The
Options & Preview page, accessible immediately any time you choose to manage or watch a game, displays an array of options that allow you to customize Play-by-Play mode. It also displays the starting lineups for each team:
We will run through the options on this page, starting in the top left.
Team Controls
Each team has a set of
Team Controls in the top left that contain four management options each. If you manage a team, then by default you are selected as the person responsible for each area. However, you can also select to have your
bench coach make decisions for one or more of these areas.
Commissioners have the option of managing either or both teams. Unless you are the commissioner, you cannot change the Team Controls of your opponent. If you are in "Watch Game" mode, you cannot change either team's controls.
Note: If you are a commissioner or a manager and just want to watch the game, set all of these values to someone other than yourself!| Option | Description |
| Offense Strategy | Determines who will make offensive decisions for this team, such as whether to hit and run, or swing away. This does not include pinch hitters or runners. |
| Pitching Strategy | Determines who will make pitching decisions for this team, including relief pitchers and warmups. This does not include pitching substitutions. |
| Defense Strategy | Determines who will make defensive decisions for this team, such as the positioning of the fielders. This does not include defensive substitutions. |
| Substitution Strategy | Determines who will make substitution decisions for this team, such as relief pitchers, pinch hitting and running, and defensive substitutions. |
General Game Options
The next section has a number of
General Game Options:
| Option | Description |
| Designated Hitter | Determines whether or not a designated hitter will be used. This option is determined by your league rules. Only a commissioner can change this value from this page. |
| Pitcher Warmup Rule | Determines whether the pitcher warmup rule will be used. If this is enabled, pitchers need to be warmed up before pitching, or risk injury or ineffectiveness. See Warming up Pitchers for more information. |
| Ballpark | Determines the ballpark in which the game will be played. This option is determined by your league. Only a commissioner can change this value from this page. |
| Show Player Photos | Determines whether or not player photos will be displayed on the BNN Broadcast page. |
| Show Field Header | Determines whether or not the field header will be displayed on the BNN Broadcast page:
|
Play-by-Play Options
The next section contains several
Play-by-Play Options to allow you to customize your playing experience:
| Option | Description |
| Game Sound | Enables or disables in game sound effects, such as crowd cheering and the crack of the bat. |
| Ball Animation | If enabled, OOTP will generate a simple ball animation to indicate where a batted ball goes. Note that this is not full animation - the players will not move to meet the ball, for example. It is simply a basic representation of where the ball went. |
| PbP Box | Determines whether to print out play-by-play in the small, standard box, or a much larger box. |
| Pbp Detail | Determines whether to use full, verbose play-by-play text, or only display the results of each play. |
| PbP Speed | Determines how quickly play-by-play text will appear. You can set this value from Instant to Very Fast. There is also a custom option that, if selected, will allow you to specify, in milliseconds, how long to delay between play-by-play lines. |
| Delay Mode | Determines the delay mode. You can choose from 'per character,' which will place a delay between each character, resulting in a 'ticker-tape' flow to the game, or 'per line,' in which each line appears in its entirety at once. |
Simulate World in Background
The final option is called
Simulate World in Background. This enables or disables the "BNN Network.". When the BNN Network is enabled, other games in your game world that are scheduled for the same start time will be played out simultaneously, and you can track their progress on the
BNN Network page. If the BNN Network is disabled, only your game will be played out.
Lineups & Starting Pitchers
The right side of the page column contains the lineups and starting pitchers for each team in the game, along with statistical summaries for each player. Also displayed are the players' splits for home or away. (For the home team, home splits are displayed.) The far right column displays each player's statistics against this particular starting pitcher. This lineup and statistical information is for informational purposes only. There are no changes that can be made here. To make changes to a lineup or starting pitcher, use the
Lineups & Starting Pitcher page. You can also use the scouted ratings if you wish to see OSA ratings.