SLOP Rules & Schedule

[Young Drachma]

Here are the written and unwritten rules of the league:

Here's the basic schedule:

Every other week there's a season and on the off-week, we sim off-season. Here's the normal schedule +/- a day

[quote]
The normal schedule is:

SEASON WEEK
Mon: 1st third (March-May)
Tue: 2nd third (June-July)
Wed: off-day
Thur: 3rd third (August-September/end of regular season)
Friday: Post-season

This is new, so it might change somewhat. But there's usually an off-day in there, though with the post-season, we usually sim as soon as all post-season exports are in.

For the non-season weeks:

MON: Sim to the start of FA/Draft
TUE: FA1 (sim to pre-season)
WED: FA2 (sim to spring training)
THUR: off-day
FRI: Spring Training sim.

[Young Drachma]

Oh the export deadline is 11:59pm eastern.

[Young Drachma]

TRADE DEADLINE EXPORT
We'll shut the trade well off at regular deadline (10pm eastern) on Monday night and then it starts back up again on Tuesday after the 1st half sim and then shuts down for good again at 5pm eastern time on Thursday (in advance of the second-half sim.)

So Monday night effectively becomes the Trade Deadline sim.


FRANCHISE PLAYER CLARIFICATION
I wanted to clarify the franchise player rule a bit. It's never been an issue, but since we've got some new owners and we're nearing the 2nd generation of franchise guys. I figure if I make the ruling ahead of time, we don't have to worry about any potential issues with it.

The main intent behind the FRANCHISE player rule was to replace the LEGACY player rule. The idea is basically to provide an extra layer of immersion for owners, by enabling them to keeping a home-grown player for his entire career at an uncapped salary. For clerical purposes and the sanity of your commissioner, this is listed in game as a $100k salary, but franchise players are understood to "earn" the average of the top 5 players in SLOP annually, but this value is not charged to your cap.

(In case you need to feel like his family is eating okay...)

A player can be franchised if he meets any of the following criteria:

- A traded player no older than 24 years old. (What this means is, a team can deal a guy who is no older than the age of 24 years and 364 days old and the new team that acquires him, still can franchise him provided he meets one of the other criteria below.)

- Player has played exclusively in the major leagues only for the franchising team (minor league service doesn't count for this clause) regardless of age.

- A player that not exceeded one season of major league service. (Season played in the majors under 50 IP/130 ABs, do not count as "major league" seasons for the purposes of this rule.)

- The team franchising the player is the one that drafted him. (Regardless of age)

- The franchised player has spent at least one minor league season with the team prior to the franchise year. (Regardless of age)

The franchise tag can be removed at any time, but the player who was franchised must immediately be released & cannot be resigned by the franchise club for at least one year. The tag can be applied to another player, provided he meets the above criteria and cannot be a player who already earns a salary beyond the league minimum. So you can't use the franchise tag on a guy who is on your club, that is earning $10m a year, but is homegrown to try to get rid of that contract. It's too late by then to franchise him. It's a way to keep a potential home-grown free agent, essentially.

[Young Drachma]

CAP SPACE TRADING
It's legal only for the active season (or upcoming if we're in the off-season) and it's akin to trading draft picks. A team can deal it's cap space to another team for the active year only. The dealing team needs to receive something of value in return obviously, it can't just be a cap space dump.

[Young Drachma]

FRANCHISE PLAYER RULE IS RETIRED

Prior to the 1859 season, teams have been able to designated one (1) player as a FRANCHISE PLAYER who is eligible to be retained under a lifetime contract and an uncapped salary against the team's salary cap.

Following the first day of the 1859 season, the rules for designated players under this provision will change.

The following (current) franchise players may play out under their current franchise contracts. Once they are released/renounced, their clubs can no longer exercise the old provisions of the franchise rule.

Carlos Palacios (WAS)
Pedro Garcia (RIO)
Erik Doucet (WIN)
Steven Chowen (CGO)
Eusebio Salavisa (SDO)
Elvis O'Connor (CAR)
Don Hall (BKN)
Derek Campbell (MEM)

Effective immediately (Feb 18, 1859) the franchise player rule is retired.

[Young Drachma]

RESTRICTED FREE AGENT DESIGNATION

Each year between the end of the Sunset Series and the day free agents declare, each team may designate one (1) player under their control as a restricted free agent. (RFA)

The RFA will enter free agency as normal and can be signed by any team. Once the player signs, the original team will 24 hours or until the next sim to decide whether to 1) match the offer made by the new team 2) negotiate a trade with the offering team that includes the player (a sign & trade back to his home club) or 3) decline to match the offer and the signing with the offering club will become official.

Unlike the franchise or legacy player rules, the RFA happens each year. Each team gets just 1 per season except any team that currently has a franchise player under contract cannot also exercise the RFA rule.

The RFA isn't a permanent designation. It's just a one-time designation that can be used on any player per season.

The RFA's contract will be subject to the salary cap like any other player.
Retired as of 1870.

