Playoff Pairings Are A Joke!!!

[Soxsi75]

So if the season ended today, the prize the White Sox get for having the best record in the AL is to face Shane Bieber and Cleveland? Meanwhile, the third best division winner will get to draw under .500 Houston?? Who came up these kinds of pairings? It should be the 3 division by record 1-2-3 and then the other 5 should be ranked strictly by record!!

[South Side Hit Men]

There was talk of the three division winners having a live televised draft of their opponent, would have made for compelling television and would have given an actual advantage to finishing with the top records in the league.

In a season of vast one time changes, not making this one was dumb on all accounts. Plus the added grudge for both teams and fans for being selected as an opponent, as if you were the weakest team.

[TitoMB345]

1 hour ago, South Side Hit Men said:

There was talk of the three division winners having a live televised draft of their opponent, would have made for compelling television and would have given an actual advantage to finishing with the top records in the league. 

Lol, is this for real? That would have been so damn awesome, lmao.

[South Side Hit Men]

10 minutes ago, TitoMB345 said:

Lol, is this for real? That would have been so damn awesome, lmao.

An expansion of the playoffs and opponent selection show was reported for after the new CBA (in February, pre-COVID). 

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-playoff-expansion-proposal-includes-more-teams-and-new-wrinkle-on-matchups-report-says/
 

When the current year expansion was discussed, I heard it mentioned as part of the reporting before the format was finalized. This would have been a perfect year to try it, players would be much more amenable to agreeing to a temporary change. 
 

Players will want compensation/ concessions for permanent 2022 forward implementation.

im against playoff expansion, as it cheapens the season even further, but the opponent selection is the one aspect I do support. No other sport has this, and it would bring a lot of attention to the sport for general sport fans. 

[southsider2k5]

Three weeks until the playoffs and a meltdown about our first round opponent?  Bravo.

[Soxsi75]

2 hours ago, southsider2k5 said:

Three weeks until the playoffs and a meltdown about our first round opponent?  Bravo.

Don't mean to be having a melt down about it. It's just ridiculous that they are literally being screwed over for having the best record instead of being rewarded. 

[SonofaRoache]

4 hours ago, Soxsi75 said:

So if the season ended today, the prize the White Sox get for having the best record in the AL is to face Shane Bieber and Cleveland? Meanwhile, the third best division winner will get to draw under .500 Houston?? Who came up these kinds of pairings? It should be the 3 division by record 1-2-3 and then the other 5 should be ranked strictly by record!!

Don't worry, Houston will get healthy and be formidable come playoff time. Every team in the bracket looks scary on paper except the Jays. And even they have some talented bats. 

[Tnetennba]

Houston finishing 2nd in a shitty division and being seeded higher that two teams with better records is kinda dumb.  Nothing we can do about it now though.  Sox have to beat who ever they draw. 

[BamaDoc]

I will agree that current 7-8 of Cleveland or a getting healthy Yankees would probably not be my picks to play.  However we are playoff bound!!!!  Really a year ahead of schedule. Have to see how Keuchel’s back responds. Could you imagine doing this with old 24 man roster?

[WilliamTell]

I get giving the top 3 positions to the division winners, that way there's still something to play for. Maybe I can even understand having at least 2 teams from each division get in because of the strange schedule this season. But what I don't understand is why they aren't going by record for seeds 4-8. Seems very odd.

[ChiSox59]

The talk of this structure remaining after 2020 is awful. I’d you’re going to expand, make it 6 teams or go back to division winners and a wild card game. 8 teams is awful. It works for 2020, but that should be it. 

[Tnetennba]

1 minute ago, ChiSox59 said:

The talk of this structure remaining after 2020 is awful. I’d you’re going to expand, make it 6 teams or go back to division winners and a wild card game. 8 teams is awful. It works for 2020, but that should be it. 

Division winners and a single wild card works so well.  I hope we return to that too. 

[Bananarchy]

11 minutes ago, WilliamTell said:

I get giving the top 3 positions to the division winners, that way there's still something to play for. Maybe I can even understand having at least 2 teams from each division get in because of the strange schedule this season. But what I don't understand is why they aren't going by record for seeds 4-8. Seems very odd.

While it would make sense to go by best overall records, you're right, either do what you have quoted or kill the divisions entirely.

