BATTLE OF THE BOARD GAMES

As promised last week here is a look at the pitching from the seasons and different board games I have replayed. Once again, Statis Pro Baseball surprised me with the replay ERA 0.10 lower than the actual. I have the 1987 season of Statis Pro and if I live long enough maybe I will do a replay of that season. Although I will need to buy some additional Fast Action Cards. A season replay takes its toll on the FACs.

Strat did a nice job on the exterior items like balks and wild pitches. The total strikeouts and home runs allowed were also the most accurate. It looks like all three games allow too many hits. That is another reason the number of at-bats were so much higher than actual. I have the most seasons available to replay using Strat. I am at the point where it would have to be a season, I really want in order for me to purchase. I have to show some restraint at some point.

I almost started a diatribe on my disappointment with the home runs allowed with the Master Game. But you really can’t measure much by comparing the raw numbers that I have posted below. APBA uses the home run allowance letters of H and G to reduce the number of home runs allowed and L and M to reflect the pitchers that gave up more gopher balls. Strat, a 50-50 game, reduces or increases the number of home runs allowed by limiting or increasing the number of home runs on the pitcher’s card based on league averages for a particular season. Finally, Statis Pro, could see home runs decrease or increase based on the PB rating of the pitcher. It is probably my least favorite method as some pitchers like maybe a Fergie Jenkins or Catfish Hunter would allow their fair share of home runs, but their PB rating that would result in them allowing fewer home runs. And there could be cases where a pitcher gives up a lot of hits but few home runs. His lower PB rating would result in him giving up more homers than he should.

Looking at the home runs allowed per nine innings gives a better view of how each game engine performed:

SADV = 0.63

Actual =0.61

—————-

Master Game = 0.77

Actual = 0.74

—————-

Statis Pro = 0.82

Actual = 0.78

It looks like all three games did a pretty good job with allowing home runs. This was an interesting exercise although I may revisit after I replay another baseball season and dig a little deeper.

BATTLE OF THE BOARD GAMES

I thought it would be interesting to take one last look at the three baseball seasons I have replayed with three different games. Replaying one season of a game isn’t enough data to draw any conclusions but it provides something to look at.

It’s interesting that in all three replays more at-bats are required to complete the replay than actually required. Three reasons for that are my fault, not attempting enough sacrifices and not applying enough intentional walks. Also, caught stealing’s equal outs and outs create less at-bats. So, there is a lot of room for me to improve as a replayer.

The averages, on-base, and slugging percentage are all pretty good for all three games. The APBA Master game did the best job of generating extra base hits and ground into double plays.

Strat did a great job with total home runs hit, walks, and strikeouts. The comparison of passed balls was also impressive.

Statis Pro, my first full season replay completed, surprisingly came the closest with errors committed and hit-by-pitches. Right now, I would say I enjoyed the Statis Pro pitcher-batter interaction the best of the three games.

Next week I will take a look at comparing the pitching of the three games.

SPORTS TABLE GAMES

I have two major projects scheduled to start in the near future. A replay of the 1972 NFL season with the APBA Football Master Game. I was going to do this as an old school big board replay but then APBA came out with a revised 1972 season set so I decided to go with the newer version. This will be my first full season football replay.

After completing three major league baseball season replays in about five years, I am a little burnt out on baseball right now. However, my secondary project, will be a replay of the 1975 baseball season with REPLAY baseball. I played some replay back in the early 80’s but the game has changed a lot! I will be using the 6 x 6 pitcher cards not the tall pitcher cards. The 6 x 6 are a little more detailed so I am excited to see how that works.

One other major change with regard to these two projects is I am going to use the electronic dice provided with the Pro Football Helper and the electronic dice from the Ball Roller program for the REPLAY baseball game. I just finished manually rolling over 3,000 baseball games in the last couple of years or so. Sometimes the dice fly out of the tower, sometimes I miss dropping them into the tower. Sometimes I am suspicious of the randomness of the dice.

