Why have two of my (non-BFF) teams been pulled into a BFF league, and why do they suck now?

DotDash · 09-23-2021, 01:12 PM

Hi,

I run three teams, the worst of which is currently in Perfect league somehow. My two better teams were eliminated during the Diamond playoffs last season.
These two teams have now both been seeded in a BFF Diamond league (D373) and are performing dismally. Both have a negative run differential, and one team is actually very likely to get relegated to Gold (after three consecutive 100+ win seasons in Diamond.)
My 'bad' team in Perfect now has a better record there than either of my Diamond teams....

My questions:
- How did two of my teams get seeded in this BFF league, despite not having friended anyone, renamed my teams, etc.?
- What may be causing the performance dip? I see the same players on every team, just like in the regular Diamond leagues, but my teams suddenly suck across the board (pitching, defense, all aspects of hitting.) It honestly seems like other rules apply in this league, and outsiders are at a disadvantage somehow.
- To illustrate: there are only 11 non-BFF teams in this league, but they are occupying 7 of the relegation positions. Weren't these leagues supposed to be easier / more fair due to keeping whales out? It seems like most non-BFF teams are underperforming, instead of having an 'easier' time.
- How do I prevent this from happening again? I'm F2P too, but I'd take my chances with the whales any day.

Thanks.

chazzycat · 09-23-2021, 01:51 PM

Oh hi there! I'm in your division.

To answer your first question, we don't have quite enough members in diamond to fill all 30 spots, so there are always going to be some non-BFF teams drawn into our league. Sorry about that, it's just luck of the draw though. Not much you can do about it.

With respect to league strength, we play together to have fun bantering with each other, not because it's an easier league. Historically, BFF leagues are noticeably tougher than average leagues, despite being F2P. We are very active and competitive players - we just spend time instead of money.

One thing about BFF is that we certainly love pushing the limits of strategies available. Park cheese is a big one, of course. Most of our teams are optimized for a specific park build. So if your team is also optimized, you're probably used to seeing a significant advantage in a normal league, with less optimized teams, but now you're just on the same level as the rest of us so the advantage is much smaller.

If you are able to micro, it may be helpful should you find yourself playing in the opposite-handed park. Also, I would make sure your opener lineups are solid.

DotDash · 09-23-2021, 03:51 PM

Thanks a lot for your reply. If things are just (much) harder in BFF, I'm fine with that. Would never have thought a 100-win-to-relegation drop off to be possible though. I'm honestly worried that, if I do get relegated to Gold, I might get reported for tanking this past season

Best of luck in this crazy division!

Magus978 · 09-23-2021, 04:00 PM

Friend leagues are always more difficult than regular ones, especially groups as strong as BFF. My Brooklyn Dynasty are thriving post-BFF, having reached diamond playoffs last week and pushed the top seed to the brink in the divisional round. This week it's even better as I switched them over to OL and we're continuing to be contenders. Not sure how much longer it's going to last, but I hope it lasts a long time because I think I'm overdue for some really good luck for a change.

OMGPuppies · 09-23-2021, 04:25 PM

Sure I could have a better record in a random league. But, I rather lose to friends.

Thalion · 09-23-2021, 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OMGPuppies

Sure I could have a better record in a random league. But, I rather lose to friends.

Yeah, losing to you guys doesn't seem to hurt as much.

chazzycat · 09-23-2021, 05:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DotDash

Thanks a lot for your reply. If things are just (much) harder in BFF, I'm fine with that. Would never have thought a 100-win-to-relegation drop off to be possible though. I'm honestly worried that, if I do get relegated to Gold, I might get reported for tanking this past season

Best of luck in this crazy division!

Well it could also partially just be your team having a poor week. Hard to say for sure. Good luck to you as well!

I wouldn't worry about getting reported for tanking. Their system is actually pretty good from what I've seen. If someone reports you, but you're not actually tanking, nothing really happens beyond a warning email.

BigRed75 · 09-23-2021, 07:44 PM

Trust me, none of the BFFs will report you for tanking

Are your two non-PeL teams friends with each other? That might be why you've been put in BFF this week. When creating leagues, the algorithm puts separate groups of friends together in a league, even if there are no common friends amongst the two groups (which is why there have been so many hybrid BFF/OL or BFF/DLL leagues in the past). Your "group" of 2 may have been put in with the BFF group of 19 simply because that's how the algorithm works

Now if your teams aren't friends with each other, and they were both put in the BFF league by random chance, well, that's just RNGJesus picking on you...

