Baseball sure knows how to fire up fans for the playoffs.
How’s this for starters: Three nights in a row with a one-off, all-in game to make the Division series. This will be baseball at its finest.
I’ve long contended that post-season baseball is the biggest upgrade over its regular-season product, but this could be next-level stuff. So rarely before last season did we see these one-game wild card play-ins and this year the stakes have been raised even higher with the Rays and Rangers facing off in a tiebreaker to make the wild card game.
Criticize Bud Selig for his failures all you want, but he has created a new playoff system that is exciting as hell. Think about how amazing a single-game showdown for the two teams tied for the final spot of the NHL playoffs would be. Are you drooling yet? Leave the statistical tiebreakers for seeding, not for who is in and out.
The best part of baseball’s wild-card: The teams who won their divisions get an actual reward of three or four days off, something only afforded during the season at the all-star break. After the long grind of 162 games over six months, I’m sure that’s greatly appreciated.
So sit back, relax with a frosty one and enjoy some of the most exciting baseball you’ll ever see.
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