Last week, the 2022 GHSA 6A Baseball Playoffs began amidst much excitement for baseball fans in Georgia. Four teams pulled off first-round upsets, based on seeding: Lassiter, Alexander, South Effingham, and Effingham County. Now these squads will face a tougher challenge in the second round. However, despite being seeded lower, some of these teams may actually be better than people think. Where do they place among the remaining 6A baseball teams? Here are my rankings.
1. Houston County (25-4)
The Bears are a perfect 16-0 at home and have allowed only three runs in the past half-month. They swept both Lee County and Effingham County (two playoff teams) and picked up quality wins over Jesuit (FL) and Madison Central (MS).
2. Allatoona (29-3)
While better in record than Houston County, Allatoona’s strength of schedule has lacked at times. Nevertheless, the Buccaneers are playing sensational baseball, with their only three losses coming to Pope, Lassiter, and Windermere (FL). None of those teams have more than 10 losses currently.
3. Buford (24-7)
Is it any surprise to see the Wolves ranked so high? In fact, Buford may have been ranked first if not for an April slump that featured all seven of their losses. They’ll need to regain momentum to prevent a repeat of last season’s playoff failure.
4. Pope (25-7)
The Greyhounds had a solid 2022 campaign that featured nice wins over Lassiter, Allatoona, and Effingham County. They blew through Dacula in the first round with scores of 11-0 and 10-0, a promising sign that the pitching will hold firm against Cambridge next.
5. Lassiter (24-8)
It’s not easy to knock off North Springs, Allatoona, and Parkview, but Lassiter got the job done throughout the season. However, they’ll need to be more careful not to play down to competition, as the first round almost ended in an upset to Winder-Barrow.
6. Evans (27-5)
Sure, the Knights have a great record, but strength of schedule has been an issue all season long. They have yet to play a top five team in 6A. However, minus a few upsets, Evans has taken care of their lesser-ranked opponents so far this season.
7. Richmond Hill (23-7)
The Wildcats have played well this season. Besides being swept by Effingham County, Richmond Hill had some solid outings, including a win over Woodstock and a series sweep over South Effingham. Lakeside-DeKalb proved to be no problem in the first round of these Georgia baseball playoffs.
8. Cambridge (25-7)
Wins over Pope, Blessed Trinity, and River Ridge highlight another solid 20-win campaign for Cambridge. The Bears swept East Paulding in the first round, but will face an uphill task next against the classification’s best: Houston County.
9. Glynn Academy (24-8)
It’s been a rollercoaster season to say the least. The Terrors picked up good wins against Carrollton, South Effingham, and Richmond Hill, but struggled in a seven-game stretch that featured five losses to non-top five teams.
10. South Paulding (25-5)
The Spartans would need to play better competition in order to truly judge their worth. They’ve swept several mid-level programs but have yet to pick up a truly eye-catching win. Could that come in the quarterfinals against either Lassiter or Richmond Hill?
11. Carrollton (21-11)
The Trojans’ schedule is dotted with several losses, but also with key wins, such as victories over North Springs, North Atlanta, East Coweta, and South Paulding. This isn’t the same team as last season’s, but there’s upset potential in the second round against Evans.
12. South Effingham (22-10)
A midseason 8-game winning streak was the highlight of the season so far. Besides that, the Mustangs were swept by Richmond Hill and lost in series to both Statesboro and Glynn Academy. Allatoona is a tough draw in the second round of the 6A Georgia baseball playoffs.
13. Effingham County (15-16-1)
There are flashes of brilliance in this baseball team that warrant their ranking over other squads with better records. After an 0-6 start to the season, the Rebels managed to sweep Richmond Hill, defeat both South Effingham and Glynn Academy, and sweep a better North Atlanta team in the first playoff round.
14. Alexander (15-14)
Need a sleeper team? Alexander’s your best bet. The Cougars knocked off Cartersville, Carrollton, and Chapel Hill earlier in the season. They even swept a previously-top-five River Ridge squad in the first round of the playoffs. There’s sleeper potential here.
15. Lee County (18-12)
Lee County isn’t bad, but their resume isn’t great. A key win over Thomasville is interesting, but sweeps against Houston County and Lowndes and blowout losses to Mountain View and Colquitt County make it difficult to rank the Trojans higher.
16. Lakeside-Evans (18-10)
Wins over Effingham County and Evans seem appealing, but several low-quality losses have brought down Lakeside’s playoff baseball ranking. They’ll need the bats to come to play against South Paulding in the second round.
