Tempe sees light ahead

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Alan Ehlers · #1 Post by **Alan Ehlers** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 11:36 pm

August 24,2008
Tempe GM Chris Van Hauter is still optomistic about his team heading in the right direction. Van Hauter stated that "although this year has been rough, we have a ton of talent and we can tuirn this thing around very soon". He is also quick to point out that he warned fans that they would see bad baseball this year but every year the club will improve and still sticks to his claim that in 3 - 4 years the Knight will be a contender. As for Douglas wanting a trade, Van Hauter concludes that he is here for another two years and is not going anywhere

#2 Post by **John** » Fri Mar 07, 2008 12:12 am

I for one am completely confident that ownership will get things turned around in Tempe. There's a lot of young talent in the system, and I'm sure there'll be some moves coming this off-season.

#3 Post by **Apollos** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 11:44 am

And I for one would like to help you rebuild if you would trade me that 1st baseman of yours

Tyler · #4 Post by **Tyler** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 1:17 pm

Sandgnats wrote:And I for one would like to help you rebuild if you would trade me that 1st baseman of yours

Don't listen to the Gnats - they'll rob you blind. You want to trade your first baseman to me. I'll be able to help you out.

#5 Post by **Apollos** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 1:42 pm

Want kind of help

Tyler · #6 Post by **Tyler** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 1:48 pm

Sandgnats wrote:Want kind of help

Oh, he wouldn't want a lumberin' ol' firstbaseman like Thomas clogging up the bases for his young, rebuilt team.

I'd take him off his hands.

#7 Post by **Apollos** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 1:51 pm

Too bad he was signed to a contract. I don't believe he was even arbitration eligible. He would still be nice to have.

Tyler · #8 Post by **Tyler** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 1:56 pm

Sandgnats wrote:Too bad he was signed to a contract. I don't believe he was even arbitration eligible. He would still be nice to have.

Yeah, it looks like he would have auto-renewed for his three years. Instead he signed a three-year deal. Risky on Tempe's part, but maybe he'll be easier to sign to a long-term deal with his current contract expires.

If OOTP models anything like this...anyone know?

#9 Post by **Apollos** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 1:57 pm

John wasn't sure. I asked him about it at the time it happened. I was chasing this player earlier in the year. Guess we will have to wait and see.

Tyler · #10 Post by **Tyler** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 2:00 pm

Sandgnats wrote:John wasn't sure. I asked him about it at the time it happened. I was chasing this player earlier in the year. Guess we will have to wait and see.

By the way, I inquired about Thomas too. I was going to take him in the draft - he'd fallen to me - and at the last moment I decided he didn't look major-league ready and passed on him. I suppose I made the "right" decision, as I'll certainly have a better season than Tempe. But in three years, I dunno, we'll see.

#11 Post by **Apollos** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 3:08 pm

I am still having trouble assessing talent. I guess it will take some time to understand the nuances of OOTP. I selected well from the start up draft but I am not confident about the rookies - mine or anyone elses.

#12 Post by **John** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 3:11 pm

At this point, P.J. Thomas is looking sweet. This guy just turned 19 years old and he's hitting .314! Even more impressive is the ludicrous 51-32 BB/K ratio... that's just sick plate discipline. And for a 19 year old in the big leagues, 9 HR and 23 2B is pretty darn impressive.

Now Tempe took a risk by signing Thomas to an expensive deal when he could have let him auto-renew for a couple more years. His reasoning is that it'll build goodwill between the team and player. I did some research on this and couldn't reach a conclusive answer as to whether this effect is modeled in the game or not. There are a few players on the OOTP forums who utilize similar strategies and swear that it has a positive influence on players (due to the boost in morale). Others disagree, and the developer isn't saying. But you know what? That's what's so neat about this game: there are a myriad of different ways to play things. Kudos for Tempe for taking a different approach.

#13 Post by **Apollos** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 3:13 pm

In our DMB leagues we have a whole mythology that has developed around questions just like this. And, like with OOTP, the developer won't say.

Matt · #14 Post by **Matt** » Wed Mar 12, 2008 9:32 pm

Dark Tunnel + Light = TRAIN!!

#15 Post by **Apollos** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 9:29 am

yup