Photo: Doug Gray

Los Angeles Dodgers 7, Cincinnati Reds 5 in Strat-O-Matic 2020 season simulation game 69

06/11/2020

Final	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Dodgers	3	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	7	9	1
Reds	0	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	5	7	1

A costly error by Eugenio Suarez led to two unearned runs scoring for the Los Angeles Dodgers (45-23), which were the difference in a 7-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds (33-36) at Great American Ball Park.

That was the result today as Strat-O-Matic games of Glen Head, N.Y., continued its announced plan to simulate the entire 2020 Major League Baseball season on a day-by-day basis for as long as actual game play is on hold.

Help set the lineup, batting order for the simulated Reds:

Have you ever dreamed of your opportunity to “manage” the Reds? Now is your chance. Learn more below!

The sim teams traded three-run homers in the early going. Cody Bellinger blasted one against starter and loser Luis Castillo in the top of the first inning. In the bottom of the second, Mike Moustakas — who is hotter than the surface of the sun — sent one soaring into the GABP seats off Dodger rookie right-hander Tony Gonsolin, his 15th of the sim season.

LA came right back in the top of the third. Joc Pederson led off against Castillo with a solo shot. After Castillo retired the next two batters, Bellinger and Justin Turner singled. Corey Seager then hit a grounder which Suarez committed an error on (his team-leading 13th), loading the bases on what should have been the third out. Two more Dodger runs then scored on a bases-loaded walk and a single by Will Smith. In the end, those two unearned runs were key in LA’s two-run margin of victory.

The sim Reds scored single runs in the third and fourth on a Jesse Winker solo shot and a Shogo Akiyama RBI single, respectively. But the Dodger pitching almost completely shut them down thereafter.

Akiyama’s hit extended his hitting streak to 18 games, best on the sim Reds this season. Winker and Tucker Barnhart were the only Reds starters with more than one hit.

Here is the sim Reds box score, as provided by Strat-O-Matic:

A-Pinch Hit For Gonsolin In 6th Inning
C-Pinch Hit For Treinen In 9th Inning
D-Pinch Hit For Beaty In 9th Inning
E-Pinch Hit For Pederson In 9th Inning

B-Pinch Hit For Castillo In 7th Inning
F-Subbed Defensively (1B) For Reed In 9th Inning

Standings following the June 11 games:

NL Central	WON	LOST	PCT	GB
Cardinals	39	30	.565	0.0
Cubs	37	33	.529	2.5
Brewers	35	33	.507	3.5
Reds	33	36	.478	6.0
Pirates	29	39	.426	9.5

The 2020 schedule as currently constituted has the Reds traveling to Milwaukee Friday for the first game of a three-game series at Miller Park. Sonny Gray will pitch for the Reds, and right-hander Trey Supak will pitch for Milwaukee.

News/Notes from around baseball

One of the things we would have during the season in the game threads was a section comprised of news and notes for the day. While there’s a lot less going on these days in the baseball world than usual for this time of year, there still are some things that are worth highlighting. When there are, we’ll be adding them to these daily simulation threads.

More on Reds Draft Pick Austin Hendrick

While there was a post here at Redleg Nation this morning about Austin Hendrick, over at RedsMinorLeagues.com there’s a little more on the Reds 1st round pick from last night, including some more video as well as quotes from Director of Amateur Scouting Brad Meador on what the team saw in Hendrick that made him their guy.

Cincinnati Reds 1st round draft pick: Austin Hendrick

Players take big steps towards a compromise

Craig Edwards says that the players took a big step on Wednesday with their latest proposal to Major League Baseball.

The players made a significant move towards compromise with their offer yesterday. It’s now up to the owners to make an offer that reflects that compromise rather than just making the same offer with the numbers rearranged that still results in a billion dollar pay cut for the players. There might cause some difficulty within the ownership ranks given the financial disparity between teams, but it is clear owners aren’t going to be able to make a deal that makes all the owners happy. The supposed 54-game backstop for the owners is significantly better than any offer they’ve made thus far, and the next step forward needs to reflect that reality.

How are the simReds performing?

The Hitters

The Pitchers

Help set the lineup, batting order for the simulated Reds:

Have you ever dreamed of your opportunity to “manage” the Reds? Now is your chance.

Strat-O-Matic has agreed to allow Redleg Nation to submit the Cincinnati Reds’ lineups for each day’s simulated game. We want all of our readers who want to participate to get involved.

Here is how it will work:

In each wrap up of that day’s simulated game, Redleg Nation will post the opposing starting pitcher for the next game. You will know who the pitcher is and whether he is left-handed or right-handed, and you can use that information in creating a lineup for the next game, and submitting it in the comments below. “Splits” such as performance vs. left-handers or right-handers are replicated in the Strat-O-Matic game algorithm, and therefore should be considered.
We will accept lineups from every reader who wants to submit one. The lineup that will be submitted to Strat-O-Matic each day will be the one that receives the most positive replies (in effect, “yes” votes) from readers other than the submitter. In case of ties:
- First tiebreaker: Lineup submitted by the reader who has had the fewest number of opportunities as a “manager.”
- Second tiebreaker: Lineup submitted earliest in the comment thread. (So get your lineup in “early” each day.)
What is “early?” Redleg Nation posts these articles daily between 5 and 6 p.m. Eastern time. Strat-O-Matic’s deadline for us to submit a lineup for the next day’s game is midnight. On most days, we’ll do this before “bedtime,” which is typically between 10:30 and 11 Eastern time.

All players’ batting stats

All players’ pitching stats

Batting and pitching player stats by team

Have fun with this! If you have any questions, please post them in the comment string below. Here are the “managerial records” of our Redleg Nation participants to date:

Commenter/ “Manager”	WON	LOST	PCT
Jon Davis	6	2	.750
Peter Onte	2	1	.667
BK	9	5	.643
James Owens	3	2	.600
Redsfan4life	3	3	.500
Doug Gray	1	1	.500
RedsEuphoria	1	1	.500
Tomn	1	1	.500
Gonzo Reds	3	4	.429
Melvin	1	4	.200
Don	1	4	.200
AirborneJayJay	0	1	.000
Jeff	0	1	.000
Mark Moore	0	1	.000
VaRedsFan	0	1	.000
Tom Mitsoff	0	2	.000

About Strat-O-Matic

Strat-O-Matic has been in the sports simulation business since the 1960s. A USA Today article contained this explanation:

Strat-O-Matic and other baseball simulations use statistics from the previous season to create “cards” for each player on a roster. The team managers select the batting order and the starting pitcher. From there, a series of dice rolls and calculations determines the outcome of each at-bat.

Strat-O, as it’s known to longtime players, first gained its immense popularity as a board game. The company has since expanded to a downloadable Windows version and one that’s played online. A few years ago, it introduced Baseball Daily – a new iteration that combined the player cards from the previous season with statistics from the real season being played at the same time.

Unlike many video games, the Strat-O-Matic results are based on algorithms that account for players’ performance based on statistics that their statistical experts project for each player in the 2020 season. It’s not a game played with a joystick that relies more on the skill of the person with the video game controller in his or her hand.

The simulation software will keep comprehensive statistics for all teams for the season, so we’ll be able to track year-to-date leaders in many statistical categories. Our current plan is to provide statistical leader summaries here at Redleg Nation each Sunday. You can follow the season at Strat-O-Matic.com, where they plan to post the results from each day’s schedule at 2 p.m. Eastern time.