Getting to the World Series

Maybe go back to just the American League and the National League with no divisions and whichever team wins each league plays in the World Series - like it was before 1969.

 

No.
MLB already has the weighted schedule where division rivals play each other 18 times in the season. I get tired of seeing the same five teams playing each other while not getting to see other teams play.
I also like to see other ballparks. This past weekend I made it out to Seattle to watch the Mariners play the Angels at T-Mobile Park. It was wonderful.
Playing a first round playoff in your own division would be another added series to an already over killed scheduling of rivals. Keep the format, or...just eliminate divisions entirely and give the top 8 teams in the leagues a playoff spot. First round is best of 3. Second round is best of 5. League championship is best of 7. Then World Series. That would eliminate a scrub division like the AL central from having a bad team get home field advantage over a better wild card from the East.

 

If MLB is going to have so many teams in the playoffs, maybe they should chop about a month off the length of the regular season.

Get rid of the divisions. A team plays the other 14 teams in its league 6 times(3 home and away) and the other 15 teams in the other league 4 times(2 home and away). That would be 144 games and chop 3 weeks off of the regular season.

 

I would agree...except the 162 game schedule is tradition and all teams playing is more money made than only some teams playing.
Another scenario is to create two locations. Have an 8 team double elimination tournament (like college baseball regionals) where the best team wins and goes on to the World Series. Have cities bid for the right to host the tournament in early October and then have the World Series at the two teams ballparks as is tradition.

 

IMO, there's enough (maybe too much) interleague games now. The above proposal is only a whisker away from elimination of any groupings, e.g. teams play 5 games each against the other 29 teams. My dream solution would be to add 2 franchises and have two 8-team divisions in each league, with the division winners and the two best non-winners (by W-L) making the postseason, thus only 8 teams still in the chase.

 

I agree but that is the way MLB is heading in 2023:

"Teams will face their four division opponents 14 times each season -- seven home and seven away -- for a total of 56 games. They will also face the other 10 teams in their league six times apiece, playing a three-game set at each ballpark.

Rather than 16 Interleague games, teams will have 46 such games on the schedule -- four against their geographic rival and three each against the other 14 teams, alternating ballparks annually."

More Interleague games on balanced schedule (mlb.com)

 

IMO, that's a wonky way to schedule. In the interest of "balancing", MLB is extinguishing the concept of 2 different leagues. Who would be the Red Sox' NL "rivals"? I've no idea.

 

I'm more into football than baseball but I say drop divisions and the two teams with the best record... Duke it out!... Who is King of this mountain?... Brother Glen

 

Yep! Let the two communist teams duke it out!

 

I always find that odd. In the 1930's through the 80’s the color red was always associated with Communism. For a time the Reds changed their name to disassociate from the Communist implications.

Cincinnati Reds' nickname: Strange trip from Redlegs to Twilight Zone