PS2 Backlog Committee

Ok look - first of all I know most of you guys don't care one iota for sports, and of I don't think cane or j would classify as anywhere near as rabid a baseball fan as I am. Having said that, this project has been a big part of my gaming life, and I felt like it would be appropriate to share this passion here. Even if you guys can't appreciate the game of baseball, perhaps you may find the project, aesthetics and idea interesting...or not, ha. Either way, I'm spilling my fluids all up in this place!

Ok, I'll start first with a little background and some context for everything. I've been playing Out of the Park Baseball for *many* years and other general baseball simulations, both of the digital and board-game variety for many more. Baseball was my first love, well, besides maybe cookies. Both on the real and virtual field, I've loved this game since I was just a little nothing. But Out of the Park Baseball was when the management simulation aspect of this great game really hit a peak for me, and I've been obsessed with it ever since my first experience. I've long had the idea of building my own baseball league where I created all my own teams and structure for the organization so I could retreat further into my own head while living out my own fantasies. OOTP allows for great flexibility in building "your own baseball universe" as they call it. And I have dreamed of really diving into this potential even while playing regular big league seasons. Over the years I've gradually accumulated various ideas and team names, but I eventually settled on the concept of having a single league that encompasses every state within the United States. In my head cannon, baseball was and will always be the passion of this country, surpassing all other forms of entertainment. In my fictional world, The United States Baseball League is a culmination of this passion being expressed in a more coherent and universal form. I imagined a world in the past where baseball has been THE cultural passion, but has existed in predominantly regional pockets and leagues. In this alternate world, after Hawaii was admitted into the union in 1959, some brilliant entrepreneurs who had their finger on the pulse of the nation realized that this burning fire that existed all across the nation was missing a larger organizational structure and scale, and now having an even 50 states, saw an opportunity to bring together all the regional passions into a more expansive and unifying league that would see the best of the best playing in and representing the top team in every state in a form that would capture the entire country. I settled on 1961 as the beginning year of this league for a couple of reasons. It is the year in real-world baseball known as the "expansion era" - a kind of turning point in the overall state of the game. And, as mentioned, it's right after Hawaii was admitted as the final state, coincidentally enough. My intent is to play this league for centuries into the future. I will be using entirely fictional players to avoid any messy expectations and "blending" of real-world baseball with this little universe. I'm generally keeping the 162 game schedule in order to have fun comparisons with real-world records, but the league structure is a combination of two 25 team leagues. Their is the Revolution League and The Liberty Bell League, and there are five 5-team divisions in each league. All division winners qualify for the post-season as well as a single wild-card from each league. In all 12 teams or 24% qualify for post season play, a set of 7-game series in all rounds where the #1 and #2 records have byes in the first round.

So, in this thread, I'd like to share aspects of this league, why I names teams what I did and some of the art-work and uniform aspects driving the sense of identity for each of the 50 squads. If you are wondering how I made all of this, it was a combination of AI image generation and/or finding elements I liked online that already existed as well as my own photo editing labors. So, without further ado:



This is the primary logo for the league. After making this logo and considering the general concept of a unification of local passions into a more expansive national thing, I decided to make a similar round (baseball appropriate) badge for each team. While the badges are the primary identifier for each team, they are not always exactly the same as the uniforms. Furthermore, as much as I love MLB, the visually creative aspects and identifiers are generally just fancy lettering, with a few exceptions, and I wanted to be more in tune with a playful (think minor league) aesthetic that captured the "this is a boys game" spirit, even though the fandom is incredibly *SERIOUS*. I love that contrast and it allowed me to have fun with the visual creation of things. I'll share a new team every now and then so that I don't feel overwhelmed.

Here are the League Badges:



I chose the 13-stars flag (or the Betsy Ross flag) as a reference to the founding of this nation and the first national flag of 1777, and it seemed appropriately weighty for one of the two primary leagues, League Revolution.



For the other league, League Liberty Bell, I chose the corresponding visual which also seemed significant enough to carry the weight of an entire league.

The first division I created is called simply "1776" (I haven't created badges for any of the divisions, although I may do so at one point. Out of the Park Baseball only supports the primary league logo, so even the two sub-league badges are not incorporated within the game itself.)

