Report: MLB considering expansion of playoffs

A report from Joel Sherman of the New York Post says Major League Baseball is considering a move from 10 to 14 playoff teams beginning in 2022.

The current system has five playoff teams from each league: three division winners, and two wild card teams. The new concept bumps that up to four wild card teams in each league.

Sherman describes the new system being considered, writing, “the team with the best record in each league would receive a bye to avoid the wild-card round and go directly to the Division Series. The two other division winners and the wild card with the next best record would each host all three games in a best-of-three wild-card round. So the bottom three wild cards would have no first-round home games.”

Sherman reports that the division winner with the second-best record in the league would get to select which of the three lowest wild card teams to play, then the third division winner would choose to play one of the remaining wild card teams, leaving the other two wild card teams to play each other.

Under this system and using last year’s NL records as an example, the Dodgers would have received the first round bye with their best record. The Atlanta Braves (NL East champs) would then have gotten to choose between the Brewers, Mets and Diamondbacks for their best-of-three series. After that selection, the Cardinals (NL Central champs) would’ve chosen, leaving the Nationals (best record out of all wild card teams) to host the remaining wild card team.

Sherman continues that the league would want this selection process to take place on TV on the Sunday night following the conclusion of the regular season. As Sherman reports, “any change in playoff format must be collectively bargained with the union.”

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