Conf Champ or Tournament?

14Red

14Red

Well-known member
So I'd guess this issue comes up at times for HS baseball coaches. It's the only sport that I can think of that you don't end the regular season, then start the tournament. So you may have situations come up that you're starting the tournament, AND you have a couple of conference games left. So you're the coach and the team has the conference clinching or tying game next week, and the start of the tournament. Do you start your #1 in the conference game to give yourself the best chance to win the conference, or do you hold them out for the first game of the tournament? There may not be a right or wrong answer here.
 
 
14Red said:
So I'd guess this issue comes up at times for HS baseball coaches. It's the only sport that I can think of that you don't end the regular season, then start the tournament. So you may have situations come up that you're starting the tournament, AND you have a couple of conference games left. So you're the coach and the team has the conference clinching or tying game next week, and the start of the tournament. Do you start your #1 in the conference game to give yourself the best chance to win the conference, or do you hold them out for the first game of the tournament? There may not be a right or wrong answer here.
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It depends on the state of your program, really. If you are constantly in contention to in the state champion ship, then obviously you pour your efforts in to that end. But if that is not the case, end the season on a good note with a conference title.
 
…if it’s the following conditions?

n = 8 teams; league is double round-robin

Team A [POV, e.g. you] 12-1 in league play vs Team C10-3 (or worse) in league play

— — —
Team B 12-2 in league play

— — —

If you’re team A, you don’t throw the ace. Just follow the logic path.

The lone league game that is hanging around the time of sectionals, due to constant postponements, if you’re team A it’s a by far higher probability you’re facing 1) a team who cannot attain a share of the league title (6/7 chance the opponent is eliminated from league contention by then) and 2) a league opponent whose tournament pathway is going to require them to hold back their best arm for tourney play.

The trade-off is better for team A to pitch ‘down’ in the league game. Team A is presumed to be a higher seed in the sectional -> district tournament. They’re best served saving arms 1 and 2 for their first round game.
 
also I’m not entirely sure of any realistic situation where a team has more than one league game outstanding by the time the tournament starts. It’s a common practice for leagues to dictate that non-league games get kicked to accommodate league rainouts.
 
The Dock said:
also I’m not entirely sure of any realistic situation where a team has more than one league game outstanding by the time the tournament starts. It’s a common practice for leagues to dictate that non-league games get kicked to accommodate league rainouts.
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I can tell you in SW/parts of C and NW there are many league games still needing made up once the tourney starts. In fact, there is one scheduled for Monday the 20th that will decide a league champion.

I grew up in NE district and we had a half dozen league games once the tourney started every year due to weather.
 
umpire16 said:
I can tell you in SW/parts of C and NW there are many league games still needing made up once the tourney starts. In fact, there is one scheduled for Monday the 20th that will decide a league champion.

I grew up in NE district and we had a half dozen league games once the tourney started every year due to weather.
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just bonkers that this is even a thing where teams have two or more league games rescheduled for after the first tournament date. like, this doesn’t even have to happen lol
 
there are a few leagues in SWO still up for grabs.

ECC Loveland 13-4 Kings 13-5 (loveland has a rainout w/Anderson to make up)

CHL Indian Hill (12-0) Wyoming (11-1) they havent played one another yet. rained out yesterday. Essentially only need to play 1 if IH wins its theirs.

GCL co-ed CJ 8-1 Badin 7-2 Both have 1 game left.
 
Always wondered this when it came this time of year regarding the Toledo City League. Back when Start was a state power and the private schools were in the league I always wondered what the thought process was for a team like Start. The TCAL did a 4 team playoff? series? that began essentially right as the state tournament was beginning and do who do you throw in the city league tournament games versus who do you throw in those first and second round state tournament games that were basically happening in conjunction with one another.
 
The OCC 32 team league has their divisions play either a 14 or 15 game schedule. League play ended May 2nd with only two makeups which were played last night May 6.
 
many of the leagues in the northeast do try to schedule the games against the same team back-to-back and then possibly an open date after so the make-up can happen right then and there. However, if you get consecutive days of rainout, you start getting into the territory where league games are getting chased on top of other games. I assume that may be a pattern statewide.
 
Happened to my school team in the 00's. Had a tournament game on a Tuesday & a make-up league game on Thursday that we had to win to get the league title. Saved our ace for the league game and lost the tournament game. We did win the league game though & thus the title.
 
The Dock said:
just bonkers that this is even a thing where teams have two or more league games rescheduled for after the first tournament date. like, this doesn’t even have to happen lol
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I agree but here we are.

In 2018 I had two sectional games on back to back days. The losing teams of each game were from the same conference and had to play each other twice still to determine the league title.
 
scbuckeye99 said:
Always wondered this when it came this time of year regarding the Toledo City League. Back when Start was a state power and the private schools were in the league I always wondered what the thought process was for a team like Start. The TCAL did a 4 team playoff? series? that began essentially right as the state tournament was beginning and do who do you throw in the city league tournament games versus who do you throw in those first and second round state tournament games that were basically happening in conjunction with one another.
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ohh Start.. the last city league team to win a big school title in baseball.
 
I think the 1st game of the season was allowed on 3/23. The last nominal game of the season was scheduled for 5/10. Is that seven weeks for a season to be played? We are asking a lot for that to happen.
 
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