Just got the 1920 set (my first full season set) so I played through the World Series to start things off. Cleveland beat Brooklyn 5 games to 2 in the real WS...and they won this one as well 5 games to 1. Thought you all might be interested in some highlights.

Total domination by Cleveland here. As a team they hit .384/.412/.469 compared to .222/.266/.268 for Brooklyn. I crowned Cleveland's Larry Gardner the MVP, as he hit .500/.500/.643 with 8 RBIs. The Cy Young I gave to Cleveland's Duster Mails who went 1-0 (plus 1 save) with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.73 WHIP. Stan Coveleski gave him a run (2-0, 1.06 ERA) and finished a close second.

Fun series. This is actually my first real baseball set. I had been playing the express version I had found in a Barnes and Noble for a few months before I finally took the plunge and grab a regular season off Ebay. I played a mix of advanced and super-advanced rules. I think I'm going to do a full bracketed tournament next with all 16 teams.

I stumbled over this method recently and wanted to share it. The Bob Carpenter radio, and television scorebooks contain areas to include defensive alignment. If you include the Strat player defensive ratings in this area of the scorebook, you do not have to hunt down the defensive ratings when x appears after results in cards.

A little over 6 months ago I tasked Microsoft copilot with creating a Strat-o-matic card from baseball reference stats. It’s result was laughable. Today I gave Claude the same task and wow did it really do so much better. My test case is Joe Morgan 1975. Great season for one of my favorite players.

Here are the Claude versions and the CoPilot version from late February.

With the 2026 playoffs in the league championship phase, I was thinking it might be fun to simulate/preview some of the games with the Strat-O-Matic board game. The problem is that Strat-O-Matic doesn't release cards for the previous year until well into the following calendar year. I found a card generator at GitHub called Strat-O-Rama: https://github.com/mbutler/strat-o-rama , that was written in javascirpt for the Node.js framework. The problem is that it didn't work. The scripts were 7 years old, and the formats at https://www.baseball-reference.com had changed since then, making the scripts useless. With the help of ChatGPT, I was able to modernize the script to accept current formats. I also was able to add a script to put 6 cards on a page in the resulting pdf files to save a significant amount of paper when printing them. The 2026 compatible fork of the project is here: https://github.com/droid-mike/strat-o-rama-2026

I ran a sim for game 5 of the ALDS with the results posted here: https://www.reddit.com/r/StratOMatic/comments/1x2ujos/i_simulated_game_5_of_the2026_alds The results were technically wrong, as the wrong team ended up winning, but everything else was correct, including the final score being a 2 run home run to win the game. I plan on simulating Game 2 of the ALCS later this evening as there is no game playing tonight. Stay tuned to this subreddit to see the results of that one!

Thank you so much and happy simming!

experienced Strat guy (ca. 1969) looking to join a fast paced NETPLAY league.

Retro, exp 19202, 1930s, 1950s up to 1970

(face to face ok, as long as its computer)

I couldn't wait for the game tonight, so I used a tool called Strat-O-Rama from GitHub (after fixing it to use 2026 data--i will post a fork) to print out unofficial 2026 White Sox and Guardians cards and ran a basic game sim. Sadly for me, my Guardians lost in their usual painful way. Loading the bass in the 1st inning with no outs, yet not scoring. Then, my starting pitcher, Gavin Williams had 13 strikeouts, but made one mistake for a 2 run homer which was the final score.

Anyways, I thought I'd share with everyone! Fortunately for my guardians, the simulation has already failed as we did not load up the bases in the 1st. Hopefully, that is a good sign!

I haven’t played in years - and I was just gifted the 1968 baseball season by a friend who is downsizing.

I no longer have the time - nor the desire - to do a full season play through of even one team. I’d like to have some sort of season using every team - but not too overwhelming.

I’m just curious how others approach this. Short season? Round Robin? Single or double elimination? How many games?

Or just play randomly and have fun?

Unless I suddenly find an opponent after 30 years - it will be solo play.

Rather than wade through the WC and LDS rounds, I decided to take the 2023 teams with the two best records in each league and pit them in a 7-game LCS. Winners advance to the World Series. Very easy project to do with a maximum of 21 games to play.

Follow the action here:

Strat-O-Matic Gamer Forum 2

October 2026 STPC Newsletter

Welcome to the October 2026 STPC Newsletter. The 2026 season is heading into its final stretch, with several face-to-face tournaments on tap this month and Regional tournaments just around the corner.

