SBC changing baseball tourney format for 2011

[Rebel02]

Two 4 team pools, each team guaranteed 3 games. Winners of both pools play in championship game.

SBC tourney changes

[GoneGolfin]

_ Two 4 team pools, each team guaranteed 3 games. Winners of both pools play in championship game.

SBC tourney changes _

While closer to the ACC Tournament format, this is also similar to the Big XII Tournament format ... except that the Big XII plays four games on Wednesday/Saturday and two games on Thursday/Friday.

This new tournament format places a certain premium on conference finish (tournament seeding) as the three-way tiebreaker comes into play more often than you would think (a situation where transitivity does not yield a winner ... A beats B, B beats C, C beats A, with all three tied at 2-1). Meanwhile, getting to the tournament championship game usually seals the deal for teams that are at-large prospects (as is often the case with UL). Also, going 2-1 and not making it to the championship game is certainly not the death knell for an at-large bubble team (only one conference tournament loss being the key).

I think this tournament format also helps teams that are bubble-in with respect to an at-large bid. It is not hard to go 0-2 in a conference tournament, especially with winning the tournament being the only way in for most of the other teams. Winning that third game (and going 1-2) looks so much better than 0-2 and may be just enough to keep the bubble-in team in the field.

Also, this format should yield less pitcher wear. But you will undoubtedly see the ace throwing on Wednesday also throwing in the Sunday championship (unless that team is secure with an NCAA bid and needs that pitcher for the subsequent Friday NCAA opener).

Finally, this type of format is a bit more fan friendly w/respect to scheduling.

Brian

[cajunhawk]

_ While closer to the ACC Tournament format, this is also similar to the Big XII Tournament format ... except that the Big XII plays four games on Wednesday/Saturday and two games on Thursday/Friday.

This new tournament format places a certain premium on conference finish (tournament seeding) as the three-way tiebreaker comes into play more often than you would think (a situation where transitivity does not yield a winner ... A beats B, B beats C, C beats A, with all three tied at 2-1). Meanwhile, getting to the tournament championship game usually seals the deal for teams that are at-large prospects (as is often the case with UL). Also, going 2-1 and not making it to the championship game is certainly not the death knell for an at-large bubble team (only one conference tournament loss being the key).

I think this tournament format also helps teams that are bubble-in with respect to an at-large bid. It is not hard to go 0-2 in a conference tournament, especially with winning the tournament being the only way in for most of the other teams. Winning that third game (and going 1-2) looks so much better than 0-2 and may be just enough to keep the bubble-in team in the field.

Also, this format should yield less pitcher wear. But you will undoubtedly see the ace throwing on Wednesday also throwing in the Sunday championship (unless that team is secure with an NCAA bid and needs that pitcher for the subsequent Friday NCAA opener).

Finally, this type of format is a bit more fan friendly w/respect to scheduling.

Brian _

Brian.....do you have a top 25 going into the season?

[NOCajun]

_ Brian.....do you have a top 25 going into the season? _

Don't know about Brian, but Collegiate Baseball does...

http://collegiatebaseball.com/polls/...ntpolldivI.htm

FAU is #36 (I think), and UL, WK, and FIU are getting votes.

[BirdofParadise]

_ Don't know about Brian, but Collegiate Baseball does...

http://collegiatebaseball.com/polls/...ntpolldivI.htm

FAU is #36 (I think), and UL, WK, and FIU are getting votes. _

This league is going to be a war each and every week.

FAU should be the favorite. They return their Friday night guy, their two best bullpen arms and eight of their nine offensive starters.

FIU can really hit. If Turtle recruited some pitching they could be really good.

WKU had some youth last year. Ridings, of course, is gone. They may move Rye Davis into the weekend rotation. Their position players are solid.

Middle will be good again. They, too, can hit. they've lost some arms, though.

Troy will be better than they were last year.

Arky State is getting better in a hurry with Raffo at the helm.

South Alabama wants to send Steve Kittrell out a winner. Mark Calvi is the coach in waiting. He was the pitching coach for National Champ South Carolina, so USA will be better on the mound than they have been.

Better strap it on every weekend in this league this year.