NeoPhile
Can I get a "Bright not Broken"?
Baseball season is starting up again! This season, intentional walks will be handled differently, and the team with the best record gets home-field advantage in the World Series, not the league that won the All-Star Game. I can't wait!
I have some ideas on how the season should be run. I don't know if anyone cares about them, but here goes:
I think it would be a good idea to just do away with divisional play. Have the two leagues, and the best two teams in each league get to play in the LCS. (That's right. Just two playoff teams in each league. That way, the talent in the playoffs won't be watered down, and teams like the 2014 Royals who weren't very good won't make the playoffs.) Of course, the team with the best record in the regular season gets home-field advantage in the LCS, but the league that won the All-Star Game the year before should get home-field advantage. Why did I say, "The year before", you might ask? Because I think the All-Star Game should be played at the end of the year, not in the middle of the year. It would make the year a little shorter, and players that had a mediocre first half and a good second half could play in the game. Also, get rid of the rule that says that all teams have to be represented. Nobody likes that rule. For the All-Star Game, it should be just a 25-man roster like a normal team. Each All-Star team should have one of each position player (and, yes, one DH, even in the National League. It would give certain batters bad at fielding a chance to play.), five starting pitchers for each team, one fourth outfielder who's good defensively and can play all outfield positions, one utility infielder, one back-up catcher who's good defensively, two extra batters (pinch hitters on the team), one who's good at hitting home runs and one who's good at hitting for average, (One batter a left-handed batter and one a right-hander preferably.) One closer for each team, two set-up men in the bullpen (one a left-hander and one a right-hander) two left-handed specialists and one long man. All of these positions in the bullpen would make sure that relievers like set-up men would be represented in the game, and they tend to be overlooked for the All-Star Game.
Having positions like bench positions in the All-Star Game would allow certain players like a Mark Reynolds or a Dave Kingman who's good at hitting home runs and not a lot else a chance to play and be seen. They're everyday players, but they could fulfill the role of bench on the All-Star team. A Matt Wieters style catcher could be back-up catcher on the All-Star Team. Players like James Loney who hit for average and not a lot else could make the team. Back when the game didn't mean anything, it was okay to not take it seriously. Because players get bonuses in their contracts for playing in the game and because the winner gets home-field advantage in the WS, we should take it more seriously by putting at the end of the year so players who had a bad first half and good second half can make the cut.
Those are my thoughts. Let the games begin!
I have some ideas on how the season should be run. I don't know if anyone cares about them, but here goes:
I think it would be a good idea to just do away with divisional play. Have the two leagues, and the best two teams in each league get to play in the LCS. (That's right. Just two playoff teams in each league. That way, the talent in the playoffs won't be watered down, and teams like the 2014 Royals who weren't very good won't make the playoffs.) Of course, the team with the best record in the regular season gets home-field advantage in the LCS, but the league that won the All-Star Game the year before should get home-field advantage. Why did I say, "The year before", you might ask? Because I think the All-Star Game should be played at the end of the year, not in the middle of the year. It would make the year a little shorter, and players that had a mediocre first half and a good second half could play in the game. Also, get rid of the rule that says that all teams have to be represented. Nobody likes that rule. For the All-Star Game, it should be just a 25-man roster like a normal team. Each All-Star team should have one of each position player (and, yes, one DH, even in the National League. It would give certain batters bad at fielding a chance to play.), five starting pitchers for each team, one fourth outfielder who's good defensively and can play all outfield positions, one utility infielder, one back-up catcher who's good defensively, two extra batters (pinch hitters on the team), one who's good at hitting home runs and one who's good at hitting for average, (One batter a left-handed batter and one a right-hander preferably.) One closer for each team, two set-up men in the bullpen (one a left-hander and one a right-hander) two left-handed specialists and one long man. All of these positions in the bullpen would make sure that relievers like set-up men would be represented in the game, and they tend to be overlooked for the All-Star Game.
Having positions like bench positions in the All-Star Game would allow certain players like a Mark Reynolds or a Dave Kingman who's good at hitting home runs and not a lot else a chance to play and be seen. They're everyday players, but they could fulfill the role of bench on the All-Star team. A Matt Wieters style catcher could be back-up catcher on the All-Star Team. Players like James Loney who hit for average and not a lot else could make the team. Back when the game didn't mean anything, it was okay to not take it seriously. Because players get bonuses in their contracts for playing in the game and because the winner gets home-field advantage in the WS, we should take it more seriously by putting at the end of the year so players who had a bad first half and good second half can make the cut.
Those are my thoughts. Let the games begin!