[Chisoxmb35]

6 hours ago, Soxsi75 said:

So if the season ended today, the prize the White Sox get for having the best record in the AL is to face Shane Bieber and Cleveland? Meanwhile, the third best division winner will get to draw under .500 Houston?? Who came up these kinds of pairings? It should be the 3 division by record 1-2-3 and then the other 5 should be ranked strictly by record!!

And they have to face Giolito and the 2020 Murderers Row. What are you even talking about? We'd be the heavy favorite's, especially if the Indian's continue to play like this.

[South Side Hit Men]

Four playoff teams per league leaves some semblance of meaning for the regular season. In a perfect world, three playoff teams would be max (best of three - Division Winner #2 hosts #3, top league record hosts the winner in LCS, no travel, all home games to the home team).
 

8 playoff teams per league beyond this aborted year / season would render the season meaningless for most teams “not tanking”. JR will have to change his advice spiel to other FO executives from offering fans second place carrots to fourth place carrots.
 

Steve Stone tweeted recently about expansion, so I’d expect 16 + playoff teams to be permanent, once a few crumbs are thrown to Tony Clark to accept the scheme.
 

The owners greed & avarice knows no limits, and 2 billion give or take in expansion fees are a bird in hand, whereas shaking down taxpayers by threatening to move to the remaining few viable cities (Montreal, Vegas, perhaps Portlandia if they don’t burn down the stadium first)  will likely not be as successful as in the past in this post COVID apocalypse world.  
 

Perhaps owners can go back to Congress for an exemption to pay minor league AND major league players below minimum wage. The average person cheers for clothes / patches anyway, cannot name more than one or two players dating a reality TV “star” or other “celebrity”. Good news for Kopech if the pitching gig never pans out.

[SonofaRoache]

8 hours ago, WilliamTell said:

I get giving the top 3 positions to the division winners, that way there's still something to play for. Maybe I can even understand having at least 2 teams from each division get in because of the strange schedule this season. But what I don't understand is why they aren't going by record for seeds 4-8. Seems very odd.

They are viewing 7 and 8 as wild cards, so they will be bottom seeded. Like a wild card with 104 wins would be the lowest seed in the real playoff field. The top two in each division are auto bids since the divisions don't play each other to determine who is best. Thus, each division must have fair representation and you cannot assume a third place team is better than any second place team in another division, even with a better record. 

[Dick Allen]

13 minutes ago, SonofaRoache said:

They are viewing 7 and 8 as wild cards, so they will be bottom seeded. Like a wild card with 104 wins would be the lowest seed in the real playoff field. The top two in each division are auto bids since the divisions don't play each other to determine who is best. Thus, each division must have fair representation and you cannot assume a third place team is better than any second place team in another division, even with a better record. 

I get that, but they should make all non division winners wildcards, and seed them accordingly from 4-8. They had to do it like this because of the schedule this year. To me you have to beat them all anyway so playing Cleveland in round one doesn’t really matter. That is why I previously wrote having your rotation set up properly is the most important thing of round one because 2 losses, your done. You lose to Beiber, which wouldn’t make you unique, you could be a few inches or a bad call away from going home.

Edited September 16, 2020 by Dick Allen

[hogan873]

I realize I'm in the minority, but I like the expanded playoffs and hope it sticks.  Even with eight teams from each league making the playoffs, teams still have to be good.  Finishing in the top two of a division is not easy, especially if you have three or more good teams (like the AL Central this year).  I would think that giving more teams an opportunity to make the playoffs would reduce tanking and create more competition throughout the season.  Without expanded playoffs, in a 162-game season, there are a number of teams that are out of it by June/July and some teams that are essentially out of it before the season even starts (I'm looking at you, Pittsburgh).  More playoff teams doesn't render the regular season meaningless, it makes it more meaningful.  More teams have a chance, which means more teams will take it seriously and put better products on the field.  If the expanded playoffs stick, the Sox are now not just contenders for the next 5+ years, they are pretty much a playoff team for that time period...at least.  Just my opinion.

As far as the parings, it does seem goofy.  If expanded playoffs stick, I hope they make some adjustments.

