Greetings, baseball fans
Is that the whiff of freshly mowed grass I smell wafting through the air? It must be time to start polishing the annual MLB All-Time League roster.
If you are unacquainted, the premise is a fictional, hypothetical league in which all teams are comprised of the best players to don each uniform. In other words, Chipper Jones and Hank Aaron bat in the same Braves lineup, Sandy Koufax and Clayton Kershaw pitch in the same rotation (with Eric Gagne closing), and yes, Aaron Cook and Pedro Astacio have joined forces (at last!).
__________________________________________________
I used to play one fantasy draft franchise and one simulation franchise for each iteration of The Show. However, once I discovered the joy of playing an All-Time League, the other modes seemed dull by comparison. If you head to Seattle for a three game series, Griffey and Ichiro are manning the outfield. Philadelphia coming to town? Have fun trying to hit Steve Carlton. Want to see who emerges victorious in a Babe Ruth/ Pedro Martinez matchup? Now you can.
With this roster set, every team is intriguing— and many teams have stacked rosters capable of winning a title. It’s a magical place where your imagination and baseball history collide.
You can view the rosters here.
It’s tough narrowing down the rosters and making cuts (Brandon Phillips or Eric Davis?). I’d love some feedback. Which players were wrongly omitted? Conversely, is there anyone on the final rosters that doesn’t deserve to be there? Also, what changes in the batting order, rotation, or bullpen would improve the roster? Who should leadoff for the Yankees? Also, because players may only play for one team, I could use your opinion on players who excelled for multiple clubs. For example, should Frank Robinson be on the Reds or the Orioles?
Also, there are probably players whose performance in 2015 warrants them a slot on the All-Time Roster. Did Anthony Rizzo push himself onto the Cubs 25 man roster? Is Matt Harvey now a top 25 Met? Should Dee Gordon back up Luis Castillo in Florida? Any recommendations are welcome.
__________________________________________________
If I recall correctly, rosters can be imported from one iteration of The Show to the next— but unfortunately many of the adjustments I made to the roster were made “in-franchise”, and not in the base roster. Because of that, the roster needs some help. (it’s not possible to import a roster from a franchise is it?) Anyhow, which overall player ratings need adjusting? Did too many or too few players make it into the elite '99 rating' club? Taking a quick glance through the player ratings, I already see players rated too high. Manny Ramirez, despite his amazing hitting, does not deserve a '99' rating due to his horrendous defense. Does Al Kaline really deserve to be rated four points higher than Hank Greenberg? Probably not. Is a '95' rating too high for Eddie Mathews? Any feedback is greatly appreciated.
I will post the rosters in the vault soon. Remember, they will not match the updated rosters because I moronically altered them only in a franchise. Consequently, some of the more obscure players I created (think Aubrey Huff) will be absent. But there is still a very strong core roster.
The good news is that I have meticulously researched players and stats, and created a document that details the full rosters for each team. If any of you have a gift for player creation, your contributions are welcome. Once I gather your feedback and opinions, I'll apply the new edits to the roster. If we work together, I think we can create the best set of All-Time Rosters yet.
__________________________________________________
If you are interested, here are results and data from some All-Time League simulations:
Year 1 Regular Season Results
Year 1 Playoff Results
Year 2 Regular Season Results
Year 2 Playoff Results
Year 3 Regular Season Results
Power Rankings
Year 1 All-Star Rosters
Year 2 All-Star Rosters
__________________________________________________
Roster Details
-The Designated Hitter rule has been applied to both leagues to account for the large talent pool
-Because the rosters span the course of MLB history, older franchises have an obvious advantage. The White Sox, for example, were established in 1900, giving them considerably more seasons to “acquire” talent than, say, the Marlins, who were established in 1993. Still, the Marlins roster is no pushover.
-Each player may only play for one team. Players were assigned to the team that most epitomizes their career or legacy. Sorry, Rays fans-- no Wade Boggs. On the bright side, you were gifted Josh Gibson out of sympathy. If this rings unfair, I have two words for you: Akinori Iwamura. (of course, you are free to remove Gibson from the roster if you prefer.)
-Player ratings are essentially a gauge of their "truest" nature as players. For example, Brett Boone had a phenomenal year in 2001- but it was an anomaly compared to the bulk of his career- so Boone isn't rated nearly as high as, say, Jeff Kent or Joe Morgan, even though Boone's brief peak was in the stratosphere. However, players like Fernando Valenzuela and Dwight Gooden-- despite lacking career longevity-- performed at an elite level for enough seasons to establish themselves as truly great players. As a result, players of their ilk are rated very high to honor their relatively short but transcendent peak. Tim Lincecum fits this mold, too-- and has been given stellar attributes to match his peak, dismissing his mediocre post-prime years.