[Young Drachma]

FUTURE FRANCHISE PLAYER PROVISION
The FFP is the provision that succeeds the franchise and legacy player. Essentially, it's a young player that enters the system of a franchise early in his career, (hopefully) develops and then is able to build a legacy with them that the team decides is worth keeping in the fold once he's able to earn a big salary.


Beginning with the off-season immediately following the 1859 season, SLOP teams will be able to offer a signing bonus using current year cap space to any player in STREP (or subsequently renamed future SLOP feeder league) who is aged 16 or younger.

This public auction will take place during the period after spring training and the Sunday before the start of the season. (Friday night through Sunday night).

The baseline bonus price is $9.5 million, meaning no player can be offered less than this amount. The winning team will award the player a 10-year contract (1st year capped, 9 years uncapped) after which time, the player becomes a free agent.

The player retains his FPP contract if traded. The 1st year of the deal is for the price of the signing bonus.

The FPP provision cannot be used in conjunction with the original FRANCHISE player designation.

[Young Drachma]

GUARANTEED CONTRACTS (Effective 1862 off-season)
- All contracts in SLOP are guaranteed for the full contract value.
- Teams with new ownership receive one full season of contract amnesty, meaning anyone on the roster can be released without penalty.

[Young Drachma]

DRAFT PICK TRADING

Currently, draft pick trading was only allowed for the current year draft. Effectively immediately, teams can draft picks from the current year and following year's draft. So you can deal 1861 and 1862 draft picks right now.

But only picks in the first 3 rounds, because 1. I don't want to keep track of round picks beyond that and 2. those picks are less important anyway.

At the mid-season break, you can begin to deal picks for the future future draft meaning at the mid-season break this year, you can trade 1863 picks since the 1861 draft will be over.

I figure this will give owners flexibility and should hopefully keep more interesting for teams attempting to give a run.

[Young Drachma]

CONDITIONAL PLAYOFF RULE
Since 1866, since the advent of divisional play it is possible for a team to finish 5th (or extremely unlikely) sixth in the league standings and qualify for the playoffs by winning their division.

Given the balanced league schedule, in the event that a division champion finishes 4th or 5th in their league's overall standings, the 3rd (or 4th) placed non-division champion above them will qualify for the post-season. The other league's 4th or 5th place teams will also qualify for the playoffs, for equity purposes (aka OOTP doesn't give enough byes for top seeds to fill out the bracket without them.)

In the (unlikely) event a division champion finishes 6th overall, the team that finishes 5th in their division standings will not qualify for the post-season and would pass over that team to enter the post-season from that league.

Non-division champion qualifiers (NDCQs) who qualify through this rule (by finishing either 3rd or 4th in the overall league standings, ahead of a division champion) have the option of declining a playoff bid. If both of the teams in the affected league (or in the case of both leagues, all four) decline a spot, then the playoff field will revert to the normal 3 teams per league scenario.

This rule is retired after the 1868 season.

[Young Drachma]

The $100m cap is replaced with a flex cap that gets determined by a modest formula. I can spell it out for you:

Spoiler

The formula is $100k per win + 85% of payroll + plus any bonuses (playoffs) and money you acquire via trades (or send, as it were.) The playoff pool is generated from half of the average team payroll + average gate revenue x $10.

Gate Revenue gets generated by the game.

1867 FINANCES
1868 FINANCES
1869 FINANCES
1870 FINANCES

[Young Drachma]

DWEEB RULE REVISED.

[Gomer]

Originally Posted by Young Drachma

CUTTING SALARIES: This is one of those rules that's just been around and we don't really talk about it, but...teams are able to cut up to $20m in contract per year. So a guy in the last of his deal or a bunch of dudes who total to that amount is allowed. The idea is to prevent/deter long-term deals that are jettisoned without trades, but to allow teams flexiblity to dump dead weight at the end of a deal.

This $20m figure is annual. You should usually PM me when you plan to do it, otherwise, the game might screw it up especially if the guy has an option. If he's owed more than that, you'll be charged back for it in that active season.

This clause is independent of the amnesty clause for new owners.

I like this rule. I'm going to call it the (D)ead (W)eight (E)ra (E)nded. (B)ye! rule. Or, of course, the DWEEB rule. You can borrow that if you want

[Young Drachma]

For simplicity sake, beginning with the 1871 season, division champions and the top non-division champ (Wild card) in each league will make the playoffs regardless of overall league record.

[Young Drachma]

OPTION YEARS: Effective the 1872 season, player and team options MAY NOT be offered with contracts. This becomes effective with any contract signed after the start of the '73 season. (So the off-season following the '72 season is exempt since I'm passing this rule during that off-season.)

[Young Drachma]

CUTTING SALARIES: This is one of those rules that's just been around and we don't really talk about it, but...teams are able to cut up to $10m in the total contract value of someone's deal per year. So you can't drop a guy who makes more than that or else you'll be charged back for the difference. But you can cut up to $10m in money owed over the life of deals.

So if you owe some guy $5m over two years, you could drop him and someone else with the $10m left, but if you owe him $48m over two years, you'd be charged back for $28m of it immediately.

This clause is independent of the amnesty clause for new owners and is lowered from the original $20m, to now be $10m.