MLB News & Notes (other than Cubs or Sox)

[Butcher]

Agree with all you guys. It makes winning the division a greater reward -- as it should be.

[Kid]

I think the counter to that is that even with a 3-game series there's a significant disadvantage.  There's 5 teams per league in the playoffs.  Only the WC teams have to play a game/series to make it to the LDS.  That's a huge disadvantage vs. winning the division.

[1060Ivy]

Still prefer to see a 3 game series for Wild Cards rather than a single game.

 

Understand the issue regarding greater reward for divisional winner but a one game winner advances in a sport that is based on a long season doesn't ring true for me. 

 

Logistics may provide challenges but guessing that they could be worked on.  As Kid points out, the division winners still have at least 2 less games than the wild card winner with additional rest and starting rotations better aligned than the Wild Cards. 

 

Would also look to see how many Wild Card teams have won the World Series vs Divisional winners.  I'm guessing that you could make a case that the Wild Card teams get less of a disadvantage as they don't have to play more than one game and can be better rested with the current format vs Divisional winners so the advantage of winning the Division is less than some are stating they deserve.

[rok]

I wonder if the additional rest may actually hurt the division winners. Not sure what history says about that.

[Kid]

I wonder if the additional rest may actually hurt the division winners. Not sure what history says about that.

 

I don't know the answer to that but it would be too small a sample size after only 2 years of the WC play-in game to draw any conclusions (plus it would be a completely different dynamic if the WC team had to play 3 games instead of 1).

[rok]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="rok" data-cid="229820" data-time="1412085093">

I wonder if the additional rest may actually hurt the division winners. Not sure what history says about that.

 

I don't know the answer to that but it would be too small a sample size after only 2 years of the WC play-in game to draw any conclusions (plus it would be a completely different dynamic if the WC team had to play 3 games instead of 1).</blockquote>
I'm thinking more in terms of any team that has a long layoff (3+ days) between the end of the season and the playoffs, not just after the WC changes. I'm not even sure if there are data on this.

[Kid]

 

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Kid" data-cid="229825" data-time="1412096586">
 

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="rok" data-cid="229820" data-time="1412085093">

I wonder if the additional rest may actually hurt the division winners. Not sure what history says about that.

 

I don't know the answer to that but it would be too small a sample size after only 2 years of the WC play-in game to draw any conclusions (plus it would be a completely different dynamic if the WC team had to play 3 games instead of 1).</blockquote>
I'm thinking more in terms of any team that has a long layoff (3+ days) between the end of the season and the playoffs, not just after the WC changes. I'm not even sure if there are data on this.
 


</blockquote>
 

But before the WC changes, it would have been 2 teams playing each other with the same layoff.  So the answer in that case is .500.

[rok]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="rok" data-cid="229838" data-time="1412101060">

 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Kid" data-cid="229825" data-time="1412096586">
 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="rok" data-cid="229820" data-time="1412085093">
I wonder if the additional rest may actually hurt the division winners. Not sure what history says about that.

 

I don't know the answer to that but it would be too small a sample size after only 2 years of the WC play-in game to draw any conclusions (plus it would be a completely different dynamic if the WC team had to play 3 games instead of 1).</blockquote>I'm thinking more in terms of any team that has a long layoff (3+ days) between the end of the season and the playoffs, not just after the WC changes. I'm not even sure if there are data on this.

 </blockquote> 

But before the WC changes, it would have been 2 teams playing each other with the same layoff.  So the answer in that case is .500.</blockquote>Not quite what I meant. Say both teams played a 5 game division series, which was the norm before the WC changes. One swept their series in 3, while the other won theirs in 5. One team gets an extra 2-3 days off between the championship series. How do those teams perform versus those who play on shorter rest.

[nakedman1664]

Looks like the A's will win. Might Shark get his chance this year?

[rok]

It's not quite over yet.

[rok]

The bullpens have been shitty tonight on both sides.


7-6 A's

[VanSlawAndCottoCheese]

They're in extras.

[Kid]

[VanSlawAndCottoCheese]

See, that's class. The Saint Louis police would just tell everyone to calm down by shooting an unarmed black kid.

[VanSlawAndCottoCheese]

The A's score in the top of the 12th, and the Royals answer in the bottom. 8-8.