# Want to be a Baseball General Manager? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 25, 2007, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-a-baseball-general-manager/401639 "2007-04-25T20:24:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-a-baseball-general-manager/401639/1 "2007-04-25T20:24:48Z")
The [Unofficial SDMB Out of the Park Baseball](http://ootp.izev.com) League has an opening! Out of the Park is a computer baseball game where you get to be the general manager of a team. You get to recruit the players, set the lineups, make trades, draft amateurs and move them along through the minor leagues, etc. The SDMB OOTP league has been in existence for four years (since March 2003). We are now finishing up our 8th season – in fact, Game 7 of the Cecil Cup is going to be played tonight. We currently have an opening in our league and we are looking for an owner to fill it. The team currently looking for an owner is the [Covington Demons](http://ootp.izev.com/team9.html) , a team that has fallen on hard times. True, the team is a bit of a fixer-upper, but what better challenge is there for a GM than to take a team that finished last and take it to the championship? Feel free to check our league out. You can view the league website [here](http://ootp.izev.com) and the league blog [here](http://ootpblog.izev.com). Of course, you’ll be able to relocate/rename the team to a place and name of your choosing. We are currently using version 6.5 of the game. It is not the latest version, but just about everyone who is familiar with the game will agree that it is better than the 2006 version. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask either here or via email or AIM (ZevSteinhardt). Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![dasgupta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e56c9b/32.png) [@dasgupta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasgupta)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-a-baseball-general-manager/401639/2 "2007-04-25T21:01:08Z")
It sounds rather interesting, but I’ve never used OOTP, so I’m not sure what disadvantage that would put me or the entire league in. If nobody else with more experience comes along, I’d love to join in. Is there a primer I can read to quickly get up to speed? ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-a-baseball-general-manager/401639/3 "2007-04-25T21:04:22Z")
[QUOTE=dasgupta] It sounds rather interesting, but I’ve never used OOTP, so I’m not sure what disadvantage that would put me or the entire league in. [/quote] You really won’t be at much of a disadvantage. Much of the game works just like being a GM. The biggest adjustment would probably be in learning how to evaluate talent. The game has a “star” rating for players and also numerical ratings. Between those and stats, you quickly get a feel for how good a player is. > [@](#): > > If nobody else with more experience comes along, I’d love to join in. Is there a primer I can read to quickly get up to speed? There really isn’t a primer for the game. Your best bet is to poke around the league, see the teams and players and ask questions. Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jimmy_Chitwood)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-a-baseball-general-manager/401639/4 "2007-04-25T21:12:49Z")
You can, of course, check out the website, read the forums for the game, and download the game and bang around with it for awhile, though. The 6.5 website is [here](http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/ootp65/index.php). **dasgupta** , I had never heard of the game until I saw a thread like this one. I checked out the demo, decided I liked it, and jumped right in as one of the expansion owners, and I didn’t feel like there was an oppressive learning curve. Unfamiliarity shouldn’t be a barrier to enjoyment of the game if the talent evaluation/development model appeals to you. ---
**Author:** ![dasgupta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e56c9b/32.png) [@dasgupta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasgupta)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-a-baseball-general-manager/401639/5 "2007-04-25T21:17:37Z")
I’ve been browsing the manual, and I’ve poked around the league website. Tough to take over a team with the lowest payroll and no all-stars. 😉 That said, I’m still in if the league will have me. Might have to up and move the team, though. ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-a-baseball-general-manager/401639/6 "2007-04-25T21:21:32Z")
[QUOTE=dasgupta] I’ve been browsing the manual, and I’ve poked around the league website. Tough to take over a team with the lowest payroll and no all-stars. 😉 That said, I’m still in if the league will have me. Might have to up and move the team, though. [/QUOTE] That’s fine. Feel free to move/rename the team. While it’s true that Covington has no all-stars (well, they did send one player to the AS game this year, but, truth to tell, he probably doesn’t deserve it), they also have a fair amount of money to sign free agents in the coming off-season. Zev ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-a-baseball-general-manager/401639/7 "2007-04-25T21:44:15Z")
Zev - What hapened to the keeper league? ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-a-baseball-general-manager/401639/8 "2007-04-26T00:25:06Z")
[QUOTE=dasgupta] I’ve been browsing the manual, and I’ve poked around the league website. Tough to take over a team with the lowest payroll and no all-stars. 😉 That said, I’m still in if the league will have me. Might have to up and move the team, though. [/QUOTE] Gotta admit, it’s a fun league. And if you enjoy baseball you should get a great kick out of it. And it’s just the right time to join…since the playoffs are just ending you’ll be in great position to draft and bid on players quickly.