Guest MrRant Report post Posted May 5, 2003 Do you determine the best team in the league by quality wins or win total? Example: Team A has 35 wins and Team B has 28 wins, but Team A has a team like the Tiger's in their division to beat on. I go by quality wins personally. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest JHawk Report post Posted May 5, 2003 But then you'd have to define a quality win. You couldn't say "Any team over .500 is a quality win" when you're playing the Twins and they've got Detroit to beat on. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest razazteca Report post Posted May 5, 2003 It all comes down to a popular vote kind of like the BCS system which is not perfect. I want to see college playoffs damn it! Every conference has jobbers, beating them mean nothing, what makes a good team is beating rivals when key players are injuried. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
moral suasion 0 Report post Posted May 5, 2003 (edited) This is a shitty smart-ass comment, but... Aren't the playoffs supposed to determine the best team? Seriously though.. I think records is baseball are more accurate than you guys think. The long season really shows what teams are the best. Even if the Twins have the Tigers to beat on, they still play 140 games against other teams. And there arent too many DUDS in the different divisions. Baseball is way more compeditive across the board that basketball for example. Edited May 5, 2003 by moral suasion Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest phoenixrising Report post Posted May 5, 2003 I use a couple of measures to determine who the best team is: 1. Strength of the opposition: In baseball, obviously the other teams in the division. Are the other teams playoff contenders or #1 draft pick contenders. 2. Road record: Anyone can win at home, how does the team do when they gotta play away? 3. Margin of victory: Particularly when playing the sucky teams - Are they blowing them out or somehow making the sucky team look like a contender? 4. Stats - Are they mind-blowing? Or simply eh? Just a few factors I can think of off the top of my head. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Smell the ratings!!! Report post Posted May 5, 2003 I dont look at stats or margin of victory. If you only won because they choked, or you let them scroe a bunch in the 9th, or if you just go luck on an error, you still won. I would say 1- Not their overall schedule difficulty, but how they fare against other quality teams. Even if half the Twins wins come against Detroit, if they can take 2 outta 3 from the A's or the Red Sox, there still an elite team. 2.- Recent Performance. One of the first things I look for in the standings is the "Last 10 Games" column. Your team may be more talented and have a better record, but if the other guys have won 7 in a row, you're in for a fight. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest alkeiper Report post Posted May 5, 2003 1. The Playoffs don't determine who is really the best team. Anything can happen in a short series, and upsets are frequent. You get a better idea who is better from looking at the regular season. 2. The best thing to look at is not W-L, but runs scored/runs allowed. There's a thing called the "pythagorean record," which predicts a teams W-L record based on runs scored and runs allowed. A team's pythagorean record is better at predicting a team's future performance than their real W-L record. Espn.com has them on their site. Just go to their standings page and click on expanded. Or you can figure them out yourself.... Runs Scored^2 ------------------ Runs Scored^2/Runs Allowed^2 Sorry if I made you guys think too much about math. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest gthureson Report post Posted May 5, 2003 Whomever is left standing at the end of the season is the best team. Like it or not, thats why you play the season, to be the team with the shiny trophy at the end. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest starvenger Report post Posted May 5, 2003 Whomever is left standing at the end of the season is the best team. Like it or not, thats why you play the season, to be the team with the shiny trophy at the end. That's the way I look at it. Upsets do happen in the playoffs, but a good team should be able to avoid those. You win the trophy, you have the right to call yourself the best for the year (or for the next 4 years, in the case of the World Cup (I still hate Brazil though) and Olympics)... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Agent of Oblivion Report post Posted May 5, 2003 When football is concerned, I start with all teams named "The Bears" and randomly put the teams in order immediately afterwards. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Kahran Ramsus Report post Posted May 7, 2003 The best team is the one with the trophy at the end of the year. Part of sports (and life) is being able to be your best when it counts. If the Braves get 110 wins and the A's get 90 wins, but the A's beat the Braves in the World Series, the A's are the better team. The Braves may have had more potential, but they didn't bring it to the table when it counted. The best team is not the one that has the most potential. The best team is the one that wins, period. Note that when I say 'team' I don't necessarily mean just the players, but the coaching staff as well. For example, a couple of years ago the Rams had far better players than the Patriots, but Martz was such a bonehead that he completely negated the talent advantage. In this case I believe that the Pats won because of a far far more talented staff than St. Louis. Soldiers fight the war, but you still need someone to command them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest alkeiper Report post Posted May 7, 2003 I don't really buy into that, because baseball is such a random game. The winning team isn't necessarily the better team. The way I'd look at it is this....If you put the best teams into some kind of super league (the best of all time), how would they fare? