I completely agree that the USS Pennsylvania does not have an impressive record, there is barely a record of her at all. I also noticed you mentioned the Santissima Trinidad and Wiki and I would like to share a few things about the Santi. (I am in no way trying to compare the two ships just trying to explain why I think USS Penn would be a nice addition to a game) please forgive me if you are already familiar with this history.
"In 1797, she was the flagship of Teniente General José de Córdoba y Ramos, the Spanish commander, at Battle of Cape St Vincent on 14 February 1797, where she was badly damaged and nearly captured by the British fleet."
"The weight of the additional guns, so high above her waterline, made her sail poorly, leading to her nickname, El Ponderoso.[2] It was even suggested by some naval officers that she should be restricted to defending the Bay of Cádiz."
"Eight years later, commanded by Francisco Javier Uriarte and the flagship of Rear Admiral Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros, she took part in the Battle of Trafalgar on October 21, 1805, as part of the combined Franco-Spanish fleet. Due to her great bulk, her helm was unresponsive in the light winds on the day, contributing to her ineffective service in the combined fleet's cause. Her great size and position immediately ahead of the fleet flagship Bucentaure made her a target for the British fleet, and she came under concentrated attack by several ships. She lost her mast and eventually surrendered to the Neptune, a 98-gun second rate commanded by Captain Thomas Fremantle. She was taken in tow by the 98-gun second rate Prince,[4] but was eventually scuttled by her British captors northwest of Cádiz."
Although I admire the courage of the crew, respect them for their service and understand that she and her men took part in the most famous battle in naval history the Santi did not have a very impressive service record either. I think the only successful mission she had was capturing a few merchant ships and I'm not sure how much she was actually involved in those missions other than being an escort for smaller frigates, but that doesn't stop her from being one of the most beautiful, amazing and most respected ships in the age of sail and a nice entry into games like naval action. It is amazing how they can bring some of these old ships back to life.
As for the US not being a "dominate naval power"...They were everything they needed to be. Line ships were ready to go if needed, but there was never a time when they needed to use them before the innovations of steam power and ironclads. The US may have been a late bloomer in the age of sail, but took part none the less and established a formidable Navy.