The nice thing about Ball Roller is you can configure the dice how you want. I have the REPLAY style red, white, and blue dice and below them is a d6 for single die rolls, and a d20 for ballpark rolls.

I also want to play some hoops. I have a few games to choose from. It won’t be a season replay. Maybe a finals or conference finals replay. There is no good stat keeping system to use for a basketball replay. I have an excel program I can use for a short series, but I will still have to manually keep score of the games. I guess what doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.

I have purchased three baseball games in the past year for possible future replays. Payoff pitch, Triple Play Baseball, and Statis Pro Advanced. Each of those games card every player so I am excited about that!

I also purchased the Fourth Street Football game with the 2021 NFL season. Although if I like the game I would buy a 70s or 80s season set to replay. My sweet spot.

Finally, I will continue my team reviews of the 1968 Strat Super Advanced replay and follow that up with a review of the 1971 APBA Master Game team review. So, I will not be short of content for a while.

TCSG

BRUSHES WITH GREATNESS

I thought it would be fun to discuss some of the players involved in these replays I have had the privilege to meet in person. To be clear, The Classic Sports Gamer is not a high roller. Most of these brushes with greatness were at shopping malls or other informal meetings. Only one former big league player knows me personally, former Red Todd Benzinger. I coached his son in Knothole baseball and he coach my son in youth basketball. I was at Best Buy a few years ago and ran into Todd. I never asked Todd for an autograph or anything like that. I thought it would be kind of awkward.

The most famous former big leaguer I met was Hammer’n Hank Aaron. It was during my freshman year of high school and my mom took me to the mall to meet him. Speaking of awkward, that was an awkward time of life. It was at the later stages of my baseball card collecting days and trying to be cool since I was now in high school. It was before the 1975 season and the beginning of the Tony Perez trade rumors. The Reds were determined to find a spot for the promising Danny Driessen. After failing at thirdbase and leftfield, firstbase was the only position left for Driessen. Anyway, I started a rumor during the session with Aaron that Perez had been traded. The people attending were really upset. Eventually, I confessed that I just made it up. Aaron looked at me and chuckled and said, “you just made that up?”

I have seen Pete Rose in person more than a couple times. My son’s travel ball coach bought a car for his daughter and the dealership offered a steak dinner with Pete Rose for buying a car. The coach was gracious enough to invite me to the event. A lot of people had bought a new vehicle and the place while not crowded drew a decent crowd. We met in the parking lot and walked into the hotel. A few feet down the hall, in the lobby, was Pete lounging on the couch with his shirt tail out. I said to the coach, “Hold me I am about to geek out!”. Pete is a great speaker, very entertaining. He is very into horse racing.

The wife and I went to Vegas many years ago. We stayed at the Mirage. I had heard former Red pitcher Gary Nolan worked there. I asked if he was working, and he was! Gary came out and chatted with us a few minutes.

I met Jim Merritt and Jimmy Stewart at an autograph session. They signed black and white photos of themselves with a generic cap on. I thought it was kind of strange they weren’t in Red caps. That was before I knew anything about copyrights and such. Stewart did sign my first baseman mitt. The real story involves Merritt. After he was traded from the Reds to the Rangers, around 1972, my aunt and uncle bought his house. The house was nice but nothing extravagant. This was before free agency and players making the big dollars. Anyway, I was over at said house, and my uncle gave me an ashtray Merritt had left behind. He said it was cracked like his arm.

I met Tony Perez at another autograph session once. I believe this was in 1971. No stories regarding Perez but I did win four tickets to a Reds game via a drawing.

I met Clay Carroll and Don Gullett at another signing with nothing of note to speak of. However, I met Carroll again at one of my, at the time girlfriend’s friend house. Carroll kind of creeped me out, talking about how pretty my girlfriend’s eyes were.

Finally, the player I never met was the hall of famer Johnny Bench. My mom took me to an autograph signing but I didn’t get within a football field view of J.B.

