This is a league that we've run a few times over the years. We recently finished the years 5 version so I thought we'd see what kind of interest there is for a years 6 version.
The league is not a progressive league. It's just a one time shot that can be repeated. The rules are pretty complicated so it's probably not the right league for a beginner or someone with a passing interest in WIS. It's better for the hard core owner. So here are the complicated rules.
Standard 20 team league, four divisions, five teams per division, $ 80 million budget, no DH.
Your final roster will be constructed from combining the rosters of four real life teams from a pool of all major league teams that played in 1926, 36, 46, 56, 66, or 76. For instance, you could build your final roster from players from the 1976 Mets, 1966 Dodgers, 1926 A's and 1976 Reds. The rostering is not as simple as that. It is quite restrictive.
Once the season starts you can start a player at any position at which he has a WIS rating for that season. However on your final 25 man roster you must have exactly two players who have a primary position at catcher, 2 1B, 2 2B, 2 3B, 2 shortstops, 5 outfielders and 10 pitchers. You can tell what position a player counts as by rostering in a team, say the 1956 Brooklyn Dodgers you see Jackie Robinson as a third baseman. That means if he makes your final roster he will be one of your team's two third basemen. Once the season starts he can start at any position he has a WIS rating. Lucky you. Jackie has a WIS rating at 1B, 2B, and outfield in addition to he 3B primary rating. A guy like that is a very valuable guy in this league.
VERY IMPORTANT! We all have to be looking at the same information to make this league work. When you pick a team, you have to know who you get. Here's the only league approved way to do it. Look at a blank draft center page. See where it says 2015 Anaheim Angels? You can switch that to any team and any year. That's the only officially approved way to see who you get on your team. This is very important because there are two wrong ways to do it and people do it the wrong way every time and they make decisions thinking they have players they don't in fact have. One wrong way to do it is to go to baseball-reference.com and look at the 1956 Dodgers. That will give you a different set of players than the approved method. The other wrong way id to go to a blank WIS draft center page and click on a blank SP/RP spot and ask to see the 1956 Dodgers pitchers. That will give you a wrong group of players also. Let's do an experiment. Ask WIS to call up the 1956 Dodgers the correct way by changing the 2015 Anaheim Angels to the 1956 Brooklyn Dodgers. Notice you get 10 pitchers. Now let's do it the wrong way. Go to a blank screen, pick an empty pitcher spot and ask to see the 1956 Dodger pitchers. Oops. There are 13 of them. There are 12 pitchers and two different versions of Sal Maglie. If you do this the wrong way you'll think you have Hughes and Loes when you don't. Then you'll be frustrated when you finally puzzle your final roster together and I'll tell you it's not a legal roster.. This is very important to get this right as people do it wrong every time.
On your final roster you must have 7 players from one of your four teams, and six from each of the other three. You can't have two versions of the same player on your final roster. For instance if you are using the 1936 Indianss and 1946 Indians, you can't roster both Bob Fellers. You can use one or none.
As soon as 20 owners are signed up you will be randomly assigned a draft order and division. The draft order goes 1-24, 1-24, 24-1, 24-1. Having an early pick in this draft is no particular advantage. Here's how the draft works.
Round One- Once your draft spot comes up you can pick any team from the available teams from 1926, 36, 46, 56, 66, 76. Once you pick a team, no one else can pick that same team. If you pick the 1976 Dodgers, no one else can use the 1976 Dodgers.
Round Two - One of your three division mates will be assigned the task of gifting you your second round team. He should look at your first round pick and find another team which meshes horribly with it. For instance let's say your first round pick was the 1966 Dodgers, great pitching but not much hitting. Maybe the 1976 Mets would be a bad match since they have Seaver, Koosman and Matlack but again, not much hitting. Maybe an even better match would be the WWII era 1926 Red Sox who don't have a whole lot of pitching or hitting. They don't even have cheap backups that might help your budget. Anyway, you get the idea, and six of these guys will be on your final roster. Your second round pick will be awarded to you by a division mate who will try to screw you over the best he can.
Round Three - A second owner within your division will be assigned the task of gifting you the third round team that he expects will give you the most grief.
Round Four - You get to choose your fourth round team that will make as much sense as you can out of the mess you have before you, knowing the dagger rounds are coming next.
First Dagger - The third owner of your division gets to throw two daggers at your roster pool/ He will look at your four teams and can throw a dagger at one player removing him from your player pool. Who to dagger? Your only leadoff batter? Your best power hitter? Your only cheap backup 1B? Your only shortstop with over 300 at bats? Your fourth starter who's a bargain at 2.1 million? The only guy who plays four different positions? The possibilities are a puzzle You might end up daggering someone who he wasn't planning on using anyway. IF your opponent has the 1956 and 1966 Mickey Mantles, daggering Mickey kills them both. The second dagger is to remove one of your four stadiums.
Final Dagger - The final team in your division gets to throw one final dagger. It doesn't hurt as much as the first one though. You get to name which of your four teams the dagger must hit.
I know this is complicated but we've run it many times over the years and it results in a very enjoyable draft. Prepare to do the research though as you'll pull your hair out trying to analyze your division mates teams before picking another team for them or daggering them I know it's complicated. It's a league for those who like complicated.
7/8/2023 12:16 AM (edited)