09-23-2021, 01:12 PM	#1
DotDash Minors (Double A) Join Date: Sep 2019 Posts: 135	Why have two of my (non-BFF) teams been pulled into a BFF league, and why do they suck now? Hi, I run three teams, the worst of which is currently in Perfect league somehow. My two better teams were eliminated during the Diamond playoffs last season. These two teams have now both been seeded in a BFF Diamond league (D373) and are performing dismally. Both have a negative run differential, and one team is actually very likely to get relegated to Gold (after three consecutive 100+ win seasons in Diamond.) My 'bad' team in Perfect now has a better record there than either of my Diamond teams.... My questions: - How did two of my teams get seeded in this BFF league, despite not having friended anyone, renamed my teams, etc.? - What may be causing the performance dip? I see the same players on every team, just like in the regular Diamond leagues, but my teams suddenly suck across the board (pitching, defense, all aspects of hitting.) It honestly seems like other rules apply in this league, and outsiders are at a disadvantage somehow. - To illustrate: there are only 11 non-BFF teams in this league, but they are occupying 7 of the relegation positions. Weren't these leagues supposed to be easier / more fair due to keeping whales out? It seems like most non-BFF teams are underperforming, instead of having an 'easier' time. - How do I prevent this from happening again? I'm F2P too, but I'd take my chances with the whales any day. Thanks. Attached Images __________________

09-23-2021, 03:51 PM	#3
DotDash Minors (Double A) Join Date: Sep 2019 Posts: 135	Thanks a lot for your reply. If things are just (much) harder in BFF, I'm fine with that. Would never have thought a 100-win-to-relegation drop off to be possible though. I'm honestly worried that, if I do get relegated to Gold, I might get reported for tanking this past season Best of luck in this crazy division! __________________

09-23-2021, 04:00 PM	#4
Magus978 All Star Starter Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Behind you. BOO! Posts: 1,894	Friend leagues are always more difficult than regular ones, especially groups as strong as BFF. My Brooklyn Dynasty are thriving post-BFF, having reached diamond playoffs last week and pushed the top seed to the brink in the divisional round. This week it's even better as I switched them over to OL and we're continuing to be contenders. Not sure how much longer it's going to last, but I hope it lasts a long time because I think I'm overdue for some really good luck for a change. __________________ Never forgive, never forget. http://twitch.tv/GanbaMagus Last edited by Magus978; 09-23-2021 at 04:04 PM.

09-23-2021, 04:25 PM	#5
OMGPuppies All Star Starter Join Date: Apr 2018 Posts: 1,628	Sure I could have a better record in a random league. But, I rather lose to friends. __________________

09-23-2021, 07:44 PM	#8
BigRed75 Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 2,423	Trust me, none of the BFFs will report you for tanking Are your two non-PeL teams friends with each other? That might be why you've been put in BFF this week. When creating leagues, the algorithm puts separate groups of friends together in a league, even if there are no common friends amongst the two groups (which is why there have been so many hybrid BFF/OL or BFF/DLL leagues in the past). Your "group" of 2 may have been put in with the BFF group of 19 simply because that's how the algorithm works Now if your teams aren't friends with each other, and they were both put in the BFF league by random chance, well, that's just RNGJesus picking on you... __________________ Mainline team SPTT team Was not a Snag fan...until I saw the fallout once he was gone and realized what a good job he was actually doing. - Ty Cobb

09-23-2021, 01:51 PM	#2
chazzycat All Star Starter Join Date: Dec 2014 Posts: 1,685	Oh hi there! I'm in your division. To answer your first question, we don't have quite enough members in diamond to fill all 30 spots, so there are always going to be some non-BFF teams drawn into our league. Sorry about that, it's just luck of the draw though. Not much you can do about it. With respect to league strength, we play together to have fun bantering with each other, not because it's an easier league. Historically, BFF leagues are noticeably tougher than average leagues, despite being F2P. We are very active and competitive players - we just spend time instead of money. One thing about BFF is that we certainly love pushing the limits of strategies available. Park cheese is a big one, of course. Most of our teams are optimized for a specific park build. So if your team is also optimized, you're probably used to seeing a significant advantage in a normal league, with less optimized teams, but now you're just on the same level as the rest of us so the advantage is much smaller. If you are able to micro, it may be helpful should you find yourself playing in the opposite-handed park. Also, I would make sure your opener lineups are solid.