BATTLE OF THE BOARD GAMES

Continuing the series comparing the APBA Baseball Master game with the Strat-O-Matic Super Advanced baseball game.  The end result is not to determine that one game is better than the other.  I have played over 900 games of each of these games during my 1968 SAD-V replay and my 1971 APBA Master game replay and enjoy both immensely.  The end result is to share how each game’s mechanics work.

I wanted to compare how defense plays a part in each game. In the APBA Master game to complete many results, a roll is required that is checked on the Fielding Column Finder Chart to determine if the fielder is fielding one, two or three. The higher the fielder is rated the better the chance to roll in fielding one. The advantage of fielding one includes avoiding an error, turning a double play, or forcing the lead runner instead of the runner advancing a base and settling on getting the batter out.

In both the APBA Basic and Master Game, player ratings are added up for both the entire defensive team and the infield. There are results where those totals need to be referenced to resolve the play.

With the APBA Master game, you get a variety of sometimes descriptive results especially with the Rare Play boards. Some results don’t come up a lot but when they do it really feels like a baseball game. A foul fly can come up with a runner on third and the defensive manager would have to decide to allow the fielder to catch and risk the runner on third scoring or let it drop for a foul ball.

What I don’t like is the error distribution. In my 1971 replay Angels catcher John Stephenson already has 19 errors. He committed four the entire 71 MLB season. I had another catcher, Ken Rudolph, who committed zero errors for the Cubs. He has ten so far in my replay.

I’m not surprised by results like this because when I played in Master Game leagues during the 1980’s we used an error distribution chart where infielders would be checked more frequently than catchers and outfielders.

In Strat Super Advance fielders have a range rating and an error “e” rating. The pitcher’s card with an “X” results determines when you have to roll a d20 and all three d6. The d20 determines if the fielder’s range rating allowed him to get to the batted ball. Like the Master Game, sometimes the result could be a double play, sometimes a force play, or sometimes the fielder can only get the batter with the runner advancing. The total of the three d6s is used to determine if the fielder committed an error based on the “e” rating.

I would think that Strat’s Super Advance fielding would lead to more realistic results as far as errors are concerned. It will be interesting to compare real life errors committed to how many a player committed in my 1968 replay once I complete it.

Another thing I like about Strat is outfielders are rated for the positions they actually played. For example, an outfielder may be listed as a two in leftfield but a three in centerfield in Strat. Where in APBA, the outfielder is listed only as an outfielder with only one rating.

The rare plays in Strat Super Advance don’t compare to the APBA Master Game. In Strat a rare play is activated when the three dice equal five when resolving an “X” result. Rare plays includes the ball deflecting off the pitcher or the pitcher’s mound with the batter being thrown out and runner(s) advancing. There is also a hidden ball trick or a runner being called out on appeal.

In conclusion, I would have to give the Strat SADV engine (or method) for defense an edge. This is based on the game including both a range rating and an error rating and the poor error distribution for the APBA Master Game. It’s a shame that APBA did not address this when they updated the Master Game from boards to a spiral bound book.

PAIRADICE HOCKEY

I needed a break from all of the baseball and football gaming and found this game on the Delphi forums “The Penalty Box” sub-forum.  

Before I continue, first a disclaimer, I am a hockey novice; never played, heck never ice skated.  However, I did follow the AHL Cincinnati Swords march to the Calder Cup during the 1972-73 season.  This might have led to the WHA granting Cincinnati the Stingers franchise in 1975.  The Stingers team did a pretty good job advertising as photos of the players were on hot dog wrappers.  That is how I learned the players.  I went to maybe  two or three games at the Riverfront Coliseum.  Funny, I have been to hundreds of baseball games and never had a foul ball come near me but I was able to chase down a puck that went over the glass at a Stingers game.  I still have that puck today, 40 plus years later.  My other memory of my hockey experience was Cincinnati winger Peter Marsh coming out on the short end of an altercation and he was so frustrated he tossed his helmet into the crowd.  That would have been cool to retrieve.

