The 2020 season looks to be a promising one for the Cincinnati Reds. Normally fans would already have celebrated Opening Day, be watching Thom and Chris every night and probably already questioning some of the moves that have been made. Unfortunately, COVID-19 has had other plans. While there has been talk of starting the MLB season sometime in May with all the players playing at the Spring Training facilities in Arizona, the reality is, no one knows when or if baseball will come back in 2020.
Because of this, Baseball Reference, one of the best MLB stats and analytics websites in the world has decided to simulate the entire season day by day with one of the best simulation video games for the MLB, Out of the Park Baseball. The partnership was announced on opening day and has been running a simulated season every day since.
Out of the Park Baseball is a simulator game where people can take over an entire organization and run it as if they were the Owner or General Manager. This includes salaries, player movement, drafting and even running every level of the organization down to the Internation Complex full of 17-year-old prodigies. This game is also known for its authenticity and ability to be extremely accurate in terms of how a player’s seasons will go. Thus, the natural partnership between them and Baseball Reference makes sense.
For baseball fans, this means that they can go to the site every day and see how their team performed just like they might do if the season were actually happening. The biggest difference is that fans cannot watch the games. This is because they are simulated for the whole league in just a few seconds. While many may not love this aspect, fans who enjoy statistics or those who were optimistic about their teams may want to see how their team might be doing had the teams been playing.
The best part about this simulation will be the fact that it is almost exactly like checking the box scores from the previous night’s game to catch up. OOTP has full statistics from hits to WAR for every single player. Not only that, but these can be seen even on the player’s profile in Baseball Reference as if the season were actually happening.
Also, there is a spot for the overall standings, a daily digest that has the scores or every game and even league leaders to see who is performing well. All of these features are included to allow for fans to understand how and why their team might be winning or losing.
The 2020 season is one that is supposed to be full of hope for a team that has not had much in the past few seasons. Many new players have been added and Cincinnati seem to be in a good position to at least make the playoffs. For a fanbase that is as in love with their team as any fanbase in the MLB, not being able to experience and of this season so far has been a huge disappointment.
While this may not be the same as watching the games, it still provides some excitement as Reds fans can actively see how the new additions fit in with the team and how the team might perform once the season does start. The one thing of note is that this game is simulated based almost entirely on statistics. So, it won’t be as accurate in terms of who is in the lineup and where they play as what David Bell might actually do. Either way, it is a tiny bit of baseball during a bleak time and definitely something that people can discuss and look at every morning.
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