#1 Use a separate lineups with starting pitchers for every away game.

#2 Set default lineups for LH/RH pitchers and rely on the ROBOT to pick starting pitchers according to your manager options.

#3 Use a combination of the above 2 methods.

1. Putting in separate lineups:

To do this, log in and go to SCHEDULE from your Team page. Select the first game of the away series. You will be asked first if you want to put two lineups in or one. If you are certain of the pitcher you will face in that game, you can use one, otherwise, you will want to insert a lineup to be used against LH/RH pitchers. These lineups will include the pitcher you intend to start the particular game.

After having put in a lineup (And perhaps SAVED it for future use. See SAVED LINEUPS below), it should be submitted, whereupon you will be sent back to the SCHEDULE page where the game you selected will include a note including the stating pitcher you selected for the game. This is how you will know that you have indeed selected a lineup and pitcher for the game.

2. Setting Default Lineups:

Go to FRONT OFFICE from your Team page (while logged in) and select "set default lineups". This will open another window from which you can select your ACTIVE players from the left-hand side of the web page and ADD them to the right side of the page, which represents your lineup card. You will note that the program allows you to choose DEFAULT, LEFT, and RIGHT lineups. For the most part, you should ignore the DEFAULT lineup unless you are Ralph Houk (For those uninitiated, Houk did not believe in platoon baseball). Normally, you will want to set a lefty and righty lineup. The "default" default lineup will only be used by the ROBOT if you have not submitted and saved LH/RH lineups.

 Why set Defaults?

It is very important to set your default lineups and manager options for the following reasons:

1) Even if you intend to send instructions for every away game of the season, you may forget at some point and setting and maintaining good default lineups will allow the system to manage your team in your absence.

2) For those who have many teams or who have time constraints because of travel or work schedules, the default system does an excellent job of running your team on the road.

3) As long as all the players in your default lineups are active and not injured and all the pitchers who are assigned roles in your default manager options are active and not injured, the system can be used instead of actually inputting away lineups.

3. Using a combination of both.

After putting in your default lineups, you may want to set aside one game where you rest your normal starters or use a player for one game only who is not a member of your right handed or left handed platoon. You may do this by selecting a particular game in which you will create a specific lineup(s) for that game only. Be aware that the pitcher will be named in this game. In default games, the ROBOT uses the starting pitcher who is READY (at least 30 BFA) and who is the highest graded and listed in your rotation in Manager Options. He will never use a pitcher who is not READY and will therefore "go with the flow" depending on who you named to start the one or two games you specifically put lineups in for. Also be aware that if you name a pitcher who is not READY for that game, the ROBOT will replace him with one who is.

Setting MANAGER OPTIONS:

It is important to set these unless you want the ROBOT to do it for you. If you have even one pitcher not set to a role, the ROBOT will set ALL your pitcher roles for you!

First set your pitcher roles:

Rotation or Ace Rotation pitchers are your starters. If you want a 5-man rotation, be sure you have 5 pitchers set to a rotation role. If you'd like a 3,4,6-man rotation, you must have the proper amount of pitchers set to a rotation role. The ROBOT will make sure your starter comes out of the game to keep your rotation in order. The Ace will be left in longer by the ROBOT manage, than a regular rotation pitcher.

Long Reliever: You have to have at least one! Ordinarily, he should be a starter with at least 30 MaxBats (Maximum Batters Faced Available) but there is no requirement that he have high BFA. If you use a low BFA pitcher as a long reliever, don't expect the ROBOT to lift your starter if he gets bombed early.

Middle Reliever: You must have at least one! These are the relievers who come into the middle of the game or later if your club trails.

Short Reliever: You must name at least two! If you name no closer, the short relievers will close by committee. The ROBOT uses the short relievers according to match-ups. Sometimes he will look two batters ahead and sometimes he will look only at the next batter.

Closer: You can name one or none! The closer is brought in to make the save if he is sufficiently rested to reasonably finish the game. Don't name a closer unless you want him to be used in all save situations when he is sufficiently ready.

Now set your managerial options:

Set all options from low to high on the aggressive meter.

NOTE: The system considers "aggressive" when making pitching changes to mean aggressive at leaving in the starter. If you wish the robot to go to the bullpen aggressively set the bullpen setting to the left of the scale (not aggressive).

The ROBOT will manage your team according to conventional methods for all strategy options if you set the options in the middle of the scale. If you like to steal at home, set the steal option to "low" on the road so that you have the bulk of you allotted steal attempts for home games. If your team is facing a team with catchers and or pitchers who are poor at holding down the running game, you might want to set the option to a more aggressive spot on the scale.

If your team has made roster moves, be sure to check the veracity of your defaults before an away series.

The system will not start a tired, overused or injured player or pitcher for the road team. If a tired or injured pitcher is inadvertently called on to start a game, the system will ignore the order to start the afflicted pitcher and insert a rested pitcher. If a tired, overused, or injured player is in the starting lineup, the system will replace the player and create it's own lineup.

Types of Lineups:

1. Lineups used in Home games.
2. Default Lineups
3. Default Lineups for Inter-league games on the road

Home Game Lineups:

These lineups are used in home games. There is a mechanism for saving and naming lineups within the GAME STARTUP module. Once you have created a correct lineup and before submitting for a game, you have the option of SAVING and NAMING it. These lineups can be deleted by going into Front Office and selecting "Set Default/Saved lineups". One can also save lineups from FRONT OFFICE if one cares to.

Default Lineups:

The ROBOT for road games uses default lineups when you have not put in a specific lineup through the SCHEDULE module. To set default lineups, go to Front Office and select "Set Default/Saved lineups". You have the option of saving a DEFAULT lineup or two defaults for RH and LH pitching. The ROBOT will only select your DEFAULT lineup if you have not set LH/RH lineups. When setting default lineups, you can draw from old saved default lineups located in the top left hand corcer of the page or use Home saved lineups form the lower left hand corner of the page. Either way, once you have filled in a correct lineup, there are three buttons below which allow you to SAVE the lineup as Default, Default vs. Left, or Default vs. Right.

To DELETE a default lineup, simply modify and save a new one.

Default for Inter-League road games

For road games in which you will be using or not using a DH (Whatever the case may be), we provide a way to set these lineups from "Set Inter-League Lineups" from FRONT OFFICE. The module works the same way as "Set Default/Saved lineups".