bdp514am said:

---

If the Phillies win tonight, two teams that opened the season against each other will be squaring off in the WS. Not that it means anything, but has that happened before? I'm far too lazy today to go back and check the schedules for 26 years of inter-league play

---

Can't imagine it has but maybe

Is it too early to go ahead and sign Carter long term?

Can't wait for Wyatt Langford to break his on base streak next year

no real need to from a business standpoint since he is still pre-arbitration

What is Carter classified as this year? Besides a total badass?

He didn't hit the requisite number of games played, so next year he is a rookie. What is he this year?

Is it easier to win a World Series in the current playoff format or with any of the previous formats?

Up until 1969, you only had to win one series to win it all. But only one team in each league made the playoffs, which means it was very difficult to qualify.

Now, 40% of the league makes the playoffs, but you have to win up to four rounds to win it all.

Seems easier now since you just need to get hot for a few weeks in the playoffs versus having to be the best team in the league over 6 months.

I say you lock Carter up now for way cheaper than he costs later.

bdp514am said:

---

If the Phillies win tonight, two teams that opened the season against each other will be squaring off in the WS. Not that it means anything, but has that happened before? I'm far too lazy today to go back and check the schedules for 26 years of inter-league play

---

It doesn't appear that it has. Looks like the first time that an opening series was an interleague match was in 2013 (LAA @ CIN).

Oddly enough, in 2016, the opening day series for the Mets and Royals was a repeat of the 2015 World Series.

Now that interleague play has been expanded, it's got more of a chance of happening, I guess.

point taken

bdp514am said:

---

If the Phillies win tonight, two teams that opened the season against each other will be squaring off in the WS. Not that it means anything, but has that happened before? I'm far too lazy today to go back and check the schedules for 26 years of inter-league play

---

It could only have happened since '94? When Interleague play started.

Even then,it was mostly mid-season that Interleague games happened, AFAIK.

Interesting point and likely quickly researched. I'm on phone so I can't.

Proposition Joe said:

---

Easier now.

In the olden days, if you had a significant injury or two then you were done. There was no hanging around and then being healthy at playoff time.

Ditto trade deadline acquisitions. If you were 7th in the league in late July, you weren't going to get someone who was going to get you into the race.

Now if you're 7th in the league in late July you might only be a few games out of the playoffs.

---

People argue that the current format devalues the regular season. I think it makes it more important.

In the same way, the expanded playoffs will make the college football season more important.

The balanced leagues didn't happen until Houston got kicked out of the National League. That's when interleague happened throughout the season.

So it could only have happened since 2013.

FWIW, I checked for tickets in PHX for Monday - lots of tickets available starting at $350 for upper deck, $500 for home run porches, and $750 down the base lines (past the bases). Wife and I are thinking about flying out there for a game. If the Phillies win, then just wait for a refund I guess. Sharing in case anyone else wants to make a road trip.

https://www.mlb.com/dbacks/tickets/postseason#tickets

BassCowboy33 said:

---

Proposition Joe said:

---

Easier now.

In the olden days, if you had a significant injury or two then you were done. There was no hanging around and then being healthy at playoff time.

Ditto trade deadline acquisitions. If you were 7th in the league in late July, you weren't going to get someone who was going to get you into the race.

Now if you're 7th in the league in late July you might only be a few games out of the playoffs.

---

People argue that the current format devalues the regular season. I think it makes it more important.

In the same way, the expanded playoffs will make the college football season more important.

---

Disagree. 3 out of the 4 teams that had a bye lost. It's all about getting hot at the end of the season which means the beginning of the season isn't that important. College football use to have the most dramatic regular season of all time. Lose one game and your title hopes were pretty much over. Fair or not the 12 team playoff will never match anything like those BCS seasons.

interleague play began in 1997. The Rangers (and I think the Giants) played in the very first interleague game that season. Balanced schedules came later.

Voice Of Reason 11 said:

---

BassCowboy33 said:

---

Proposition Joe said:

---

Easier now.

In the olden days, if you had a significant injury or two then you were done. There was no hanging around and then being healthy at playoff time.

Ditto trade deadline acquisitions. If you were 7th in the league in late July, you weren't going to get someone who was going to get you into the race.

Now if you're 7th in the league in late July you might only be a few games out of the playoffs.

---

People argue that the current format devalues the regular season. I think it makes it more important.

In the same way, the expanded playoffs will make the college football season more important.