Anyway, back to Pairadice Hockey.  The game was created by the late Harv Furey.  There are many seasons available in PDF along with the rules and playing boards.  The last season available is the 2011-12 NHL.

The instructions are only three pages so it’s easy to figure out. The game requires two d6s. One colored die and one white. There is a chart you reference for look-ups like face offs, determining the defender of the skater currently in control of the puck, and based on the comparison of the skater with the puck and his defender, the result could be a shot on goal attempt for the skater the puck was passed to based on the white d6, a look-up on the Ice Action section of the chart if the offensive skater and the defenders ratings are equal, or the puck could be intercepted by the defender. This results in another look-up on the Ice Action section of the chart with the defender now in control of the puck.

As you can see the foot-print of the game does not take up a lot of space on your table-top. When there is a line change I move the pawns to the next line. Timing of the game is unique. Anytime a white 6 (except on face-offs) is rolled it is equal to two minutes. You also do line changes when you roll the white 6 as well. Ten white 6s equal a period. If a red 6 is rolled it equals a possible penalty. A roll of 66 on a shot indicates a possible injury.

To illustrate how small the cards are, I placed a regular size paper clip beside them. Despite the size, the cards are easily readable during game play. The card list the players name and position. The three numbers on the first row of the Dudley card represent offense (passing, puck control), defense, and his penalty rating. The bottom number represents his shooting. Rolling and combining the two d6 one would have to roll either a three or a six for the shot on goal to be successful. Note the asterisk “*” next to the six. This means the goalie rating can affect that number. Liut is zero rated, so it remains a six. If he was rated -1, the six would become a five. If Liut was rated plus one, the six becomes a seven. The three inside the brackets on Liut’s card is his ability to control the puck after a shot is taken. His rebound rating. If the colored die is three or less the offense rebounds the puck and you reference the rebound section of the game chart to determine what offensive player gained control of the puck. If higher than three the defense rebounds the puck and you reference the rebound chart to determine what defender gains control. The number in the lower right hand corner is their injury rating.

I replayed the Stingers opening game on October 13, 1978 at the Edmonton Oilers. Wayne Gretzky was still an Indianapolis Racer so he was not available. Still the Oilers won 8-6 in a wild offensive affair. Defenseman Joe Micheletti had two goals, one short-handed, and right wing Brett Callighen also scored two goals for the Oilers. The above mentioned Peter Marsh scored two goals for the Stingers, one on a power play. Edmonton had 38 shots on goal while the Stingers 26. Each team had 16 minutes of penalties.

It was a lot of fun playing my first hockey game ever. Besides the cool name, Pairadice Hockey is a fun game and the best part is it is free!

BATTLE OF THE BOARD GAMES

Continuing the series comparing the APBA Baseball Master game with the Strat-O-Matic Super Advanced baseball game.  The end result is not to determine that one game is better than the other.  I have played over 300 games of each of these games during my 1968 SAD-V replay and my 1971 APBA Master game replay and enjoy both immensely.  The end result is to share how each game’s mechanics work.

Stealing in SADV usually requires a roll of two d6 and a d20.  I say usually because if the runner on first has an asterisk (*) and is not held he can automatically attempt the steal without rolling to attain a good lead.  A runner on first without the asterisk must gain a good lead.  All runners on second or third base must attain a good lead in order to attempt to steal.

If a runner on first is held, then the dice are rolled.  The two d6 dice are added together.  If it is within the baserunners range to obtain a good lead, he may attempt to steal the base.  The ranges vary.  Some runners receive a range such as two thru five, some could be a roll of two different numbers such as four or six, some just a seven, some may require a roll of snake eyes to gain a good lead.  Some runners are rated where they can be automatically out attempting to steal. If the runner fails to gain a good lead and has the asterisk (*) he may attempt to steal but based on his secondary steal number.  Only the best base stealers have a decent enough secondary steal number to even consider attempting the steal.