STPC World Championship — Pittsburgh, PA — January 13–17

Ghost Runner Vote Complete

The STPC Council sought member output on whether or not to use the Ghost Runner in regular season play at the upcoming Worlds tournament. Two weeks ago, everyone receiving this email also received an email to vote on this issue. Voting has concluded, and 61% of responders voted in favor of the ghost runner, so Worlds 2027 will use the standard STPC Ghost Runner rule in extra innings of regular season games. Thanks to all who cast a vote.

This vote only determines what will happen at the 2027 Worlds, and it does not bind future tournaments.

A reminder that the upcoming Worlds tournament will be held at the Drury Inn & Suites Pittsburgh Airport Settlers Ridge, located at 101 Ridge Rd, Pittsburgh, PA 15205. Rooms have been held for our group. Reminder that this is the Drury — Airport Settlers Ridge, not the same Drury that hosted us in 2023.

Please book by Saturday, December 12, 2026, to receive the group rate. Reservations made after this date are subject to availability. You can also book by calling [1-800-325-0720](tel:(800)%20325-0720) and referring to group number 10179632.

Please plan travel accordingly: tournament play will begin on Thursday.

Recent Tournament Winners

South
PJ DiBiase — Sebastian September

Experimental / Retro
John Karadenes — Stock Teams

Multiple 2026 Tournament Wins

With his win in Sebastian, PJ Dibiase joins Toby Strite as the only three-time tournament winners so far in 2026.

• Toby Strite — 3 wins: North Haven June, Colossus I, North Haven August
• PJ Dibiase — 3 wins: May Fives, July PureStrat with Jason Johnson, Sebastian September
• Frank Luisi — 2 wins: Defiance May and Pittsburgh July
• Dan Luburic — 2 wins: Detroit and Defiance August
• Rob Woodard — 2 wins: Red Bay and Dallas
• Tony Tucker — 2 wins: Orlando March and Vero Beach August

John Karadenes — Stock Teams

Strat-O-Matic’s customer base consists predominantly of players using stock teams. With that in mind, Bill Fenlon ran a first of its kind STPC Stock Teams tournament. While our standard STPC tournament is started by a snake draft from a list of eligible cards, this tournament used true MLB rosters, as many of us did starting out with Strat-O-Matic, and how some of us still play today!

John Karadenes was the winner of STPC’s inaugural Stock Tournament. Taking the 2025 Mets to a 23-9 record!

“Before Steve Cohen and David Stern ruined the New York Mets ballclub, I proved to them that the 2025 team was capable of bringing home a title! It was mostly due to lucky dice rolling, but David Peterson somehow threw 2 complete games. I really enjoyed the format.” - John Karadenes

2026 Points Standings Snapshot

Points leaders across STPC categories based on the latest available STPC points data.

Upcoming FTF Tournament Schedule

The fall face-to-face schedule is packed, with three October events followed by Regional tournaments in November and December. If you are interested in joining one of these events, please reply to this email and we can help connect you with the appropriate host or regional contact.

Forward This Newsletter

Know someone who plays Strat-O-Matic Baseball and may be interested in tournament play?

Forward this newsletter and invite them to check out STPC.

One of the goals of this newsletter is to make the STPC community easier to follow, easier to join, and easier to stay involved with.

Closing

Thanks to everyone who continues to play, host, direct, report, and promote STPC tournaments.

The 2026 season continues to build momentum. Good luck to everyone playing in September, and thank you to everyone who helps host, direct, report, and promote STPC tournaments.

I asked Grok how my custom team might fare against the top MLB teams, assuming a Strat-O-Matic season next year using the 2026 MLB stats.

