MoM 3-2 counts are way out of whack

[JHodges57]

I started keeping track of the % of AB that result in 3-2 counts in games. In every game the 3-2 counts occur over 50% of AB's.

I checked numerous stats for recent seasons, and using this year as an example, the number of AB's that resulted in 3-2 counts was 14% (about 6 per 9 IP per team). I see at least 6 in the first 3 innings in a large majority of games, for both teams.

For my team, even calling for aggressive pitch, it does not make any difference. Most times the pitch is even farther out of the strike zone than when I hadn't called for anything. I've said many times before that I don't believe the pitch aggressive option works at all, and hasn't for at least the past 3 versions of the game. Seems like it actually pitches around. My mentioning this has probably been overlooked as unimportant but it is extremely frustrating being unable to have pitchers reduce the 3-2 counts. I won't even mention how often 0-2 counts turn into 3-2 counts.

As a manager you have no control as to pitching strategy, at least getting the pitcher to throw strikes.

I also believe the number of AB's that result in a first pitch swing is well below the real MLB average, but I haven't really checked that out yet. We definitely have no say so in the hitting strategy as far as running up pitch counts, getting aggressive early in the count, etc. A huge majority of the time pitchers in this game throw the first pitch right down the middle of the strike zone, but batters will not take the bat off their shoulder, even those with the quirk of being a great first pitch hitter. Not sure what purpose that quirk serves if the batter won't swing at a fat pitch that is a first pitch. I've asked for this ability for a number of years.

[TheWarmWind]

Hmm, this is concerning. I will also add that you have the opposite problem in quick manage. Based on energy drain, it's like your pitchers are only throwing between 1 and 3 pitches an AB.

Have you tried messing around with sliders at all? I've found that the contact slider can impact the CPU's pitch selection a bit, making them swing more at unfavorable pitches or pitches that break out of the zone.

[JHodges57]

Quote: Originally Posted by TheWarmWind

Hmm, this is concerning. I will also add that you have the opposite problem in quick manage. Based on energy drain, it's like your pitchers are only throwing between 1 and 3 pitches an AB. Have you tried messing around with sliders at all? I've found that the contact slider can impact the CPU's pitch selection a bit, making them swing more at unfavorable pitches or pitches that break out of the zone.

Good question and I've asked several times in the past if sliders actually work in MoM. Never got an answer. However, if it does have an impact, I'd be happy to see what kind of sliders you use.

I looked at the real life pitching stats for the past season and pitchers threw an avg of 3.92 pitches per plate appearance. In the game it's well above that.

Very rarely do pitchers get through a 1-2-3 inning in less than 15 pitches. Doesn't matter who the pitcher is.

They get a 0-2 count on a batter then proceed to throw out of the zone for the next 3 pitches or so.

They will also get a 3-0 count then throw 2 strikes. More than half the time they walk the batter.

Very rarely do you see a pitcher throw 3 consecutive strikes, and when it happens it's because the batter swung at a bad pitch on the 3rd strike. I think I've only seen one time in my season where a batter was called out after the 3rd consecutive strike. They also rarely throw 4 consecutive balls. Normally it's 3 balls then 2 strikes (some strikes are batters fouling pitches off).

But 5 pitches is not even the low norm considering how many pitches batters foul off so often. In an avg game, pitchers are throwing between 20 & 30 pitches per inning whether they are 1-2-3 or not. IF a pitcher has a sub-15 pitch inning, it's a guarantee within the next couple innings there will be a 35-40 pitch inning. I think the game is programmed to do that to keep pitch counts realistic.

I do think that another way to run pitch counts up is to hit the ball. Get hits. The game seems to prefer batters just standing there with their bats on their shoulder for 4 or 5 pitches. In the 4 years I have played this game I have never seen a team decide to get aggressive at the plate.

The reason I haven't messed with sliders, apart from not being sure if they matter in MoM, is because I'm not sure which sliders do what exactly, and what affect changing one slider will have on another. I know some sliders work in conjunction with others.

