2019 Rules Change Discussion

[ldsjayhawk]

While we are at it, since you are already here, if there are changes you would like to see instituted in the rules, please post them here.  There will be no unilateral rules changes, if I take over, changes will be made only after vote and consent of the league.

Proposed topics for further discussion so far(based on this post):

• # of actively scored positions
• Elimination of draft pick trading
• Free agent compensation
• Rules & trade committees
• Roster size / Rule 5 draft
• Pitching limits
• Changes to IFA
• Tanking Rules

[ldsjayhawk]

I'll get it started...

1) Standardize the amount that each team gets for international $.  I don't understand how when every team has the same payroll, you can have teams with different international funds.

2) Score 1 catcher

[indiansnation]

 1)I think lowering the size of starting positions should be loward down. I don't think we need as many of positions we have. Maybe 3 I think would be good.
2) international money I think 10m for each team.
3) get rid of trading draft picks and keep draft to 10 rounds. But add comp picks for top free agents teams lose because they can't afford them.
4) keep payroll the way it is but look into maybe changing it next yr to actually what real mlb teams have for every team. This will make it more fun.
5) rules committee and trade committee so we don't have any issues or problems with trades and rules

[Jonathan]

1)I think lowering the size of starting positions should be loward down. I don't think we need as many of positions we have. Maybe 3 I think would be good.
2) international money I think 10m for each team.
3) get rid of trading draft picks and keep draft to 10 rounds. But add comp picks for top free agents teams lose because they can't afford them.
4) keep payroll the way it is but look into maybe changing it next yr to actually what real mlb teams have for every team. This will make it more fun.
5) rules committee and trade committee so we don't have any issues or problems with trades and rules

Sounds like you want to start a new league!

[kidd5jersey]

1) Decrease active roster spots to 8 positions + DH. Have 5 man rotation and 7man bullpen.

2) Keep international $$$ tied to draft position to aid rebuilding teams.

3) possibly decrease roster from 40 to 25.

4) No trading of picks to mirror MLB. Additionally, it allows all teams to have farm talent.  Maximum of 20 rounds.

5) Maximum of 8 pitcher starts per week.

6) Add a Rule 5 draft to prevent teams from burying talent

[ldsjayhawk]

2) Keep international $$$ tied to draft position to aid rebuilding teams.

There's no way that international funds are currently tied to draft position.  has had over $4m in funds for at least the last two years even though they won the league the year previous.  Here is an example, the 2017 Champion has more $ than Colorado (made the playoffs, but out in the first round) & the Dodgers, who got 0, despite being one of the worst teams in the league. 

  Colorado Rockies   $2,118,900
  Houston Astros   $4,338,100
  Los Angeles Dodgers   $0

These have got to be based on actual teams international $.  I would also support tying international $ to standings, but we cannot have teams having 0 either.  One way or the other, the rule needs to change.

[kidd5jersey]

There's no way that international funds are currently tied to draft position.  has had over $4m in funds for at least the last two years even though they won the league the year previous.  Here is an example, the 2017 Champion has more $ than Colorado (made the playoffs, but out in the first round) & the Dodgers, who got 0, despite being one of the worst teams in the league. 

  Colorado Rockies   $2,118,900
  Houston Astros   $4,338,100
  Los Angeles Dodgers   $0

These have got to be based on actual teams international $.  I would also support tying international $ to standings, but we cannot have teams having 0 either.  One way or the other, the rule needs to change.

It is tied.  People traded the international money to Houston.

[cheesesteak]

I like the structure of this league. The IFA scale is pretty fair, bottom-five teams shouldn't be outbid for the best specs. We could probably go down to one starting catcher. This league is an administrative nightmare, so I'm good with whatever we do to make it easier and enjoyable for the ones doing the work.

[rotodojo]

1) Decrease active roster spots to 8 positions + DH. Have 5 man rotation and 7man bullpen.

2) Keep international $$$ tied to draft position to aid rebuilding teams.

3) possibly decrease roster from 40 to 25.

4) No trading of picks to mirror MLB. Additionally, it allows all teams to have farm talent.  Maximum of 20 rounds.

5) Maximum of 8 pitcher starts per week.

6) Add a Rule 5 draft to prevent teams from burying talent

I like these suggestions best except for reducing the 40 man roster to 25. This helps limit transactions when there are injuries. The trading of draft picks is out of hand and doesn't mirror the game itself. Limit the amount of picks you can acquire each round to 2 if not eliminate the practice altogether. Maximum pitching starts per week is a must to make things fair. I think a Rule 5 draft or something similar is necessary to rebalance the league.

[Maydab23]

My opinion on a few of the items being discussed here...

1.) I agree with changing rules so picks can’t be traded. While rules have been put in place recently to try to reign it in its still wildly out of control and leads to a select few teams hoarding future draft picks. This practice has lead us to a very unbalanced league which leads to....

2.) I agree a rule 5 would be a great idea. The problem is on the administrative side. As someone who’s helped out off and on for the last few years including being commish for a bit, this league is tons of work. A rule 5 would add a lot of work so we would need to reduce work elsewhere to make it realistic  which leads me to...

3.) I think rosters should be kept at 40. Decreasing would lead to more transactions between 25 and 40. I would be open to adjusting the number of active spots but the idea behind the current format is in real life 25 spots generally contribute to a team (starting or not) which is why they accrue points. The bench is essentially players on 40man but not active 25 roster which means when an owner wants to make a player “active” it’s simply a lineup change rather than an actual posted transaction that an administrator needs to process.

4.) I think IFA should continue to be linked to previous years record. That said, like draft picks I think we should set a more stringent limit to trading funds or even ban the trading of IFA funds. I know this would deviate a bit from real life but we’ve been deviating from real life with all the draft picks traded so banning all would effectively keep the league with the same realism while ensuring better competitive balance and reducing administrative work.