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Hookem2147

Hookem2147 21195

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, Js1 said:

Easy to say when you’re in the SEC. Almost a guaranteed bid 

Vandy, LSU, South Carolina, Bama and Florida are went 13-17. No shot all 5 should be in. I understand the SEC is a tough league but 4 games below .500 isn’t tournament worthy.

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Js1

Js1 85276

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Posted
2 minutes ago, Hookem2147 said:

Vandy, LSU, South Carolina, Bama and Florida are went 13-17. No shot all 5 should be in. I understand the SEC is a tough league but 4 games below .500 isn’t tournament worthy.

Bahahahah. A 10-14 SEC Alabama got selected to host a regional in softball. All 13 teams made it, including 7-17 Ole Miss 

SEC bias is real

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Hookem2147

Hookem2147 21195

Posted
Posted
8 minutes ago, Js1 said:

Bahahahah. A 10-14 SEC Alabama got selected to host a regional in softball. All 13 teams made it, including 7-17 Ole Miss 

SEC bias is real

Oh I know. And Jay Johnson is going to bully his way into the field even if they lose in the first round in Hoover.

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shadow_operative2.0

shadow_operative2.0 15948

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Quote

Alabama college baseball team playing for school that’s closing

Division III college baseball might not be on your radar, but this story should be. Over the weekend, the Birmingham-Southern (AL) Panthers defeated the Transylvania (no really) University (KY) Pioneers 5-2. With the win, they advanced to the DIII Super Regionals.

Why is that important enough to include in this newsletter? Because Birmingham-Southern College is closing its doors for good on May 31 due to a lack of funding.

If the Panthers can advance past the Super Regionals (May 24-25) and into the Championship Finals (May 31-June 7), they will be representing a school that no longer exists.

Wait, it gets wilder.

Remember 2016, when White Sox first baseman Adam LaRoche retired suddenly? Here’s the story from way back in Year 1 of The Athletic.

Baseball insider Ken Rosenthal tweeted that his source told him White Sox vice president Kenny Williams asked LaRoche to stop bringing his son around and that seemed to have spurred the retirement.

(No word on if this was the scoop that led us to hire Ken a year later.)

Adam’s son Drake was 14 at the time. Want to guess what he’s up to right now?

He’s 7-3 with a 3.48 ERA, pitching for the Birmingham-Southern Panthers.

The school has a pretty rich baseball tradition for a DIII school — 33 of their players have been drafted, including two big leaguers: RHP Connor Robertson (A’s, D-Backs) and C Bruce Maxwell (A’s).

Now, the 30-14 Panthers — led by the kid who was the talk of baseball when he was 14 — are trying to win the DIII championship before their school closes forever. They’ll play a best-of-three against Denison University (OH) over the weekend. We’ll let you know if they advance. 

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Helobious

Helobious 9450

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10 minutes ago, chase25 said:

Florida is 6 outs away from going from being in the national title game last year to missing the tournament completely 

It’s apparent that having the best player in the sport is worthless. See Angels with Ohtani and Florida with Jac Cags

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oSuJeff97

oSuJeff97 3435

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11 minutes ago, SameSame said:

Every conference has nice outdoor size appropriate stadiums in good settings for their tournament except for the Big XII.  

We have plenty of good options available (Frisco, OKC, Tulsa) but we choose to play in a soulless MLB dome for…reasons…?

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UTexasFight

UTexasFight 9429

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8 minutes ago, oSuJeff97 said:

We have plenty of good options available (Frisco, OKC, Tulsa) but we choose to play in a soulless MLB dome for…reasons…?

It sure was nice for us Texas fans to play through the downpour yesterday and put us out of our misery rather than having to sit through a long rain delay first.

 

 

and let’s be real. Every conference in this country would pick a domed, climate-controlled stadium if one was available in a geographically appropriate area for their conference 

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'stache

'stache 21797

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Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, oSuJeff97 said:

We have plenty of good options available (Frisco, OKC, Tulsa) but we choose to play in a soulless MLB dome for…reasons…?

OKC and the Tulsa year rained out a bunch. May is just nonstop rain in Oklahoma and Texas. I don't like the size of the stadium and the lack of fans and I seriously hate the echo of the metal bat clink, but at least it gets played and completed on time. Well, this year every game still seems delayed, OSU finished past midnight, but not because of weather. If that storm had been a factor, we'd still be playing day 2 games probably. 

Edited by 'stache
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Hookem2147

Hookem2147 21195

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ECU flirted with disaster against Rice on Tuesday for about 7 innings and got their teeth kicked in today by Wichita State. If anyone else wins the AAC tournament, it would be a bid-stealer.

ECU may also be sweating a hosting spot now. 

