Starting Pitchers

The initial pitcher you will use in the game. Ideally, they will pitch all nine innings flawlessly and you will win.

You will assign five starting pitchers to your line-up in slots SP1 through SP5. A single starter is used per game. Through the regular season each starter slot is used a total of 32 times. Pitchers assigned to the starter role are not used in a game unless they were the assigned starter for that game.

What's a rotation?

The order the starting pitchers are used in is also described as a rotation. The default line-up used by CSFBL is the common 5-man rotation. Each pitcher receives at least four days of rest between starts.

Some teams use a 4-man rotation by periodically shifting their pitchers from one starting slot to another. Each starter pitches every fourth game, with three days of rest between starts. There is currently no way to automatically do this, a manager needs to shift the pitchers manually from slot to slot periodically to achieve this.

During the playoffs many teams shift to a 3-man rotation. This is a system where only three starting pitchers are used. Between games the manager is shifting pitchers so as to make them available to start again; i.e. after the first game is played the manager will shift the starting pitcher from Game 1 (SP1) to pitch in Game 4 (SP4). This rotation scheme works in the playoffs due to the rest days in, and between, every series.

In a consistently run 4-man or 3-man rotation there are pitchers that will never be used. Before they get the opportunity to start a game they will be shifted to another starting slot and thus skipped.

Who should I use as a starting pitcher?

Your better pitchers are generally used as starters. They will pitch the majority of innings for your team. Endurance (EN) more valuable for starters than relievers since (hopefully) they will pitch a lot of innings. Plus, their ratings decline as they tire. However, they also need to be quality pitchers in order to get batters out, and thus the other stats (PO, FI, CO, SY) are important. These statistics are described in the Player section along with examples of what they affect.

The Bullpen

The bullpen is the general name covering all the non-starters. They fulfill a variety of roles and have specific usages. Whereas a starter is only expected to pitch every fourth or fifth game a relief pitcher can be called on at any time; i.e. multiple games in a row.

Relief pitchers in general can have lower Endurance than starters. However, good EN for a reliever is often valuable for recovering between games. Quality of relief pitchers might be less than starters, but quality relief pitchers are valuable, especially in certain roles.

All of the reliever roles get some use. In the current game engine none of them can be completely ignored. A good closer is probably the most valuable, but quality relievers in the other slots can be useful for maintaining leads, or keeping a game fairly close while waiting for the offense to come around and score some runs.

Closer (CL)

A role for a good pitcher who might not have great EN. The closer is used in the late innings of close games, usually when your team in clinging to a narrow lead. You want him to come in, get outs, and finish (close) the game. A closer won't pitch a lot of innings, but they will be valuable innings.

Long Relief (LR)

The long reliever comes in when a starting pitcher falters early. This role might not draw your best reliever, but if this pitcher is effective in preventing further scoring by the opposition maybe your offense can get you back into the game. This pitcher also tends to pop up at odd points; extra inning games and situations where you've used your other pitchers up.

Middle Relief (MR)

A line-up has two middle relievers. They have a role sort-of inbetween long relief and closing. They get used in the middle to late innings when ahead or behind by a more than few runs, and also in situations when a starter has faltered and there is a need for a situational pitcher change; i.e. changing from a right- to a left-handed pitcher to face a left-handed batter. Situational use is one reason to consider having one left-handed and one right-handed middle reliever.

Set-up (SU)

A line-up has two set-up relievers. They are usually used in the 7th and 8th inning in fairly close games. They "set-up" using the closer in the 9th. Set-up men get used situationally even more than middle relievers, and often pitch for fewer innings. This is another place to consider keeping a mix of right- and left- handed pitchers.