My head is spinning.
No, not because of the Rockies’ dreadful season. Like many of you, I’ve become numb to the mounting losses.
My brain is doing cartwheels because my boss suggested that I write about Major League Baseball’s future expansion and possible realignment as the topic for my weekly journal. Thanks, Mr. Schubert.
So I read various opinions, contemplated rivalries, considered playoff implications, played around with geography, thought about schedules, and fretted over baseball’s history and cherished records.
Why write about this now? After all, expansion is years away, and we don’t even know which two cities will be selected when MLB grows from 30 to 32 teams.
Here’s why it’s a hot topic: Commissioner Rob Manfred recently discussed it on ESPN.
“I think if we expand, it provides us with an opportunity to geographically realign,” Manfred said. “I think we could save a lot of wear and tear on our players in terms of travel.”
Manfred also talked about TV broadcast schedules, time zones, and the need to grow the game. The last MLB expansion event was in 1998 when Arizona and Tampa Bay joined. The time has come to expand. My front-runners are Salt Lake City, Nashville, Portland, and Charlotte. Picking two from that group will be tough. However, there are other cities in the running.
I’ve seen various plans for realignment. Many would scrap the American and National leagues. One plan would create four eight-team divisions.
The plan I like most would create eight four-team divisions, based on geography. I would keep the American and National leagues and protect division rivalries such as Yankees-Red Sox, Dodgers-Giants and Cardinals-Cubs.
The Rockies would leave the NL West and jump to an AL division. The Dodgers wouldn’t be able to bully the Rockies year after year. And let’s face it, the Rockies don’t have a rival.
Here’s how the realignment would look:
AL East
• Baltimore Orioles
• Boston Red Sox
• New York Yankees
• Toronto Blue Jays
Traditional rivals, tough crowds, and good baseball.
AL West
• Las Vegas Athletics
• Los Angeles Angels
• Salt Lake City or Portland
• Seattle Mariners
It’s a sensible plan for travel purposes, and who knows, maybe Vegas vs. Salt Lake turns into a rivalry.
AL North
• Chicago White Sox
• Cleveland Guardians
• Detroit Tigers
• Minnesota Twins
The weather would be a problem in the spring and fall, but those fans are used to it.
AL South
• Colorado Rockies
• Houston Astros
• Kansas City Royals
• Texas Rangers
Hey, Denver and K.C. are both on I-70, right? Additionally, Colorado is a playground for wealthy Texans, making it a natural fit.
NL East
• New York Mets
• Philadelphia Phillies
• Pittsburgh Pirates
• Washington Nationals
The Pirates have to switch divisions, but I’m not sure it matters. Fans from Philly and Queens can continue to duke it out.
NL West
• Arizona Diamondbacks
• Los Angeles Dodgers
• San Diego Padres
• San Francisco Giants
The division stays the same, except for the loss of the Rockies. I’m betting West Coast pitchers won’t miss Coors Field.
NL North
• Chicago Cubs
• Cincinnati Reds
• Milwaukee Brewers
• St. Louis Cardinals
Good, strong baseball fans in Middle America.
NL South
• Atlanta Braves
• Miami Marlins
• Nashville or Charlotte
• Tampa Bay Rays
This would be the most problematic division because, once the Braves get their act together, they would dominate.
Now, on to the schedule.
I’m not an analytical person, so I turned to Hall of Fame baseball writer Jayson Stark for his concept. Stark foresees the possibility of MLB cutting its schedule from 162 games to 156.
Here’s what Stark wrote recently in The Athletic:
“One club official we spoke with this week casually referred to baseball’s current 162-game slog as ‘an endangered species.’ Another longtime club executive, also granted anonymity so he could speak freely, was even more emphatic. ‘Expansion,’ he said, ‘means the end of 162.’ ”
I’m OK with that. I could even buy into returning to 154 games. Of course, fewer games could mean less money for the players, and their union could balk at that idea. Some fans might worry about records, but baseball survived the change from 154 to 162, and it survived lockouts, strikes and steroids.
But for the sake of this exercise, let’s return to Stark’s idea of 156:
• Twelve games versus each of the other three teams inside the division (36 games).
• Six games versus the other 12 teams in your league (72).
• Three games versus the 16 teams from the other league (48).
That brings us to 156. The players could get more days off, and maybe the World Series would stick to October, where it belongs.
Stark suggests expanding the playoffs from 12 teams to 16. I can’t go there. I don’t want half of the teams in the playoffs. I say, stick with 12 teams, six from each league. That would break down to four division winners and two wild-card teams from each league.
So, there you have it. Your Colorado Rockies, AL South champions in 2034!
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