
But Vuck was an animal!!!!!!

In the 70s I use a 4 man 90+% of the time. The 80s is harder because there are fewer * and I go with a modified 5 man. Meaning if I have a stud or two, then they go on 4 day rest and then juggle 3-4 pitchers in the other spots.


?Does the 70s really have a rest rule/logic built into it? I didn't think so.

I don't think I've ever used a 4 man rotation in the mystery game and have had decent success, but it's best to have one good asterisk pitcher so he can pitch twice first playoff round five game series.