The first team I am sharing is called The Pennsylvania Fireflies. In addition to the more playful visuals, I also wanted to have a variety of ideas incorporated into naming conventions. So, I attempted to get a mix of serious and playful, pulling from a wide range of concepts to give the league an interesting, varied, and richly textured flavor. I always started with inspiration from actual state influences and sometimes they morphed into their own thing. In the case of the team in Pennsylvania, the firefly has been the state insect since 1974, and I just thought it was a cool and unique concept for a team. As a side note, I will say that my imagination sits at the background of all these teams, and I often have these (waking) dreams of aspects of each team's culture. I'll share some of those while talking about each team. For the Fireflies, I imagine the crowds gathering and all the lights are dimmed for a minute or so before the first pitch of each home game, and all of the fans illuminate their own light-source to embody a "swarm" of fireflies. I also imagine the regional kids capturing these bugs in jars and collectively releasing them during this pre-game scene. I also liked the name Fireflies because in addition to the reference to the state insect it embodies the idea of lots of "fiery" balls flying out of the yard. That's why the team badge includes the motto "Launch Fireflies". I will also mention that in addition to the primary logos and art I will share, there are often secondary logos that I may consider incorporating at times for any visual variety occasionally.

So, I introduce to you - The Pennsylvania Fireflies

Team badge:



The cap is simply the playful bug:



And the jersey is :





Sorry for the low res pic, but it's a small portion of the screen which I blew up in this case.



Here's an alternative theme that I played with which I may incorporate for some variety or special occasions:




So, one down, 49 to go.

Here we go!

I like yours better than the MiLB Columbia Fireflies' logo.

canedaddy wrote: ↑Fri Mar 07, 2025 9:29 am Here we go!

I like yours better than the MiLB Columbia Fireflies' logo.

Yeah, I'm not a big fan of that one either.

Ok, so on to the next team within the USBL/Revolution/1776

Introducing : The Rhode Island Vampires

Sometimes in my quest to find regional/state appropriate names I found what I liked within some of the official state symbols/mottos/etc. But I occasionally found myself dipping into the folklore of an area to find inspiration that vibed with me. In the case of Rhode Island, it has a rich mythology regarding Vampires and such. The Mercy Brown incident among many others really impart a strong flavor of these night dwellers to Rhode Island. In fact, the state is known as the Transylvania of America by some. And I really loved having a team named The Vampires as a part of this league.

Team Badge:



The motto on their badge comes from Bram Stoker's Dracula if you weren't sure:

“Do you believe in destiny? That even the powers of time can be altered for a single purpose? That the luckiest man who walks on this earth is the one who finds… true love?”

I thought this slogan was befitting a team filled with self-belief and even though the quote references a more personal kind of love, I also thought it could be interpreted via the lens of the fans of the team - a fandom that has found their own "true love" in The Vampires.

Jersey:



The jersey is the same as the core of the general logo/badge

Cap:



I wanted to add a playful element to this otherwise menacing and foreboding concept. So here, we've got a more light-hearted vampire swinging his bat. I also like incorporating that aspect as a decoration on their, admittedly busy, badge.





Edit: Cane (or anyone else who view this thread), please let me know if you notice any typos or other blatant mistakes. I spent way too much time on this, and sometimes I felt like I was swimming in things, ha. So it's very possible I overlooked something obvious and won't ever notice it. Also, I will say that I know I have been sloppy in some cases with my photo editing. I'm pretty happy overall, but there are surely some things that could use some refinement and sharpening.

On to the next team within the USBL/Revolution/1776

The Connecticut Praying Mantis:

This was a simple inspiration being the state insect. That and I just love how cool these bugs are! I sometimes get lost down a YouTube rabbit hole watching them. And they are utterly ruthless and incredibly tough which resonated nicely with me for a team identity. I chose the singular form of the name to reflect a type of unity as well as emphasizing just how strong this creature is. I went with a color scheme of green (for the bug) and crimson (to signify all the blood they shed). I can imagine the home or national announcers saying, "They've simple been preying on the competition." when they're firing on all cylinders.

