tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post3473292371393999147..comments2023-10-16T07:13:12.123-05:00Comments on A plain blog about politics: Friday Baseball PostJonathan Bernsteinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15931039630306253241noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-45177440042669892142012-10-06T11:20:43.006-05:002012-10-06T11:20:43.006-05:00I think the comment about "too many great sto...I think the comment about "too many great stories" is really spot on. I was thinking something similar on Wednesday, when ESPN was shilling its TB/Balt + NYY/BOS games as a potential reprise of last year's final day. All I could remember from last year (which should be remembered for all-time as The Greatest Hour Ever (TM)), was that someone blew a save and Evan Longoria hit a home run, but for all I could recall, it might actually have been Eva Longoria.<br /><br />That this "signal to noise" issue is a problem is a terrific insight. It probably doesn't outweigh the additional revenue from extra playoff games, but as you note, it does dilute the impact of special games and thus the brand. Back in the 70s, when we nerds were being indoctrinated, we all read "Strange But True Baseball Stories", of which there were only about a dozen, so while none of us were alive for either, we all knew that the Shot Heard Round the World did not refer to the Revolutionary War but rather the Miracle at Coogan's Bluff. Nowadays there are way too many miracles for any one to matter.<br /><br />This dilution issue isn't unique to baseball; I see where Texas A&M is playing Missouri Thanksgiving weekend in what may well be billed as the SEC game of the week, though I doubt any of us will see it as such. The changes are probably economically justifiable for CFB (as for baseball), but the equity dilution could - big emphasis on "could" - come back to haunt these sports.CSHnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-42749425391577409982012-10-06T11:08:07.249-05:002012-10-06T11:08:07.249-05:00I concur that the new system is better than the la...I concur that the new system is better than the last one, and that fairness for the lower-ranked teams is a low priority. (Though I think the idea of having one of the teams need to win less games to win the series is too far out there; it is fundamental to sports that if you win the most games in the series, you win.) But in general, a sound principle.<br /><br />Still, one must have a certain amount of sympathy for Braves fans at this point, right? In 2011, they pulled an epic collapse to drop the Wild Card to St. Louis, which went on to win the World Series. In 2012, they soundly beat St. Louis-- but had to play them anyway, in a brand-new play-in game.<br /><br />And then they lost the play-in on one of the most terrible calls I've ever seen. They called the Infield Fly Rule way the heck out in the outfield! It was like the NFL replacement refs were in town.<br /><br />So, was it systematically unfair? No. Is it better than the old way? Yes. But that was just a brutal two-year stretch for Braves fans. I felt awful for them.<br /><br />And I'm a Mets fan, so that should tell you something...Robert John Burkehttp://www.burkestories.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-24495717335566890852012-10-06T10:14:44.484-05:002012-10-06T10:14:44.484-05:00I think my problem with not caring about lower see...I think my problem with not caring about lower seeds is that the divisional setup that every sports league uses (X divisions, team with the best record in each division gets an automatic playoff birth) is inherently unfair. Texas beat Detroit by 5 games in spite of the fact that Texas played in the much harder division, having only one pushover team instead of 3. That's not Texas' fault, and the idea that their harder schedule shouldn't matter is silly.<br /><br /><br />We should use a modified version of what international soccer teams use. Two leagues, no divisions, everyone plays everyone else an equal amount of times at home and away, with a preference toward intra-league games (So 70% of games against teams within your league, say). Top four teams in each league make the playoffs, 1-4, 2-3, seven games each series. You could even weight it a bit to match your preference for the higher seeds needing fewer games to advance in the opening round.<br /><br />The old reasons for divisions don't matter anymore; travel is much much easier, all of the big rivalries will still exist, etc.Jasonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06455148881718879961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-53179955539558244052012-10-06T05:50:08.777-05:002012-10-06T05:50:08.777-05:00Sudden death playoff games make sense in the NFL w...Sudden death playoff games make sense in the NFL where in the regular season you play a different team every week too. It could even make sense in the NBA if they wanted to do it. But baseball is built around playing series. Even the worst team in the league can win one game. You need at least a 3 game series to get a true test of who is better. Baseball could easily get a 3 game wild card series in the future. Just get rid of a few off days and play a few scheduled double headers in the regular season as needed. <br /><br />The Braves mainly lost because of their poor defense and lack of hitting with runners in scoring position, but after winning 94 games, they deserved at least another game to try to put forward a better effort. <br /><br />If sudden death games are so awesome, just make all of the rounds sudden death (yeah I know that won't happen because they make too much money off the additional games). If you're not going to do that, then the wild card round should be more than one game too.Ron E.noreply@blogger.com