For some players it's a bit more complicated. The Orioles' Chris Davis was awarded elite power attributes to honor his consistent power production, but his contact rating and plate discipline have been adjusted to find a middle ground between his godly 2013 season and his handful of lesser statistical seasons. In contrast, Brady Anderson was not awarded stellar power attributes due to the fluky nature of his 50-homer season.
-Needs were taken into consideration when making roster cuts. For example, every team was equipped with a backup catcher, despite more prolific players not making the roster. Other positional needs and surpluses were taken into consideration, too. For example, the Giants are loaded with all-time great sluggers in the outfield (Bonds, Mays, Ott, McCovey, Cepeda) but lacked speed on their bench. For this reason, Bobby Bonds made the 25 man roster instead of Monte Irvin, largely due to his baserunning ability.
-In some circumstances, players were given extra "believable" position eligibility in order to get them in the lineup. For example, Phil Rizzuto was made 3B eligible in order to platoon with Craig Nettles-- conceding shortstop to... well who else?
-While I tried to avoid "era bias", players from the late 1800's and early 1900's were viewed with extra skepticism. Still, many 'pioneers' made the cut. Indians fans will be happy to see Nap Lajoie manning second base, and the Red Sox will go to war with an intimidating 1-2-3 of Pedro Martinez, Roger Clemens, and Cy Young. And of course, the gloriously-mustached Cap Anson holds down first base for the Cubs. He has been stellar in all of my simulated seasons.
__________________________________________________
I hope you have as much fun playing with these rosters as I had constructing them.
See you around,
Tim
EDIT: The rosters, power rankings, sim results etc. have been switched from "private" to "public" and are now viewable.
EDIT 2: Please disregard all the player ratings in the viewable rosters. These have been altered significantly in the actual roster. I'll upload the correctly rated rosters soon.
EDIT 3: The base rosters have been uploaded as "MLB ATL (base)". PSN name is EPtim. Keep in mind, these are very rough. Player ratings need editing, ages and potential have not been tinkered with. Some historic players look fantastic, some need help.
Is that the whiff of freshly mowed grass I smell wafting through the air? It must be time to start polishing the annual MLB All-Time League roster.
If you are unacquainted, the premise is a fictional, hypothetical league in which all teams are comprised of the best players to don each uniform. In other words, Chipper Jones and Hank Aaron bat in the same Braves lineup, Sandy Koufax and Clayton Kershaw pitch in the same rotation (with Eric Gagne closing), and yes, Aaron Cook and Pedro Astacio have joined forces (at last!).
__________________________________________________
I used to play one fantasy draft franchise and one simulation franchise for each iteration of The Show. However, once I discovered the joy of playing an All-Time League, the other modes seemed dull by comparison. If you head to Seattle for a three game series, Griffey and Ichiro are manning the outfield. Philadelphia coming to town? Have fun trying to hit Steve Carlton. Want to see who emerges victorious in a Babe Ruth/ Pedro Martinez matchup? Now you can.
With this roster set, every team is intriguing— and many teams have stacked rosters capable of winning a title. It’s a magical place where your imagination and baseball history collide.
You can view the rosters here.
It’s tough narrowing down the rosters and making cuts (Brandon Phillips or Eric Davis?). I’d love some feedback. Which players were wrongly omitted? Conversely, is there anyone on the final rosters that doesn’t deserve to be there? Also, what changes in the batting order, rotation, or bullpen would improve the roster? Who should leadoff for the Yankees? Also, because players may only play for one team, I could use your opinion on players who excelled for multiple clubs. For example, should Frank Robinson be on the Reds or the Orioles?
Also, there are probably players whose performance in 2015 warrants them a slot on the All-Time Roster. Did Anthony Rizzo push himself onto the Cubs 25 man roster? Is Matt Harvey now a top 25 Met? Should Dee Gordon back up Luis Castillo in Florida? Any recommendations are welcome.
__________________________________________________
If I recall correctly, rosters can be imported from one iteration of The Show to the next— but unfortunately many of the adjustments I made to the roster were made “in-franchise”, and not in the base roster. Because of that, the roster needs some help. (it’s not possible to import a roster from a franchise is it?) Anyhow, which overall player ratings need adjusting? Did too many or too few players make it into the elite '99 rating' club? Taking a quick glance through the player ratings, I already see players rated too high. Manny Ramirez, despite his amazing hitting, does not deserve a '99' rating due to his horrendous defense. Does Al Kaline really deserve to be rated four points higher than Hank Greenberg? Probably not. Is a '95' rating too high for Eddie Mathews? Any feedback is greatly appreciated.
