The baseball rpi has been tweaked to a point where home wins barely help. Home losses kill your rpi. Factor a lot of Iowa's wins are at home plus losing to 200+ too northwestern and it hurts big time.
Iowa's May 21 RPI is 66 (WAS 34 ON APR 1); Overall Strength of Schedule is 124 (WAS 54 ON MAY 7)
- Thread starter Franisdaman
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Thanks for the info. IMO, home field advantage in baseball is not as big as some other sports, so the de-emphasis of home wins does not make a lot of sense
I've said many times road wins are gold. Had Iowa got one @unlv they'd probably still be in.
Agreed. The Mizzou loss doesn't help either, however, after reading that I'm really confused about the mystery RPI formula, I sure hope the committee digs down into the numbers! Iowa's Top 50 RPI wins should really come into play here, it has as many as any top team in the country.
Iowa slipped 2 SPOTS in the RPI (from 64 to 66) after winning all 3 at home vs Penn State.
Iowa's RPI was 34 on April 1.
Iowa's Overall Strength of Schedule TWO WEEKS AGO (on May 7) was 54 after losing a heart breaker to then #32 (RPI) Missouri and taking 2 of 3 from then #22 (RPI) Oklahoma State. Iowa then played RPI Bottom Feeders N'western, Western Illinois and Penn State to get to its current SOS number.
Iowa's Overall Strength of Schedule NOW is 124.
RPI's (and Overall Strength of Schedule) after completion of May 20 games:
16 (55) Minnesota
23 (77) Indiana
40 (82) Purdue
41 (40) Ohio State
50 (61) Illinois
55 (123) Michigan
66 (124) Iowa
97 (33) Maryland
100 (32) Nebraska
167 (201) Rutgers
188 (111) Michigan State
231 (164) Northwestern
235 (128) Penn State
Iowa's RPI was 34 on April 1.
Iowa's Overall Strength of Schedule TWO WEEKS AGO (on May 7) was 54 after losing a heart breaker to then #32 (RPI) Missouri and taking 2 of 3 from then #22 (RPI) Oklahoma State. Iowa then played RPI Bottom Feeders N'western, Western Illinois and Penn State to get to its current SOS number.
Iowa's Overall Strength of Schedule NOW is 124.
RPI's (and Overall Strength of Schedule) after completion of May 20 games:
16 (55) Minnesota
23 (77) Indiana
40 (82) Purdue
41 (40) Ohio State
50 (61) Illinois
55 (123) Michigan
66 (124) Iowa
97 (33) Maryland
100 (32) Nebraska
167 (201) Rutgers
188 (111) Michigan State
231 (164) Northwestern
235 (128) Penn State
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Oklahoma State and Mizzu both stunk after they played Iowa.
ugh!!!
can a SOS of 124 get you into the NCAA tournament if you don't win the BTT?
I always love that you can do what your supposed to (sweep PSU) and your RPI still drops.
how do you think our RPI and SOS stack up right now?
how much work do we have to do in the BTT to make the NCAA Tournament?
A lot
Do I think Iowa passes the eye test? Yes
Do I think Iowa is more deserving than Michigan or Ohio State? Yes
However, RPI is golden in baseball and ours is 66 which is not good enough
16 RPI (55 SOS) Minnesota has really turned it on, imo. I bet we see them in the Finals.
I think 23 (77) Indiana, 50 (61) Illinois and 40 (82) Purdue are all average at best.
41 (40) Ohio State's RPI (SOS) surprise me; they must have played a tough non conference schedule. But they are beatable, just like IU, ILLINI, and Purdue.
I am shocked that 55 (123) Michigan ended up with a better RPI and SOS than 66 (124) Iowa. We need to beat them on Wed!
97 (33) Maryland or 100 (32) Nebraska are more deserving to be in the BTT than 188 (111) Michigan State. Now watch, MSU beats Minny!
Its gonna be a fun BTT....I hope! I think any of the top 7 seeds could easily make the Finals. Hopefully one of them is the Hawks!
