WhoWins(tm) Best-of-7

HISTORICAL VICTORY PROBABILITIES AND TEAM PERFORMANCE RECORDS FOR BEST-OF-7 FORMAT MLB, NBA, AND NHL PLAYOFF SERIES

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BEST-OF-7 SERIES RESULTS
The master list: Winner and loser of each and every best-of-7 MLB, NBA, and NHL playoff series from 1905 (the year of the first best-of-7 series).

BEST-OF-7 HISTORICAL VICTORY PROBABILITIES
SERIES STATUS IN GAMES
leading, 1-game-nil
leading, 2-games-nil
leading, 3-games-nil
leading, 2-games-1
leading, 3-games-1
leading, 3-games-2

WhoWins™ BEST-OF-7 GREATEST COMEBACK EVER
Surmounting the 3-games-nil deficit.

WhoWins™ BEST-OF-7 ANNIHILATIONS
The ultimate ignominy: Sweeps during which the swept team never, ever leads.

BEST-OF-7 FRANCHISE SERIES OUTCOMES
ALL ROUNDS
Irrespective of Game 1 site
Game 1 played at home
Game 1 played on road
FINALS
Irrespective of Game 1 site
Game 1 played at home
Game 1 played on road
SEMIFINALS
Irrespective of Game 1 site
Game 1 played at home
Game 1 played on road
QUARTERFINALS (NBA, NHL)
Irrespective of Game 1 site
Game 1 played at home
Game 1 played on road
PRELIMINARIES (NBA, NHL)
Irrespective of Game 1 site
Game 1 played at home
Game 1 played on road

BEST-OF-7 FRANCHISE GAME OUTCOMES
ALL ROUNDS
All | Home Games | Road Games
FINALS
All | Home Games | Road Games
SEMIFINALS
All | Home Games | Road Games
QUARTERFINALS (NBA, NHL)
All | Home Games | Road Games
PRELIMINARIES (NBA, NHL)
All | Home Games | Road Games

BEST-OF-7 FRANCHISE SCORING OUTCOMES
MLB: all runs for/against
NBA: all points for/against
NHL: all goals for/against

BEST-OF-7 SCORING RECORDS
BEST-OF-7 MLB, NBA, NHL Series and Game Scoring Records

RESOURCES
Societies, books, and other resources.

BEST-OF-7 FEATURES
Articles on best-of-7 series phenomena.

FAQ
Frequently-asked questions.

SEARCH RESULTS
Related search terms from popular search engines.

PROBABILITY FORMULAE
Mathematical formulae for best-of-7 probability computations.

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SOCIETIES, BOOKS, AND OTHER RESOURCES

WhoWins™ strongly recommends the books Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences by John Allen Paulos, Professor of Mathematics at Temple University (New York: Hill and Wang; 2001), and 200% of Nothing: An Eye-Opening Tour through the Twists and Turns of Math Abuse and Innumeracy by A. K. Dewdney, Professor of Computer Science at the University of Western Ontario (New York: John Wiley & Sons Inc.; 1993). Especially worthwhile are Paulos' chapter on "Probability and Coincidence" and Dewdney's chapter on "Street Math." Also worthwhile in this vein is Games, Gods, and Gambling: A History of Probability and Statistical Ideas by the late Florence Nightingale David (Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, Inc.; 1998 [reproducing the original version from 1962]).

A rigorous comparison from mid-October 2003 between MLB history and elementary probability reveals a larger-than-expected number of best-of-7 World Series to go the distance, according to the Inside Science New Service from the American Institute of Physics and its member societies. The comparison was a timely one: At the time of its appearance, the previous two World Series (2001 and 2002) had gone the full seven games ... as had 15 of the 25 World Series between 1952 and 1976 (inclusive). The study has attracted coverage from the New York Times.

In edition No. 30 of The Baseball Research Journal (2001), Ron Visco of the Education Department at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, presents "Let Me Count the Ways: High-scoring games may have unique line scores" (pp. 129-130). To supplement this fine article, WhoWins™ developed "Mirror MLB Games," which can be found in Mathematica®-notebook format through the Mathematica® Information Center.

WhoWins™ maintained an account with and was an active trader in sports-related options within NewsFutures in the 2000s, ranking as high as 25th out of over 18,000 traders on 31 December 2006, with an account value as large as Nominal$3M+ on 23 January 2010.

Veteran actuary and Fox Sports New York statistician Eric Hornick (decades of service as regards the NHL New York Islanders) writes "The Skinny" series and other insightful works for newyorkislanders.com. Always pay heed to those who leverage their expertise in one field to the benefit of their efforts in another.

Recently recast as a weblog ("blog") is the Hot Hand in Sports, which is a veritable treasure trove of sports streakiness analysis. The prime mover is Alan Reifman, Professor of Human Development and Family Studies at Texas Tech University. An ample number of links from this site lead to background information on this phenomenon.

Logging recent developments in "sabermetric" research through his own weblog is Phil Birnbaum of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The focus of this effort is primarily baseball, but that focus is not exclusive, as new findings in other sports are reported as well. External links are separated into hardcore and medium core sabermetric research; one gets the impression through following Birnbaum's work that he is well aware of the difference.