Mar

Selig implements a better LCS format

Baseball will do away with the unnecessary off-day between Games 4 and 5 of the league championship series, Commissioner Bud Selig announced today. In responding to complaints by players, team managements and fans over the voluminous amount of October off-days, the Special Committee for On-Field Matters proposed eliminating the extra day off, and baseball has accepted the change. A seven-game LCS will now take place over nine days instead of ten. “The removal of the off-day,” Selig said, “during both League Championship Series marks the first step in a process that will ultimately result in an improved postseason format for our game.”

As for the Yankees, this news is obviously an interesting development because they used the extra off-day in 2009 to keep their three-man playoff rotation in tact. As much as I enjoyed that pitching advantage, the truth is that the Yanks played 15 games over 30 days in October, and that stop-and-start schedule disrupted the flow of the games. With weather always a fact in mid-fall, the games should be as close together as possible. Baseball might lose some money on this one, but the powers-that-be made the right decision.

Categories : Asides, Playoffs

7 Comments»

Accent Shallow says:

March 24, 2010 at 10:35 pm

It’s absolutely the right move to kill that off-day, but I really wish they’d removed it from the schedule entirely, rather than moving it to after the ALDS.

bexarama says:

March 24, 2010 at 10:48 pm

this

Yankees and Angels both clinched the ALDS win on October 11 and the first day of the ALCS was October 16. That was a really long wait. I know it’s because they swept, but the last time there was a five-game DS was 2005 (unless I forgot something terribly obvious).

Reply

Nostra-Artist says:

March 24, 2010 at 10:48 pm

Great news. A good series will build in intensity (and audience) as it progresses, and all the off days just kill the momentum.

To be honest, last year’s playoffs weren’t as exciting as they could/should have been, and I think the schedule had a lot to do with it. As long as they don’t any overlap and I can watch every game from every series, then I’m happy.

Ed says:

March 24, 2010 at 11:01 pm

Feels more like a token effort to say they’re doing something than anything else. That off day is really awkward and out of place, but the bigger issue is the postseason dragging as long as it does. Now you’ve still got the problem of the postseason dragging on, but you no longer get the advantage of the extra flexibility in the pitching rotation. I guess it’s better, but so very slightly.

tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a The Large Sample Size says:

March 24, 2010 at 11:11 pm

In responding to complaints by players, team managements and fans over the voluminous amount of October off-days, the Special Committee for On-Field Matters proposed eliminating the extra day off, and baseball has accepted the change.

The “Special Committee for On-Field Matters” sounds fake. That’s not a plus-plus committee name.

Dalelama says:

March 24, 2010 at 11:16 pm

It will really suck if Minnesota makes it to the ALCS as their new stadium is outdoors with no roof.