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I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

batmagadanleadoff Dec 20 2009 07:45 PM

Strat-O-Matic: Not the real thing, but an incredible simulation The venerable game remains determinedly old school and revered for its accuracy, whether in traditional dice-and-cards tabletop form or newer computerized version. You'd think a guy who played in more than 2,000 major league games and broadcast nearly 1,000 more would be tired of baseball. Not Keith Hernandez. The former National League MVP can't get enough, often firing up his laptop when he gets home from the ballpark to play Strat-O-Matic, a game he first tried in high school nearly four decades ago. "I like to play the schedule as it happens," he says. "It's a complete reenactment of the season. I'm playing 1962 right now because that was the Giants and Dodgers." He has plenty of company. Since Strat-O-Matic was launched in 1961 by Bucknell University mathematics student Hal Richman, the game has sold millions of copies, given birth to hundreds of fantasy leagues and inspired an online community of nearly 6,000 hard-core players. It's even been featured on the big screen, getting a cameo in the 1994 Spike Lee film "Crooklyn." In an era when sports simulation games have moved from the tabletop to the laptop and beyond, Strat-O-Matic and its older old-school rival APBA have remained popular because of their unrivaled realism. In both games, the performance of every major leaguer is subjected to a mathematical formula and then rendered onto individual cards for each player. Toss the dice, cross-reference the results to the numbers on the card, and you get the outcome of each at-bat. Advanced versions of the games factor in the probability of balks, rain, injuries, a pitcher's stamina -- even trades and the intricacies of ballparks. And because the basics of Strat-O-Matic haven't changed over three decades, game players can match ballplayers from different eras, batting Hank Aaron against Roger Clemens, for example. Hernandez says the game is so realistic he uses Strat-O-Matic cards to guide him during his work as a TV analyst for the New York Mets. "It's remarkable how it works out," he says. "I like to see the ratings defensively, arm, speed. Are they good hit-and-run guys? Stolen base guys? It's always good for me to brush up on that." In recent years, Strat-O-Matic has added a computer version and it can be played against distant opponents on the Internet. Yet even those versions are tame and antiquated -- if far more statistically accurate -- compared to what's available for Xbox and PlayStation. Richman, 73, concedes his audience is growing older, but fans of his game remain loyal. "I've always enjoyed it," says Hernandez, 56. "I don't come from the generation that needs a visual." kevin.baxter@latimes.com http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-str ... 4875.story

Edgy DC Dec 20 2009 07:57 PM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

Wow, I just posted that! Other pool threads that mention Strat: http://archives.cranepoolforum.net/400/f1_t491.shtml http://cranepoolforum.qwknetllc.com/php ... eca788ab5b http://cranepoolforum.qwknetllc.com/php ... b3bfca1d3e http://cranepoolforum.qwknetllc.com/php ... 1c5f282d8d http://cranepoolforum.qwknetllc.com/php ... cee654ada1 Grand-daddy of them all: http://archives.cranepoolforum.net/2000/f1_t2017.shtml

seawolf17 May 04 2010 01:22 PM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

Just won a contest on the White Sox Cards blog; I will soon be a proud owner of the 2010 SOM board game. Cancel the summer plans, Wolfette! Strat-O-Matic is coming!

themetfairy May 04 2010 01:33 PM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

WTG Wolfie!

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr May 04 2010 01:35 PM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

seawolf17 wrote: Just won a contest on the White Sox Cards blog; I will soon be a proud owner of the 2010 SOM board game. Cancel the summer plans, Wolfette! Strat-O-Matic is coming! Congratulations on the achievement, and on whatever new things life sets in your way after the divorce.

Chad Ochoseis May 04 2010 02:46 PM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

Congratulations, Wolf! Link to the contest? Strat-O-Matic was launched in 1961 by Bucknell University mathematics student Hal Richman How have I managed to spend the past 24 years of my life as an alum of Bucknell's math department without knowing this? 'Ray Bucknell, 'ray Bucknell 'Ray for the orange and the blue 'Ray, 'ray, 'ray, 'ray 'Ray for the orange and the blue!

seawolf17 May 04 2010 02:47 PM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

A rather quick contest, really. Good to follow folks on Twitter sometimes. http://whitesoxcards.blogspot.com/2010/ ... -time.html

Ashie62 May 04 2010 05:19 PM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

I am replaying the 2009 Mets season on Strat-O-Matic limiting AB's to what they were..Not doing well

smg58 May 04 2010 06:15 PM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

I got some Strat-O-Matic cards from some classic teams (including the 69 and 73 Mets) last Christmas. Now all I need is an opponent.

seawolf17 May 04 2010 06:37 PM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

Well, Ronkonkoma IS right down the road from my office, you know.

smg58 May 05 2010 09:32 AM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

Good point. I'm really not sure when I'll be free right now (between proposal writing at work and an assortment of family-related issues, I'm seriously overbooked), but I'll let you know.

seawolf17 May 18 2010 07:58 PM Re: I'm Keith Hernandez and I play Strat-O-Matic Baseball

Game came in today's mail. Figured I'd christen it with a game, but the problem is... the 2009 Mets kinda sucked. Johan Santana pitched 7 2/3 gorgeous innings, bringing a 3-0 lead into the top of the eighth before yielding to Bobby Parnell, who came in and struck out Ryan Zimmerman with runners at first and second. Brought Frankie in to pitch the ninth; he walked Adam Dunn, then struck out Dukes and Willingham. Josh Bard doubled, which brought Cristian Guzman to the plate. No way Guzman hits in that spot, so I pinch-hit Austin Kearns... who whomped a three-run game-tying home run. (Off the pitcher's card, and it would NOT have been a home run for Guzman. Fuckin' hell.) Thankfully, Reyes homered in the bottom of the inning to salvage the W.