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petscii

petscii 1189

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Just now, Hookem2147 said:

ECU flirted with disaster against Rice on Tuesday for about 7 innings and got their teeth kicked in today by Wichita State. If anyone else wins the AAC tournament, it would be a bid-stealer.

ECU may also be sweating a hosting spot now. 

If you want DP gone you should be rooting for as many of these as possible (GO STANFORD/CAL)

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oSuJeff97

oSuJeff97 3435

Posted
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1 hour ago, 'stache said:

OKC and the Tulsa year rained out a bunch. May is just nonstop rain in Oklahoma and Texas. I don't like the size of the stadium and the lack of fans and I seriously hate the echo of the metal bat clink, but at least it gets played and completed on time. Well, this year every game still seems delayed, OSU finished past midnight, but not because of weather. If that storm had been a factor, we'd still be playing day 2 games probably. 

I mean... I feel like it rains plenty in Alabama, too, but they somehow play outdoors there.  The Big 8/12 tournament was in OKC for decades and they always managed to get the games in.

I just dislike indoor baseball in general, and in particular playing the Big 12 in Globe Life just sucks all of the fun atmosphere of the tournament you get being outdoors in a smaller stadium completely away. 

I'd trade the much better atmosphere and playing outside for the possibility of a few rain delays in a heartbeat.

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Beau Vine

Beau Vine 54207

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How the ASUN Tournament started:

Quote

DELAND — Jeff Altier knows it’s unique. He understands it takes a minute to digest.

“It's kind of like the Stetson logo,” the Hatters’ outgoing athletic director said. “Until you see the hat in the S, it looks dumb. Then, all of the sudden, you see the hat and go, 'Man, that's a really cool logo!' It's the same thing here. Until you see how it can be used to your advantage, it's a dumb idea. Then, once you see it, you go, ‘Oh my gosh, this really is simple.’”

He was talking about the ASUN Conference baseball tournament format, a brainchild of Altier and Stetson coach Steve Trimper. This is the third year it’s been in place, with one tweak for this spring.


No other Division I league uses it.

“Once you understand it and understand why the tournament is set up the way it is, it's really interesting,” Jacksonville coach Chris Hayes said. “I think it's something that brings a lot of value, especially to a mid-major conference that is trying to maintain national relevance.”

The ASUN Tournament setup

The ASUN Tournament used to feature a double-elimination format — commonplace across the country.

But often, teams earn seeds based on regular-season conference records. Not in the ASUN. Not anymore.

Instead, teams are split into two groups of four teams. Pool A includes the top four teams, Pool B features squads 5-8. The regular-season champion locks up the top seed, yes, but the rest are slotted by Rating Percentage Index (RPI), a formula used by the NCAA that ranks programs and heavily considers strength of schedule.


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RPI seeding can lend itself to some oddities. 

For example, Stetson and Florida Gulf Coast each finished above Kennesaw State in this season’s conference standings. The Owls notched a better RPI, though, clinching the No. 2 seed behind regular-season champ Austin Peay.

Stetson occupies the third seed. The Eagles are fourth.


The two pools go through different setups for the first four days of the tournament. Starting Tuesday and ending Friday, Pool A competes in a round robin. Each team will play three times.

In Pool B, the four teams battle in a double-elimination bracket.

After Friday’s results, the top three teams from Pool A and top team from Pool B advance to Saturday’s semifinals. The winners of those two games will meet in the finals Sunday.

“The feedback is typically, ‘That's brilliant,’” Altier said. “We're really just playing by the rules that are there and maximizing the benefit for our league with the rules that exist.”

Why is it smart? 

By pitting the best squads against each other at a neutral site, those teams gain RPI points, which can only help when it comes to selection into the 64-team NCAA Tournament.

“In this format at least, you can track the RPI of the whole top four and see what happens to them throughout this tournament,” Altier said. “I'm pretty confident not a single one will go down. Every one of them will improve slightly.”

As of Tuesday, Kennesaw State’s RPI was 92nd, Stetson’s was 110th, Florida Gulf Coast’s was 128th and Austin Peay’s was 146th.

As the No. 2 seed, Kennesaw State's first opponent would have been No. 7 Lipscomb, with an RPI of 221, under the old format. Instead, the Owls opposed and beat Stetson Tuesday.


Altier was a member of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee and served a stint as chair. He learned what the committee values and the importance of RPI in determining who receives the 34 at-large bids into the tourney.

Then, he brought that expertise back to the ASUN. He noticed Stetson’s RPI began the conference tournament at one number. Then, over the course of a few days, it plunged.

“In fact, we looked at it,” Altier said. “Everybody in our conference's RPI drops during the tournament.”

