A solution to the RS pitcher selection problem?
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So we all have experienced the joy of facing only Kluber or Newhouser every game in Ranked Seasons. One of the most interesting things about baseball is that every starting pitcher is somewhat like a puzzle to solve, and seeing different pitchers demands different approaches at the plate. There’s nothing enjoyable about using or facing Kluber every time.
I had thought about this problem quite a bit early in, and I think I was so fixated on manipulating stamina regeneration somehow to fix the problem that I missed an obvious solution. Once a SP starts a game, the pitcher’s card could be tagged with a number Icon that decrements with each RS game completed. Let’s say the number starts at 4. Regardless of stamina, until that number reaches 0 (or perhaps the ”resting” icon disappears) you can neither start them, use them in relief, nor remove them from your roster.
It’s not realistic, but Ranked Seasons isn’t simulating a baseball season realistically anyway. It’s a fantasy ladder mode.
This solves the “starters as relievers” problem as well as forcing far greater variety in starters. -
RS pitching was the worst in MLB 18, where you had to grind innings with certain pitchers to advance in programs. But it's still annoying sometimes, especially when I play Cleveland—Kluber and Clevinger are extremely frustrating to deal with.
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Adding the ability to prestige more or less necessitated the removal of pitcher randomization. They go hand-in-hand.
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