How Would You Fix the Playoffs?

[Carp]

I like the idea of the wild card round lasting 2 days. You have a double header on day one and then a normal game on day 2 if needed. The day after that you start the division series. This gives a big advantage to the top seeded teams as they get to rest up for a couple of days and set their rotation while the wild card teams have their pitching staffs wrecked and don't get to throw either of their top 2 pitchers until probably game 3.

I also like the idea of playoff double headers.

Gross. Double headers are boring as ****.

[Carp]

The teams who received a bye this year are now 2-6 in the DS. Could have easily been 1-7 if not for the Braves miraculous comeback.

6 days it just way too many days off in baseball. This is not football where a bye week is beneficial to heal and prepare for your next opponent. Baseball is a marathon and teams are used to playing almost every day for the previous 6 months. A 6 day layoff is very excessive.

[NYCBrave]

6 days it just way too many days off in baseball. This is not football where a bye week is beneficial to heal and prepare for your next opponent. Baseball is a marathon and teams are used to playing almost every day for the previous 6 months. A 6 day layoff is very excessive.

Even the off days built into this series is frustrating. Why does there need to be an off day after Game 1 and after Game 2? I know it's for TV, but just adds to the randomness.

[striker42]

Gross. Double headers are boring as ****.

I think a playoff double header would be awesome. Imagine a team losing then having to immediately go back out there and fight for its life.

[Heyward]

Double headers are not happening but something needs to change. Maybe if the WC teams wins in 2 games, they re-do the schedule. Gives them a big advantage with all these off days and not the top seeded teams.

[striker42]

Double headers are not happening but something needs to change. Maybe if the WC teams wins in 2 games, they re-do the schedule. Gives them a big advantage with all these off days and not the top seeded teams.

No they wont. They'd be a great way to give an advantage to teams that do well in the regular season.

Bottom line, we have to find more of an advantage for teams that win in the regular season.

[Heyward]

No they wont. They'd be a great way to give an advantage to teams that do well in the regular season.

Bottom line, we have to find more of an advantage for teams that win in the regular season.

I agree, the top seeded teams basically have no advantage. If you make it out of the WC round, you're basically on even footing.

[Nerfherders]

Yeah they have to do something to fix this bye-break. It's real.

[striker42]

I agree, the top seeded teams basically have no advantage. If you make it out of the WC round, you're basically on even footing.

WC teams have better footing as they haven't had a week long layoff to get rusty. They've had exciting games along with the perfect amount of rest to be ready for the division series. The evidence over the last two years is that you're better off not being one of the top 2 teams in your league.

[Tapate50]

No they wont. They'd be a great way to give an advantage to teams that do well in the regular season.

Bottom line, we have to find more of an advantage for teams that win in the regular season.

Hard to build a team for a marathon of 162 and also a sprint 5 game series at the same time. The advantages you had over 162 are minimized.

[Klesko]

All 6 playoff teams play 3 games vs every team thats 15 total games. Team with the best record makes it to the world series.

[MadduxFanII]

The reality is that playoffs have always been an awkward fit for baseball, a sport defined by large sample sizes and something akin to randomness on a game-to-game basis. You can either go back to the pre-division days, when 50 was in his prime, and just send the NL and AL champs straight to the World Series, or you can accept that the postseason tournament will often produce weird results that don't align with actual team quality.

[Nerfherders]

It's always going to be a crapshoot. I like the round-robin idea though. Something akin to the College World Series.

[sc1767]

I never post but will on this subject.
7 games NLDS
Sat Sun off
Tue Wed Thursday off Sat Sun if necessary

Make it work. The most unfair thing right now besides seeds is one day on one day off. That’s horrible.

[cajunrevenge]

The problem with the playoffs is all the days off. Makes it a different game. DS should be 5 games in a row. Maybe have a day off in a 7 game series.

[bravesnumberone]

Another idea based off a suggestion heard on one of the Battery Power podcasts:
•Each Wild Card series becomes a max of two games (Tuesday and Wednesday assuming the season ends Sunday). The lower seed has to win two in a row to advance, the higher seed only has to win once.
•Reseed after the Wild Card. LDS starts Thursday and is either best of seven or the higher seed gets to host all five games.

[striker42]

Teams with a bye have won 4 division series games.

Teams without a bye have won 9 division series games.

Seems like there might be a problem.

[bravesfanMatt]

I guess every bye teams need to invest in metal trash cans.

[striker42]

Three teams won 100 games this year, the Braves, the O's, and the Dodgers. They're a combined 1-8.

[Metaphysicist]

First time long time.

Expand to 32 teams. Four division winners and four wildcards per league. Each division winner places a wild card. Division winners get a 1-0 advantage. Winning your division matters. Loser mid teams still get a "shot," which MLB seems obsessed with giving them for some reason. If they overcome the handicap, no one can complain that they haven't earned it.

Will hang up and listen to your response off the air. I assume we all agree this is the perfect solution.