Thought Two Weeks In

[truth72]

I had a bunch of points I wanted to make and rather then post in a bunch of different threads, I decided to share my thoughts here. Let me give you some background, I'm about 20 games into DD (8-12) so I'm a player who doesn't chase missions, or spend actual money on the game, I play for fun.


1. Ratings matter WAY more. Especially with pitchers, I've had atleast 5 games that I can recall facing off against a diamond or gold pitcher and not being able to do anything. I faced a guy with Corrasco and got CONSTANT green swing feedback (good timing and location) only to amass two hits. In last years game, bad pitches got crushed (which I liked) this year seems to be WAY more ranking orientated, which sucks for players like me. I used to be able to beat the 'stacked' teams with good pitching and hitting, not so much this year.


2. A lot of DD players don't understand baseball. It kills me sometimes to watch players throw outside fastballs when their infield is shifted. Or to throw high strikes when they should be looking for a double play. The frustrating part is these are almost always the guys with 'stacked' teams. And they can get away with it using Bumgarner, but if I throw one bad pitch with Santanna, its parked.


3. If you can hit the breaking ball, you win. It's really quite simple, everyone can hit the fastball, doesn't matter who is throwing it. But I've noticed its the ability to hit the breaking ball that decides games.


4. RTTS gives the best drops. By far the best drops I've received are through playing RTTS (again furthers my theory about the casual gamer receiving better rewards, to temp them into DD where they can spend money). I've had a number of Silver players drop and last night I had a diamond ankle protector drop. I promptly sold that for 5k and picked up Ben Zobrist and DJ Lemahiu (sp?).


My line up is coming along nicely (again for someone who doesn't really do missions or buy stubs or packs)


C - Perez (I still haven't seen a better value catcher, Molina and Ramos suck and I actually hit decently with Perez)
1B - Martinez/Hosmer (I switch these guys back and forth as Martinez destroys lefties and Hosmer mashes righties)
2B - Kipnis (Guys a gem, still probably my favourite card. Plays solid D, has decent speed and is by far the best offensive affordable Gold option at 2nd)
3B - Lemahiu (Incredible contact numbers. I'm still new with him but I like him so far, I hit him second behind Marte and he plays that roll perfectly, its almost impossible to strike out with him.)
SS - Zobrist (This was really just because I needed an upgrade on Reyes and Story. He was priced decently and provides some good flexibility in the lineup. I don't think I've hit more then a single with him yet though.)
LF - Blackmon (Solid numbers all around. Decent speed, decent contact, decent power. He's a great option for anyone starting out building.)
CF - Marte (I love him as well. This was my loyalty card and I was disappointed at first, that changed quickly. I believe he's my leader in RBI's and second in HRs. I don't know what it is but I hit well with him.)
RF - Martinez (Another solid power option in the outfield. Not good for much other then being a power threat, but I've played him in 5 games and have gone deep 4 times)


P - Alex Cobb (People rag on this guy, but I like him. His offspeed stuff is torture and ALOT of players can't touch his breaking ball.
P - Nathan Evoldi (I just got him, he hasn't thrown yet. It's his breakout card I believe)
P - Matt Harvey (Another awesome pitcher. He is by far the best bang for your buck as far as pitchers go.)
P - Garret Richards (Another pitcher who offers good value. He's not incredible, but an upper 90s fastball from a starter goes a long way in this game)
P - Jordan Zimmerman (He's below average IMO. I removed him and replaced him with Evoldi)
P - I cant for the life of me remember my 5th pitcher, I know he's 82 but I can't place him.


I won't go through the whole bullpen, but I haven't made a ton of changes. I went out and bought a variety of relief pitchers right at the beginning, most of them are situational but they get the job done.


Gregorson - He's got good control, not a power pitcher but he has a nice variety of pitches. His control means you can force hitters to put the ball in play, you'll give up some hits but usually he doesn't give up the long ball. I usually use him if I need to get multiple innings.


Diekman - I use him as a leftie on leftie matchup pitcher. His delivery is very hard to pick up for lefties, and his slider is almost unhittable. Add to that a fastball around 98.


Givens - No one hits slider. Seriously, try him out. You'll fan everyone with his slider.


O'Day - I use him anytime after I've been using a power pitcher. His drastic difference in windup and velocity will easily steal you an inning or two while the opposition adjusts. Just when they adjust, make a change to a power pitcher.


Strickland - I've hit 100 with him. I almost always bring him in after O'Day and feed the oppositions high fastballs that they chase out of the zone. Even if they make contact 90% of the time its a pop up.


Giles - See Strickland. Another guy who can hit 100.


Familia - 97mph sinker. I've probably been hit maybe 2 times out of the infield. He's not the strikeout machine some of the other Gold Closers are, but he gets you tons of weak contact and ground balls.

[dougdfc]

You want a catcher? Carlos Santana's second position is Catcher and he's been great for me. I start him over Lucroy

[truth72]

Hmm didn't know that!


How is he defensively? I like Perez because of his arm, a lot of people run in this game and he throws well.

[848]

I've been using Santana at C as well. His arm is not that good, if that's important to you. I haven't had many steal attempts against me while playing the CPU, so I don't worry about his defensive stats. Inside Edge has been boosting his hitting by ALOT lately as well. 99 power vs rightys today, and of course I love having a switch hitting guy near the bottom of my lineup

[mikeq672]

JT Realmuto was the first ccatcher I got in the game, still using him to this day except when chasing missions. Big vision and contact.