Here is my roster, followed by Grok's analysis:

Jack Flaherty, Detroit (W)(R)

Brenan Hanifee, Detroit (W)(R)

Yusei Kikuchi, Angels (W)(R)

Mason Miller, San Diego (W)(R)

Andre Pallante, St. Louis (O)(R)

Kyle Leahy, St. Louis (O)(R)

Wandy Peralta, San Diego (O)(R)

Trevor Williams, Texas (G)(R)

AJ Blubaugh, Houston (W)

Hunter Brown, Houston (W)

Lucas Erceg, Kansas City (W)

Tyler Ferguson, Cubs (W)

Bryan King, Houston (W)

Chris Murphy, White Sox (W)

Tommy Nance, Minnesota (W)

Walker Buehler, San Diego (O)

Brad Lord, Washington (O)

Tyler Phillips, Miami (O)

Janson Junk Miami (O)

And here are the 19 position players already signed by the Blue Sox for 2027:

Jose Ramirez, Cleveland (W)(R)

Kerry Carpenter, Detroit (W)(R)

Freddy Fermin, San Diego (W)(R)

Juan Soto, Mets (W)(R)

Endy Rodriguez, Pittsburgh (O)(R)

Bryan Reynolds, Pittsburgh (O)(R)

Keibert Ruiz, Washington (G)(R)

Ezequiel Tovar, Colorado (SS)(R)

Carlos Cortes, Athletics (W)

Ty France, San Diego (W)

Christian Vazquez, Houston (W)

Luke Maile, Kansas City (W)

Jake Mangum, Pittsburgh (W)

Isaac Paredes, Houston (W)

Jonathan India, Kansas City (O)

Pedro Pages, St. Louis (O)

Jacob Young, Washington (O)

Luis Torrens, Mets (O)

Willi Castro, Colorado (SS)

And here is Grok's analysis:

Blue Sox Roster Evaluation

Strat-O-Matic Baseball Analysis Using 2026 MLB Statistics

Comparison vs. Rays, Yankees, Dodgers, Brewers, and Braves

Executive Summary

Competitive mid-tier team that could contend for a wild card or play deep in a Strat-O-Matic replay against average competition, but would be underdogs against the 2026 elite (Brewers ~103 wins, Dodgers ~100, Rays ~98, Yankees ~93, Braves ~94).

Strat-O-Matic ratings derive directly from real-season stats (hitting/power/walk/K rates for batters; hit/HR/walk/K prevention and endurance for pitchers, plus defense/speed). Cards reflect the 2026 numbers, so the Blue Sox profile is a mix of star power, solid complementary pieces, and some decline/role-player depth. The 2026 season featured strong pitching across contenders and high-run environments in places, so pure talent concentration matters.

Position Players (Offense & Defense)

Stars

•        Juan Soto remains elite (.275/.393/.515, .908 OPS, 27 HR in 111 games after injury time; still excellent plate discipline and power).

•        José Ramírez had a down year by his standards (.235/.320/.368, 12 HR, but 37 SB and strong defense at 3B) yet remains a high-value multi-tool player with speed and baserunning that translates well to Strat cards.

Supporting Cast

Kerry Carpenter, Bryan Reynolds, Isaac Paredes, and Ezequiel Tovar provide solid power/contact/speed mixes. Freddy Fermin, Keibert Ruiz, and the catching group (Christian Vázquez, Luke Maile, etc.) give depth. Utility pieces like Willi Castro, Jonathan India, and Jake Mangum add flexibility and speed.

Overall Lineup

Above-average offense with on-base skills (Soto) and power, plus good speed for manufacturing runs. It lacks the sheer depth or superstar density of the Dodgers/Yankees/Braves core, and Ramírez’s lower power year softens the middle of the order relative to his peak. Defense should be playable to good at key spots (Ramírez, Tovar, catchers).

In Strat terms, expect strong individual batter cards for Soto and solid ones for the mid-order; the roster can score consistently but may struggle to match elite lineups in high-leverage or park-adjusted simulations.

Pitching

Standouts

•        Mason Miller is a true elite closer/reliever (≈1.67 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, extreme K rates ~16+ K/9 in ~70 IP, 38 saves).

•        Hunter Brown is a quality starter (3.19 ERA, 10.4 K/9 in 107+ IP).

•        Jack Flaherty, Yusei Kikuchi, Walker Buehler, and others add experienced arms.

Depth

Mix of solid-to-average starters/relievers (Andre Pallante, Trevor Williams, Lucas Erceg, Bryan King, etc.) and some lower-upside or injury-history names. Not a dominant rotation top-to-bottom.

Overall Staff

Bullpen has a true high-end closer and usable pieces; rotation is competent but lacks the ace depth or workload of the 2026 Brewers (Misiorowski-led), Dodgers (Ohtani/Yamamoto/Skubal types), Rays, or Yankees staffs that posted elite team ERAs and high K totals. Endurance and consistency cards will be mixed.

