2 Wildcard Teams? A Bad Idea for Baseball

Late September drama is something that has become a common occurrence in baseball, almost as common as the Red Sox and Yankees being involved in the playoff race. From year to year, the wildcard and divisional races often come down to the final week, final series or even the final day. That is what makes baseball so exciting to watch at this time of the year as teams are either desperately clinging to a playoff spot or fighting tooth-and-nail to have a chance to compete for baseball's biggest prize, the World Series. However, if the potential new baseball CBA is completed in its current format, MLB could be sapped of all  its late season drama. Major League Baseball wants to add a 2nd wildcard spot to the playoffs and have the 2 teams that finish in those wildcard spots play either a 1-game playoff or a best-of-3 series. I'm sorry, but who does that benefit other than the TV networks who would air those games? It would take away a lot of the drama and that is the stuff that fans love to see at this time of year, if you're not a Braves or Red Sox fan that is.

If the 2 wildcard idea was in place for this season, Jacoby Ellsbury's season-saving home run for the Red Sox in the 14th inning last night really would not have meant much at all. Of course, those in support of the new playoff format will say that teams always want to win and will always put forth their finest effort, but that alone won't put fans on the couch in front of their television sets. Ellsbury's home run is another example of something that makes fans want to watch the game and reminds us why we  contine to watch and to love baseball. For the better part of the past month, every pitch of every at-bat of every inning of every game has had potential to be the difference between life and death for the Red Sox, Rays and Angels. Despite how much stress the playoff races can put on fans of those teams, it certainly provides great theatrics for baseball and fans of the game. People love to see and hear about the races that end in dramatic fashion.

Similar to the story in the American League, the Cardinals have gotten hot at the right time and find themselves just 1 game back of the Braves, after trailing by 8.5 games on September 1. When the Braves lost to the Nationals yesterday, if the new idea for the playoffs had been in place, it would have meant about as much as the result of the Reds-Pirates game. Thankfully, there is just 1 wildcard spot available and that loss now has the Braves on the brink of a potentially historic collapse. Other than Braves or Cardinals fans, the possibility of a 1-game playoff is very exciting to most baseball fans. Think about the drama that was provided in the most recent 1-game playoff, Alexi Casilla hitting a walk-off single to win the AL Central for the Twins in 2009. The point I am trying to make is that people enjoy watching games that have playoff implications and the difference between going to the playoffs and going home can come down to one pitch. If the 2 wildcard spot idea is adopted, a lot of the dramatic wins that we have seen over the years may be reduced to just another regular season game.

For now, be thankful that we still have just 1 wildcard spot and enjoy the last series of the season with the 2 wildcard teams still to be determined. That is of course, unless you're a fan of one of the afore-mentioned teams which will be playing for their playoff lives in the coming days. In your case, calling in sick to work on Thursday will be perfectly acceptable, especially given the stress that you will endure between now and Wednesday.