If the d20 roll is 3-20 the d20 can be ignored.  However, if the d20 roll is a one, there is a chance the runner is picked off.  You then reroll the d20 and if it is equal to or less than his secondary lead the runner is able to dive back into first safely but has failed to achieve a good lead.  If the roll is higher, then he is picked off.  If the d20 roll is a two there is a possible balk or passed ball.  A d6 is rolled and if it is a 1, 2, or 3 it is a possible balk.  One refers to the balk rating on the pitcher’s card.  After rerolling the d20, if the number rolled is less than or equal to the pitcher’s balk rating, a balk has occurred.  If the roll is higher the runner dives back safely to first but has failed to achieve a good lead.  If the d6 roll is a 4, 5, or 6 than a possible passed ball has occurred.  The d20 is then rolled against the catcher’s passed ball rating.  If equal to or lower than the rating a passed ball occurs.  If higher no passed ball and the three d6s are rerolled but not the d20.  If a balk or passed ball occurs, then the d20 is rolled with the three d6s.

With regard to attempting to steal second, if the runner is successful in obtaining a good lead, he must attempt to steal immediately. So, the rules recommend you determine his success chance before rolling for the lead.  Combine the catcher’s arm (-5 to +5) with the pitcher’s hold (-6 to +9) rating.  This sum must not exceed the range of -5 to +5.  If the runner is held, subtract two from the runner’s success number.  If using his secondary lead subtract four.  Below is an example:

1968 Jimmy Wynn is rated *2-6,9/8,11 (15-6).  A roll of 2-6 and 9 indicates Wynn got a good lead and uses his success number of 15.  A roll of 8 or 11 means he is automatically out attempting to steal.  Any other roll indicates Wynn did not get a good lead and must use his secondary success number of 6.  If you do not obtain a good lead you do not have to attempt the steal.

If the catcher is rated with a -4 arm and the pitcher’s hold rating is -2, the result is -5 not -6.  As I stated above, +5 to -5 is the maximum for the catcher and pitcher combination.  So, if Wynn got a good lead, his steal success number would be 15 – 5 = 10 and if holding subtract another 2 for an 8 chance out of 20.

You only get one chance to gain a good lead while the runner is on a particular base.  There are two exceptions.  If the defense decides not to hold the runner any longer or if a new pitcher comes in with a worse hold rating then the previous pitcher or replaces the catcher with a worse arm rating.

To steal third one must roll within the runner’s successful lead range to be able to attempt.  You then use his secondary steal number, (6 for Jimmy Wynn).  So, if the catcher’s arm is 0 and the pitcher’s hold is +2.  It would be 6 +2, and minus 4 if holding the runner on second.  This equals a 4 out of 20 chance to steal third.

To steal home, the runner will use his secondary steal number.  But ignore the catcher’s arm rating and pitcher’s hold.  Instead subtract 9 from his secondary steal number.  If held subtract another 4.  The runner must obtain a good lead to attempt to steal home.  If he fails to obtain a good lead, he cannot attempt to steal.

Strat allows double and triple steals but only the lead runner’s steal success number is considered.  The trail runner automatically advances.

There will also be situations where the runner must attempt to steal on the hit and run play.  If the runner has not yet rolled for a good lead, the lead is rolled for.  If he already attempted to roll for a good lead before the hit and run proceed as above for a runner who did not obtain a good lead.

Strat has a good SADV stealing system.  Although I am concerned if I can obtain a good lead so that the runners will reach their actual attempts.  The Strat computer game calculates the success chance for each runner while he is on base.  So, that helps with my 1968 replay.

As far as the stealing systems between the Master game and SADV, I lean toward the Master games system.  It is a little easier for me to manage the attempts. But both are good and it will be interesting to see which replicas their actual MLB attempts and success percentage better.

