Prep2Prep CCS Baseball Playoff Projections
UPDATED 4/22/14
Based on the latest information presented to Prep2Prep through games of April 21, we are releasing our projections for the 2014 Central
Coast Section playoff tournaments. We have done our best to accurately portray the schedules and results of the 100+ teams
that compete in the Central Coast Section, but it is possible that there are slight schedule variations for some teams.
These projections are
based on our best available information; if you would like to correct a team's result, please contact Prep2Prep
via email or tweet us @Prep2PrepSports.
You can also leave comments on our Facebook page.
For more details on the CCS point system, please click
here.
A quick summary of how the teams are selected is below.
Here's a quick overview on the process: a total of 48 teams spread out over three enrollment-based divisions of 16 teams each qualify for the CCS
Baseball Playoffs. Of the 48, 40 receive automatic bids based on their position in their league standings as follows: BVAL (8), PAL (6),
SCVAL (6), MBL (6), WCAL (5), SCCAL (3), MTAL (3), WBAL (2) and PSAL (1).
The remaining eight at-large teams are selected based on a point system that awards teams based on results over the course of the last
22 games a team plays. One caveat: all league games must be included among the 22, so that if a team plays a league game that is not among
its last 22 games, that league game is substituted in for the earliest played non-league game.
To be considered for an at-large berth,
teams must have at least a .500 record in any one of the following: a) in league; b) overall; c) over the last 22 games that are included
in the CCS point calculation.
Leagues within CCS are designated as "A" (highest), "B" and "C". Wins against "A" teams count for 3 points; wins against "B" teams count for
2.5; and wins against "C" teams count for 2. Strip off one point from those totals in cases of ties, and two points for losses to respectively
designed "A", "B" and "C" teams.
Teams outside of CCS are considered "B" teams unless they achieve a winning percentage of .700 or greater; in which case, they are considered
"A" teams.
Finally, teams are awarded 2 points for playing an "A" league champion, 1.5 points for playing a "B" league champion and 1 point for playing
a "C" league champion. Teams also receive 5 points for being an "A" league champion, 4 for being a "B" league champion and 3 for being a
"C" league champion.
For the first time, CCS is implementing an Open Division tournament for the top teams in the section. League champs of the six "A" divisions -
BVAL-MH, MBL-Gabilan, PAL-Bay, SCCAL, SCVAL-DA and WCAL - are automatically entered into this tournament. The next 10 highest CCS point totals
qualify for the Open Division. Teams may also elect to opt into the Open Division right up until end of the season, so for our purposes,
we will just assume the top 10 point-getters.
We had to make an adjustment to teams' point total based on an obscure CCS bylaw that states that teams only get credit for playing a divisional
league champion twice during league play. So for teams that play each other three times during the regular-season round robin, we must
disregard the bonus points for the third meeting against the prospective league champ. This reduced the point totals of teams (not in first
place) in the following leagues: BVAL-WV, MBL-Gabilan, MBL-Pacific, MTAL and SCVAL-EC.
The biggest issue facing teams on the CCS playoff bubble has to do with the .500 requirement. Per CCS rules, an at-large applicant must
have a .500 record in at least one of three cases: 1) overall; 2) in league play; 3) over the 22 games counted for CCS consideration.
1-The Mission Trail Athletic League awards automatic bids to the top two finishers in the Mission Trail Division. The third-place team
from the Mission Trail plays the champion of the Coastal Division for the league's third automatic spot. Because we do not want to presume a
winner in that matchup, we project the team with the higher CCS point total.
2-We were unable to locate Monterey Bay League bylaws but had it verified by several reliable sources that the top 5 teams from the Gabilan Division receive
an automatic bid and just the Pacific Division league champ qualifies automatically.
Because the season is not quite over, we must make a few assumptions:
ASSUMPTION 1: points are calculated on the assumption that an individual team will lose the rest of its games. The bonus points for playing
a league champion are included in the calculation. In other words, the point total you see represents the minimum point total for a given team.
ASSUMPTION 2: in calculating points awarded for playing league champions, points were split according to the number of teams currently
tied for first place. For instance, per CCS rules, teams are awarded one point for playing a league champion; if a team played a team
that is currently in a three-way tie for first, we credit the team 0.33 points. If two teams at the top of a league have not played the
same number of games, we assume league champ based on points per game.
ASSUMPTION 3: the Open Division will be made up of the six "A" league champs and next 10 highest point totals; i.e., we will not attempt
to predict which teams will opt up.
ASSUMPTION 4: for out-of-section teams that we were unable to find accurate records, we assumed them to be "B" teams and not division champs.
ASSUMPTION 5: teams will apply for CCS and we will use league bylaws to determine order of finish as applicable. For instance if two at-large
teams apply for CCS from the same league, some league's bylaws mandate that the team that finished higher in the league standings must get in
first whereas other leagues rank at-large teams based on CCS points. We are assuming no teams will pull out of consideration. If we cannot
determine a league's bylaws, we will assume they rank by order of CCS points.
ASSUMPTION 6: some leagues hold a postseason tournament to fill out their allotment of automatic qualifiers. In those instances, we assumed
the team(s) with the highest CCS point totals will receive the automatic bid.
ASSUMPTION 7: by CCS rules, a team must have at least a .500 record in league, overall or in the 22 games under consideration for its CCS
point total. In the case of league and overall records, we simply took the team's record as of this date; for the 22-game consideration,
we looked at the record for the games within the 22 that have already been played.
NOTE: CCS points are in parentheses and the projected home team is listed in CAPS.
OPEN Division: Forty-eight teams qualify for the CCS playoffs. After the 16 teams are selected for the Open Division, the next
32 are placed into the playoff field based on enrollment; the top 16 enrollment schools in Division I and the next 16 in Division II.
DIVISION I: After the 16 Open Division teams are selected, the next 16 teams by enrollment are
placed in Division I.
DIVISION II: Finally, the remaining 16 teams as ranked by enrollment are placed in Division II. We had to move Sacred Heart Prep
from No. 12 to No. 13 to avoid a first-round matchup with league-mate Menlo.
As mentioned earlier, there are a total of 8 at-large teams included in the complete field of 48 CCS playoff teams. Here's a brief look at
the last five teams that made it based on our CCS point calculations and the first five that would be left out if the season ended now. This
only includes team that meet the .500 eligibility requirement.
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