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Vern Gagne Report post Posted May 7, 2003 Most of the time Baseball, Basketball, and Hockey have if not the best one of the best teams win the Championship. The NFL with mediocrity, has a much greater increase in not having the best team win. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Grand Slam Report post Posted May 13, 2003 All sports are random, that's why they play the games. Baseball kills some of the randomness by playing a massive number of games during the regular season. The Wild Card has caused a lot of problems in the playoffs in my opinion. The "Best Team" still wins most of the time, but back in the day of four teams total in the playoffs, the "Best Team" won more often. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest geniusMoment Report post Posted May 13, 2003 I can tell you the best team, it is the reds. No other teams really matter. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Damien 0 Report post Posted February 10, 2013 1. The Playoffs don't determine who is really the best team. Anything can happen in a short series, and upsets are frequent. You get a better idea who is better from looking at the regular season. 2. The best thing to look at is not W-L, but runs scored/runs allowed. There's a thing called the "pythagorean record," which predicts a teams W-L record based on runs scored and runs allowed. A team's pythagorean record is better at predicting a team's future performance than their real W-L record. Espn.com has them on their site. Just go to their standings page and click on expanded. Or you can figure them out yourself.... Runs Scored^2 ------------------ Runs Scored^2/Runs Allowed^2 Sorry if I made you guys think too much about math. If the playoffs don't determine the best team, then there is no best team. The regular season sure doesn't. It is only a qualifying phase for the playoffs. Nothing more. Your #2 is idiotic. A team won't score that many more runs than necessary. And may rack up runs in a blowout. The champion is the best team, because the championship is everyone's goal. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Damien 0 Report post Posted February 10, 2013 All sports are random, that's why they play the games. Baseball kills some of the randomness by playing a massive number of games during the regular season. The Wild Card has caused a lot of problems in the playoffs in my opinion. The "Best Team" still wins most of the time, but back in the day of four teams total in the playoffs, the "Best Team" won more often. "Best team" does not equal favored team. Despite the playoff format, it is still fair to call the champ the best team. Always. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Damien 0 Report post Posted February 10, 2013 Most of the time Baseball, Basketball, and Hockey have if not the best one of the best teams win the Championship. The NFL with mediocrity, has a much greater increase in not having the best team win. The team becomes the best when it wins the title. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Damien 0 Report post Posted February 10, 2013 The best team is the one with the trophy at the end of the year. Part of sports (and life) is being able to be your best when it counts. If the Braves get 110 wins and the A's get 90 wins, but the A's beat the Braves in the World Series, the A's are the better team. The Braves may have had more potential, but they didn't bring it to the table when it counted. The best team is not the one that has the most potential. The best team is the one that wins, period. Note that when I say 'team' I don't necessarily mean just the players, but the coaching staff as well. For example, a couple of years ago the Rams had far better players than the Patriots, but Martz was such a bonehead that he completely negated the talent advantage. In this case I believe that the Pats won because of a far far more talented staff than St. Louis. Soldiers fight the war, but you still need someone to command them. THIS. This is required reading for all sports fans. There are so many morons out there who don't get it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Damien 0 Report post Posted February 10, 2013 Whomever is left standing at the end of the season is the best team. Like it or not, thats why you play the season, to be the team with the shiny trophy at the end. That's the way I look at it. Upsets do happen in the playoffs, but a good team should be able to avoid those. You win the trophy, you have the right to call yourself the best for the year (or for the next 4 years, in the case of the World Cup (I still hate Brazil though) and Olympics)... EXACTLY. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bob_barron 0 Report post Posted February 12, 2013 1. The Playoffs don't determine who is really the best team. Anything can happen in a short series, and upsets are frequent. You get a better idea who is better from looking at the regular season. 