Enhance your strengths or protect your shortcomings?

I am in a 20 team face to face league that uses current card set. We have been having a discussion regarding the importance of ballpark selection in regards to your roster.

The debate that is ongoing is do you choose a ballpark that protects your weakness or do you choose a ballpark that enhances your strengths?

So, if you have one of the top five starting pitching staffs in the league but just an average offense, do you choose AT&T or a similar Pitchers Park to really shut down your opponents offense and hope you can outscore them? Do you choose a hitters park like Coors or Citizens figuring that your pitchers are so much better that you can survive the ballpark while helping your offense to succeed?

If you have a top five offensive team but mediocre pitching do you choose AT&T to protect your pitching staff figuring your offense will do the job anyway? Do you go Coors Field to just bludgeon your opponents and figure you will just outscore your opponent despite your pitching?

So what do you think and why? Protect your weakness or Enhance your strength?

I wouldn't choose a HR ballpark unless just about every one in your lineup has at least some power.

But if you do have quite a few HR hitters I would choose a HR Park.

If you have a speedy small ball team you might want a SINGLES PARK.

Really? Nobody has an opinion on tbis? With no baseball to watch cant we talk about it?

Sorry, Radagast, thank you for contributing.

Yeah, there's not a lot of help to be had around here.

I usually go for guys who have high OBP and go with a singles park. Most guys are going to go after the power hitters. If you have a singles park a lot of their fly balls that would be HRs elsewhere will be fly outs at your park.

I read the post and didn't respond - pretty much because I struggle with the same question. I personally don't like giving up road wins (albeit do it all the time). I find that the more you cover weaknesses the more the more your bark becomes unique which then further encourages the extreme nature. Then your team has trouble on the road.

If I had to choose, its more situational. If my pitchers can be exploited by division rivals, I would prefer to cover their weaknesses. If indifferent then exploit the offence. So basically, its relative to your division rivals for me- those are the teams you need to be beat first. In 20 team leagues, I can only assume that the out of divisions games will balance out as you just see too many parks.

I would think, a top 5 offensive team will succeed in big or small parks as its only the offence on the other side of the field you need to worry about. In that sense, I would encourage the offence but you don't need to go to the extreme of coors. I personally find parks like that too volatile from game to game.

Now for the caveat - I am very much learning this game myself.

Well...this game is mostly about maximizing the value of your players. And since you play half your games at home...choosing a park that enhances the value of your players is essential. So maybe the correct answer is enhance your strengths...or maybe neither? You play to your ballpark and you max every last bit of added value you get from the ballpark. But how do you win on the road? Three possible ways (at least): (1)have a good defense; that goes everywhere, (2) have elite starters and/or elite relief that can pitch anywhere, and/or (3) have a certain number of batters that can play anywhere (high average guys with 7 or 8 bp hrs).

Also platooons can add value, irrespective of home or road.

Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated. My league has some guys who have seven 8 diamond guys and play in Citizens bank park even though their pitching has its share of diamonds. Just trying to outslug them. Others have stud SP and choose AT&T to try and suppress any rolls on the opponents hitters cards even though their offense is just middle of the road. Maybe there isnt one way to do it (which pretty much holds true in everything)

Yeah, those are pretty typical strategies. I tend to think you need to go beyond those strategies. Because most people are doing those things. I like to spend only about 25 million on pitching in Citizens, have really cheap starters, but good relief and good defense. And you have to find the right players to do that. Or creating a good offense in AT&T. Here is one example of each:

https://365.strat-o-matic.com/team/1542124
https://365.strat-o-matic.com/team/1548878

If you read some of my post in the "Secret Formula " thread, you will see that not only am I a proponent of tailoring your team to your ballpark ( The ULTIMATE Home Field Advantage), but also being aware of where the other teams in your division are playing.

If you are playing in a "Pitcher's Park", do what you can to make the ballpark the third denominator. Balls that would be home runs in other parks become Warning Track flyouts. Foul balls that would normally go into the stands are caught as foul outs. Do what you can to play to YOUR STRENGTHS for the 81 games you have in your favor.