Young A potential players collapsing?
 

I started playing The Show a little late this year so this may have already been discussed. I couldn't find anything through searches on the forum.

I just completed the 2nd year of my RTTS player (SS for the Mariners). I'm using the OS Full Minors rosters I downloaded last April.

The issue is that one my best young players, Danny Hultzen, just completely tanked. He went from an 86 overall to a 76 for no apparent reason. He has an A potential, just turned 25 yo and had just completed his first full year in the majors with a pretty good 3.80 ERA. I was looking forward to seeing how good he could become but now that's shot. After he dropped to 76, the Mariners won't even offer him a contract and he becomes a free agent.

Question is, does anyone know why this is happening? Is there anything I can do to stop it? If there's nothing I can do for Hultzen, is there something I should watch out for with my other young players?

I love RTTS mode but adding silly things like this to the already ridiculous stupidity of the manager/GM AI really hurts my enjoyment. I keep hoping that these things get fixed with each new version of the game, but they never do.

Re: Young A potential players collapsing?
 

Thats odd, I didnt think A potential players would be busts in this game. I knew they could drop to a B, but I didnt think they could be a flat out fail with this game.
If thats the case then I like it cause IRL top prospects end up being busts quite often. Personally I dont see Hultzen being a bust IRL, but if things like these can happen in franchise mode that great by me.

Re: Young A potential players collapsing?
 

Like Case said....that's a bit odd for an A rated player.
I actually wish it would happen more!

Not exactly regarding Hultzen(well...still touching on it a bit)...it's one of the biggest beefs I and many have with progression....the almost straight linear line that goes with potential letters.
Hopefully....more variation this year.(holding on to a C/D guy that looks like he's going to blow up...etc)

On your RTTS comment....
A lot of people aren't particularly fond of the RTTS AI it seems....but you may be in luck in TWO areas now.
1. I think they have worked on this for '14....
2. The new player lock feature will allow you to create yourself ....use yourself in the player lock(like RTTS) AND allow you to use all the aspects of franchise mode(GM...manager...making moves) if you want. Not perfect for a RTTS replacement...but if you really don't like the AI again...it is a viable option IMO.

M.K.
Knight165

Re: Young A potential players collapsing?
 

I absolutely wouldn't mind if there were a lot of variation when it comes to progression. That would be a great thing. As any Mariner fan can attest, even "can't miss" prospects have a tendency to "miss" a LOT.

But I do think it should be tied to bad performance or major injury. Hultzen IRL just had major surgery and might not ever be good again. But, in this case, he pitched really well in his 1st year and then, not only did he lose 10 pts on his overall, the Mariners just let him go. He may be able to get back to 86 but it won't be with my team.

It should also go the other way. I'd love to see a C prospect suddenly turn into an all-star level player. I'd also like to see big jumps be possible. Some guys do gradually improve every year but most have one year where their performance increases dramatically.

As for the AI, I hope they've fixed some things but I'm not holding my breath. I haven't seen much improvement the past 5 years. As a programmer myself, they seem like easy things to fix but I don't know what kind of systems and restrictions they're dealing with.

Maybe I'll look into that player lock thing this year. I'll have to see how it's implemented.

Re: Young A potential players collapsing?
 

My immediate thought with the payer lock announcement was exactly what Knight mentioned. I often will create a few fake players and insert them into the game in franchise. But I don't really think that will really substitute for people that primarily play RTTS. The whole point of RTTS is the progression, the earning of points through your actions. I think player lock will be really cool for players like me who primarily play franchise and create players, but not so much for those who play RTTS for the progression.

Re: Young A potential players collapsing?
 

Not to go too far off topic, but I plan to use the player lock on my starting pitcher once (if) I get out to a huge lead offensively early in a game. Say I score 6 runs in the first and 3 in the 2nd. Instead of trying to score somewhat meaningless runs, I can just then decide to finish the game out by just pitching for that shutout/CG/whatever. Will help reduce game times even more.