Welcome Note from Richard Bergstrom
Hello everyone! I am excited to join the Society for Baseball Research (SABR) Games and Simulations Committee as their new co-chair with Joe Runde. I’ve been a lifelong fan of baseball and games in general, getting my start on my dad’s Apple IIe back in the mid-80s. Though I was just in grade school, I played spreadsheet baseball before I was aware there was even a term for it! Literally, I’d draft up leagues in APBA, try my juvenile best to come up with fair trades and track each player’s stats after each simulated game. I also loved the historical players in an old computer game called Microleague. I also played fantasy baseball at a young age, the highlight of that was turning down a trade in Bill James Fantasy Baseball League from Bill James himself. What can I say, I liked Dave Hollins more than Paul Sorrento.
Eventually I moved on through other games, having particular affection for MLB Showdown, Baseball Stars, Baseball Simulator 1.000 and of course Strat-o-Matic. Currently in my rotation are Out of The Park Baseball, which I have played for about a decade, Baseball 2025, and MLB The Show 18. Last summer I learned Paul Sporer from FanGraphs had a Twitch stream so decided to watch. I was fascinated and pleased that they reproduced old baseball cards in the game. Thus, I bought a PS4, the first console I’ve had since the Super Nintendo. Of course I’m older now and don’t have all day and night to play video games as much as I used to, but I still sneak out a few hours every now and then.
I also sneak out of my work life to write about baseball. And that is this purpose of this blog, to write about baseball games. Whether it’s tabletop, computer or fantasy, I enjoy baseball and gaming in general. So, the intent of this corner of the internet is to provide a place for people to read about baseball games and share their experiences. When I found out there was a SABR committee already involved in discussing games, I was eager to sign up and help out. Hopefully we can provide an avenue for you, whether it is to reminisce on the games of the past, or watch some of the exciting gaming taking place on Twitch. By all means, if you’d like to write about your favorite game or your gaming experience, please let us know!
So, get your styluses and your scorecards ready. Let’s play!
Originally from Chicago and after an extensive tour of most of the western United States, Richard has resided in Denver since 2004. He attends quite a few Rockies games, especially Rockies fireworks games! When not writing about baseball, he enjoys karaoke downtown, a bit of poker, and a bit too much of his iPad. His writing has appeared on ESPN.com, The Hardball Times, and Beyond the Box Score. He has also covered the Rockies as a credentialed writer as the founder of Rockies Zingers and as a writer for SBNation’s Purple Row.