---

Disagree. 3 out of the 4 teams that had a bye lost. It's all about getting hot at the end of the season which means the beginning of the season isn't that important. College football use to have the most dramatic regular season of all time. Lose one game and your title hopes were pretty much over. Fair or not the 12 team playoff will never match anything like those BCS seasons.

---

Yeah, there needs to be a happy medium but the problem is keeping the financiers happy.

The regular season is absolutely de-valued in MLB (and soon to be CFB) -- however it also was necessary for the sport to survive. Baseball had half it's fans check out by July. College football was trending in a way that wasn't too much different - bowls had been watered down and no one really cared that much anymore if you weren't playing for a title.

I don't think you can add even more to the MLB format -- as you say teams already showed the extra series wasn't that big a hindrance. Possibly a shift to where the DS is like the new WC and all 5 games are at the host team? Yeah the Astros wouldn't have liked that, but historically home field means something in baseball (23 cents this year if you're the gambling type) over the course of a season.

For CFB, I've long said that on-campus home-field is what *should* happen... But the bowl format and the money behind it won't allow it. Every game leading up to the championship should be on the campus of the higher seed. At 3.5/4pts home field advantage in college football, the difference between being a 12 seed and a 8 seed is a home game (7-8pt swing)... difference between a 6 seed and a 4 seed is a bye AND a 7-8pt swing. That makes all the games still VERY important.

Getting hot at the right time certainly is a factor. But the short series also helps. Teams can do a better job of hiding the weaknesses in the backend of their rotation in a short series. And let's face it. The backend rotation is often where much of the separation between a first place team and a wild card team comes from.

Under the two team wildcard format, WC teams were advancing to the LCS at a .500 clip

fc2112 said:

---

The balanced leagues didn't happen until Houston got kicked out of the National League. That's when interleague happened throughout the season.

So it could only have happened since 2013.

---

Interleague play began in 1997.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interleague_play#Interleague_play_introduced

Quote:

---

MLB's first regular-season interleague game took place on June 12, 1997, as the Texas Rangers hosted the San Francisco Giants at The Ballpark in Arlington. There were four interleague games on the schedule that night, but the other three were played on the West Coast, so the GiantsRangers matchup started a few hours earlier than the others.

---

I bought tickets to every game against the LAD. I thought it was '94, but my reference was '94 because it was after that (graduation) that I was back in Arlington for the summer and went. But, I was early in saying '94.

As you can see above, it was June. Which was the month my LAD played in Arlington. Which means, it could have been '98 they were here.

Voice Of Reason 11 said:

---

BassCowboy33 said:

---

Proposition Joe said:

---

Easier now.

In the olden days, if you had a significant injury or two then you were done. There was no hanging around and then being healthy at playoff time.

Ditto trade deadline acquisitions. If you were 7th in the league in late July, you weren't going to get someone who was going to get you into the race.

Now if you're 7th in the league in late July you might only be a few games out of the playoffs.

---

People argue that the current format devalues the regular season. I think it makes it more important.

In the same way, the expanded playoffs will make the college football season more important.

---

Disagree. 3 out of the 4 teams that had a bye lost. It's all about getting hot at the end of the season which means the beginning of the season isn't that important. College football use to have the most dramatic regular season of all time. Lose one game and your title hopes were pretty much over. Fair or not the 12 team playoff will never match anything like those BCS seasons.

---

Getting hot at the right time does matter, although Texas was not hot.

I'd say more than getting hot, it is about staying healthy. Tampa and the LAD got bounced because of P injuries. I mentioned throughout the 2nd H of the season that both teams got decimated with injuries. If not for getting Monty AND Scherzer... our season would have ended because of injury to both P and Hitters.

The "Tanking" tactic would be interesting to see how it benefited or hurt teams. If Az had more to play for at the end of the season, they could have beaten Houston keeping them out of Post-Season play.

Legal Custodian said:

---

What is Carter classified as this year? Besides a total badass?

He didn't hit the requisite number of games played, so next year he is a rookie. What is he this year?

---

Since he was only a Sept callup, none of that time counts, per the new CBA.

I think it is WAY early. Not because he isn't worth locking up... I just want to see him struggle and slump to see how he responds.
3 Serf years at league minimum.
3 Arb years with team control.

Corbin mentioned above got 8yr/$111M.
Serf years: $1.6M, $3.6M, and $5.6M. So, roughly $9M over Minimum.
Arbs years: $10.6, $12.6M, $14.6M.

