2026 SIMS Report: Dodgers and Nationals Lead The Pack

KPSL – The SIM Seasons 2026

The draft is over, and a few series have rolled, but as has become tradition, I decided to waste hours of my life preparing some simulated KPSL seasons!  This report will recap how our teams played when the computer (as programmed by me) played them! Here is how it goes:

1. I set up the league and set everyone’s 40-man rosters as of March 21.  I snuck in the two Giants trades.

2. I generated a 176-game schedule that matches the format of our 88-game schedule.  In this case teams played each opponent 16 times.  This allowed me to have HAL (the SOM computer game manager) control usage a lot better.  Interestingly, I was very hopeful as SOM added a more detailed starter/bullpen usage menu this year.  Guess what I found?  It made no difference…low inning relievers still often did not get used, and workhorse relievers were still often overused.  But overall, the usage of everyone else tracked fairly well.

3. I set each team’s roster to have a limited set of minor leaguers and set a carefully planned “sub order” for every position on every team.  This helps HAL use players as you would for injuries, pitcher matchups, etc.  But it also keeps the very worst guys (cough…Ben Rortvedt) from getting used very much.

4. I set the lineups, rotations, and bullpens for each team, and then set managers for each team that reflected the most likely usage.  I programmed the managers generally to ensure each team’s best rated players were used. 

5. I simulated 10 seasons, and ran out the results, totals, and awards voting for each.

The results show five teams looking very strong, three teams looking up at everyone else, and four of us stuck in the middle.  There were surprises, but yes the Dodgers are really good.

Here’s what I will summarize:

1. League-wide stats with team-by-team commentary – There is a table to show you how you did. I also do brief commentary on each team.

2. MVP / Cy Young recaps

This is an exercise I value immensely, but it is only an exercise.  1,760 games simulated provides a large range of possible outcomes.  We’ll settle on one outcome over just 88 games!

1. Finishes and playoff qualifications

Here it is, with a new column!  There is a lot of information here!  From left to right:

-        Total W/L and win% over the 10 seasons – this is the primary sort of the table

-        Best and Worst records of the 10 seasons

-        Runs scored, runs against, and run differential

-        Rank by run differential (notice teams 6-8)

-        Playoff qualifications, 1^st place finishes, and “top 2” finishes that earn a playoff bye

Team Notes- top to bottom by wins!

1.     Los Angeles – The only surprise here was that the Dodgers finished top 2 in wins (good for a playoff bye) only half of the time.  They were mighty good.  Ohtani was a monster.  Yamamoto was nasty.  James Wood was the best “second best” guy on any team.  Now it’s all about living up to high expectations.

2.     Washington – The defending champ is a big threat to go back-to-back.  The Nats earned more playoff byes than anyone.  Pivetta and Sanchez were the best 1-2 starters I saw in these SIMS.  Jeff has plenty to work with to win 50+ games this year. 

3.     St. Louis – The Cards simmed with the 3^rd best record last year, and aside from the top 2 teams, they were the only club to make the playoffs in each SIM.  Yet they were never the best team, and cold math would say the Reds and Pirates were both every bit as good, just not as consistent.

4.     Cincinnati – Mike’s Reds led everyone in runs scored.  In SIM #2, his team hit 296 bombs…Marte (50), Suarez (45), and Devers (43) all topped 40 homers.  Ummm…wow.  Still, his team did have two down seasons and missed the playoffs twice.  But I wouldn’t sit around waiting for that in our season.

5.     Pittsburgh – The team that prevented runs the best were the Pirates, averaging about 3.6 runs allowed over 1,760 games!  The offensive numbers were not electric, but this is a high-quality team that is clearly top tier.

6.     Philadelphia – No team was more up and down than Sammy’s Phillies.  In SIM #3, they won 104 games!  In SIM #10, they nearly lost 100. In general, their bullpen was dominant and really helped them when their bats scored enough.  The Phils also were the only team to pull off one huge surprise…more on that in a minute.

7.     Colorado – My Rockies scored runs like a top team, but we let up more runs than any team not named the Cubs.  We did have a little luck on our side.  Every time we finished at .500 or above, we made the playoffs!  This is a team that will occasionally embarrass good teams with barrages of runs, but it is mid-pack.

8.     San Diego – People might have questioned Andy’s draft-night move to get Schwarber, but it was clear to me that he helped seriously up the run production for this team.  Combine that with good defense that helps counter some shaky pitchers, and you have a team that snagged 4 playoff berths despite being a bit unlucky in these SIMS according to run differential.

9.     San Francisco – Juan Soto and the G-men look to be “bottom middle” in this league, but they did crack the playoffs twice.  The pitching definitely missed Webb and Wheeler.  The Vegas oddsmakers don’t like them.  But you can’t write them off.

10. Arizona – If we are talking about the bottom teams…those teams that never made the playoffs and never had a winning record, then I can confidently say the Dbacks are the best of the bottom teams.  I know how that sounds.

11. Milwaukee – Carlos Rodon did win 15+ games a few times and appeared in the top 5 in ERA in SIM #8. I’m looking for something positive to juice the writeup, because the Brewers simply did not perform with the bats or on the mound in these SIMS.

12. Cubs– Rob drafted with the exact strategy I would have, grabbing prospects that seem likely to get playing time.  He also moved Schwarbs for very good value for 2027.  But the current impact of that is that this team is anemic.  The SIMS exposed that very clearly.

For more details about the SIMS report, please check out the PDF document below.