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APBA Games

For 60 years APBA has been the unchallenged King of quality sports simulation products. APBA dates back to the 1930s and a bunch of high-school buddies in Lancaster, PA. The boys played a baseball simulation game invented by one of them, Dick Seitz. His game was loosely based on an old tabletop baseball game called National Pastime. But unlike any previous board game, it combined the randomness of dice with the on-field performances of individual players. The boys called themselves the American Professional Baseball Association. That appellation soon was whittled down to its essential form: APBA. So while APBA is still an acronym for that first baseball simulation league, the word has taken on a meaning of its own. The game is APBA, and the word is pronounced “App’Bah” – a term as slick and condensed as the game. Seitz’s original game went with him to war in the 1940’s. He printed player cards on his own printing press, typed out play charts and played APBA with three comrades in the barracks at Fort Eustis, VA. After the war, Seitz worked as secretary to Lancaster’s mayor and a purchaser for a trucking company, all the while refining APBA and playing the game with a league of friends. The plot twist that took APBA from a handmade diversion to a nationwide phenomenon comes courtesy of the 1950 Philadelphia Phillies. The Whiz Kids captured the fancy of Seitz and his wife, Jean, and got them so baseball crazy that they resurrected the game. It played so smoothly that in 1951, Seitz decided to share his creation. The original game offered 20 player cards for each of the 16 major league teams and two play charts. The whole shebang set you back $10. The 150 games sold encouraged Seitz that there was a market for his game so he produced new versions annually from 1952-56. That steady increase in sales encouraged Seitz to quit his job in 1957 to make APBA a career. Year by year, APBA’s fan base grew. As more gamers played exponentially more games, innovations like dual pitcher ratings and double hitting columns were incorporated – but innovations were allowed only to a point. APBA has always trod a fine line between realism and playability, and Seitz stood resolute against wrinkles or gimmicks that would add a smidgen of realism to the game at a cost of five minutes more per played game. As a result, the APBA baseball game played today is not much different than the 1957 version – one played millions of times by players worldwide. APBA changes with the times not only by changing, but by the rolls of the dice.

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Volume 14, #12 "Replays Showcase APBA Accuracy, Research for Realism, Return of The APBA Scene"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

July 1981

Volume 14, #2 "Shortstop Ratings for APBA Managers, Linn on Leagues, APBAlone"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

September 1980

Volume 14, #3 "Historic Baseball Competition, APBA Football Card Record Book, Q&A"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

October 1980

Volume 14, #4 "Guessing Fielding Ratings for New Bosox, The Master Game, Pitcher's Control Ratings Revisited"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

November 1980

Volume 14, #5 "APBA Tourneys Held in New Hampshire, New Products From APBA, Pitcher Grading System"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

December 1980

Volume 14, #6 "1980 Batting Predictions, The Great Annual Expectation, Instant Pennant Races Spice Replays"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

January 1981

Volume 14, #7 "A Peak at the Pitching, Rating the Thirdbasemen, Colleges and APBA Football"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

February 1981

Volume 14, #8 "Outstanding Prospects Among New Rookies, Realistic Passing Receptions, The Baseball Analyst"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

March 1981

Volume 14, #9 "Hitters and Runners Prolific in 1980, Player Restrictions Revisited, Everybody Loves A Loser"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

April 1981

Volume 15, #1 "Have They Spoiled the Fun in Eighty-One?, Impact of Strike on '81 Cards, The APBA Scene"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

August 1981

Volume 15, #10 "Golden Age, Bargain Basement Browsing, Master Gaming With the Stars"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

May 1982

Volume 15, #11 "The Future of APBA's Offerings, 19-Inning Finale in the New England Tourney, Linn on Leagues"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

June 1982

Volume 15, #12 "Reliving That First Baseball Game, Gameco - Where to Go from Here, 1922 Transactions"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

July 1982

Volume 15, #2 "1908 - The Wild One, Great Team of the APBA Era, Linn on Leagues"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

September 1981

Volume 15, #3 "Pre-1900 Seasons Error-Plagued"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

October 1981

Volume 15, #4 "APBA Displayed at Smithsonian, One Man's League, The Baseball Analyst"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

November 1981

Volume 15, #5 "Great Team of the APBA Era, Original Franchise All-Stars, The Baseball Analyst"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

December 1981

Volume 15, #6 "1930 - Pitchers Beware, Moore Wins Contest, Football Q&A"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

January 1982

(cover notated)

Volume 15, #7 "How to Hit .438, Indexing the Offenses, When Marv Really Was Marvelous"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

February 1982

Volume 15, #8 "Valenzuela Head Rookie Crop, Probing Injury Frequencies, Fake Kicks and a Pisarcik Memorial"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

March 1982

Volume 16, #1 "Expanding the Baseball product Line, Quarterback Scrambling, Linn on Leagues"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

August 1982

Volume 16, #10 "APBA Unveils Revamped Football Game, Saving Some Second Column Rolls, The Baseball Analyst"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

May 1983

Volume 16, #11 "A Special Peek at the New Football Game, A Half-Season of OFAS, Linn on Leagues"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

