If you are new to Diamond Mind Baseball, this page will help you learn all about the settings necessary to configure a DMB computer manager. Much of the information below has been taken from the Diamond Mind Baseball documentation.

Prior to the start of a season, each manager will be given a profile automatically generated by DMB as a starting point.

There are eighteen tactics with which you can influence how the computer manager makes its decisions. For each of the tactics, Diamond Mind has studied play-by-play data to analyze the frequency with which each fo the tactics are deployed by real-life managers. We (DMB) have examined how the frequencies are affected by the inning, number of outs, current score, baserunner locations, the ability of the players involved, ball-strike count, and other factors. When set to Neutral, the computer manager attempts to replicate these real life patterns by choosing, for example, to bunt with only the best bunters in the most appropriate bunting situations and when the batter wouldn't do better against this particular pitcher by swinging away. The Neutral manager plays the percentages. Based on an analysis of thousands of real-life games, the computer manager knows the odds of winning a game in any situation (such as when you're the away team and down by a run in the seventh), and it knows the probability of scoring a certain number of runs in any situation. Sometimes it plays for a big inning, and sometimes it plays for one run, whichever gives it the best chance to win. And it preserves the element of surprose, so you cannot always predict what the computer manager will do in a particular situation. If all of your manager tendencies are set to Neutral, a team with more good base-stealers will steal more often than a team with fewer good base-stealers. A team with more good runners will take more extra bases on hits and flies than a team with fewer good runners. This is equally true of real-life rosters and draft-league rosters. As a result, the Neutral setting is the best choice for most teams, especially with which you are not too familiar. The other settings are intended to override the real-life manager tendencies. If you want your team to bunt less often, despite having many good bunters, set your tendency to Less Frequent or Least Frequent. If you want your team to try to pressure your opponent into making tactical errors, set your Running Frequency to More Frequent or Most Frequent. But be aware that being more aggresive may mean taking more chances than the percentages would normally call for.

• Stealing: When set to Neutral, the computer manager attempts to steal at the rates indicated by the jump ratings for each player.
  
  
• Holding runners: When set to Neutral, all runners but the worst are held. Choosing Most Frequent causes all runners to be held. Choosing Least Frequent causes the first basemen to play behind more of the runners with low Jump and Steal ratings.
  
  
• Baserunning: This tendency applies to singles, doubles, and fly balls. It does not affect the decision to send the runner home from third on a ground ball.
  
  
• Guard lines: This setting controls the inning in which the computer manager begins to think about guarding the lines.
  
  

  Most	7th
  More	7th
  Neutral	8th
  Less	9th
  Least	Never

  
  
• Infield in: This setting controls the inning in which the computer manager begins looking for opportunities to bring the infield in. This tendency does not affect the decision to bring the infield in at the corners, which can occur anytime during a game to discourage a batter from bunting.
  
  

  Most	1st
  More	4th
  Neutral	6th
  Less	7th
  Least	8th

  
  

• Usage mode: This setting indicates how the computer manager should use your pitchers. Choose Strict to use your starters in strict rotation. Choose skip to use your starters in rotation but Skip to the #1 starter when one or more off-days have him rested enough to start before his turn. Choose Time to have each starter get the number of starts indicated in his playing time limits.
  
  
• Rotation size: This setting indicates how many pitchers comprise your starting rotation.
  
  
• Starting Rotation: Enter the names of the pitchers in your starting rotation, in order, left to right.
  
  
• Spot Starters: If you want pitchers to make occasional starts, you can designate that player as a spot starter. The list of spot starters parallels the list of pitchers in the starting rotation. If you want someone to start 20% of the time in place of the number four starter, enter this player in the fourth spot in the spot starter list, and enter 20 for his spot start percentage.
  
  
• Mopup situations: You can designate up to five pitchers for the mopup role. This role is generally reserved for the weaker pitchers on the team. They will normally be used only when your team is winning or losing by a large margin and the outcome of the game isn't really in doubt, though they may appear in close games if other pitchers are not available due to injury or fatigue.
  
  
• Long Relief: You can designate up to five pitchers for the role of long relief. Long relievers are generally used when the starting pitcher is replaced prior to the seventh inning, but will also be used in other game situations when required, particularly when a team is losing by a large margin and wants to preserve its better pitchers for future games.
  
  
• Setup Men: There are two lists of setup men, one to face left-handed batters and one to face right-handed batters. Setup men are generally used in the seventh inning or later in close games, but will also be used in other situations when required.
  
  
• Closers: There are two lists of setup men, one to face left-handed batters and one to face right-handed batters. Closers are generally used in the eighth or ninth inning when the team has a lead in a close game, but will also be used in other situations when required. In most game situations, DMB uses the first available pitcher in the appropriate list whenever a reliever is called for. So it is important that you list your players in the order you wish them to be considered, with your first choice at the left of the list. However, there are other situations where another choice will be made. If the bullpen has been used heavily, the computer manager may use the most rested pitcher. If either team has a big lead, it may choose to use a less talented pitcher, to make sure your top pitchers are rested for future games.
  
  

You select who plays each defensive position and the batting order. If neccessary due to injuries, fatigue, or the desire to give a spot starter his share of playing time, the computer manager adjusts the starting lineup and batting order. When adjusting the batting order, the computer manager moves the newly-inserted players up or down in the order based on their ability, but preserves your saved batting order as much as possible. A depth chart goes hand in hand with a starting lineup, and provides instructions for using the players not in the starting lineup.

• Platoon Player: A platoon is a pair of two players, one who bats left-handed and one who bats right-handed. The manager starts the left-hander against right-handed pitchers and the right-hander against left-handed pitchers. If the opposing team changes pitchers, the computer manager may substitute the platoon player to get a favorable left-right matchup.
  
  
• Defensive Replacement: If you specify a player in this role, the player will be inserted into a game in the late innings of games in which the team has a narrow lead.
  
  
• Utility Player: You can list up to five players as utility players at each defensive position. These players are used when a starter is injured or removed for a pinch hitter or pinch runner during a game. If you want someone to be used primarily as a bench player but make occasional starts, you can indicate the percentage of games this player should start at this position.
  
  
• Pinch Hitter: You can list up to five players as pinch hitters versus left- or right-handed pitchers. You don't have to fill the list in to make the computer manager use pinch hitters. If the list is empty, DMB chooses pinch hitters from all available players on the bench, including starters who are resting for the current game. However, if you choose to enter one or more players in these lists, DMB chooses only from among these players when a pinch hitter is called for. If none of these players is available, the computer manager then looks to the full bench to see if another hitter could be used. The computer manager doesn't always choose the first player in the list as the first pinch hitter in the game. Sometimes it will choose to keep the top player available for a better opportunity later in the game.
  
  

You may choose to put limits on playing time for one or all of the players on your team.

• Limits for pitchers are in terms of games started and relief appearances.
  
  
• For batters, you indicate how many atbats they are allowed to get against left- and right-handed pitching. DMB will not use players during games if it would put them on a pace to exceed their limits, unless injuries or ejections make it necessary to use the player.
  
  
• You can also choose to prevent a player from being removed for a pinch hitter against left- or right-handed pitching. This option does not apply if there is a platoon player listed for this position -- the platoon information takes precedence. And the player might still be removed for a pinch hitter in a blowout situation. But you can prevent the player from being removed for a pinch hitter under all other circumstances.
  
  
• If you indicate that a player can be removed for a pinch hitter, it doesn't necessarily mean that he will be. If the player is a very good hitter, it's unlikely that there would be a better hitter on the bench anyway.