Greetings, When I'm setting my max pitch count for starting pitchers, I base it entirely on Stamina. Their Durability factors in to "where" I use them, but if they're set to be a starter, I set the min/max range based on Stamina (assuming overall development is finished or not relevant for this discussion).

But, for grins I hit the "optimize" button to see how the AI would set the pitch counts. I was surprised to see that some starters with higher Stamina were set to a lower max than other starters with lower Stamina. I did this for a few teams/levels just to try and figure out the AI's logic.

Obviously the AI is using more than just Stamina, but I couldn't figure out what/why/how.

Is there something else to consider for setting max pitch count, assuming the starter has enough Durability to be back to 100% the next time his turn comes up in the rotation?

Thanks for your help and advice!

It was a more abstract question rather than any one specific pitcher. Assuming 100% rested, a good ratings for things like Health, Patience, Temper, and Makeup, what else would factor into the max pitch count other than Stamina?

In real baseball, you'd be concerned about number of innings pitched and last year's workload, but my understanding is that doesn't factor into HBD. Same thing with whether the pitcher is "stretched out". Is it correct that these aren't incorporated into HBD?

What role does Age or number of Years Pro factor into HBD? Anything at all?

Stamina is the biggest factor. The general rule is 1.5 times the stamina. So if a pitcher has a stamina of 70, that would be 105. For me, I tend to put a 70-stamina pitcher at 90 minimum/100 maximum. Durability also plays a role in how the pitcher recovers. You will typically see starters with durability in the 20s and relievers higher.

I think the other factors are Durability and the number of pitchers in the rotation. Assuming you Optimized for a 5 pitcher rotation, drop one and do it for a 4 pitcher rotation and note the difference. And then try a 6 for fun.
Pitchers with low Durability will typically have a lower max pitch count so that they can recover in time for their next start.

Durability is the only other factor I know of.

From what I can guess, when the AI sees a player with higher durability but lower stamina it is more likely to let the pitcher get closer to 0 health in their start because the AI knows they will recover faster. Where as a player with higher stamina but lower durability will take longer to recover.

example: player A has a durability of 20. If he is in a game and pitches until he gets down to 20 health he will need 4 days before he can pitch again, any lower and he would need 5 days.

player B has a durability of 33. If he is in a game he can pitch and get down to 1 health and still recover in time for his next start with 4 days rest.

the AI is likely to set a larger pitch count for player B (all other things being equal) because it knows he will recover more health per day.

I've treated Durability as sort of a pass/fail for starting pitchers...will he be ready for his next turn in the rotation or is this someone I need to monitor. Then Stamina dictates pitch counts. maybe the AI is including Durability in it's analysis...it's definitely using more than just Stamina.

Hockey1984 raises something interesting re Durability. I've so far just thought of it as "27 is better than 26". He seems to sort of be saying the Durability number represents what percentage of recovery the pitcher gains per day of rest, so "27" means he recovers 27% per day. Is this how it works? If so, then we can project exactly (or close to it) when the pitcher will be back to max rest.

I don't really have a formula, it's more of an eyeball thing.
In a five-man rotation:
If a pitcher has DUR about 28 or above, I'll let his max pitch count go to 1.4 - 1.5 x Stamina.
DUR between 23 - 27 = max approx 1.25 Stamina
DUR 18 - 22 = Stamina only
DUR less than 17, converting to RP

Posted by Scotb50 on 3/17/2021 10:02:00 AM (view original):
I've treated Durability as sort of a pass/fail for starting pitchers...will he be ready for his next turn in the rotation or is this someone I need to monitor. Then Stamina dictates pitch counts. maybe the AI is including Durability in it's analysis...it's definitely using more than just Stamina.

Hockey1984 raises something interesting re Durability. I've so far just thought of it as "27 is better than 26". He seems to sort of be saying the Durability number represents what percentage of recovery the pitcher gains per day of rest, so "27" means he recovers 27% per day. Is this how it works? If so, then we can project exactly (or close to it) when the pitcher will be back to max rest.

If you were to keep track and do a little math you could almost 100% determine when the pitcher is ready for his next start. There are some intangibles (pitchers tend to lose more health with less pitches as the season goes on) but it would be fairly easy to get into a ballpark.

Pitcher A has a stamina of 70. This means when he is at 100 health, after 100 pitches his health will be at 20. He has a Durability of 20 meaning that he will regain 20 health per rest day meaning he will need 4 rest days before he can start again. In a 5 man rotation his max pitch count is 100.

Pitcher B has a stamina of 60. This means when he is at 100 health, after 100 pitches his health will be at a true 0 (Meaning after a rest day he will gain full rest and not be a 0(0). (more on that if you would like to know). He has a durability of 33 meaning that he will regain 33 health day meaning he will need 4 rest days before he can start again. In a 5 man rotation his max pitch count is 100.

Sorry if I explained the same thing 2. Feel like I didn't get much sleep last night.

I tend to keep it really simple (and note: only run 4-man rotations). I add up to 10 points for target PC and 10 more for max PC. The only way I change that formula is if DUR is 20 or below I add 5 and 5. If Dur is 29+ I add 5 more to the max PC.

So, if a pitcher is 20/70 in their DUR/STA ratings, I set them at 75/85. If a pitcher is 30/70 I set them at 80/95.

Despite having like 1 CG all year my top 4 starters stay fresh and there are maybe ~10 games I need a spot starter.