High-water mark
342.7884
career-best overall
95.2% of a perfect 360
Their best day on record: 342.7884 at York County BBQ Festival — 95.2% of a perfect 360.
- Backyard
- Jun 16, 2023
Small Batch BBQ MD
Small Batch BBQ MD is a competition barbecue team with 10 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2021 and 2025. Their best overall finish is 3rd of 29 at the York County BBQ Festival (2023). They are ranked #1901 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1543
peak 1561 · rated over 10 contests
Contests
10
in the data
First seen
Apr 16, 2021
latest Jun 27, 2025 · 4.2 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
1 podium
Overall top-10s
6
60% of 10 contests
Best top-10 run
3
straight overall top-10s
Avg finish
top 39%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
328.06 ▲
last 5 Backyard vs avg 327.38 (+0.68)
Walk rate
50%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±11.56
spread of their Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 165.01 · weakest Chicken (162.37)
Road miles
189
across 10 mapped stops · furthest 45 mi
Schedule strength
39%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1551)
Purse competed for
$77K
listed at 9 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 10 state-championship entries
Backyard avg
327.38 / 360
10 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Small Batch BBQ MD, each with one reason worth a look.
61 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#1,904 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 18%
- Peak
- 1545
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 11 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#1,906 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 11%
- Peak
- 1543
Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 10, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#1,899 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 33%
- Peak
- 1546
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2021.
⚔ Compare careers#1,898 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 22%
- Peak
- 1550
Their last contest in the data was back in 2018, 7 years before Small Batch BBQ MD's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#1,896 of the rated field
- Contests
- 12
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 25%
- Peak
- 1543
Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 12 contests, alongside a 25% overall top-10 rate.
⚔ Compare careers#1,897 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 63%
- Peak
- 1543
Level with Small Batch BBQ MD on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HARCO LOCO BBQ | 9 | 7 | 2 | 78% | ⚔ compare |
| Capt. Blue BBQ | 9 | 2 | 7 | 22% | ⚔ compare |
| ALL FIRED UP BBQ | 8 | 4 | 4 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| Zoni-Q | 8 | 4 | 4 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit | 8 | 3 | 5 | 38% | ⚔ compare |
| Weber's Backyard BBQ | 8 | 3 | 5 | 38% | ⚔ compare |
| MRC_Barbecue | 7 | 4 | 3 | 57% | ⚔ compare |
| Team Meat Coma | 7 | 4 | 3 | 57% | ⚔ compare |
| GOOD GOOGLY GOO BBQ | 7 | 3 | 3 | 43% | ⚔ compare |
| Oink N' Doink BBQ | 6 | 5 | 1 | 83% | ⚔ compare |
| RED SMOKE BAR-B-QUE | 6 | 4 | 2 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| SOUTH BOWIE SMOKE | 6 | 4 | 2 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| Bill's Back Yard | 6 | 4 | 2 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| 2 Old Navy Chiefs and a Baker | 6 | 4 | 2 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| DRILLING & GRILLING | 6 | 3 | 3 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 171.4056 | 151.4288 | 162.37 | top 49% |
| Pork Ribs | 10 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 173.1084 | 158.8000 | 165.01 | top 34% |
“Calls” = top-10 category finishes (getting called to the stage). Scores here are the final weighted totals KCBS publishes; per-criterion appearance/taste/tenderness marks aren’t in the public results feed.
By field size and state
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 7 | 0 | top 46% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 24% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| York County BBQ Festival (Day 1) | 4 | 3 | 0 | top 48% | Jun 27, 2025 |
| Maryland State BBQ Bash | 3 | 9 | 0 | top 51% | Oct 13, 2023 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2021
4 contests
Contests a season
2.5
across 4 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
PA
5 of 10 contests · 2 states in all
Contests visited
5
2 of them more than once
Opponents faced
286
finished ahead 399 times, behind 220
Longest layoff
1.7 yrs
Oct 13, 2023 → Jun 27, 2025
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20252 milestones
- 10th tracked contest York County BBQ Festival (Day 1)
- Most recent contest York County BBQ Festival (Day 1)
20234 milestones
- First overall podium York County BBQ Festival
- Career-best overall score342.7884 York County BBQ Festival
- Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)173.1084 York County BBQ Festival
- Peak power rating (1561) Smoke on the Rail (Day 1)
20214 milestones
- First tracked contest Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 1
- First call Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 1
- First overall top-10 Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 1
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score336.5600 Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 1
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +13.8 | Smoke on the Rail (Day 1) | Jul 28, 2023 |
| +13 | York County BBQ Festival | Jun 16, 2023 |
| +12.8 | Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 1 | Apr 16, 2021 |
| +9.7 | Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 2 | Apr 17, 2021 |
| +8.6 | Maryland State BBQ Bash | Oct 14, 2022 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -10.5 | York County BBQ Festival (Day 1) | Jun 27, 2025 |
| -7 | Maryland State BBQ Bash | Oct 13, 2023 |
| -3.7 | York County BBQ Festival | Jun 17, 2022 |
| -1.3 | York County BBQ Festival | Jun 18, 2021 |
Scores over time (% of a perfect score — tap a meat to add it)
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
How entries end (by meat)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 81% | 86.3% | 86.3% |
| 2023 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 67% | top 36% | 95.2% | 92.8% |
| 2022 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50% | top 43% | 90.9% | 89% |
| 2021 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 50% | top 30% | 93.8% | 91.7% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 27, 2025 | York County BBQ Festival (Day 1) 🏅 Delta, PA | 21 / 26 (310.7772) | 21 (151.9312) | 17 (158.8460) | — | — |
| Oct 13, 2023 | Maryland State BBQ Bash 🏅 Bel Air, MD | 20 / 23 (318.2284) | 22 (157.1084) | 13 (161.1200) | — | — |
| Jul 28, 2023 | Smoke on the Rail (Day 1) 🏅 New Freedom, PA | 5 / 51 (341.1544) | 11 (170.2856) | 5 (170.8688) | — | — |
| Jun 16, 2023 | York County BBQ Festival 🏅 Delta, PA | 3 / 29 (342.7884) | 8 (169.6800) | 3 (173.1084) | — | — |
| Oct 14, 2022 | Maryland State BBQ Bash 🏅 Belair, MD | 9 / 30 (327.3372) | 18 (162.2284) | 9 (165.1088) | — | — |
| Jun 17, 2022 | York County BBQ Festival 🏅 Delta, PA | 19 / 34 (313.5884) | 20 (154.7884) | 18 (158.8000) | — | — |
| Oct 15, 2021 | Maryland State BBQ Bash 🏅 Belair, MD | 9 / 25 (330.8228) | 11 (167.4056) | 11 (163.4172) | — | — |
| Jun 18, 2021 | York County BBQ Festival 🏅 Delta, PA | 19 / 41 (314.8460) | 22 (151.4288) | 11 (163.4172) | — | — |
| Apr 17, 2021 | Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 2 🏅 Hagerstown, MD | 8 / 34 (337.6572) | 6 (171.4056) | 10 (166.2516) | — | — |
| Apr 16, 2021 | Interstate BBQ Festival - Day 1 🏅 Hagerstown, MD | 7 / 47 (336.5600) | 14 (167.4172) | 6 (169.1428) | — | — |