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Also another great example.
Pirates had to waste Liriano to get to this series.
NOW, instead of him pitching game 1 n 5 vs. Wayneright, he will only go game 3 or 4, depending on the series count.
This is how it SHOULD be for WILD CARD teams. They should have some kind of disadvantage going in I.E. Travelling like crazy like the Rays did, or using your ace like the Pirates.
One game for these guys is better than none like previous years.
Did you see the crowds at those 2 games by the way? BANANAS. First time I've seen a sellout at a pirates game since the Barry Bonds days, even if it was filled with 60-70% fake fans who don't support their teams until they win.
Cleveland fans were hype too, but Rays shut em up pretty quickly.Comment -
exactly.
Teams should be rewarded for winning the division.Comment -
Been drinking, don't know if shit I'm saying makes sense or why I'm quoting myself.
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One could argue that they would be at more of a disadvantage having to play a three game series and using three starters, so why not make it a series?
I think the two wild card teams is stupid to begin with. The whole argument that it makes it more exciting with more teams involved doesn't pass the stink test. Cleveland was still drawing pathetic crowds while they were in the WC race. ,I don't think Tampa's attendance got a big spike. Texas may have sold a bit more, but they were already drawing pretty well. And for all the hullabaloo, the NL race wasn't really that much of a race with two of the teams: STL, PIT & CIN pretty much locked into those two spots as the final week(s) approached.
My hope is the next commissioner fixes it. I think Selig did a lot of flawed things during his tenure to try to put a stamp on his legacy. If they keep the two WC teams, then I agree as most say - turn it into a best two of three. Team with the better record should get an advantage and host all three games as if it were a regular season type of series set-up. That eliminates any bitching about travel, etc.Comment -
If there is any team that thinks it is unfair, they should shut up and win their division and then they don't have to worry about it.Comment -
It would be like the NFL playing a 16 game regular season, then playing one quarter of a wildcard game to decide who gets to go to the divisional round.
Then on top of that you had the stupid shit from last year where the wildcard winner hosted the 2nd round.
Can you imagine the Broncos going 15-1 and some 9-7 team like the Dolphins beat the Texans in a one quarter game then got to host the Broncos the next week?
Top it off and the winner of some exhibition all-star game in July gets to host the World Series.
Baseball's postseason is a shame.Comment -
The regular season is 162 games long. If you still can't determine which teams deserve to go to the playoffs then what's the purpose of playing 162 games?Comment -
I think that actually punishes the division winners. In baseball, there is such a thing as too much time off. The AL Division winners had 4 days off, and that was only to make room for a 1-game WC. If the WC was best of 3, you could easily see division winners sitting a full week.Comment -
Except that is a bad analogy. Aside from the fact that that didn't happen last year, a better analogy is a real life situation that happened a couple years ago. The Seahawks won their division at 7-9 and played the Saints who were a Wild Card at 11-5. Who should be the home team? The division winner or the team with the better record? The NFL says the division winner, but there sure was an awful lot of criticism when an 11-5 team had to travel to a 7-9 team for a playoff game. Baseball says the team with the better record. Fact is there is no system for determining HFA which will satisfy 100% of the people 100% of the time.Comment -
Well, what happens when you play 162 and 2 teams have identical records? I actually like baseball in that no team can be eliminated from the playoffs by virtue of a tie-breaker, like what happens in the NFL. Now I recognize that the NFL needs tie breakers because they can't just throw in a 1-game elimination on a Monday evening like baseball can, but it still is a strength of baseball that tie-breakers cannot be used to eliminate you.Comment -
Newsflash: If a team hosts 2 games of a best of 5 series, then that team is not the team that has Home Field Advantage. Now it's true that people didn't like the fact that the WC team started the series at home, but fact is that the WC did not have HFA. Each Wild Card team played a divisional round that went 5 games and each WC team was on the road for games 3, 4 and 5. You're comparing football, where every playoff game is single elimination to baseball, where the divisional round is a best-of-5. Obviously in a best-of-5 series, each team will have some home games. But the divisional winner has more.Comment -
Come on Hoss, I understand homefield advantage, but you don't think having the first 2 at home out of 5 is an advantage? It's moot anyway because it was a one year thing. Like Pavy said, you play 162 games and you can't determine the best 8 teams? Come onComment -
No matter how long the season is, whether it is 16 games or 162, there is always a chance that 2 teams will be tied for that final playoff spot. So spare me the whole "you should be able to determine the best 8 after playing 162 games." I like the new Wild Card format because it restores the importance of winning the division. As for the 2-3 format versus 2-2-1, there are clear advantages and disadvantages to each. If I was the top seed, I would honestly prefer 2-3 because even though I start on the road, all I have to do is win 1 of those then come home and take 2 of 3. In 2-2-1, there is a lot of pressure on the top seed home team to win both those games.Comment -
It wouldn't be too long for me, but it would be too long that it arguably punished the top seed who had to sit around and wait for the WC series to end. The Red Sox will have 4 full off days playing against the Rays. As I mentioned above there is such a thing as too much rest in baseball. The only thing I would change is make the divisional round best-of-7.Comment -
It's much better than the previous format.....So atleast they improved the situation, even if its still flawed
I remember a few years ago the Yankees and probably the Red Sox(?) were neck and neck with a few games left and one was going to win the AL East and one the wildcard for sure.....I remember the Yankees were playing backups and tanking in order to get the wildcard and NOT win the division because of the 1st round matchup the wildcard had......You'll never see that BS now
Too many years where the 1 wildcard is wrapped up with 10+ games to play as well.....In most years it will be how the AL was this year with 2 wildcards, the NL this season was not the normComment -
Tie breakers can be used to determine seeding and HFA. Tie breakers cannot be used to eliminate a team.
It was introduced for 2 reasons: 1) As you said, more postseason games = more money. 2) Having the WC keeps a lot of teams in the race for a lot longer. You no longer have to worry about 1 team running away with the AL East and having fans in all 7 other cities eliminated by the end of August. But yes, it ultimately comes down to more games + more interest = more money. You're hardly making a groundbreaking observation when you say a sports league behaved in a way to increase revenues.Comment
