http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/joe_sheehan/09/01/wild.card/index.html#ixzz1Wjehjymw
Joe Sheehan makes the point that ditching the wild card would make the division race in the AL East meaningful. I suppose it would, but I'm not a fan of that solution. One of the aggravating things about the division system was that the Sox would have the second best record in the league and still not make the playoffs. That said, here is a good point from Joe: MLB is trying to fix a problem of its own creation. In 1994, when they first > instituted the wild card as part of a radical realignment and playoff > expansion, they sent the message that pennant races and division titles -- > the trappings of September -- meant less than the short-season tournament of > best-of series -- the trappings of October. A division title was no longer > an accomplishment in and of itself, but rather, just another playoff spot, > as it is in the NBA and NFL. I hear what he's saying, but getting rid of the wildcard won't improve division races because it's not the structure of the race that makes the difference, it's whether several teams are close to the line. Personally, I'd rather see the World Series be one of several tournaments played throughout the season. Ray -- Author of Robot Haiku : Poems for humans to read until their robots decide it's kill time. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Red Sox Citizens" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/redsoxcitizens?hl=en.