[Dick Allen]

2 minutes ago, hogan873 said:

I realize I'm in the minority, but I like the expanded playoffs and hope it sticks.  Even with eight teams from each league making the playoffs, teams still have to be good.  Finishing in the top two of a division is not easy, especially if you have three or more good teams (like the AL Central this year).  I would think that giving more teams an opportunity to make the playoffs would reduce tanking and create more competition throughout the season.  Without expanded playoffs, in a 162-game season, there are a number of teams that are out of it by June/July and some teams that are essentially out of it before the season even starts (I'm looking at you, Pittsburgh).  More playoff teams doesn't render the regular season meaningless, it makes it more meaningful.  More teams have a chance, which means more teams will take it seriously and put better products on the field.  If the expanded playoffs stick, the Sox are now not just contenders for the next 5+ years, they are pretty much a playoff team for that time period...at least.  Just my opinion.

As far as the parings, it does seem goofy.  If expanded playoffs stick, I hope they make some adjustments.

I think if they do keep it 8 there will be some adjustments. I think the division winners will get in, and then the next 5 best records. They will get rid of the top 2 in each division requirement, although with a full schedule, with everyone playing every team, the top 2in each division will most likely qualify anyway. 

[southsider2k5]

9 hours ago, Soxsi75 said:

Don't mean to be having a melt down about it. It's just ridiculous that they are literally being screwed over for having the best record instead of being rewarded. 

This is not being screwed over.  Cleveland is a 3rd place team.

[Squirmin' for Yermin]

14 hours ago, Soxsi75 said:

So if the season ended today, the prize the White Sox get for having the best record in the AL is to face Shane Bieber and Cleveland? Meanwhile, the third best division winner will get to draw under .500 Houston?? Who came up these kinds of pairings? It should be the 3 division by record 1-2-3 and then the other 5 should be ranked strictly by record!!

I'd much rather play the indians over the Astros..............

[35thstreetswarm]

I agree the seedings should be by record after the division winners.  I’m also delighted that I’m starting to feel some “bring it on” confidence that we can beat whomever they put in front of us.

[asindc]

14 minutes ago, hogan873 said:

I realize I'm in the minority, but I like the expanded playoffs and hope it sticks.  Even with eight teams from each league making the playoffs, teams still have to be good.  Finishing in the top two of a division is not easy, especially if you have three or more good teams (like the AL Central this year).  I would think that giving more teams an opportunity to make the playoffs would reduce tanking and create more competition throughout the season.  Without expanded playoffs, in a 162-game season, there are a number of teams that are out of it by June/July and some teams that are essentially out of it before the season even starts (I'm looking at you, Pittsburgh).  More playoff teams doesn't render the regular season meaningless, it makes it more meaningful.  More teams have a chance, which means more teams will take it seriously and put better products on the field.  If the expanded playoffs stick, the Sox are now not just contenders for the next 5+ years, they are pretty much a playoff team for that time period...at least.  Just my opinion.

As far as the parings, it does seem goofy.  If expanded playoffs stick, I hope they make some adjustments.

With due respect, so?  If a team doesn’t want to be out of it by June or July, play better.  If I am ever elected Czar of Sports, one of the first rules I would enact is that no more than 25% of teams in any sport can make the playoffs.  That is one of the things I love about baseball, it is damn hard to make the playoffs.  At that point, any team that wins it all is deserving.

For 2020, it’s ok, though they should be seeding the non-division winners by record.  After this year, go back to what works.

[flavum]

1 minute ago, 35thstreetswarm said:

I agree the seedings should be by record after the division winners.  I’m also delighted that I’m starting to feel some “bring it on” confidence that we can beat whomever they put in front of us.

I’d rather the Sox be in the final four of the AL because we won a division, but that’s just me. 

[SonofaRoache]

54 minutes ago, Dick Allen said:

I get that, but they should make all non division winners wildcards, and seed them accordingly from 4-8. They had to do it like this because of the schedule this year. To me you have to beat them all anyway so playing Cleveland in round one doesn’t really matter. That is why I previously wrote having your rotation set up properly is the most important thing of round one because 2 losses, your done. You lose to Beiber, which wouldn’t make you unique, you could be a few inches or a bad call away from going home.

I agree with this, I just think the above was their logic. The real crime is not giving higher seeds an advantage after the best of three.