Rankings Roundup | Week 6 - Red Raider Dugout

Rankings Roundup | Week 6

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Bi-WEEKLY THOUGHTS

We didn’t have a Rankings Roundup last week so I’ll briefly mention both weeks.

Starting Big 12 play with one of the toughest outs in the conference is no small task, but Tech did get the series win over Oklahoma State 2-1. They bounced back following a tough 2-0 loss Friday to win Saturday 4-2 and Sunday 6-5. The Red Raiders haven’t just outright handled an opponent since playing Texas Southern with every contest since ending up as a nail-biter or coming into late innings still undecided.

Dru Baker once again had an exceptional weekend at the plate, even moving into the 3-hole on Sunday didn’t change his approach or success. He hit .538 on the weekend and continued to make exceptional plays in left field, including doing a Willie Mays impression on Friday for an excellent catch. Baker earned Big 12 Player of the Week honors for his performance.

Following that solid outing the Red Raiders swept the USF Bulls to finish an exceptional 12-game home stand that saw Tech go 11-1 and move up significantly in the RPI. Braxton Fulford hit his 5th & 6th taters of the season, setting a new career season high and Dru Baker continued his hot streak remaining in the 3-hole and garnering another week of Big 12 Player of the Week honors. Dylan Neuse also got things rolling, hitting safely in 4 consecutive games with the move to the leadoff and remaining among the national leaders in walks and runs in 2021. Dillon Carter re-entered the Red Raiders’ lineup as well after coming off of a Fall injury. He announced his presence with authority Friday night pounding a no-doubter in his first at-bat since 2020. Drew Woodcox, who started all weekend at first base, had a two-dinger day Friday, and Cole Stillwell clouted a bomb too.

Did you miss the weekend action? You can read the recaps of each game to catch up or let Keith do it for you on Dinger Derby!
RECAPPING THE COWBOYS | GAME 1 | GAME 2 | GAME 3
GUNNIN’ DOWN THE COWBOYS | DINGER DERBY

RECAPPING THE BULLS | GAME 2 | GAME 3
SWEEPING THE BULLS ON THE WAY TO MANHATTAN | DINGER DERBY

A few things about the rankings:

DO THEY ALL MATTER?

No, absolutely not, most of them are worthless and only exist because a baseball/statistics nerd decided to make them. Some are an attempt by various outlets to keep RPI live rather than updated weekly by the NCAA. Many are wholly subjective in the case of those from various news outlets or composites of many rankings affected by outliers. Some also update at odd times, like on Friday. Finally, rankings basically never matter. What is more useless than mid-season rankings with no consideration in a post-season selection process?

WHICH ONES ARE MOST IMPORTANT?

There are six rankings in college baseball that are recognized and respected: D1 Baseball, Baseball America, Perfect Game, Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, NCBWA, and the USA Today Coaches Poll. In my humble opinion, D1 Baseball is the single most reliable source of information at the national level, but the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association rankings are probably the most balanced. Unfortunately, they release rankings on Tuesday afternoons so they are often overlooked.

DOES THAT MEAN I WON’T INCLUDE THEM?

Also, absolutely not. I’m going to include every ranking, RPI, composite, and strength of schedule I can find. It doesn’t matter how “legit” they are, I’m going to put them on the list. I like seeing them change and move fluidly over time. It’s also nice to see that even some of the top recognized lists are subject to knee-jerk reactions.

WHY INCLUDE IT IF IT DOESN’T MATTER?

We count everything in baseball. – Billy Chapel

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