Team Badge:



I thought the motto of "We prey, you pray" was a funny spin on their own name and sense of intimidation that would inspire the fans.

Jersey:



Cap:



I liked the kind of segmented "buggy" C as a simple cap design.

On to the fourth of five within the USBL/Revolution/1776

The Delaware Colonial Blues:

I wanted to have a team that had more of a classic, older era vibe, and I thought the first state would fit nicely. Their name, "The Blues" is a reference to the state flag background color, which I didn't exactly use, ha. And of course the "Colonial" aspect fit nicely with Delaware being the first state. I imagine them having a bit of an arrogant fan base due to being "first". I envision a bit of a snooty, elitist fan-base that views themselves as superior whether they are winning or losing.

Team Badge:



That snobbish attitude is reflected in the "founders" label on their badge as well as their self-important stars and utilization of the year of their admission to the union, even though it's not theirs alone.

Jersey:



And a more classic alternate with only lettering:



Cap:



Simple C B

Last team in USBL/Revolution/1776 to wrap up the division is:

The Massachusetts Sorcerers

Like the Rhode Island Vampires, I pulled from the darker heritage of the state here. The Salem Witch Trials were too irresistible an inspiration to ignore for me. And, to be sure, women were NOT the only accused during this crazy time in the region.

Team Badge:



Just a simple sorcerer's cap. And the two word motto Diamond Wizards, while not using the state name or the official "Sorcerer's" moniker was a good fit for a baseball team. Wizards of the diamond is not an uncommon expression or idea and also a nice reference to Ozzie Smith, aka the "Wizard of Oz", although he was of course primarily known for being a Cardinal in the bigs. Also, I don't know what the "official" (lol) distinction is between a sorcerer and a wizard. Maybe Harry Potter does. Anyway, they seem pretty interchangeable to me.



The little decoration on the badge is meant to be some sort of open tome with magical essence seeping out if that is unclear.

Jersey:



A simple mysterious hooded sorcerer underneath the lettering.





So that wraps up the 1776...the first of 10 divisions:

These 5 will battle it out for the division title every season and, of course, there's a 5% chance that the single league wild card entry could come from this group:

Digging these names and logos.

Praying Mantis should be a real team's mascot, so cool.

Your take on Delaware is solid. I live only a few minutes from that state, and lots of people where I live work or shop there (no sales tax!). But it doesn't really have an identity, aside from Joe Biden, Dover AFB, a gay beach (Rehoboth) and pretzel salad (which is amazing but maybe not a Delaware creation.)

canedaddy wrote: ↑Mon Mar 17, 2025 11:24 am Digging these names and logos.

Praying Mantis should be a real team's mascot, so cool.

Your take on Delaware is solid. I live only a few minutes from that state, and lots of people where I live work or shop there (no sales tax!). But it doesn't really have an identity, aside from Joe Biden, Dover AFB, a gay beach (Rehoboth) and pretzel salad (which is amazing but maybe not a Delaware creation.)

The only thing I know about Delaware is that girl (Aubrey Plaza) from Parks and Recreation is from there. At least I think that's right. It does seem to be a bit of a nondescript state, lol. Well, now I've given it an identity...in my own head.

Before moving on, I realized that I haven't yet explained some of the aspects of the structure of this league. I think I already mentioned the fact that 6 of 25 in each league make the post-season. Each of the 5 division winners and a single wild card in both the Revolution and Liberty Bell will vye for post-season glory.

I'm also incorporating an annual tournament. It's a single elimination tournament before the beginning of spring training each year. Because it's single elimination, there have to be 14 byes in the first round. So the first round of *played* games will involve 36 teams, reduced to 18 + the 14 byes moving on to the second round to give an eventually reducible-to-2 32 teams from round 2 onward. The only exception to the single elimination aspect is the final, which is a mere best of 3. The 14 byes will go to the 12 playoff teams from last season, and in the only hint of mercy or grace in this meat grinder of a league, the bottom two teams in each league will get the other 2 byes. Even with a bye, you have to win 6 games - 4 consecutive and 2 of 3 in the final. So it's no easy road for a bad team, or any team. And without a bye, it's 7 wins needed. I wanted to add this exciting format as an extra bit of juice to jump-start the marathon of the season as well as giving teams that might not have a realistic chance at regular season glory a chance at a bite of the apple. Thankfully OOTP allows for the incorporation of custom tournaments you can add to your league, which is a really fun and appreciated feature.

