By Jeff
I'd like to dedicate this space to Major League Baseball for slowly making their way into the 21st century. I'm proud of them.
The cause of this praise is that it was reported yesterday that MLB will work to expand the playoffs one additional wild card team per league, as well as moving the Houston Astros over to the AL and finally have six divisions of five teams. Not like it mattered for the Pittsburgh Pirates, but it never seemed fair that the NL Central had six team, while the AL West had four.
What's even more exciting about this move is that interleague play will become a weekly thing. This is the way it should be. Every other sport has teams from the other conference or league play a few times throughout the year, it's about time baseball made the switch.
Baseball enthusiasts (I'm looking at you, Greg) will probably not like this. Granted, they don't like any changes in baseball.
OK, I'm picking on Greg too much. I'm sure, or at least I hope, there are some changes he would or has supported.
Now if you're a Pirates fan, you get to see the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees more often. If you're just a baseball fan, you get to see more teams and great players in person. You're no longer limited to seeing them once every few years.
Now the big question is whether or not the DH will stay or go with this change. No stories have come out saying one way or another, so one would have to assume the DH will stay as long as an AL team is home.
Baby steps.
David Bowie - Changes
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ReplyDeleteIt's possible to pick on Greg too much?
ReplyDeleteWith interleague now being played everyday with the new deal, I really think the DH will be implemented in the next 5-10 years. Since at least 1 NL team will now be using a DH everyday, the difference between the two leagues will gradually fade.
I enjoy NL baseball more because I love the strategy needed with double switches, etc... That said, I have no problem not having to watch a pitcher be absolutely awful with a bat anymore. I'll be ok with just having them stick to things they're able to do.
I'd think the owners would like the DH as it would generate more offense, meaning more "excitement" for the fans, leading to increased attendance and more $$$. The players union would love it because a DH would add another high salary opportunity, driving up salaries as well as extending careers when players can't play the field anymore. I think this would allow Matt Stairs to play until he's 60.
The only thing about the new deal that worries me is the probable cap on draft spending. Because, you know, the Yankees and Red Sox are probably pissed the Pirates and Nationals are ruining the economics of the game.
You're definitely wrong about my thoughts. Haven't we talked about this before? I've been a huge advocate of moving an NL team over to the AL for quite a while. I like any change that makes sense and this one makes sense.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Zanic's assessment. They are going to be making up their mind on having the DH within the next ten years and the obvious choice is to use the DH because more runs is more exciting to the general public. For me, however, it will make baseball much less exciting. Why even have a bench if you don't need pinch hitters? Better yet, why even have a bench coach if there is about half of the strategy involved?