Realignment

[Jimenez4MVP]

Rivalries wouldn't be rivalries anymore. Especially in the city. Plus you give each city less of a chance to win with having both teams of one city in the same division. Cubs-Sox would lose it's luster. There really would be no more Yankees - Red Sox rivalry.

 

Interleague play is meant for those rivalry games. You mean to tell me you rather see the Sox facing a new opponent like the Rockies for the same opponent in the Royals or Tigers?? Interleague play is no worse than regular play. You might get a lopsided game or you might get a real great game. Same goes as facing your own division. I myself would be sick of seeing the White Sox pound on the Royals 30 games a year.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I didnt put KC and White Sox in the same division, they arent even in the same league for that matter..

 

How does that erase Red Sox Yankees rivalry?

 

Cubs-Chi Sox would never lose its luster.. that would be great to have those two teams competing against eachother in the same division I would love it..

 

I hate interleague, its stupid.. If interleague is meant for those rivalry games, why not just make it so they play every year in more meaningful situtions than just a few times every season.. it would be much more enjoyable

[wsox08]

I would rather have an equal amount of AL and NL teams.

[AirScott]

And 12 out of 32 isn't 50%.

I'm on a roll in this thread. I'm not even editing that last mistake.

[YASNY]

I would move Colorado to the AL West, Houston to the NL West to make 6 5 team divisions. 

 

Each division would play a 3 game home and 3 away against each team its opposite division, ie Al Central V NL Central.  A 2 game home and 2 away series against each team in one of the other interleague divisions (for the AL central, NL East one year, NL West then next).  A 3 game home and 3 away against all non-division teams in the same league.  And 2 3 game home and 3 game away series against the other 4 teams in it's division.

 

--This adds up to 158 games which permits the WC series to start earlier -something that should have been done when it started.

 

--All teams in the same division play the same teams the same number of times home and away.

 

--Every team in baseball will play at every park at least every other year.

 

--Keeps the natural rivalry series which makes big bucks for baseball.

 

There is one major problem with this scenario. You would have 15 teams in each league. With 15 being an odd number, you'd have a scheduling nightmare. You'd have to have at least one interleague series going on at all times or one team from each league would be sitting idle. Even with an interleague series going on all the time, I don't think this is doable.

[Dam8610]

anyway only 8 teams out of 30 makes the playoffs, or 26%.  in the NFL it's 12 out of 32, 50%.  NBA it's 16 of 30, 53%, same as NHL.  so baseball's regular season is the most meaningful of the 4, so no changes are necessary.

 

12/32 is not 50%, it's 37.5%, and because the NFL has such a short season, it has the most meaningful season, because ground lost isn't as easily made up as it can be in MLB. One win or loss can make or brake the whole season in the NFL. The same can't be said in MLB, except in very rare cases (close division race at the end of the season, 1 game playoff).

[kapkomet]

I know this is meant to be hypothetical, but it's not going to happen, and unless there's talk from the commissioner's office of it even being a remote possibility, this thread should start gasping for air and breathe some carbon dioxide and die.

[DonkeyKongerko]

There is one major problem with this scenario.  You would have 15 teams in each league.  With 15 being an odd number, you'd have a scheduling nightmare.  You'd have to have at least one interleague series going on at all times or one team from each league would be sitting idle.  Even with an interleague series going on all the time, I don't think this is doable.

 

Finally, some logic injected into this thread.

 

And I'm sure teams that had to switch leagues would love the opportunity to have to learn an all new division and league while simultaneously having to rebuild their teams around a DH or dropping existing DH's off the roster.

 

The only thing that I would like to see is a 7-game Wild Card series.

[Soxfest]

It would lose it's luster after the first 10 games. Bad idea.

 

 

Yeah I would hate to lose some of those Detroit games

Edited June 19, 2005 by Soxfest

[YASNY]

It would lose it's luster after the first 10 games. Bad idea.

Yeah I would hate to lose some of those Detroit games

 

You have to admit, the whole city gets up for these Cubs vs Sox series. If they happened 3 times a year in each ballpark, it would not be as special. Instead of being an "event", they would be just another ballgame.

[TLAK]

There is one major problem with this scenario.  You would have 15 teams in each league.  With 15 being an odd number, you'd have a scheduling nightmare.  You'd have to have at least one interleague series going on at all times or one team from each league would be sitting idle.  Even with an interleague series going on all the time, I don't think this is doable.

Thanks for your critique; the points are well taken.

 

It's the purist in me that wants to see a balanced schedule, but the reality is that there is such a thin line between good and bad teams over such a long season that things really do even out. To my surprise, the flaws in the present schedule do not outweigh the scheduling difficulties you pointed out.

 

I tried to prove statistically that the unbalanced schedule sometimes sends weaker teams to the playoffs when strength of schedule is factored in, because some teams rack up inordinate wins against bottom feeders that the other team doesn’t get to play as often.

 

I found 3 questionable results, the '99 NL Central and the AL wild card in '96 and 2000. But the difference against common opponents was always much greater than against unbalanced opponents.

 

While intuitively I would like to see a balanced schedule, the facts are that the current system does seem to select the right teams. Unlike others who, when the facts are against them, go out and get new facts, I have to conclude the present schedule is not overtly unfair.

 

It’s not as much who you play as when you play them. A case in point is I'm glad the Sox got the Dodgers in June instead of April.

[YASNY]

All I can say is that there is a reason we have 16 teams in the NL and 14 in the AL, instead of 15 in each league.

[JUGGERNAUT]

The intent of the wild card was so that the 2nd/3rd best team in the AL/NL wasn't left out of the dance. Now I don't want to start a controversy but when you look at the wildcard team's over the years it looks like it's true purpose was to help insure that both the NYY & Boston make the post-season each year.

 

It will be quite a shock to MLB if the Twins/White Sox earn the WC.

 

As for realignment in general you can't force the NL to use the DH & you will never see the Cub in the same division as the White Sox. Realignment has always been centered on shortening the distance between division games to cut down the travel for players & spur local interest.

 

In that respect I would make two changes:

1-Move the Twins to the ALW

2-Move the Brewers to the ALC

 

I would ask the NL to consider a modified version of the DH. A team can only use a designated hitter in place of a STARTING PITCHER. When the starter is removed from the game the DH becomes a bench player. They might consider that since it adds more strategy to the game. there are a lot of fantasy managers out there these days & this would bring a whole new dimension to that.

 

As for schedule MLB can finally do away with these unbalanced schedules.

Ex White Sox:

ALC games 19*4 = 76

ALW/E games 7*5 = 35

ALE/W games 6*5 = 30

Total AL games: 141

 

NL games: 21

Cub games = 6*

NLE/W/C: 3*5 = 15

 

When the White Sox play the NLC they will play the Cub 9 times that year.

 

This should help the gate revenue for the have nots.

[YASNY]

OK. Let me say this again. They won't put 15 teams in each league because it's an odd number and someone would be idle every day.

[JUGGERNAUT]

OK.  Let me say this again.  They won't put 15 teams in each league because it's an odd number and someone would be idle every day.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

No it doesn't. It just means IL play is spread out over the whole season. I happen to think that's good for MLB because IL is losing some of it's luster with so many games going on at the same time. This way MLB can market the one IL matchup that is happening every 3/4 days.

 

In a year in which the Cub & Sox would play each other 9 times they would be the only IL matchup happening when they were playing. All eyes around the nation would be tuned into those games.