I will post the rosters in the vault soon. Remember, they will not match the updated rosters because I moronically altered them only in a franchise. Consequently, some of the more obscure players I created (think Aubrey Huff) will be absent. But there is still a very strong core roster.
The good news is that I have meticulously researched players and stats, and created a document that details the full rosters for each team. If any of you have a gift for player creation, your contributions are welcome. Once I gather your feedback and opinions, I'll apply the new edits to the roster. If we work together, I think we can create the best set of All-Time Rosters yet.
__________________________________________________
If you are interested, here are results and data from some All-Time League simulations:
Year 1 Regular Season Results
Year 1 Playoff Results
Year 2 Regular Season Results
Year 2 Playoff Results
Year 3 Regular Season Results
Power Rankings
Year 1 All-Star Rosters
Year 2 All-Star Rosters
__________________________________________________
Roster Details
-The Designated Hitter rule has been applied to both leagues to account for the large talent pool
-Because the rosters span the course of MLB history, older franchises have an obvious advantage. The White Sox, for example, were established in 1900, giving them considerably more seasons to “acquire” talent than, say, the Marlins, who were established in 1993. Still, the Marlins roster is no pushover.
-Each player may only play for one team. Players were assigned to the team that most epitomizes their career or legacy. Sorry, Rays fans-- no Wade Boggs. On the bright side, you were gifted Josh Gibson out of sympathy. If this rings unfair, I have two words for you: Akinori Iwamura. (of course, you are free to remove Gibson from the roster if you prefer.)
-Player ratings are essentially a gauge of their "truest" nature as players. For example, Brett Boone had a phenomenal year in 2001- but it was an anomaly compared to the bulk of his career- so Boone isn't rated nearly as high as, say, Jeff Kent or Joe Morgan, even though Boone's brief peak was in the stratosphere. However, players like Fernando Valenzuela and Dwight Gooden-- despite lacking career longevity-- performed at an elite level for enough seasons to establish themselves as truly great players. As a result, players of their ilk are rated very high to honor their relatively short but transcendent peak. Tim Lincecum fits this mold, too-- and has been given stellar attributes to match his peak, dismissing his mediocre post-prime years.
For some players it's a bit more complicated. The Orioles' Chris Davis was awarded elite power attributes to honor his consistent power production, but his contact rating and plate discipline have been adjusted to find a middle ground between his godly 2013 season and his handful of lesser statistical seasons. In contrast, Brady Anderson was not awarded stellar power attributes due to the fluky nature of his 50-homer season.
-Needs were taken into consideration when making roster cuts. For example, every team was equipped with a backup catcher, despite more prolific players not making the roster. Other positional needs and surpluses were taken into consideration, too. For example, the Giants are loaded with all-time great sluggers in the outfield (Bonds, Mays, Ott, McCovey, Cepeda) but lacked speed on their bench. For this reason, Bobby Bonds made the 25 man roster instead of Monte Irvin, largely due to his baserunning ability.
-In some circumstances, players were given extra "believable" position eligibility in order to get them in the lineup. For example, Phil Rizzuto was made 3B eligible in order to platoon with Craig Nettles-- conceding shortstop to... well who else?
-While I tried to avoid "era bias", players from the late 1800's and early 1900's were viewed with extra skepticism. Still, many 'pioneers' made the cut. Indians fans will be happy to see Nap Lajoie manning second base, and the Red Sox will go to war with an intimidating 1-2-3 of Pedro Martinez, Roger Clemens, and Cy Young. And of course, the gloriously-mustached Cap Anson holds down first base for the Cubs. He has been stellar in all of my simulated seasons.
__________________________________________________
I hope you have as much fun playing with these rosters as I had constructing them.
See you around,
Tim
EDIT: The rosters, power rankings, sim results etc. have been switched from "private" to "public" and are now viewable.
EDIT 2: Please disregard all the player ratings in the viewable rosters. These have been altered significantly in the actual roster. I'll upload the correctly rated rosters soon.
EDIT 3: The base rosters have been uploaded as "MLB ATL (base)". PSN name is EPtim. Keep in mind, these are very rough. Player ratings need editing, ages and potential have not been tinkered with. Some historic players look fantastic, some need help.
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