Playoffs expand to 16 this year after all

[SteveA]

Negotiations between MLB and the union to go to a 16 team playoff are back on.   If they can come to agreement before the first pitch in DC tomorrow, it would happen.   If they can't, it won't.

[weams]

 

[weams]

 

[Just Regular]

I think I saw on the pregame the 1-"8", 2-"7" and 3-"6" matchups will be determined by the Division Winners picking their first round opponent, with the Division Winner having home-field for all three games of the first series.

[VeveJones007]

Best chance the O’s will have at the playoffs for the next few years.

[SteveA]

4 minutes ago, OrioleDog said:

I think I saw on the pregame the 1-"8", 2-"7" and 3-"6" matchups will be determined by the Division Winners picking their first round opponent, with the Division Winner having home-field for all three games of the first series.

The press release Weams posted says that the higher seed gets home field in all 3 games, so the 4/5 would do that too (Best 2nd place team vs 2nd best 2nd place team).

It doesn't mention anything about choosing opponents.

I'll be curious to see what home field advantage is in the majors this year.   Last year it was 53% to 47%, home team across the major leagues.

Without fans, I wonder if that will go down?

[TommyPickles]

Gotta say, I'm not into this.  I like the 10 team playoff system a lot.  I've loved it since it debuted in the 2012 season and we won the Wild Card game...  I'm also, of course, on board with this rebuild and have faith in Elias and co.

That said.....

This would be SUCH a fun year to be a .500 team. I'm jealous.

 

[Moshagge3]

I have no faith that this will only happen for 2020 (see also the crappy new extra inning rule). If any one of the eight opening round "series" ends on a walkoff or something, Manfred will point to it and say, "Look how great that Reds-Rockies series was! Why wouldn't we want this every year?!" Bleccch. 

[interloper]

I dig it. I never really thought the one game wild card play-in was good. It's such a flukey luck-based setup after grinding 162 to make it in. 

[Moshagge3]

6 minutes ago, interloper said:

I dig it. I never really thought the one game wild card play-in was good. It's such a flukey luck-based setup after grinding 162 to make it in. 

And now even the best teams in baseball that win 100+ games and their division get to be thrown into a flukey luck-based setup.

[SteveA]

12 minutes ago, interloper said:

I dig it. I never really thought the one game wild card play-in was good. It's such a flukey luck-based setup after grinding 162 to make it in. 

That never bothered me because it was "only" wild cards that had the 1 game playoff.  Compared with the long history of baseball when you had to finish first in a league or division to even have the chance to compete in the postseason, wild card teams should just "be happy to be there at all".  Throwing an extra hurdle at them didn't bother me.  It actually further legitimized the 162 game season by giving an advantage to teams that were able to come out in first place in their realm (league, division) over the true test of a long season.

Now the team with the best record in baseball will have to win a best of 3 from a team with a .500ish or losing record just to get where they would have been guaranteed to go (the round of eight) last ear.  Yes they do get all 3 games at home but I wonder what home field advantage will be in a fanless environment.  It was 53%-47% last year with fans.

So to me, this 16 team format cheapens the value of the full season more than the 1 game WC playoff.  If it's only for the 60 game gimmick season I'm ok with it but I don't want to see it next year.

[TommyPickles]

Imagine winning 107 regular season games (19' Astros) and getting knocked out of the playoffs in two games by a 78 win team (19' Rangers) lol

[Lucky_13]

I'm not sure how i feel about this. On the one hand I agree that the three game series can be kind of flukey and knock a really good team out early. But on the other hand, it could make for some great Cinderella story runs where the a .500 team makes a deep playoff run.  Imagine how much fun it would be if by some miracle the Orioles snuck in as the #8 seed and caught fire. 

I have a feeling it will play out like the NBA where the #1 and #2 seeds simply destroy their competition in the first round and move on like its nothing. 

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

18 minutes ago, Moshagge3 said:

I have no faith that this will only happen for 2020 (see also the crappy new extra inning rule). If any one of the eight opening round "series" ends on a walkoff or something, Manfred will point to it and say, "Look how great that Reds-Rockies series was! Why wouldn't we want this every year?!" Bleccch. 

It's going to make the regular season meaningless like the NBA. Teams won't care as much about winning the division and the goal will be finish over .500 to get into the playoffs. No point in grinding out 100 wins if an 82 win team that is fresh can take you out in a 3 game playoff. 

[SteveA]

Just now, Lucky_13 said:

I'm not sure how i feel about this. On the one hand I agree that the three game series can be kind of flukey and knock a really good team out early. But on the other hand, it could make for some great Cinderella story runs where the a .500 team makes a deep playoff run.  Imagine how much fun it would be if by some miracle the Orioles snuck in as the #8 seed and caught fire. 

I have a feeling it will play out like the NBA where the #1 and #2 seeds simply destroy their competition in the first round and move on like its nothing. 

In the NBA, the first round is best of 5, right?  That's more likely for the better team to win than best of 3.  And baseball has the critical importance of the starting pitcher.  If he has a bad day, which happens sometimes, your team's chances of losing go way up.  I don't think any one NBA players, at least on a championship caliber team, has they big an effect.  Even LeBron or Steph.  Because those teams have other championship caliber players.

If MLB went with this system long-term, I would predict a much higher #8vs#1 upset rate than the NBA has seen.