If you want one player to accumulate the most saves possible, how would you do it?

Here's my idea:

• Top quality pitcher, in the Closer role, with more than enough IP and decent IP/G
• Set Closer to only come in in save situations
• Draft a pitching heavy team. Lots of low scoring games.
• Pitcher's park (same reason)

Wondering if a good run differential is more important than just low scoring games? If I go pitching heavy, I struggle to score runs, and generally lose more than my share of one run games...

If you really want to game it, use an elite swing pitcher and make him available in like the 6th or 7th inning and plenty of pitch count. Think of a 149ip kershaw type. He’d get every normal save opp as well as some extra long ones. He can even get the cheap mop up 3ip+ saves and should shut the door in any close game. I think that kershaw might be able to swing 70 save ops on the right team. He’d have to be behind a pitching heavy staff and in a pitchers’ park as well. I’m doing something similar with Willie Hernandez now in Studs n Scrubs. That’s not with the goal to get the most saves, so you can do a more extreme version.

Funny, I am ten games into a season trying to do exactly this, and when I checked the forums for advice, the most recent response was...me, almost three years ago. I stand by my earlier statement and I think you can get closer to 100 save opps with the right team, and this set up:

It's the 3+ inning saves that I am hunting. ANY lead protected for 3+ innings is a save, even if it's a blowout. So I went nuts, with five ~125ip good starters, set to 60/65 pitches (should get them through ~4ip/g). And my swingman "closer"...495ip Ed Walsh, who I initially set to 75/80 and 5th inning availability. That puts him right on track for ~110 appearances, hopefully most of them with the lead (keeping me under the 70% appearances/games fatigue cap). With north of 75 pitches, he should be able to get through 4-5 innings, depending on when he comes in, and all my other relievers are lower in the heirarchy and won't replace him (he's Setup A, the others are RH or LH specialists).

The good news...I underestimated how often he'd only need 2-3ip worth of pitches, so I can raise his pitch max, and make him available in the 4th inning.

The bad news...he is 2-2 with only 2 saves in 11 appearances through 14 games. Some of this is bad luck/noise and randomly getting shelled twice, but it's an inauspicious start given I seem to getting him into the # of games I want, in the right innings. But sometimes he simply pitches 2 random innings and gets replaced by a RH specialist...this is what is baffling me.

Any ideas on what to correct here?

Here's what I would try. Raise Walsh's max pitch count and set his available inning to the 8th. Set every other possible relief pitcher to mop up. Check the mop up only when losing box. Make all the mop up relievers available in the 9th inning.

Once the starter leaves the game (no matter what inning it is), if Walsh is the Setup A and the earliest available pitcher (8th vs 9th for everyone else), he'll enter as long as his fatigue is above auto rest. He should then stay in the game long enough to reach his pitch count/finish the game. If he enters with a lead, he would likely only be removed for a "mop up" if he actually blows the lead, at which point you want him out anyway to preserve pitches.

That would maximize his total number of appearances and the likelihood he stays in long enough to finish the game. Giving him the lead is up to the offense, ha.

your biggest problem is when you use a starter in relief, they get tired more quickly than they would as a starter. once he gets past about 50 pitches its gonna be batting practice

I like these ideas. The "earliest inning available earlier than others" may have been my mistake. I had it the other way around, trying to get other guys in the game if needed before the 5th, with a low pitch count. That may not have worked as I expected.

I'm not familiar with the SP earlier degradation when coming in relief - anecdotally I do feel like this is the case but I didn't realize it was built into the engine. Do we know the exact mechanics of this?

I’ve never done it but I have seen 25- 30 inning pitchers get 40 saves. They pitch a lot of one third or two thirds and save the game lights out.

Posted by 06gsp on 11/1/2023 6:03:00 PM (view original):
your biggest problem is when you use a starter in relief, they get tired more quickly than they would as a starter. once he gets past about 50 pitches its gonna be batting practice

How does SIM determine who is qualified as SP --- RP --- and is there a both (P)

For instance I have In Grand Slam Progressive League

1924 Tom Sheehan

1921-1924 Saint Louis Cardinals

---

Position: RP
Salary: $4,624,577
Throws: R/R
Season Type: Full
Franchise: Cincinnati Reds
Role: Mop
General Stats • Advanced Stats • Awards

GP	GS	CG	SHO	W	L	R	ER	SV
39	16	8	2	9	11	0	60	1
IP/162	PA	AB	H	K	BB	HR	HBP	WP
177.00	705	631	170	52	54	5	1	0
ERA	OAV	WHIP	ERC	K/9	BB/9	HR/9	K/BB	IP/G
3.24	0.269	1.34	3.45	2.81	2.92	0.27	0.96	4.27

Sheehan is RP because he appeared in 39 games and made 16 starts. Since he made more appearances as a relief pitcher, that's how WIS identifies him. It's the role in which he made more real-life appearances.

Posted by skunk206 on 11/1/2023 6:04:00 PM (view original):
Here's what I would try. Raise Walsh's max pitch count and set his available inning to the 8th. Set every other possible relief pitcher to mop up. Check the mop up only when losing box. Make all the mop up relievers available in the 9th inning.

Once the starter leaves the game (no matter what inning it is), if Walsh is the Setup A and the earliest available pitcher (8th vs 9th for everyone else), he'll enter as long as his fatigue is above auto rest. He should then stay in the game long enough to reach his pitch count/finish the game. If he enters with a lead, he would likely only be removed for a "mop up" if he actually blows the lead, at which point you want him out anyway to preserve pitches.

That would maximize his total number of appearances and the likelihood he stays in long enough to finish the game. Giving him the lead is up to the offense, ha.

I would put Walsh to Closer A and 6th inning (None/None-1 pull.) Save only clicked.

I would put other decent pitchers to Closer B 5th inning (4 pull). Save only. An A will always come in first for a save. If all you have are closer's B will come in first in a non save situation.

All other pitchers set to MOP 5th inning and click losing only option (3 Pull). They will only pitch if losing.

Your team needs to be built to win but pitching heavy yes. Pitchers park too.

Starters set to 70/75 1. Very few CG if any at that count.

Last point, that Walsh should not be the choice. 150+ (Do more if uncomfortable, low OAV#, low HR#, 6 IP/G.

If I were to try this I'd look seriously at Elton "Ice Box" Chamberlain at 135 IP (Possibly not enough.)