[Dunk31]

Quote: Originally Posted by truth72

I had a bunch of points I wanted to make and rather then post in a bunch of different threads, I decided to share my thoughts here. Let me give you some background, I'm about 20 games into DD (8-12) so I'm a player who doesn't chase missions, or spend actual money on the game, I play for fun. 1. Ratings matter WAY more. Especially with pitchers, I've had atleast 5 games that I can recall facing off against a diamond or gold pitcher and not being able to do anything. I faced a guy with Corrasco and got CONSTANT green swing feedback (good timing and location) only to amass two hits. In last years game, bad pitches got crushed (which I liked) this year seems to be WAY more ranking orientated, which sucks for players like me. I used to be able to beat the 'stacked' teams with good pitching and hitting, not so much this year. 2. A lot of DD players don't understand baseball. It kills me sometimes to watch players throw outside fastballs when their infield is shifted. Or to throw high strikes when they should be looking for a double play. The frustrating part is these are almost always the guys with 'stacked' teams. And they can get away with it using Bumgarner, but if I throw one bad pitch with Santanna, its parked. 3. If you can hit the breaking ball, you win. It's really quite simple, everyone can hit the fastball, doesn't matter who is throwing it. But I've noticed its the ability to hit the breaking ball that decides games. 4. RTTS gives the best drops. By far the best drops I've received are through playing RTTS (again furthers my theory about the casual gamer receiving better rewards, to temp them into DD where they can spend money). I've had a number of Silver players drop and last night I had a diamond ankle protector drop. I promptly sold that for 5k and picked up Ben Zobrist and DJ Lemahiu (sp?). My line up is coming along nicely (again for someone who doesn't really do missions or buy stubs or packs) C - Perez (I still haven't seen a better value catcher, Molina and Ramos suck and I actually hit decently with Perez) 1B - Martinez/Hosmer (I switch these guys back and forth as Martinez destroys lefties and Hosmer mashes righties) 2B - Kipnis (Guys a gem, still probably my favourite card. Plays solid D, has decent speed and is by far the best offensive affordable Gold option at 2nd) 3B - Lemahiu (Incredible contact numbers. I'm still new with him but I like him so far, I hit him second behind Marte and he plays that roll perfectly, its almost impossible to strike out with him.) SS - Zobrist (This was really just because I needed an upgrade on Reyes and Story. He was priced decently and provides some good flexibility in the lineup. I don't think I've hit more then a single with him yet though.) LF - Blackmon (Solid numbers all around. Decent speed, decent contact, decent power. He's a great option for anyone starting out building.) CF - Marte (I love him as well. This was my loyalty card and I was disappointed at first, that changed quickly. I believe he's my leader in RBI's and second in HRs. I don't know what it is but I hit well with him.) RF - Martinez (Another solid power option in the outfield. Not good for much other then being a power threat, but I've played him in 5 games and have gone deep 4 times) P - Alex Cobb (People rag on this guy, but I like him. His offspeed stuff is torture and ALOT of players can't touch his breaking ball. P - Nathan Evoldi (I just got him, he hasn't thrown yet. It's his breakout card I believe) P - Matt Harvey (Another awesome pitcher. He is by far the best bang for your buck as far as pitchers go.) P - Garret Richards (Another pitcher who offers good value. He's not incredible, but an upper 90s fastball from a starter goes a long way in this game) P - Jordan Zimmerman (He's below average IMO. I removed him and replaced him with Evoldi) P - I cant for the life of me remember my 5th pitcher, I know he's 82 but I can't place him. I won't go through the whole bullpen, but I haven't made a ton of changes. I went out and bought a variety of relief pitchers right at the beginning, most of them are situational but they get the job done. Gregorson - He's got good control, not a power pitcher but he has a nice variety of pitches. His control means you can force hitters to put the ball in play, you'll give up some hits but usually he doesn't give up the long ball. I usually use him if I need to get multiple innings. Diekman - I use him as a leftie on leftie matchup pitcher. His delivery is very hard to pick up for lefties, and his slider is almost unhittable. Add to that a fastball around 98. Givens - No one hits slider. Seriously, try him out. You'll fan everyone with his slider. O'Day - I use him anytime after I've been using a power pitcher. His drastic difference in windup and velocity will easily steal you an inning or two while the opposition adjusts. Just when they adjust, make a change to a power pitcher. Strickland - I've hit 100 with him. I almost always bring him in after O'Day and feed the oppositions high fastballs that they chase out of the zone. Even if they make contact 90% of the time its a pop up. Giles - See Strickland. Another guy who can hit 100. Familia - 97mph sinker. I've probably been hit maybe 2 times out of the infield. He's not the strikeout machine some of the other Gold Closers are, but he gets you tons of weak contact and ground balls.

I just picked up Gary Sanchez a few days ago for my catching option. Absolutely bomb with him. He is my only silver in my lineup, so he hits 8 for me, but can't see replacing him unless I pull something crazy like Posey.


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

[TattooedEvil]

Dale Murphy is probably the most underrated catcher. Power bat and 79 speed

[warriorskins]

A good catcher is the 86 Geovany Soto if you can get him. He's a great fielder with surprisingly good power. I've gotten a couple of home runs with him batting out of the 7th.