[TheWarmWind]

I do a breakdown of the impact of each slider in my slider thread. I've never playtested MoM in 19 though, so I am unsure how sliders OR difficulty impact MoM.

Big supporter of MoM though. Back when I got my surgery, I was in a sling for 2 months. Despite having nothing but time, MoM on the Show was the only video game I could play. If there is anything I can do to help support the mode, I will.

You can check out my sliders in the link: https://forums.operationsports.com/f...rs-2019-a.html

They are also posted in the vault. Be warned... I'm a hybrid guy (part sim, part arcade). I assume you'd want a full sim set for MoM. I could estimate a few sliders for you, but I don't have the time to seriously playtest them until late October at the earliest. There are a few simple control tests I can bang out in 30 minutes to an hour though. Would confirm if sliders/difficulty level have an impact or not. Won't be able to get to that until Wednesday though.

[JHodges57]

I'm going to experiment with the strike frequency slider. Any batter sliders you think should be adjusted along with that?

[JHodges57]

Another thing that I don't think works in MoM is the pitcher's energy level. Way too often pitchers will pitch 2-3 innings AFTER they run out of energy and are unhittable while their strikeouts go up. I used to think that only happened when their confidence was way up but recently I saw a pitcher who was getting clobbered (5 runs, 6 hits, 3 HR in 2 innings) then he became totally exhausted with his confidence at around 25%. The next 2 innings he pitched, no hits & 4 strikeouts. Not bad considering he hadn't managed a strikeout the previous 2 innings. This was some pitcher for Texas who I never heard of. His k/9 rating was in the 30's somewhere while his h/9 was in the 40's. I know every dog has his day, but to improve dramatically after running out of energy is ridiculous, especially if your ratings are that low. I was actually surprised to see him at the ML level. His overall rating was in the mid-50's. No manager would keep a completely exhausted pitcher in a game these days.

I don't know if this happens to AI pitchers in any other mode.

[JHodges57]

Ok. I set the strike frequency to 7 and it has made a huge difference in both pitch counts and batter aggressiveness. Batters are now swinging at those gift pitches over the heart of the plate, even if it's the first pitch. Pitchers are averaging about 4.5 pitches per plate appearance which is close to real life. There are way fewer 3-2 counts, much closer to reality.

There is also more separation between the best and worst pitchers.

That is the only slider I adjusted. Games have a lot of variety in hits and runs.

All in all I'm pretty happy with how it plays now.

[tessl]

Quote: Originally Posted by JHodges57

I started keeping track of the % of AB that result in 3-2 counts in games. In every game the 3-2 counts occur over 50% of AB's. I checked numerous stats for recent seasons, and using this year as an example, the number of AB's that resulted in 3-2 counts was 14% (about 6 per 9 IP per team). I see at least 6 in the first 3 innings in a large majority of games, for both teams. For my team, even calling for aggressive pitch, it does not make any difference. Most times the pitch is even farther out of the strike zone than when I hadn't called for anything. I've said many times before that I don't believe the pitch aggressive option works at all, and hasn't for at least the past 3 versions of the game. Seems like it actually pitches around. My mentioning this has probably been overlooked as unimportant but it is extremely frustrating being unable to have pitchers reduce the 3-2 counts. I won't even mention how often 0-2 counts turn into 3-2 counts. As a manager you have no control as to pitching strategy, at least getting the pitcher to throw strikes. I also believe the number of AB's that result in a first pitch swing is well below the real MLB average, but I haven't really checked that out yet. We definitely have no say so in the hitting strategy as far as running up pitch counts, getting aggressive early in the count, etc. A huge majority of the time pitchers in this game throw the first pitch right down the middle of the strike zone, but batters will not take the bat off their shoulder, even those with the quirk of being a great first pitch hitter. Not sure what purpose that quirk serves if the batter won't swing at a fat pitch that is a first pitch. I've asked for this ability for a number of years.

Default sliders?