2. The best thing to look at is not W-L, but runs scored/runs allowed. There's a thing called the "pythagorean record," which predicts a teams W-L record based on runs scored and runs allowed. A team's pythagorean record is better at predicting a team's future performance than their real W-L record. Espn.com has them on their site. Just go to their standings page and click on expanded. Or you can figure them out yourself.... Runs Scored^2 ------------------ Runs Scored^2/Runs Allowed^2 Sorry if I made you guys think too much about math. If the playoffs don't determine the best team, then there is no best team. The regular season sure doesn't. It is only a qualifying phase for the playoffs. Nothing more. Your #2 is idiotic. A team won't score that many more runs than necessary. And may rack up runs in a blowout. The champion is the best team, because the championship is everyone's goal. I agree Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bob_barron 0 Report post Posted February 12, 2013 All sports are random, that's why they play the games. Baseball kills some of the randomness by playing a massive number of games during the regular season. The Wild Card has caused a lot of problems in the playoffs in my opinion. The "Best Team" still wins most of the time, but back in the day of four teams total in the playoffs, the "Best Team" won more often. "Best team" does not equal favored team. Despite the playoff format, it is still fair to call the champ the best team. Always. I don't agree Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bob_barron 0 Report post Posted February 12, 2013 Most of the time Baseball, Basketball, and Hockey have if not the best one of the best teams win the Championship. The NFL with mediocrity, has a much greater increase in not having the best team win. The team becomes the best when it wins the title. I agree Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bob_barron 0 Report post Posted February 12, 2013 The best team is the one with the trophy at the end of the year. Part of sports (and life) is being able to be your best when it counts. If the Braves get 110 wins and the A's get 90 wins, but the A's beat the Braves in the World Series, the A's are the better team. The Braves may have had more potential, but they didn't bring it to the table when it counted. The best team is not the one that has the most potential. The best team is the one that wins, period. Note that when I say 'team' I don't necessarily mean just the players, but the coaching staff as well. For example, a couple of years ago the Rams had far better players than the Patriots, but Martz was such a bonehead that he completely negated the talent advantage. In this case I believe that the Pats won because of a far far more talented staff than St. Louis. Soldiers fight the war, but you still need someone to command them. THIS. This is required reading for all sports fans. There are so many morons out there who don't get it. I don't agree Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bob_barron 0 Report post Posted February 12, 2013 Whomever is left standing at the end of the season is the best team. Like it or not, thats why you play the season, to be the team with the shiny trophy at the end. That's the way I look at it. Upsets do happen in the playoffs, but a good team should be able to avoid those. You win the trophy, you have the right to call yourself the best for the year (or for the next 4 years, in the case of the World Cup (I still hate Brazil though) and Olympics)... EXACTLY. I agree Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Damien 0 Report post Posted February 15, 2013 All sports are random, that's why they play the games. Baseball kills some of the randomness by playing a massive number of games during the regular season. The Wild Card has caused a lot of problems in the playoffs in my opinion. The "Best Team" still wins most of the time, but back in the day of four teams total in the playoffs, the "Best Team" won more often. "Best team" does not equal favored team. Despite the playoff format, it is still fair to call the champ the best team. Always. I don't agree Which line don't you agree with? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Damien 0 Report post Posted February 15, 2013 The best team is the one with the trophy at the end of the year. Part of sports (and life) is being able to be your best when it counts. If the Braves get 110 wins and the A's get 90 wins, but the A's beat the Braves in the World Series, the A's are the better team. The Braves may have had more potential, but they didn't bring it to the table when it counted. The best team is not the one that has the most potential. The best team is the one that wins, period. Note that when I say 'team' I don't necessarily mean just the players, but the coaching staff as well. For example, a couple of years ago the Rams had far better players than the Patriots, but Martz was such a bonehead that he completely negated the talent advantage. In this case I believe that the Pats won because of a far far more talented staff than St. Louis. Soldiers fight the war, but you still need someone to command them. THIS. This is required reading for all sports fans. There are so many morons out there who don't get it. I don't agree Sports fans do need to read that. There are so many fools out there who spout nonsense when a "favored" team gets thumped. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bob_barron 0 Report post Posted February 17, 2013 Hmmmm, you raise some good points, Damien. I may be turning a corner! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
