Almanac Baseball: MLB (Make the League Better)
In his wonderful World Series wrap, Richard Marlow, vented his frustration that a team was crowned champion after a fairly ordinary season. The Braves went into the postseason with the lowest number of regular-season wins (88) while the team with the most (the Giants at 107) was bundled out in the Divisional race, so didn’t get the chance to square off against the Braves. This is viewed by many fans, not just Richard, as either unfair or unsuited to such a major sport.
While it would be tempting to suggest that the Braves winning from 10th is akin to the Saints winning the flag instead of the Dees and depriving the best team all year, I prefer to view it through the prism of the MLB postseason being like the end of year ATP Masters. Seedings are used to create the draw, but sometimes you get the unfancied bolter taking the chocolates.
Going back to the example of the Giants falling at the first hurdle, it is worth looking at who beat them. The Dodgers won just one less game all year than the Giants so it was an evenly matched contest. In the end, the Dodgers lifted when it mattered most.
In the pennant series, the shoe was on the other foot. The Braves played brilliantly and made the Dodgers look second-rate. Throughout the season, Ronald Acuna was one of the best leadoff hitters in the majors. He didn’t play a single postseason game, but that didn’t matter. His replacement, Eddie Rosario, took out the MVP. With solid hitting right down the order to Dansby Swanson at 9 and superb relief pitching, the Braves were worthy victors. As they were in the World Series too.
In the regular season, series are normally three games. Both pennant races and the World Series are best of seven. Those extra games tend to expose weaknesses teams have been able to conceal from April to September.
October is special because the old rules don’t apply. The focus of all teams leading up to the postseason is simple – just get there! The folklore of teams having crazy, unexpected, tumultuous Octobers where heroes rise like Phoenix makes the game so special.
I believe the current system for assigning teams to the postseason is spot on. If I had to make a suggestion to make MLB better, I’d say introduce designated hitters to the National League. There really is no need to see pitchers bat.
As it turns out, the head honchos heard my plea and will introduce the DH to NL play next year. It’s nice to know a humble baseball fan and scribe from a distant shore can help out. Thanks, MLB!
We’ll do our best to publish two books in the lead-up to Christmas 2021. The Tigers (Covid) Almanac 2020 and the 2021 edition to celebrate the Dees’ magnificent premiership season(title is up for discussion at the moment!). These books will have all the usual features – a game by game account of the Tigers and Demons season – and will also include some of the best Almanac writing from these two Covid winters. Enquiries HERE
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Reckon it should have been the other way, with the AL ditching the DH for the pitcher batting. Then they should make a rule where a starting pitcher unless they are injured has to pitch a minimum of 3 complete innings.
Thanks for the affirmation Brian I too have become an America’s pastime tragic.I love the fact that Baseball has the ability to build up the drama throughout a game let alone a series. I agree with the point about what our american friends call the “post season”, it is just that, a season within itself. The trick is to have a team ready to deal with October not just win a division. Baseball is essentially a sport of inches where one play, a dropped ball a bad throw is all it needs to give a team a chance to build on the mistake or a good swing of the bat. A well turned double play is a thing of beauty that is made to look so easy by the pros in the MLB.
The Giants, Rays, and the Dodgers were by far the best teams in the big show this year and for what!! A big fat doughnut
I am not sure about the National league adding the DH rule it was kind of a quirk that made it interesting to see what American league teams would do with the pitcher in an American league park.Having said that all the international comps , the world baseball classic, Olympics all have the DH role.
I like Mick’s suggestion about the starting pitcher but as the post season showed some teams were able to start their batting with a Grand slam – so what does a manager do with a starter who is being smashed out of the ball park.
I think the important thing is to keep the “essence” of the game that has stood the test of time – you still have to get someone around bases to score, but with so many tweaks will the old statistics still stack up given the nuances of the games have been changed slightly, such as the catcher cant protect the plate from a runner any more or for reason they still use wooden bats in spite of the risks – not aluminum like in lower standards of play.
The Atlanta Braves in the post season were not the same team as in July. In season trading is now much more prevalent with teams not in contention tanking to get draft picks. Atlanta made some expensive high priced trades to build that team late in the season.
I hope that is something we never see in AFL, but I fear is coming.
MLB seems to have similar issues to cricket and golf with slow pace of play not fitting into broadcast timelines and not enough action to attract younger fans. Games have lengthened nearly a half hour in 15 years as pitchers time waste to throw at harder velocities, which in turn reduces scoring and turns off fans.
The post season was great – but its like judging the health of AFL on the finals season.