All are $x.625M.

I think end of next year would be the 1st conversations, unless he is in a situation like Martin Perez was.

Martin was willing to lock-up into a long term contract covering his Serf and Arbs because he wanted/needed money to get his family out of Venezuela, ASAP. JD helped facilitate State Dept and Political involvement to help Martin, as well.

bdp514am said:

---

interleague play began in 1997. The Rangers (and I think the Giants) played in the very first interleague game that season. Balanced schedules came later.

---

I was there for that. Still have my stub somewhere and got Jim Pooles autograph on my ballcap.

Voice Of Reason 11 said:

---

BassCowboy33 said:

---

Proposition Joe said:

---

Easier now.

In the olden days, if you had a significant injury or two then you were done. There was no hanging around and then being healthy at playoff time.

Ditto trade deadline acquisitions. If you were 7th in the league in late July, you weren't going to get someone who was going to get you into the race.

Now if you're 7th in the league in late July you might only be a few games out of the playoffs.

---

People argue that the current format devalues the regular season. I think it makes it more important.

In the same way, the expanded playoffs will make the college football season more important.

---

Disagree. 3 out of the 4 teams that had a bye lost. It's all about getting hot at the end of the season which means the beginning of the season isn't that important. College football use to have the most dramatic regular season of all time. Lose one game and your title hopes were pretty much over. Fair or not the 12 team playoff will never match anything like those BCS seasons.

---

Yeah, but instead of 7-8 teams fighting for a championship, now you'll 20-30 trying to fight into a playoff spot. Thus, more late season games will have have stakes, rather than a few games with astronomical stakes. Once CFB moved away from the BCS, the regular season lost value. It was playoff or bust. The NY6 meant less. Expanding the playoff increases that investment. But, yes, a Top-2 style championship with set bowls creates more drama, but with fewer fan bases involved.

In baseball, instead of 5-6 teams duking it out late in the year, you have half+ of each league. It keeps more fans more invested just by the sheer act of expansion. The NL had 11 teams fighting for the playoffs down the stretch. The AL had 9. In the old system, Philly had the WC wrapped up weeks before the end of the year with no real drama.

BassCowboy33 said:

---

Voice Of Reason 11 said:

---

BassCowboy33 said:

---

Proposition Joe said:

---

Easier now.

In the olden days, if you had a significant injury or two then you were done. There was no hanging around and then being healthy at playoff time.

Ditto trade deadline acquisitions. If you were 7th in the league in late July, you weren't going to get someone who was going to get you into the race.

Now if you're 7th in the league in late July you might only be a few games out of the playoffs.

---

People argue that the current format devalues the regular season. I think it makes it more important.

In the same way, the expanded playoffs will make the college football season more important.

---

Disagree. 3 out of the 4 teams that had a bye lost. It's all about getting hot at the end of the season which means the beginning of the season isn't that important. College football use to have the most dramatic regular season of all time. Lose one game and your title hopes were pretty much over. Fair or not the 12 team playoff will never match anything like those BCS seasons.

---

Yeah, but instead of 7-8 teams fighting for a championship, now you'll 20-30 trying to fight into a playoff spot. Thus, more late season games will have have stakes, rather than a few games with astronomical stakes. Once CFB moved away from the BCS, the regular season lost value. It was playoff or bust. The NY6 meant less. Expanding the playoff increases that investment. But, yes, a Top-2 style championship with set bowls creates more drama, but with fewer fan bases involved.

In baseball, instead of 5-6 teams duking it out late in the year, you have half+ of each league. It keeps more fans more invested just by the sheer act of expansion. The NL had 11 teams fighting for the playoffs down the stretch. The AL had 9. In the old system, Philly had the WC wrapped up weeks before the end of the year with no real drama.

---

I'm not saying I'm against expanded playoffs, because you're right. The end of the season is more thrilling that way but if we're talking about it making the regular season overall more important I just don't agree. March Madness is really fun but you couldn't get me to care about a basketball game outside of A&M until late February. College football playoff games will be massively entertaining but upsets in September will have almost zero meaning now. To me, with expanded playoffs, it's much more a balancing act or marathon than a sprint. Just stay in it , don't dig yourself too big of a hole early on in the season, and try to stay as healthy as you can and then hope you have the pieces together to turn it on at the end.

Again, I'm not against that. It just makes the stakes the first half of the season pretty low which doesn't equal a more important regular season to me.

The GM should be fired for putting together such a terrible roster.