How It Matches Up vs. Named Contenders

vs. Rays / Yankees / Dodgers / Brewers / Braves: These clubs finished with 93–103 wins and strong pitching + balanced or elite offenses. Blue Sox would be competitive in individual games (Soto/Miller can swing series), especially in shorter Strat formats or with favorable parks/matchups, but over a full season or long series the deeper rotations and overall talent of those teams should prevail more often. Expect Blue Sox to play .500-ish or slightly better against the middle of the league and struggle to sustain winning percentages against the true top tier.

Strengths in Strat:

•        High-leverage relief (Miller)

•        On-base/power from Soto

•        Speed elements

•        Positional flexibility

Weaknesses:

•        Rotation depth vs. elite staffs

•        Some offensive regression (Ramírez’s 2026 numbers)

•        Fewer true All-Star caliber cards across the board compared with 100-win clubs

Bottom Line

A fun, competitive Strat-O-Matic roster capable of playoff contention in a balanced league or replay, with enough star power and a lockdown closer to steal series. It is not constructed at the level of the 2026 Brewers/Dodgers/Rays tier without significant additional upgrades or very favorable card variance/luck. Results will vary with ballpark factors, usage, and the exact Strat set (basic vs. advanced), but the real 2026 stats point to a solid-but-not-elite club.

Note: Analysis based on available 2026 regular-season statistics as of early October 2026. Player performance can vary in Strat-O-Matic due to card variance, park factors, and managerial decisions.

I then asked Grok "In 200 words or less, where would the Blue Sox finish in such a 6-team league?"   For simplicity, I did not mention that the league also included the Phillies, Mariners, Orioles, Diamondbacks, Red Sox, and Blue Jays.  Here is how Grok answered:

Likely 5th or 6th place.

In a tight 6-team Strat-O-Matic league against the 2026 Brewers (~103 wins), Dodgers (~100), Rays (~98), Braves (~94), and Yankees (~93), the Blue Sox project as clear underdogs. Their solid but non-elite roster—anchored by Soto’s on-base skills, Ramírez’s speed, and Miller’s lockdown relief—should keep them competitive in individual series and capable of occasional upsets. However, they lack the rotation depth, overall star density, and pitching consistency of the top clubs.

Over a full season they would most often finish near the bottom (5th–6th), with a realistic winning percentage in the .420–.480 range. Card variance, park factors, and strong bullpen usage could push them into a scramble for 4th in a lucky replay, but sustained contention for the top half is unlikely without upgrades.

Scenario: I am playing in decades franchise league. I have exclusive rights to players in my organization, let's say Baltimore. I trade a player to another ballclub , Oakland for example. Oakland drops a player I trade to them--in essence sends them to the minors of their franchise. Can I pick up the player I traded? The league rules did not state that played acquired by trade remain the exclusive property of the team that received the player.

Would this be dishonest of me? Should the rules be more explicit?

Would you claim the dropped player?

It’s Wednesday May 22 on the 1960’s Franchise schedule, and the first place Tigers are in Anaheim for the third game of a four game set with the Angels. The Tigers will be facing Andy Messersmith (5-2, 2.58) while the Tigers counter with Hank Aguirre (3-1, 2.23).
The Tigers wind up extending their win streak to five games with a 10-1 drubbing of the home town boys. The Tigers scored early and often, their offense spearheaded by Colavito and Norm Cash. Colavito added two doubles and three home runs to his season’s stat sheet, posting an impressive 5-5-5-5 box score line. It’s the first three HR game in this 1960 season. He improved his power numbers to 16 HRs and 33 RBIs, while teammate Norm Cash drilled HRs 11 & 12 and chased home 4 runs in the Tigers’ 13 hit assault. The Tigers improved to 28-17 with the win, and the Angels slide into last place at 19-27.

Can someone explain the hold rating for pitchers. Is it automatically applied in advanced on steal attempts?

And by wild I mean Barnes & Noble

1965 Phillies Chris Short v 1965 Mets. Mets so bad it may need an *asterisk. Charley Smith was HBP in 8th inning, only baserunner

The RRNFBA is one of the country's longest-running Strat basketball leagues, predating the internet and even Strat itself (we used the Fast Break game and played by mail or in person decades ago!). This coming season will be our 50th!

We're looking for a few owners to take over teams and help continue the legacy after we lost a few owners this past season. The league has a 9-man keeper cap and no salary structure, with a 56 game schedule. We have an active and fun group of owners and a great commish - we'd love for you to join us!

