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Expand playoffs to 12 teams (like the NFL)?


Expand playoffs to 12 teams (like the NFL)?  

12 members have voted

  1. 1. Expand playoffs to 12 teams (like the NFL)?

    • 1 - The champion is the team with the best record
      0
    • 2 - The champions of the American League and National League
      1
    • 4 - The best two teams in each league (or the top two division leaders in each league)
      0
    • 6 - The division winners in each league
      1
    • 8 - The division winners + one wild card team (the current system)
      7
    • 10 - The division winners + two wild card teams (the top team in each league gets a bye for the first round)
      2
    • 12 - The division winners + three wild card teams (a.k.a. the NFL playoff system)
      1
    • 16 - The division winners + five wild card teams (a.k.a. the NBA playoff system)
      0
    • 30 - Let them all in - even the Washington Nationals and the Baltimore Orioles deserve a chance to win the World Series!
      0


I've been thinking, should Major League Baseball expand the playoffs to 12 teams (3 division champions and 3 wild cards from each league)? There have been quite a few teams that had better records than the division champions, yet didn't make the playoffs - the most glaring example was in 2005, when three non-playoff teams (all in the NL East), including the Philadelphia Phillies (88-74), had better records than the San Diego Padres (82-80), who won the NL West. If there was an expansion to 6 teams for each league, with the top two teams (in terms of record) having a bye round, that would give more chances to good teams that would otherwise not get in. If the season ended today, Texas, Minnesota, Atlanta, and San Francisco would all be awarded playoff spots. With the exception of Minnesota (83-76), all of the other teams are at least 10 games above .500 (all have 86-73 records).

 

I wouldn't expand it to 16 teams (like the NBA), since that would drastically increase the chance of a team with a losing record getting a playoff spot - in fact, the 2007 Minnesota Twins (79-83) would have gotten in under this system. However, this new system would give those teams that are 10-15 games above .500 a chance to play in the postseason.

 

What do you think of this idea? Please post your thoughts in the poll and in the thread.

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