The reason? The format.

If the No. 1 seed played No. 8, which would hold a poor RPI, the top seed’s RPI suffered even if it won. Same thing with No. 2 vs. No. 7 and No. 3 vs. No. 6.

So, while that style of bracket helped the top seeds advance more easily in the tournament because they weren’t challenged as much during the early rounds, it hurt the higher seeds’ chances at securing an at-large bid if it did not win the ASUN title and grab that automatic bid.

And realistically, the first four seeds in the ASUN tournament are the only schools that hold hope of securing an at-large berth. The RPIs for seeds 5-8, aka Pool B, are just too low, so it doesn't matter that their numbers will dip by playing each other. It is impossible ground to make up.

 


Altier and Co. thought about trimming the ASUN bracket to only the best four teams. But he said that didn’t feel right.

This format sprouted from that. Even though their RPIs are too low for an at-large bid, the bottom four seeds still have an opportunity for a Cinderella run through the conference tournament and an auto bid to the NCAAs because they’re guaranteed one spot in the semifinals.

First, the ASUN coaches had to vote on it. They endorsed it.

Then, the coaches’ recommendation traveled to the league’s administrators. It required some discussion and politicking. Not everyone shared the vision right away. But it eventually passed.

“The better teams obviously want this because it is most advantageous to the better teams,” Altier said. “The teams that are not good, this disadvantages them, and that's intentional. We're not holding any punches or trying to mislead anybody.”

The remedy for the bad teams? Get better. 

The benefits outweighed the shackles of tradition.

 
“There was about six of us that got together and said, ‘Hey, this is what's best for the league,’” Florida Gulf Coast coach Dave Tollett said. “It's not just best for FGC. It's best for the league because the more teams we can get in, the better it is for our league.”

The format not only eliminates the RPI decrease, but from an administrative standpoint, Altier said it also is easier to organize. The game schedule is more predictable. 

In the A Bracket, the matchups are predetermined rather than dependent upon the results of the other contests. The players and coaches take solace in that, as well. There are no surprises during the first four days.

How it's going:

Chef's kiss:

 

Edited by Beau Vine
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chase25

chase25 2048

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Posted

USC up 3-0 on Arizona in the 5th of the PAC 12 championship. Which would be a stolen bid.

USC looking for their second tournament appearance since 2005 and first since 2015. I know it’s not breaking news but it’s amazing the cliff dive that program took

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BachelorTrek

BachelorTrek 2966

Posted
Posted
48 minutes ago, chase25 said:

USC up 3-0 on Arizona in the 5th of the PAC 12 championship. Which would be a stolen bid.

USC looking for their second tournament appearance since 2005 and first since 2015. I know it’s not breaking news but it’s amazing the cliff dive that program took

The socals are the only baseball program that has more national titles than Texas.

Even more reason to hate them.

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shadow_operative2.0

shadow_operative2.0 15948

Posted
Posted

Well... 

Quote

Here are the DI college baseball programs with the most Men's College World Series titles:

  • USC has won 12 Men's College World Series championships
  • LSU is alone in second with seven after winning the title in 2023
  • Texas follows with six
  • Arizona State has won five
  • Arizona, Cal State Fullerton, Miami and tied with four
  • Minnesota and Oregon State have each won three
  • Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Stanford, Oklahoma, Michigan and California have each won two

https://www.ncaa.com/news/baseball/article/2024-02-14/programs-most-mens-college-world-series-titles

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Hookem2147

Hookem2147 21195

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Arizona walks it off against USC. LA Tech also beats Liberty twice today to advance to the CUSA final against DBU so won’t be a stolen bid there.

Considering how weak the bubble is this year and the lack of stolen bids so far, might be a pretty anticlimactic selection Monday.

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Hookem2147

Hookem2147 21195

Posted
Posted (edited)
10 hours ago, Kyrie Eleison said:

show me how he’s wrong.   show me a team who’s hotter than us right now   

 

Yes, LSU has looked much better the last 10-12 games. The season is also longer than 2-3 weeks. The 17 SEC losses and loss to a SWAC school still happened.

A top 10-15 team in the country is hosting a regional next weekend. When your coach declares it is not even debatable you are a top 10-15 team, that is a dumb comment considering the circumstances. This is in addition to his comment a few weeks earlier when they were 7-14 declaring they would be in first place in any other conference besides the SEC.

Edited by Hookem2147
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NeverMarryAStripper

NeverMarryAStripper 21874

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Posted
10 hours ago, BachelorTrek said:

Oh great! That's even worse to realize that LSU passed us while we're fucking around with a Tulane coach who's in over his head. FFS

Yes let’s take couching advice from someone who follows the program so closely that they had to be told this 

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