BATTLE OF THE BOARD GAMES

Continuing the series comparing the APBA Baseball Master game with the Strat-O-Matic Super Advanced baseball game.  The end result is not to determine that one game is better than the other.  I have played over 200 games of each of these games during my 1968 SAD-V replay and my 1971 APBA Master game replay and enjoy both immensely.  The end result is to share how each game’s mechanics work.

The first question one has to ask with regard to base running and stealing is to hold or not to hold the runner.  I probably hold 97% to 98% of the time with a runner on first.  Its probably easier to explain when I don’t hold then when I hold.  I don’t hold a slow runner on first with a left handed batter.  I don’t hold a slow runner on first if the score is greater than 4 runs in the seventh inning or later.  There may be a rare exception but those are the guidelines I go by.  I pay as much attention to the runner’s speed regardless if he is a good base stealer or not.

Since I am in the middle of playing some APBA Master games, I will cover that games stealing mechanics.  The Master game uses Steal Allowance Letters (SAL) to determine if a base runner can steal second at a particular time in a game.  Except for “A” rated stealers others can be restricted by the number of outs, score, and what inning the game is in.  For example, a “B” rated stealer can attempt when behind by one, tied, or ahead by any number.  An “E” rated stealer can only attempt with two out, behind by one, tied, or ahead by one.  After the sixth inning the restrictions are loosened for an “E” rated stealer.  They can attempt to steal second with any number of outs, when behind by one, or ahead by four runs or less.  Base runners rated F, G, and R are even more restricted and a runner rated N can never steal.  Players need to be rated with at least an F SAL to attempt to steal third and an E SAL to attempt to steal home.

Besides their Steal Allowance Letter (SAL) runners are rated from 11 to 36 based on their success percentage or Steal Success Number (SSN).  A poor percentage base stealer like Lee “Bee Bee” Richard is rated an “A” SAL but only a 19 SSN.  Richard attempted a high percentage of times per his number of plate appearances but was not a good base stealer.  While a stealer with a high success percentage like Dick Allen may be rated a G34 because he attempted to steal a minimum number of times.  I like to Hit and Run to try to get the poorer success stealers their attempts as they were probably thrown out on a botched hit and run play during the season.  It’s hard for me to do a straight steal with B7 rated Danny Cater.

To determine a base runners Steal Success Number (SSN), one subtracts the pitcher’s Move-to-First (MF) and the catcher’s arm rating from their listed SSN.  Pitchers are rated from MF-0 to MF+3.  The Orioles Dave McNally is rated MF+3 for 1971.  Catchers are rated from +5 to -4.  Johnny Bench is rated +5 while the Cubs Danny Breeden is rated -4.  Other factors to consider are if you are not holding the runner, you add two to the runner’s SSN.  If there are runners on first and third, add one to the runner on first SSN.

The Master game does not account for holding runners at second unlike SADV where you can hold the runner at second.  Holding a runner at second is usually a cat and mouse game where the second baseman or shortstop can do as little as take a jab step toward the base or the pitcher can take a long look back to shorten a lead.  The Master game does allow you to pitch from the stretch with a runner on third that prevents the runner from stealing home.  This comes at a cost of one grade point for the pitcher.  I’ve only attempted a couple steals of home so far with the Master game.  Toby Harrah was successful.  I know I need to call this a little more often but it’s usually a poor percentage play.  I cannot replicate the surprise and panic placed on the defense on my table top.

Next I will review SADV’s base stealing mechanics.

 

BATTLE OF THE BOARD GAMES

Continuing the series comparing the APBA Baseball Master game with the Strat-O-Matic Super Advanced baseball game.  The end result is not to determine that one game is better than the other.  I have played over 200 games of each of these games during my 1968 SAD-V replay and my 1971 APBA Master game replay and enjoy both immensely.  The end result is to share how each game’s mechanics work.

Finishing up the APBA Master games base running mechanics I wanted to mention advancing on a fly ball.  It is very similar to advancing on a base hit.  The big difference is one must roll to determine which fielding column to use.  This will give you a valuation number.  Note that sometimes you must roll one die to determine which valuation number to use.  This is true on base hits as well.  Once the valuation number is determined subtract the fielders arm from that number and add the runner’s speed.

