I noticed in OPL 2025 that numerous teams, seemingly run by different combos of the same manager, would roster only like 1-3 RPs on their teams. These teams were wildly successful, not just because of the lack of RP. But RPs were clearly devalued to them as they treated OPL like they were after total pts, P/IP be damned!
I was in awe and used this same strategy for my 1 OPL entry this year.
The commissioner of another league I’m in, where in not entered in OPL , - sent out a message blast saying some teams in the league are not compliant with OPL Roster Rules outlined on the Rules pages, because they don’t have the required 22 spots (including 5 RP) on their team.
doesn’t seem like this can be enforced really except for commish sending a blast but here’s the question -
are the teams in OPL with less than 5 RPs on their team (including me) Compliant participants?
I think this is a fair question, but I don’t think there is an issue here. The Ottoneu rules require that you have a full set of 22 MLB players “that can fill out a starting lineup.” SP can be put into RP slots. They can’t earn points there, so if you have too many SP going and you drop one in as a RP, they get you zero. Same applies in OPL. If a team has 10 pitchers, they can fill out a starting lineup…but if they have more than 2 SP go in a day, the extras can’t go into RP and can’t score.
Each team shall during the regular season maintain a roster of 22 major-league players that can fill out a starting lineup as defined below
In non-head-to-head leagues, a starting lineup consists of one slot at each infield position (catcher, first base, second base, third base, and shortstop), five outfielder slots, one additional middle infielder (second base or shortstop) slot, one additional hitter from any position (utility slot), five starting pitcher slots, and five relief pitcher slots.
In head-to-head leagues and during the playoffs, a starting lineup consists of one slot at each infield position (catcher, first base, second base, third base, and shortstop), five outfielder slots, one additional middle infielder (second base or shortstop) slot, one additional hitter from any position (utility slot) and five relief pitcher slots. The number of starting pitcher slots depends on the league’s Per Week GS Cap setting
Here is the OPL rule page:
This mentions 5 RP slots, but also mentions “points aer maximized for the day”, which are in conflict with each other. The primary purpose to mention the “legal H2H lineup” is to make it clear that no one can exceed this lineup (i.e. 6 OF spots) in order to maximize points.
So, Ottoneu rules do not state 5 RPs anywhere, only the slots that can be filled, and so Chad’s read of this is correct.
It stinks that people are in leagues where the commissioner isn’t enforcing rosters and they can get away with this in OPL. IMO, a team shouldn’t be allowed to make lineup changes if they don’t have a valid qualified lineup.
Except they aren’t getting away with anything. They’re following the rules and using a strategy that is actively bad for a their home league in order to employ a best ball strategy that they think will help in OPL. But they have enough pitchers to fill their roster. So they have a legal roster.
They’re for sure getting away with something. The lax commissioner in the home league is allowing them to do this, where as in other leagues the commissioners aren’t. In most leagues the commissioner would call that person out for not having enough RPs.
Some people have dozens of leagues just to optimize and win OPL, they don’t care if they win the home or not. Just like the leagues where each owner has two teams (a competing team and a farm team). It’s just different ways to game the system.
I don’t play opl anymore but I do wish it was more aligned to rewarding the best standard Ottoneu teams. Not sure it’s possible but I would like to see how my teams stack up against the best teams around Ottoneu. But I only play 5x5 so I may not be the best example.
I just disagree that that’s a “lax” commissioner. I’m commissioner for multiple leagues. I don’t police people having enough RP for multiple reasons:
As already noted, the rule is that you have to be able to fill out a lineup. 10 pitchers does that.
I think having fewer RP is bad Ottoneu strategy and I’m not here to force people in my league to follow my strategic guidance as long as they follow the rules and have enough P to fill 10 slots.
From an OPL standpoint you’re asking a commissioner to police what a roster looks like at a specific point in time. A team could have 5 RP at midnight ET and 5 RP at 9 am ET but if they made roster moves in between, they might not have 5 RP for OPL. Which, again, is fine because it doesn’t break any rules.
I have no desire to try to police who is and who isn’t a reliever. I have a team with 5 guys who are mostly in their team’s bullpens but one of those five is Grant Taylor.
Should the commish of that league tell me my roster is illegal? Taylor is about to make his 3rd start! Is my roster legal on days he’s doesn’t start, but illegal on days he does? You’re demanding a delineation between pitchers who ARE relievers and those who ARE starters that doesn’t exist in Ottoneu and exists less and less in MLB.
I think the tension between OPL and standard leagues is a good thing. It forces tougher decisions. Winning OPL either requires carrying a team that’s not optimized for your home league OR having cash to regularly make adds and cuts to pivot between the two formats. That’s a feature, not a bug. I think Niv even talked back at launch of OPL about being inspired by Champions League soccer which requires teams participating to manage extra matches and choose week to week if they are going to prioritize their domestic league or the regional competition. I like that OPL forces this as well
I agree with you on all points, but I was specifically called out last year in a league for not having enough RPs. I had 10 SPs. I was doing it to rebuild and was using those slots for minor leaguers.
To your point #1, my league cited the rule Niv posted above and took it to the slack saying it was a rule to have the RPs filled. This sure sounds to me like that’s the case:
Each team shall during the regular season maintain a roster of 22 major-league players that can fill out a starting lineup as defined below…
In non-head-to-head leagues … five relief pitcher slots.
That sounds to me (and sounded to my league, commissioner, and the people that responded to him in slack), that you need to have five active players that qualify at RP at all times.
To your point #4, I think my league would have allowed Taylor since he qualifies there.
I don’t see anywhere in the rules that it says that you can put SPs in RP slots in order to be legal by the ‘fill our a starting lineup’ rule, it only says that under scoring. If anything, the rules read more that you MUST have five RPs, as you have quoted above.
I know I’m repeating myself also, but the community isn’t clear on these points (based on confusion from this post’s OP, a majority of members of my league, my league’s commissioner and people that responded to him in the slack). I appreciate you clarifying here, but players don’t come here to look up rules, they go to the rules page. So here we are indeed.
Niv, the OP is talking about his commissioner messaging the league to say they all need 5 RPs. The OP (who is not the commissioner) came here to ask to have the rule clarified, because the rules are not clear. I’m sure this is happening in a lot of other leagues and it happened in one of mine.
It’s kind of amazing to me that you’re shutting down a legitimate conversation people are having about something they are confused on. No wonder this message board is always dead.
Yes, my point of saying all this was that it would be good to have it clarified in the rules page. I know you answered the original question, but I was thinking of the bigger picture.
I guess I’m not sure what’s still unclear? The rules say you have to fill a lineup. Any pitcher can go in any P lineup spot. I’m not even sure how you WOULD clarify that. Can you fill a lineup? If yes, you’re good.
Now, beyond that you get into league specific questions and rules. If a league wants to require actual RP, and the commish wants to have some definition of what that is, that’s up to the league to decide. It’s similar to the question of how IL guys should be treated. My position has been that 10/15-day guys “count" but 60-day guys don’t (if you get the roster spot back, you need to use it how it’s intended to be used). But I know some leagues want a full HEALTHY lineup and that’s fine. Just not what I would do. But both meet the letter of the law.
It sounds like this is a conversation to have with the league commissioner, and maybe the league as a whole.
