FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Seeing as I am over the Salary Cap, am I completely cut off from replacement players if I place a player on the Disabled List?
You are not cut off, but you are limited in your actions. As long as your club is over the Salary Cap, you can only sign $1 DL replacements.

Is it possible to cut a DL Replacement player and sign another?
Only during a lengthy injury. When a player goes on the DL, you basically sign a Replacement to a minimum 15-day contract. After a Replacement has served his 15 days, if the original player is still injured, you may cut the first Replacement and sign a different one. However, the second Replacement must also serve a minimum of 15 days on your roster before your player can come off the DL.

Can you trade a DL Replacement player?
No. A Replacement is not an "official" member of your club as his salary does not count against your cap (and a Replacement can be plucked from your team during Roster Expansion for the same reason). However, you can keep a Replacement by making room under the cap when your regular player comes off the DL. After this, he would be a regular member of your club and eligible to be traded.

In an extra inning game, my team scored 1 run in the top of the 10th. But the computer left another pitcher in the ballgame instead of bringing in the closer. Of course he gives up a 3-run homer in the bottom of the 10th and we lose. Why wasn't the closer brought either at the start of the inning or at least once runners reached base?
This is a tough question, but there could be a couple possibilities. First, in an extra inning game, sometimes managers do strange things in order to avoid running out of pitchers. I'm not a fan of this personally, but I find I question real life managers frequently in long games. Second, if your closer (or closers) had worked the previous game, or had a recent long outing, they might have been unavailable due to fatigue. Basically, you might question your team's manager in certain instances. But I suppose MLB owners do the same thing in real life.

If during the draft, I see there is someone I want and can't afford with my current roster, can I drop someone off of my team in that round, and pick up the player I want?
No. Protected lists are written in stone. Any players not taken in the draft are available as free agents when the season begins. But you can trade during the draft with other teams, so you could try to get someone else to draft a player, then trade for him.

What is the draft order of teams? Would it be 1 2 3 4 5..., then ...5 4 3 2 1?
From Worst to First, we try to emulate the real baseball draft, which does not reverse order during alternating rounds. We just go 1 2 3 4 5..., then 1 2 3 4 5 again and again till its over.

How many games must a player play at a position to be elligible in the ALB?
For position eligibility, the ALB is extremely flexible. If Diamond Mind rates a player at a positionl, you can play him there. Just remember, players with small amounts of playing time at a position tend to be rated poorly and may suffer defensively. You can also play outfielders out of position, but they will suffer accordingly.

If nobody is controlling a team, is it possible to trade with such a team? What happens at the free agent draft with that team?
In a worst case scenario with lack of ownership, the commissioner will continue to run the team as fairly as possible until a new owner is found.

During the offseason, the rules say you do not have to maintain a 25-27 man roster. Does that technically mean you can have more? Do salaries count during this time?
Yes, you can exceed 27 players and the cap, because we won't know the exact salaries until spring anyway. As long as you pair it down by Roster Protection before the draft, there are no real salary or roster limits during the offseason. This is another reason there are often several quality players that get cut just before the draft... most teams are over budget and have to trim payroll.

Can we use a ballpark already in use by another team?
No, if you change ballparks, you may only select one that is NOT in use by another team. (Ballparks were grandfathered in when this rule began, so some may still be shared as of this FAQ.)