Do those that are in charge that think that not watch college basketball and see what a failure RPI is in that sport?.......
"Ahh, but this is BASEBALL! It works in our sport, because........tradition!!!"
F*** outta here with that committee nonsense. It's all just excuses to justify leaving Iowa, which is one of the 64 best teams in college baseball, out of the tournament.
But, but, but......that's all they got are buts.
Years ago they tweaked the RPI to "even the playing field" for northern schools vs southern schools. However, I think it now over emphasizes road wins vs home wins. No way, no how should you take 2/3 from a top 25 RPI team and drop 4 spots even if it is at home.
Washington has been projected in the last couple weeks with an RPI around 73. Thankfully northern teams aren't judged the same as southern teams. If Iowa wins 3 games in the BTT, their RPI should get down to the mid to low 50s range which should be good enough with 10 top 50 wins.
Exactly and maybe 1 or 2 of those 3 wins is against a Top 50 team so we should be able to polish the resume. I love our pitching right now and if Allgeyer, McDonald and Dreyer all throw like they are capable of, could be a fun Tourney!
It is exciting that the program is at the place where they are making the BTT every year and in contention for an at-large NCAA berth most every year. That may not seem like a big deal, but it is for a northern program that had so little tradition or facilities when Heller took over. Only 3 schools have made the BTT each of the last 5 years (Iowa, Michigan, Indiana). That is just amazing. And if the Hawks are able to make it to a regional again this year, that would be 3 years out of the last 4. Just unbelievable. And the cool thing is Heller has a vision for where he wants the program to go. Hopefully the university will support with facilities upgrades that would make Iowa a good host for a NCAA regional someday.
To this week, any of 7 teams are realistic options to win the tournament. I don't see MSU having anywhere near the depth to win a tournament, but who knows. The Big Ten as a whole has improved a lot in the last 5+ years. If folks want to see the impact of Big Ten Network, the funds that every school gets from the network help invest in non-revenue sports such as baseball. Most of the Big 10 schools have invested in facilities and money for baseball, and it's showing. Will be a fun week in Omaha.
yeah, suddenly we have 4 quality starting pitchers! I just hope that control issues don't come up! I hate walks!!
The only time home field advantage came into play was the 87 and 91 World Series in the Metrodome! Damn it was loud. And hey, when the home team comes up, the air conditioning went on FULL BLAST, with the air blowing out! LOL (at least that's what some opposing managers argued LOL)
The more I post in this RPI thread, the more Iowa's RPI drops.
Coincidence? LOL
Awesome post. Enjoyed reading it! Thank you!
What I think holds back attendance is that people don't go to the games until the weather gets better, and that does not happen until the reg season is almost over.
How cool is it, too, that so many of us are tuning in to watch live? That did not happen before Heller.
Heller hopes for a good showing in the BTT and that the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee looks at Iowa's overall resume/who they played/who they beat.
LINK: https://www.hawkcentral.com/videos/...-ready-defend-big-ten-championship/628783002/
LINK: https://www.hawkcentral.com/videos/...-ready-defend-big-ten-championship/628783002/
I posted this in the lounge and another thread in this forum. But with all the craziness going on over the last week I'm also copying it here in the hopes that everyone can enjoy the tournament in Omaha and not just be wound as tight as a drum.
#1) I think it's beyond great that Iowa fans are beginning to pay more attention to college baseball. What Coach Heller and his staff are doing has been a huge (and long overdue) breath of fresh air for the sport and the athletes that deserve just as much attention as football, basketball and wrestling.
#2) Unlike football and basketball, there is no one centralized figure head or national resource that college baseball fans can turn to. So when you look at one particular outlet and it's writers, understand that is just their opinion. All the respect in the world to Kendall Rogers, Aaron Fitt, Eric Sorenson, etc. But to follow them like the towns-children did the pied piper is the wrong approach.
I've stressed this in some previous threads....and this will be the last time I do it (at least for this season)....these guys aren't 100% accurate. They do swing and miss.
