SunBelt #4 Conference Ranking

[Turbine]

SunBelt is a top 4 baseball RPI conference as of today. Highest ever.

SBC was 5th overall last year at end of year.

[lcitsh]

Incorrect.

[BeauCajun]

Have dropped to 6th on Warren Nolan after the weekend. Cajuns at 62.

[HelmutVII]

Let's see how that translates to post season seedings

[Policarp]

Also the Conference is 1 bad mid week from 9th place. Belt teams need to dominate mid week OOC games the rest of season

[UL_Cajuns]

5th place this morning.

[CajunRed]

Also the Conference is 1 bad mid week from 9th place. Belt teams need to dominate mid week OOC games the rest of season

You could say that about several coferences.

[cajundiehard]

Also the Conference is 1 bad mid week from 9th place. Belt teams need to dominate mid week OOC games the rest of season

Definitely. It's super tight from 4-9.

[GoneGolfin]

Definitely. It's super tight from 4-9.

Actually, it is super tight between 4th and 7th. There is a bit of a gap to 8th and 9th.

When it is this tight ... you can play well midweek and still have your conference RPI (and Ranking) negatively affected by the play of Sun Belt opponents that week. And vice-versa.



Brian

[CajunAmos]

Actually, it is super tight between 4th and 7th. There is a bit of a gap to 8th and 9th.

When it is this tight ... you can play well midweek and still have your conference RPI (and Ranking) negatively affected by the play of Sun Belt opponents that week. And vice-versa.



Brian

Brian, what do you think about D1 Softball's new DSR ranking system?

[GoneGolfin]

Brian, what do you think about D1 Softball's new DSR ranking system?

I do not have a strong opinion regarding DSR yet ... as they have offered very little information about it. Not nearly enough to open it up to proper statistical testing and scrutiny. The only thing you can really do is assess/back test final results (which is not perfect either, since postseason play is non-neutral until you get the the CWS/WCWS ... but a start). I think for it to get any serious consideration, the developers will need to open it up for analysis.

I am also skeptical of a few things it claims to attempt to address. One is that it claims to address the heavy weight placed on SOS that provides an unfair advantage to schools from major conferences (which is certainly the case with the RPI ... and has only been partially addressed in the past). Thus far, I am not seeing evidence that DSR does anything in this regard.

Having the value of a win or loss being fixed sounds great ... but how is that value accurately determined early in the season when data is sparse? Another example of the system needing to be explained in depth. What is being sacrificed to achieve the above goal?

Detailed analysis would need to be done on Win Quality and Win Expectancy.

I am not a fan of Margin of Victory as a model feature. I think that pitching (and how a coach manages the pitching staff with the goal of winning ... not winning by as many runs as possible) plays too important a role in softball ... and especially baseball to make this a useful feature. I think it would also have unintended consequences and influence decisions to the detriment of the game. The presence of the run rule also pollutes such a feature.

I really wonder whether the features of their model have been back tested against real results. If so, publish the results. For now, if it is just entertainment ... it is what it is. But if there is ever a push for real use and adoption, it needs to be examined closely and tested rigorously.

Brian