New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

[bcruise]

Sooo....we've gotten near the end of this deadline day and still there's been no official announcement by MLB. What gives? Is it not going to happen after all?

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

[Theschill38]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

MLB made it official yesterday.

[Knight165]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

MLB made it official yesterday.

This is on MLB.com's website tonight....

(I just copied and pasted....it's on the front page(link)

MLB, union still in talks about playoff expansion
By Barry M. Bloom / MLB.com | 03/01/12 9:52 PM EST

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Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association passed a soft deadline on Thursday without an announcement on expanding the playoffs by adding two additional Wild Card teams overall, creating a one-game first-round playoff in each league, beginning with the 2012 postseason.

The new format was set late last year for a 2013 inception in the new five-year Basic Agreement between the owners and union. The two sides had a deadline of about two months to negotiate the logistics of beginning it a year early.

A report on Wednesday that the deal is nearly complete could not be confirmed. A highly placed source said negotiations between the two sides were ongoing and that work still had to be done.
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Mattingly on Wild Card expansion
00:00:44
Dodgers manager Don Mattingly talks about why he is in favor of the possibility of Wild Card expansion
Tags: Don Mattingly, Los Angeles Dodgers, Cactus League, Spring Training

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The agreement expands the Wild Card by adding two additional teams, one each in the American and National Leagues. The three division winners in each league would await the survivor of the one-game Wild Card playoff, establishing the Division Series field. The subsequent DS, League Championship Series and World Series formats would remain the same.

This has been the logistical problem: The regular season ends this year on Wednesday, Oct. 3, leaving only two days for travel, weather problems, plus season-ending tiebreakers for division titles and Wild Card berths and the Wild Card play-in games prior to the start of playoffs on Saturday, Oct. 6. The World Series is slated to start on Wednesday, Oct. 24.

This year's schedule was long set before collective bargaining ended with a new agreement on Nov. 21.

The expanded playoffs were linked this past November to the sale of the Astros by Drayton McLane to Houston businessman Jim Crane and their move from the NL to the AL, effective for the 2013 season. The Commissioner's Office and the union collaborated on those developments during last year's months of collective-bargaining negotiations.

The Astros' shift from the NL Central to the AL West will give each league 15 teams and all six divisions five clubs.

MLB has been studying how to expand the playoffs for at least two years, and it became a hot topic of discussion in Commissioner Bud Selig's 14-man special committee that has been studying on-field improvements of the sport.

The playoff and realignment matters had to be collectively bargained because they involve scheduling, and the union made it clear that any playoff expansion would be tied to moving a team from the six-team NL Central to the four-team AL West to create better competitive balance.

Michael Weiner, the union's executive director, ultimately said that the playoff expansion wouldn't have happened without the Astros' move into the AL.

The current Wild Card format and three divisions in each league were adopted in 1994. From 1969-93, there were two divisions in each league and a League Championship Series between the first-place teams as a prelude to the World Series. Prior to 1969, only the pennant winners in each league met in the World Series.

The new format means that 10 of the 30 teams make the postseason. The additional Wild Cards will place a premium on winning the division title for several reasons: The division winner will get at least a couple of days to breathe before the start of each Division Series, plus it won't have to burn up perhaps its best starting pitcher to win a play-in game.

M.K.
Knight165

[nonnel]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

Did you stop to think that maybe MLB would not allow them to include the option for this?

Perhaps SCEA even knew for a fact that the change would happen (doubtful), and yet perhaps MLB told them that they would not be allowed to incorporate it into the game. It's right up there with uniforms...why does 2K have things the Show doesn't? Because they have different rights and limitations.

Yup. I did stop to think about it. I discarded it after it's extreme unlikelihood became clear to me... but I did think about it.

And if that's somehow the case, that's somehow the case. I don't think I said anything that would oppose this possibility.

[b2th3m1th]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

all it is, is a one game playoff where the wildcards face each other for one game.
That is so dumb. I'm glad its not in. Its not really expanding the playoffs.

[nonnel]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

all it is, is a one game playoff where the wildcards face each other for one game.
That is so dumb. I'm glad its not in. Its not really expanding the playoffs.

You're missing the point of the expansion. It's not to just give us one extra game. It's to give the division winners actual reward. Now they don't have to play that game. It also punishes the wildcard. Now they have an extra hurdle to compete for a championship. And it also rewards the overall number one seed. Now they'll play the winner of that wildcard game, and it's likely one of the wildcard top pitchers will be used up in the wildcard game.