I have had the fortune of knowing and talking to several former selection committee members. They all say the same thing.
There is no one/singular metric that determines if a team gets a bid. Obviously a team's RPI figures into it. But record among Top 50 & Top 100 teams is also a factor. Just like in basketball--so are "bad" losses. A winning record within your conference is a big factor. So is percentage points--did you not play as many games as other teams due to: weather cancelations, etc.
When the committee meets the toughest and most intense conversations are often centered around "the eye test". Example: This usually comes when comparing the 4th or 5th ranked team in the Big Ten or Missouri Valley against the 7th or 8th best team in the SEC or ACC.
It's not as mechanical as many of you are thinking or have been led to believe.
SO COME UP FOR AIR!!
With what happened last weekend around the nation, it did not bode well for the Big Ten. Ohio St. played it's way down a seed (possibly back on the bubble) by losing to Michigan St. Michigan has been taking on water for weeks. Illinois has gained some ground, while Iowa likely has been treading water.
The realistic over/under for NCAA bids for the Big Ten is 4. Minnesota and Indiana (despite their conference record) are good. That means in Omaha this week you have 5 teams: Iowa, Illinois, Ohio St., Michigan and Purdue who are all fighting for the last 2 bids.
With what happened in the SEC last weekend Mississippi St. and South Carolina almost assuredly claimed 2 more at large bids, and LSU could do the same if they have a strong showing at the conference tournament.
As others have mentioned, The Hawkeyes almost certainly need to reach the championship game just to get on the right side of the bubble. Even then it will still be dicey.
Good luck to Coach Heller and the program. They will need to earn it this week
#1) I think it's beyond great that Iowa fans are beginning to pay more attention to college baseball. What Coach Heller and his staff are doing has been a huge (and long overdue) breath of fresh air for the sport and the athletes that deserve just as much attention as football, basketball and wrestling.
#2) Unlike football and basketball, there is no one centralized figure head or national resource that college baseball fans can turn to. So when you look at one particular outlet and it's writers, understand that is just their opinion. All the respect in the world to Kendall Rogers, Aaron Fitt, Eric Sorenson, etc. But to follow them like the towns-children did the pied piper is the wrong approach.
I've stressed this in some previous threads....and this will be the last time I do it (at least for this season)....these guys aren't 100% accurate. They do swing and miss.
I have had the fortune of knowing and talking to several former selection committee members. They all say the same thing.
There is no one/singular metric that determines if a team gets a bid. Obviously a team's RPI figures into it. But record among Top 50 & Top 100 teams is also a factor. Just like in basketball--so are "bad" losses. A winning record within your conference is a big factor. So is percentage points--did you not play as many games as other teams due to: weather cancelations, etc.
When the committee meets the toughest and most intense conversations are often centered around "the eye test". Example: This usually comes when comparing the 4th or 5th ranked team in the Big Ten or Missouri Valley against the 7th or 8th best team in the SEC or ACC.
It's not as mechanical as many of you are thinking or have been led to believe.
SO COME UP FOR AIR!!
With what happened last weekend around the nation, it did not bode well for the Big Ten. Ohio St. played it's way down a seed (possibly back on the bubble) by losing to Michigan St. Michigan has been taking on water for weeks. Illinois has gained some ground, while Iowa likely has been treading water.
The realistic over/under for NCAA bids for the Big Ten is 4. Minnesota and Indiana (despite their conference record) are good. That means in Omaha this week you have 5 teams: Iowa, Illinois, Ohio St., Michigan and Purdue who are all fighting for the last 2 bids.
With what happened in the SEC last weekend Mississippi St. and South Carolina almost assuredly claimed 2 more at large bids, and LSU could do the same if they have a strong showing at the conference tournament.
As others have mentioned, The Hawkeyes almost certainly need to reach the championship game just to get on the right side of the bubble. Even then it will still be dicey.
Good luck to Coach Heller and the program. They will need to earn it this week
I've never seen a team's SOS and rpi tumble like Iowa when they do what they're supposed to...minus Northwestern
