[2] Unlike more simulation-focused competitors, most notably Strat-o-Matic Baseball, ASB is aimed at a younger audience and is simpler to play.
[citation needed] The game board for ASB has two spinners on top of a diagram of a baseball field.
The earliest versions of ASB utilized this list: Later versions featured a simpler chart, augmented by second spins on the fielding player's side (presumably to give that player more to do), with only the "3" section fundamentally changed: For the 1975 release, the batting chart was reduced to the eight possible results: All other rules of the game match those of regular baseball.
As more athletes (and their estates) asserted licensing rights over the use of their names the old-time players were dropped from the game, although a handful of individuals were included occasionally in an annual set.
Each of the then current players were asked to sign off on a release form granting permission to include their batting statistics in the game.
Since the change in its business model to absorb the MLBPA royalties Cadaco has stopped issuing regular annual updates to the game, and its publishing future remains unclear.
As part of the special 2003 commemorative version, Cadaco also issued separate individually packaged sets of player cards for an All-Star Player Pack, the 2003 Ultimate Series (New York Yankees vs. Florida Marlins) and the 2003 Fantasy Series (Boston Red Sox vs. Chicago Cubs).
There is a significant collectors market for older cards, which are broken down into several eras (all years are approximate) as printing technology evolved: The published 1941 game was considered only a first draft.