Bottom of the 9th, trailing by 2 with the bases loaded, Sparky puts in a pinch runner for the man on first, who has a speed of 72, instead of the tying run on 2nd, who has a speed of 40. Only 33 player seasons in the sim feature a speed slower than the man on 2nd. Is it normal procedure for Sparky to ignore the tying run in the hopes of scoring the winning run? I would think this would be more defensible if I were on the road, but this as a home game.

maybe fatigue issue.

I check to see if you have the PR box unchecked for the 40 speed player. If that's not it, did you have a backup listed/available at that position? If he was your only C or 1B, I doubt Sparky takes him out because if you tie up the game, there wouldn't be a player to fill that position. Those would be my best guesses.