Process for filling out the Championship Bracket – 7 Divisions

Seeding Rule: If possible, teams from the same division will not be in the same quarter-bracket. This prevents teams from the same division from matching up prior to the semi-finals. Add 2 wins for those teams from divisions that played 4 fewer games than other divisions. One-Game-Play-Off (1GPO) wins are not considered in the win totals.

A. As divisions finish, use the Bracket Assignment Spreadsheet and fill in the Name, Division, Finish (within Division) and number of Wins (leave the Seed column blank) for the top 2 finishers from each division.

B. When all divisions are entered, sort on Finish (prime, ascending) and Wins (Descending).

C. Complete the seed column: top team is #1, next #2 etc. If there is a tie within Finish Groups, assign tied teams the same seed. For example, if the E-Group 1^st-Place finisher had the same number of wins as the A-Group 1^st-place finisher, they would both get the same (higher) seed number. The lower seed number would be skipped as in #1, #2, #3, #3, #5, #6, #7. Here’s an example of what the Bracket Assignment Spreadsheet might look like after step C.: BracketAssign7.csv

D. Run the program that determines the possible bracket assignments that satisfy the seeding rule. The program will never place a better seed lower than a lessor seed but will randomize on the tied teams until it finds a combination that satisfies the Seeding Rule (*). Roll the 20 to select a bracket assignment from the list determined by the program.

E. Copy the names onto the bracket and adjust bracket numbers to account for the tied teams identified in Step C. (In the example from Step C., the #4 on the bracket would be crossed off and replaced by a second #3.)

F. For the 3^rd place finishers, the top finisher will be T1 on the bracket, the next best will be T2 and so on. Break ties by rolling the 20-sider. Copy the names over to the bracket.

G. Based upon the bracket, the 3^rd-place teams will play one or two 1GPO play-in games starting Saturday night after all of the tie-breakers are complete or whenever the match-ups can be determined. From a starting pitcher perspective, this set of games are considered to be an extension of the regular season (previous 1GPO’s not considered) so starting pitcher eligibility is based upon the last three games of the regular season. A starter/reliever who is not eligible to start because of a previous start is also not eligible to relieve. Pen resets before each 1GPO game but no reliever may be used for more than 2 innings. Home team and park go to the team with the better seed (T1 is better than T2 etc.) but if their regular season win totals are the same they roll for home and play in a blended park (the average of their parks but round towards 10).

H. After the second round of 1GPO games, assign the winning team with the best 3^rd-place finishing seed to the #15 bracket position and assign the other winning team to the #16 bracket position. If that violates the seeding rule, switch them if doing so is an improvement. If the two advancing 3^rd-place teams have the same number of regular season wins, equalize their seeds by replacing the #16 on the bracket with a second #15.

I. Games in the first round of the play-offs (Round of 16) start on Saturday night after all of the tie-breakers and play-in games are complete or whenever the match-ups can be determined. Starters and relievers reset at the beginning of the Round-of-16. The first two rounds are 5-game series and the last two rounds are 7-game series. The team with the better seed is home for 1,2&5 for 5-game series and 1,2,5&7 for 7-game series. If the seeds are the same, roll the 20-sider (winner chooses) to determine who is home for 1,2&5 (5-game series) or 1,2,5&7 (7-game series) and, if the series goes the distance, the last game will be in a blended park (the average of the parks but round towards 10).

(*) If there are no bracket assignments that satisfy the Seeding Rule, the program will randomly choose from the next best set of bracket assignments (likely those with one pair of teams from the same Division in a quarter-bracket).