June 1983

Volume 16, #12 "Trading the OFAS, 1941 - APBA's Unloved Season, Linn on Leagues"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

July 1983

Volume 16, #2 "AF Quarterback Injuries, Cook Wins New Hampshire Meet, The Joy of APBA"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

September 1982

Volume 16, #3 "Pitcher's Control Ratings, General Shomo, The APBA Scene"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

October 1982

Volume 16, #4 "General Shomo, Grading the Pitches, Pitching Passes"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

November 1982

Volume 16, #6 "1982 Baseball Card Predictions, Inventor's Forum, Kwit's Korner"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

January 1983

Volume 16, #7 "Contest Results, Football Forum, Best Entries"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

February 1983

Volume 16, #8 "Fly-Chasers Highlight New Rookie Crop, 1932 - Balance vs. Bombers, Football Forum"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

March 1983

(cover notated)

Volume 16, #9 "Analysis of New Baseball Set, 83's Undervalued Young Talent, Optimal Line-Ups for the OFAS"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

April 1983

Volume 17, #1 "The APBA Scene, Fans Directory, Baseball Analyst"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

August 1983

Volume 17, #2 "The APBA Foreign legion, Advancing the Basic Game, Kwit's Korner"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

September 1983

Volume 17, #3 "16 Years of APBA Golf, The OFAS Red Sox, 7th Annual APBA Baseball Tournament"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

October 1983

Volume 17, #4 "Whose on First?, APBAlone, 1983 Final Unofficial Statistics"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

November 1983

Volume 17, #5 "1983 Card Set Predictions, History's Biggest Losers, Twenty-Five Rounds of APBA Golf"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

December 1983

Volume 17, #6 "Wallace Wins Tough Test, 1901 - The Modern Era Begins, Drafting Strategies"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

January 1984

Volume 17, #7 "Scouting the New Rookie Crop, Shomo's Letter to AJ, Notice to Leaguers"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

February 1984

Volume 18, #10 "Aerial Display, Football Cards Coming, Review of the 1984 Cards"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

May 1985

Volume 18, #11 "Computer Game A Hit at "21 Club", Game Boards Revisited, Additional APBA Baseball League Champions"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

June 1985

Volume 18, #12 "Statistical Trends Developing in 1985, Revisited - Hitting, Meandering Comments on League News Coverage"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

July 1985

Volume 18, #3 "APBA Fans Predict 1984 Fielding Ratings, Oh Those Aggravations, LTBL Means Real APBA Pleasure"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

October 1984

Volume 18, #6 "Baseball Rookies, AJ Scouting Report, 9th APBA Tournament"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

January 1985

Volume 18, #7 "Move Over Colts, Here Comes the ASBL, APBA Finalizing Computer Product"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

February 1985

Volume 18, #8 "Previewing the New Computer Game, AJ Opinion Page, Home Field Disadvantage"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

March 1985

Volume 18, #9 "New Baseball Card Set Analysis, Some Undervalued Young Talent for 1985, League Champions"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

April 1985

Volume 19, #1 "APBA Celebrates 35th Anniversary, Thinking the Unthinkable, The 1985 Baeball Strike and APBA"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

August 1985

Volume 19, #10 "Researching the Catchers, Large Response for '57 Co-op Replay, Turn Back the Clock"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

May 1986

Volume 19, #11 "Defense!, An Analysis of the 1986 Football Card Set, Ahlskog Assumes Control"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

September 1986

Volume 19, #12 "AJ Readers Stretch From Sea to Shining Sea, A Few More Words About Journal Consent, Odds and Ends"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

October 1986

Volume 19, #13 "Annual Baseball Fielding Survey, American League, 1986 Final Unofficial Statistics"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

November 1986

Volume 19, #2 "New Card Sets Review Issue, The Year of the 5, An Analysis of 1985 Football Card Set"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

September 1985

Volume 19, #3 "APBA Showcased in St. Louis Series of Champions, Playing the St. Louis Tournament, Replaying A Personal Memory"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

October 1985

Volume 19, #4 "Rating the Gloves, Playing With the 1984 Football Set, AJ League Match"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

November 1985

Volume 19, #5 "New Presents Under APBA's Tree, Jackie Enters, The Dodgers Leave"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

December 1985

Volume 19, #7 "Rating the Newly Carded Baseball Rookies, Three Way Tie for First in Pitching Contest, Organizing A Co-Op Replay"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

February 1986

Volume 19, #9 "Reviewing the 1986 Baseball Card Set, APBA's 9 Best Hitters Cards Ever, Updating the Co-op '57 Replay"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

April 1986

Volume 20, #1 "New Presents for APBA Fans, New York, Two More Old Seasons"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

December 1986

Volume 20, #2 "Previewing the New Baseball Cards, Five Tie for First Place, From the Front Row"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

January 1987

Volume 20, #3 "APBA's Newly Carded NL Rookies, APBA Managers Outmanage Davenport, Computer Corner"

By: APBA Games

Product Line: APBA Journal

February 1987

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