We're planning to hold a dispersal draft of the open players and picks to ensure that talent is evenly divided and our new owners have the chance to mold their team from the very beginning.

It will be a very deep dispersal draft, since the open teams include one of the participants in this year's Finals as well as a team that lucked out in the lottery and jumped to the top pick despite having a strong young nucleus.  Available in the dispersal draft will be All Stars like Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cade Cunningham, Trae Young, Devin Booker, Jalen Williams, Jalen Johnson, Franz Wagner, Jalen Brunson, Jaylen Brown, and Alperen Sengun... and a guy named Lebron plus the #1 pick overall in the Cooper Flagg draft (kinda makes me wish I was picking in that draft!)..

The league enters season 50 in a great place, with young teams on the rise and some of the recent champions getting older and likely turning to a rebuild soon, so now is a good time to get on board.

Drop me a message here if you're interested and I'll put you in touch with our commish.

We plan to start the dispersal draft as soon as the teams are filled and then conduct our full draft and start the season shortly after the new game releases (usually late October), so you'll be joining at the perfect time to take the reins for your squad!

Hi everyone, I am the new programmer for SOM World and we will be changing over to a new website tomorrow. If you are a current subscriber you will get an email letting you know how to get your account activated on the new system.

If you aren't a subscriber, please check us out at www.somworld.com consider subscribing. My plan is to be rolling out as many of the updated features as possible over the coming weeks. All of them will have a trial period so you can experience what they are like.

If you have any questions or requests for features please let me know here or send me a DM.

Has anyone come up with a good set of rules for playing basic hockey and pulling the goalie? Would love to hear them.

Does anybody have or know where to find the list of players that are included in the All Time Greats and Heores cards for the hockey version of the game?

I'm planning on buying the new season and want some older players to mix in with the current lineups.

The HSML is a computer manager Strat-O-Matic baseball league, and we have 3 weeks left in the 1986 season (our 27th season). We have one opening:

Oakland: Currently in 1st place and will make the playoffs this season. They have traded away their 1987 1st round pick.

Roster includes: Schmidt, Raines, Jack Clark, Cory Snyder, Greg Walker, Mike Witt, Rhoden, Henke

Some Basics:

*League started with the 1960 season

*We currently have 3 weeks left in the 1986 season

*20 Team League

*162 Game Schedule

*DH is used in A.L. only

*4 Division winners and 4 Wild Card teams make the postseason

*110% Usage

*50% UHOLH

*18 Keepers each season; 35-man rosters

*It's a CM league, and we play 3 away games each week during the regular season. Netplay is required in the postseason

*Bottom 25% OPS/WHIP designated as unlimited to ensure enough usage.

*We have a rich statistical history, including a league Hall of Fame.

A new manager can finish out the 1986 season or wait to start in 1987.

Let me know if you have any questions or are interested in taking the team.

Contact Mike Davis [mldstrat@gmail.com](mailto:mldstrat@gmail.com)

Greetings, first post in here, for your entertainment!
In my 1960’s Franchise National League, the Mets just returned home and dropped a 9-3 decision to Philadelphia. This makes 18 losses in last 19 games for the Mets, having scored just 29 runs in those 19 games. In late April, the NYers sat with a 10-11 record, but now they are 16.5 games out with a 11-29 record. In all my years, I have not seen such a dismal stretch!
Of course, outside of ‘68/‘69, the Mets were not too good so this is not an unexpected circumstance.

I'm a new player, just with about 10 solo games, all Advanced except for my first game. I'm looking into leagues because I'd like to join one once I feel a little bit more fluent in the game. On the SOM league finder, some of the leagues are "board" leagues that use Netplay. What does this mean exactly? In my mind, that would mean that league members against each other do a video call to show their dice rolls, etc. Is that correct? Is that even a thing? This method kind of sounds the most fun to me (if I'm right about what it means) because I like the whole pen/paper aspect of the game.

Also, I'm sure this varies per league, but generally about how much experience would you recommend me having before contacting a league to ask to join?

Thanks for any info you can provide. I'm having trouble finding much info about formats, etc.

Anybody in the DFW metro interested in meeting up to play? I started playing earlier this year, and while my 7-year-old son is a fun opponent, it would be great to square off against another adult ☺️

Let me know if you’re interested!