With the National Hockey League and National Basketball Association playoffs in full swing, Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig has been pushing for a new playoff format for the 2012 season. The new format would provide a welcome change to baseball’s current system that has remained the same since Selig added the wild card spot in 1995. Selig’s proposal, which sounds like it is all but a done deal, would add another wild card spot to the playoffs and essentially add another round.
First, this is a done deal because the owners love it. Selig has made it look easy to get ownership backing, but it’s not that hard when your idea means more money in the pockets of people who live on the business side of the game. But in all likelihood, the final decision may only mean a few extra playoff games with the two wild card teams facing off in a three-game set where the winner would move on to the divisional round, which has been the first round for the last 15 years.
This is a great idea for the league, and not just because owners will get at least two more games worth of revenue. In fact, the financial gains go way beyond any extra playoff games. Because there would be an extra spot for teams to compete, more fans will be coming out to games that have extra meaning. In the American League, the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox have often battled it out to see who would be the Wild Card winner and who would win the division. Until the rise of another AL East force, the Tampa Bay Rays, it meant that the Wild Card spot would almost always go to one of these powerhouse teams. This meant that another good second place team would go by the wayside because the Yanks and Sox would still be way out in front. Now, if the sort of situation arises where the Wild Card leader has the record of a good division leader, there is still a chance for someone else.
Fans should look at this as a positive step because it means more meaningful games and just another spot for your team to eke into the playoff race. The only people one can imagine having a problem with this are fans of perennial playoff teams like the Yankees or Philadelphia Phillies because, if either of the teams slip up and get a Wild Card spot, they can be knocked out before even getting a chance to play in the AL Division Series. But this is a good move overall by the league. While it’s not as smart and pragmatic of a decision as when Selig added the Wild Card back in the 1995 season, this new playoff plan might spice things up.
The only thing this fan asks is to make sure it stops here. While there is certainly some great action in the NBA and NHL playoffs, there are just too many teams. The playoffs need to mean something and represent some sort of accomplishment for a franchise. When sub-.500-level teams are making the playoffs (looking at you, NBA) it feels as though it’s just an extension of the regular season. Teams that fail to win more games than they lose have no right to even have a chance at a run for the championship (though that hasn’t happened as far as I recall). So my message to the MLB is this: Great job adding a playoff spot to make September more exciting, but please do not become the NBA.
sports@theeagleonline.com