Now let’s discuss Strat-O-Matic’s SAD-V base running.  Runner’s are given a range between 8 and 17.  1968 speedsters like Lou Brock and Maury Wills are rated 17.  Red Sox catcher Elston Howard is rated with 8 base running speed.  Strat regulates some of the base running decisions with one (*) and two (**) star singles and two (**) and three (***) doubles. Many other decisions are based on the fielders arm, the runner, what base he is attempting to advance to, and the number of outs.  1968 Roberto Clemente receives a -5 arm.  I believe that is the highest for that season.  According to my manual it states -6 is the best arm possible.  The worst arm possible is +5.  The Reds 1968 Jim Beauchamp is rated +5.

Throws to home are fairly cut and dry, outfielders arm – runner’s speed.  Subtract one if holding the runner, add one if not holding the runner. If there are two outs add two.  So, if there is a single to right with Brock on second and one out, his safe chance would be 17 – 5 = 12.  If holding him on second subtract one more for a final chance of 1 to 11 on the 20 sided die.  If not holding add one for a safe chance of 1 to 12.  The best success chance a runner can have is 19.

There are other factors that have to be considered with a runner on first and a single to left or right field.  If the single is to left, subtract two from the final success chance for the runner to reach third.  If the single is to right, add two to the final success chance.

A batter or trailing runner can attempt to advance on the throw in SADV.  If the defense decides to not cutoff the throw the trailing batter or runner automatically advances.  If the defense decides to cutoff the throw subtract five from the batters success chance (outfielders arm – batter’s speed).  If it is a trailing runner on base, one has to consider other factors such as if you were holding or not holding the runner, if the ball was hit to left or right, and number of outs.

With regard to advancing on fly outs in SADV, some of it the game regulates.  A flyball (A) all runners advance.  I have not seen a flyball (A) result thus far in my replay.  A flyball (B) a runner on third scores on the sac fly.  Finally, a flyball (B?), the runner on third has a chance to score with the computation of base runners speed – outfielder’s arm +2.  There are other opportunities to advance based on (X) chart results.

Both the APBA Master game and Strat-O-Matic SADV do a good job of reflecting the factors involving base running.  SADV does consider holding the runner at second where the Master game does not.

Next I will discuss how each game implements base stealing.

BATTLE OF THE BOARD GAMES

Continuing the series comparing the APBA Baseball Master game with the Strat-O-Matic Super Advanced baseball game.  The end result is not to determine that one game is better than the other.  I have played over 200 games of each of these games during my 1968 SAD-V replay and my 1971 APBA Master game replay and enjoy both immensely.  The end result is to share how each game’s mechanics work.

Today’s topic is base running.  This includes advancing on a hit or a fly ball.  The APBA Master game rates players with a running speed from “3” the slowest (think 1971 White Sox catcher Ed Herrmann) to “19” the fastest base runner (think 1971 Cardinal  Lou Brock).  On a base hit, factors that have to be considered besides the base runners speed rating are the outfielders arm, 1971 Dodger Dick Allen is rated with a 23 arm.  While 1971 Pirates outfielder Roberto Clemente is rated with a 38 arm.  Another factor in baseball is the depth and placement of the hit.  In the APBA Master game this is replicated by the “Hit Valuation Number”.  The Hit Valuation Number is probably solely responsible for many potential Master game players returning to the Basic game.

Actually determining a player’s success chance to advance an extra base fairly straight forward.  First the Advance number is calculated.

Advance Number = Outfielder’s arm – runner’s speed.

From that we calculate the Chance Number:

Chance Number = Hit Valuation Number – Advance Number.

For example, Lou Brock is on first and the batter’s result from his card is an “8” (the pitcher’s grade is only “7” so it is a hit to left field) with one out.  If Dick Allen is the left fielder the Advance Number is:

23 – 19 = 4

The Hit Valuation Number with one out is 28.