There's also one other thing I'm doing that is outside the context of what the game allows. I'm making a spread-sheet for this, and will keep it updated on an ongoing basis. There's always debate about who the best team of all-time is, and I wanted to offer a means of calculating team success over the long term that could be reduced to a number. Granted, this would still be debated by the "fans" (myself, ha), but I liked the idea of this representation of long-term success. It works like this: All significant team successes are given a "star total" in the following manner:

Earn a wildcard spot - 5 stars
Win your division – 15 stars
Reach the LCS – 30 stars
Reach the championship series – 50 stars
Win the Title – 100 stars
Win the annual league tournament - 10 stars (I'm debating the weight of this one)

Teams would only get the highest level of stars for their success, not cumulative for each level reached. So the max for a team in any season is 100 stars, for example, well 110 if they did the double and won the tournament too. It's not cumulative within a season. But things are cumulative over the years. So a team that has won 2 titles (Which I call Victor's Crowns instead of World Series in this league) reached 5 championship series, won 7 divisions, 2 wild cards and 1 league tournament over the years would have a total of 575 stars over however many years these accomplishments took place. This would give a hard number to team glory, but would also be endlessly interesting as you might have another team that has more points but less Victor's Crowns, causing the fans to really go crazy in their debates and analysis. Yeah, I'm in too deep.

Anywho...

Now we're on to the next division. The Revolution : Sovereign

First team up in the Sovereign I'll cover will be :

The New York Rose

This particular name has a layered meaning. First, it's the state flower. Secondly the state motto of New York is "Excelsior" which can be translated to "ever upward". So it carries the connotation of this iconic city rising, or having *risen*...Indeed, New York *rose*! I liked this multifaceted meaning when I decided to use it. There's a certain fait accompli attitude that nicely suits New Yorkers and their (absurd) expectations. There's this "We are above all!" mentality that reflects the vibe I wanted to imbue with this franchise, and the coloring and potentially feminine nature of the flower symbol would pass in a city that can often view itself as progressive as well as "hard enough" to be strong even with such "soft" imagery.

Team badge:



The motto, flower and top of a skyscraper combine here to emphasize the idea.

Jersey:



Cap:

The next team in the Revolution Sovereign I'll cover is:

The Vermont Sugar Maples.

When I think of Vermont, I think of the incredible fall foliage. And fall is my favorite season, so that imagery is particularly powerful for me. And when thinking of those colors, I often think of Maple trees and then there's the fact that Vermont is the biggest producer of the syrup in the US, and boom there's the name.

I have forgotten to mention some of my head-cannon regarding these teams as I've shared. But with Vermont, you've got the obvious ideas of that, "When things are good, they sure are sweet!" and "Player x sure has a sweet swing." etc. My head cannon tends to grow and mushroom as time goes on, but suffice it to say that these teams are all expanding in their nature as I continue to invest in this league. I can imagine some sort of victory celebration where the team pours syrup over each other rather than champagne along with all manner of other nonsense. Building these different cultures in my mind is a huge part of my enjoyment of this whole league and process.

Team Badge:



Just wanted to capture that fall essence as best I could.

Jersey:



In the spirit of (minor league and general) playfulness, they wear the motto "Sugar Sweet" along with a colorful fall wreath.

Cap:



I wanted a syrup bottle as a part of the imagery, but it's not as easy to express as I had wanted, and so I played around with the idea for a while before I settled on a bottle with a maple leaf contained within to embody that idea.





I also forgot to mention that I roughly divided the leagues in East (Revolution) and West (Liberty Bell). Things aren't perfect, but with irregular boundaries and state sizes it was the best I could do. I also tried to keep every division full of natural geographic rivalries - to keep states together who were in close proximity and/or shared borders. And while things aren't perfect in some cases, I did the best I could to reflect those principles.