I had no idea that movie poster was so incredible.
Anyway in all seriousness I have been playing this game for a long time now and while I manage to make the playoffs at a decent rate, once I am there, I lose. Even with teams that to me seem like they are set up to win it all.

I thought it might be interesting for people to discuss their approach to winning in the playoffs - roster makeup, manager settings, rotation changed, pitch counts, pull ratings, pinch running, defensive replacements, etc...basically anything you think about or do differently from the regular season to line up the wins in the post season.

Or you can just all make fun of me for having a terrible playoff record.

WOW!  You suck in the playoffs.

Here's what I do(albeit a full .003 better than you):
1. Shorten staff.    You don't need 10-12 pitchers in the playoffs.   I usually carry 8-9 for a 5 game series and 9-10 for an 11 games.   I only carry pitchers I actually WANT to pitch.
2. Add specialty players.   With my extra 2-4 spots, I'll add another D-replacement or two, a power bat that is pretty much nothing more than a LH power bat and maybe a speed guy.
3.  Turn off rest.   I don't want my starters coming out because I'm up/down 5 in the 7th.   Every game counts, rest is unnecessary and I'd be ****** at myself if I blew a 5 run lead in the 8th because I had my 2nd stringers in there.
4.  Sometimes lower PC by 5-10 because I'm trying to work a 3 man starting staff. 
5.  Move pull rating up 1-2 from regular season.  See #3 and #4 for explanation.
6.  Set staff(and even roster) based on who my opponent hits worse(VL/VR).   If a team rakes lefties, I'd just as soon not let him see any.
7.  If I have a running team and my opponent has no catchers capable of throwing out basestealers, I'll jack up by SB by 1.

There are probably a few others but those are off the top of my head.    And, as always, you're playing the best of the best.  Playing .460 ball isn't horrible.  You won't win many series but you're not playing 55-107 teams either.

WOW!  You suck in the playoffs.

Here's what I do(albeit a full .003 better than you):
1. Shorten staff.    You don't need 10-12 pitchers in the playoffs.   I usually carry 8-9 for a 5 game series and 9-10 for an 11 games.   I only carry pitchers I actually WANT to pitch.
2. Add specialty players.   With my extra 2-4 spots, I'll add another D-replacement or two, a power bat that is pretty much nothing more than a LH power bat and maybe a speed guy.
3.  Turn off rest.   I don't want my starters coming out because I'm up/down 5 in the 7th.   Every game counts, rest is unnecessary and I'd be ****** at myself if I blew a 5 run lead in the 8th because I had my 2nd stringers in there.
4.  Sometimes lower PC by 5-10 because I'm trying to work a 3 man starting staff. 
5.  Move pull rating up 1-2 from regular season.  See #3 and #4 for explanation.
6.  Set staff(and even roster) based on who my opponent hits worse(VL/VR).   If a team rakes lefties, I'd just as soon not let him see any.
7.  If I have a running team and my opponent has no catchers capable of throwing out basestealers, I'll jack up by SB by 1.

There are probably a few others but those are off the top of my head.    And, as always, you're playing the best of the best.  Playing .460 ball isn't horrible.  You won't win many series but you're not playing 55-107 teams either.

double true!

He's really bad.   Deserves a repeat.

Mike makes great points. one thing i have found advantageous in regards to his #6. is try to force my opponent to use their lower Pc catcher if they are using a platoon. weak Pc for the catcher that plays against lefties, i start my lefties. i also try to set up my fly ball pitchers to pitch in big ball parks and sinkerballers in hitters parks, when possible.

Thanks guys. I do try most of that but maybe I'm not customizing my roster enough for the playoffs, I generally roll with what got me there but it sounds like i am wasting playoff roster spots.

Do you think those specialty players make a big difference?

I think having your top 3-4 starters and your top 3-4 relievers pitch rather than your scrubs can make a huge difference.  Extra position players can help especially in the NL, allowing for more pinch hitting and better defense in the late innings.

I think that HBD is like MLB in one respect, and that is you can have a pitching rotation that is built to win in the regular season but not necessarily built to win in the playoffs.

Just like in MLB, being able to have a starting rotation that is top heavy at SP1 and SP2 is a huge advantage in HBD over a rotation where there's a lot more balance between SP1 and SP5.  With all the off days in the post-season schedule, you can often drop down to a 3-man rotation in the playoffs where you might run a 5-man rotation during the regular season.  That way, you are leveraging your SP1 and SP2 a lot more than the SP4 and SP5 who will either be dropped from the post-season roster or demoted to LR in the bullpen.

Although it's pointless in the regular season, I sometimes use the lefty specialist setting, especially if my opponents have a couple of big left-handed bats back to back in their line-ups. And I can't tell you how many "Dave Roberts" moments I've seen in playoff games. Specialty pinch runners can be huge on a post season roster.

Great thread guys. My 31-41 postseason record needs all the help it can get!

Don't talk to me about poor post-season records.

77-114 (.403)

Posted by double-a on 9/20/2012 10:14:00 PM (view original):
Thanks guys. I do try most of that but maybe I'm not customizing my roster enough for the playoffs, I generally roll with what got me there but it sounds like i am wasting playoff roster spots.

Do you think those specialty players make a big difference?

Hardball Dynasty – Fantasy Baseball Sim Games - Player Profile: Alex Watson scored the winning run in the 9th inning of game 7, in a PR appearance, in my first WS appearance.   He was brought in to play some D and maybe run.    Played 14 games in the regular season, 14 in the playoffs. 

But I think the defensive replacements, which he did also, make a bigger difference if you've got a weak glove/big stick in the line-up.

As someone who also has much regular season success, often making the post season as the top seed, only to see my team get knocked out, early, time after time, and I do much of what mike listed, the question i have is: how do you prevent your studs from always vanishing in the post season, against inferior competition. It's like they are all haunted by the spirit of A-Rod.

Keep in mind that the "inferior competition" your studs are facing in the post-season are still playoff calibre teams.  Most likely facing a steady diet of better starting pitching than they are day-to-day during the regular season.

The post season is, IMHO, all about pitching and shutting down the other team's offense.