Thus 28 – 4 = 24.

One then converts 24 into chances out of 36 or 11 to 66 based on how the dice are read in APBA.  Based on the Base Advancement Chance Table, a 24 equals 46 out of 66 chances from the dice roll.

The Hit Valuation Number usually increases with two out.  In our example above, the Hit Valuation Number is 35 with two out.  The Advance Number does not change.

The Chance Number with two out:

Hit Valuation = 35

Advance Number = 23 – 19 = 4 (or Dick Allen’s arm – Lou Brock’s speed).

35-4 =31 which converts to 61 out of 66 chances with two out.  Be careful though, you never want to make the first or third out at third base.

There are a couple other factors that sometimes effect the final chance number of a base runner.  One is the batter’s characteristic.  In the example above using the “8” result off the batter’s card, if the batter pulls right (PR) like the before mentioned Ed Herrmann the Hit Valuation Number increases to 51 to right field with less than two out and 61 with two outs.  So if Clemente is the right fielder with one out and Brock on first:

Advance number = 38 – 19 = 19

Chance Number = 51 – 19 = 32 (or 62 out of 66 chances to be safe on the dice roll).  The Chance Number with two out would be 61 – 19 = 42 (Brock would automatically advance to third and would have a 16 out of 66 dice roll chance to score).

The other factor involves the pitcher’s move-to-first rating (MF).  If the pitcher is rated 0 or +1 he does not slow down the runner.  If the pitcher is rated +2, one is subtracted from the runner’s chance number.  If the pitcher is rated with a +3 MF, two is subtracted from the runner’s chance number.

If the runner is not held by the first baseman, add one to the the Chance Number unless he is rated “6” or less, a (S)low runner.

Finally, an easier computation might be:

Hit Valuation Number – outfielder arm + runner’s speed.  From the above example, Hit Valuation Number = 28, Allen’s arm = 23, and Brock’s speed = 19.

=28 – 23 = 5 plus 19 = 24 Chance Number.

Batter and Runner Advancement on Throws.

One refers to the Base Advancement Chance Table to determine the chance of a batter or runner advancing on the throw.  The Hit Valuation Number is not used for a batter or base runner advancing on the throw.

From my experience, this is not a good percentage play for either the runner on some plays or the defense on other plays.  It’s based on the Chance Number of the lead runner.  If the runner has a chance number between 15 and 22 (dice roll of 33 to 44) or a 33 or greater chance number (63  to 66 dice roll) advancing on the throw can be beneficial.

Why I say it’s not a good play for the base runner is if the runner has a little over 36 out of 66 chance to advance, one is probably going to hold the runner.  One may send the runner home with two outs with a lower chance runner.

Why I say it’s not a good play for the defense is with a 63 or greater chance, odds are one is not going  to throw for the lead runner.

An example of the runner advancing on the throw:

Ed Herrmann lines a single to right, Brock’s chance number from above to go to third is 32.  Clemente attempts to throw Brock out at third.  Herrmann decides to advance to second on the throw.  Herrmann’s advance number is found on the Base Advancement Chance Table under the 32 for Brock’s chance number.  It is 2.  The Advance Number of 2 is added to Herrmann’s speed of “3” for a total of 5 out of 36 chances to successfully advance on the throw.  After it is determined if Brock is safe or out the third baseman throws to second to attempt to throw out Herrmann if he were to attempt to go to second on the throw.

In certain situations, the first baseman, third baseman, or shortstop may Cut-Off the Throw for the lead runner and attempt to throw out the trailing runner.  In this case the lead runner is automatically safe and the Chance Number of the trailing batter or runner is reduced by 15.

While I always evaluate sending the trailing runner and employing the Cut-Off play, either has only been implemented during my 1971 replay a hand full of times.

All of this sounds complex but it is easier than probably how I tried to explain it.  Next will be Strat’s base running.