Also, saying "I'm glad its not in" is bizarre. You don't want it in next year either? Or the next year? Etc?

[bigdaddykraven]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

Please learn the difference between "dealbreaker" and "gamebreaker."

Gamebreaker means that it literally breaks the game to where it is unplayable (See MOST of Bethesda's games when first released).

Dealbreaker means that said feature or special is not included (or in some cases is) and makes the object not a "deal" for you, meaning you do not purchase it.

Anyway, as I said in my previous post, if it gets passed as a rule for this year, officially, then I know the team will do anything they can to get it in as long as they are sure it won't hurt the game.

[KCsFinest5]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

I think I still prefer a broken franchise mode over a broken entire game...

I keep reading this. Over and over. But no one has elaborated outside of "in the past, a patch has ruined gameplay." Can someone please explain this more in depth?

[bigdaddykraven]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

I keep reading this. Over and over. But no one has elaborated outside of "in the past, a patch has ruined gameplay." Can someone please explain this more in depth?

That comment you were talking about was a light stab at the competition (2K12).

For your thought though, lots of people don't seem to realize that adding another playoff team doesn't just mean adding a one game playoff between two best WC records. The game also has to take into consideration the baseball logic that each team must use with the new playoff spot.

Also, there's very little time between the playoffs and the last game, which is the point thats holding up agreements on the real 2012 inclusion right now. The new playoff changes the way tiebreakers may need to be handled as well.

Also lets not forget that they may need to add in special new commentary for this game and possibly on field and overlay graphics. There are just so many different factors to consider and I'm sure I've only scratched the surface with my few examples above.

If they can do it, they will do it. Yes the competition game has it in their system and yes, The Show could have probably added this in earlier but you know what, they didn't because they decided it was better to focus on other aspects of the game and make sure they were done right. We all say "they announced back in November that they'd be doing these changes" but do you really think the MLB crew just sat around until November and then decided to start working on the Show 12? No it takes months, I wouldn't be surprised if April or May they are already starting on MLB 13...

[KCsFinest5]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

That comment you were talking about was a light stab at the competition (2K12).

For your thought though, lots of people don't seem to realize that adding another playoff team doesn't just mean adding a one game playoff between two best WC records. The game also has to take into consideration the baseball logic that each team must use with the new playoff spot.

Also, there's very little time between the playoffs and the last game, which is the point thats holding up agreements on the real 2012 inclusion right now. The new playoff changes the way tiebreakers may need to be handled as well.

Also lets not forget that they may need to add in special new commentary for this game and possibly on field and overlay graphics. There are just so many different factors to consider and I'm sure I've only scratched the surface with my few examples above.

If they can do it, they will do it. Yes the competition game has it in their system and yes, The Show could have probably added this in earlier but you know what, they didn't because they decided it was better to focus on other aspects of the game and make sure they were done right. We all say "they announced back in November that they'd be doing these changes" but do you really think the MLB crew just sat around until November and then decided to start working on the Show 12? No it takes months, I wouldn't be surprised if April or May they are already starting on MLB 13...

Thanks man. I appreciate the explanation. Posters tend to throw a lot of statements out there that don't have a foundation.

[EnigmaNemesis]

There is some dynamic commentary in The Show 12, where Matt asks Karros about the new proposed expansion in the playoffs. And he goes on to elaborate about it for a good minute.

So there is hope for it to make an appearance. But as logic has been stated, only if it does not break anything and is cost effective.

[bigdaddykraven]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

There is some dynamic commentary in The Show 12, where Matt asks Karros about the new proposed expansion in the playoffs. And he goes on to elaborate about it for a good minute.

So there is hope for it to make an appearance. But as logic has been stated, only if it does not break anything and is cost effective.

I'm one of the cooler headed guys about the expansion being in this game...but if it happens and we don't get a patch and I have to listen to EK talk about it...that's gonna sting a little

[EnigmaNemesis]

It is mostly about the "proposition" of it, and he goes on to talk about different ideas. Nothing "concrete". Cause he ends it with a, "whatever MLB decides...", or to that effect.

Then again, they can always have that conversation removed on a patch now that the details are out there.

[THE_BG]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

Ok, Now it's been officially agreed upon.

[bigdaddykraven]

Re: New MLB Playoff Format Confirmed

Yep so now we calmly sit back, wait and see what the MLB The Show Team decides they can do.