Should a manager choose Home or Visitor when the first tie breaker in a round robin is "least runs allowed?"
If you lose a game in the round robin as Visitor, you stop the winning team from getting the open inning and increasing your "runs allowed." So, it seems best to choose Visitors.
What do you think?
We just talked about this at the last tournament. You have to take visitors with that tiebreaker. When the directors figure this out, maybe they will go instead to runs scored.
Another factor to consider is playing down in Pool Play.For example a AAA playing a AA team.I have seen the top seed determined by whether the opponents took the 5 runs or xtra fielder.
I vote for most runs scored as the tie breaker -it's cleaner.
The problem with this, and I know that many want to make Senior softball a kindler and gentler version of real softball, is that it encourages teams to run up the score. In many areas of athletics they have gone to least runs/points/goals given up to not encourage what could be perceived as poor sportsmanship.
The problem with using the runs scored as the first tie-breaker is that it penalizes the team that scores a lot of runs early and plays good defense.
A team that run-rules the opponent could be missing our on 2 or 3 offense innings in a game, thereby seriously affecting their total runs scored count.
As for running up the score, out team's goal is to score the max 5 or 7 runs allowed per inning and then add whatever possible during the open inning. We are not out to embarrass anyone, but we have seen teams score in excess of 15 runs in the bottom of the open inning to win a game, so no lead amount can be considered "enough"
Terry, I understand that. I was just referring to darkstar's comment about going to most runs scored as the tie-breaker.
Getting back to the original question visitor versus home. I like to take visitor going into the game knowing you own the top of the 1st and the top of the 7th. The 1st to put the other team behind with the pressure on playing catch up throughout the game and the 7th, of course, to get as many additional runs as possible. Get the pressure on and keep the pressure on.
