OPINION: The MLB playoffs need to change

Truman Bartman, Staff Writer

Every year, when October rolls around, so does the climax to the professional baseball season. Major League Baseball’s (MLB) quest for the World Series title officially begins on Sept. 30 for the 12 teams that performed well enough during the MLB’s 162-game season. Each conference—American League and National League—has six spots available for those teams that reach the postseason: three for teams that win their division and three for the top teams in a conference that didn’t.

This setup has changed over the years to include more teams and more games, but its current structure has some glaring challenges. Many of MLB’s playoff problems stem from unbalanced regular-season and postseason schedules, a lack of consideration for the toll the season and playoffs take on the players, and the limited playoff spots available to all teams relative to the number of teams in the league. 

Compared to other professional sports leagues, the MLB only allows 40 per cent of their league to enter the playoffs, compared to the 44 per cent of NFL teams, 50 per cent of NHL teams and 67 per cent of NBA teams that make the postseason.

The number of playoff games that a team gets to play can be determined by its placement. In 2025, the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Guardians in the American League are neck and neck in the standings, with one of the two teams having the potential for both a first-round bye and a guaranteed three-game series. The other will be forced to settle for a series that could last just two games. With both teams being so close in the standings, the format that the MLB currently uses punishes teams that are in many ways on the same level, but only allows for a ‘best two out of three’ series to determine which team is better. 

After five long months with limited off days, a team that does enough to get into the playoff dance may only play two more games before facing the end of the season. In 2022, the Toronto Blue Jays won 92 games and had one of the better records in the entire American League. Despite their impressive regular season, the Jays only participated in two playoff games, being swept by the Seattle Mariners in the wild card round. One could argue that teams get swept in all sports and that it’s just a part of the game. 

The difference between the MLB postseason and seven-game-series leagues, like Stanley Cup playoffs in the NHL, is that teams play half as many games during the regular season in the NHL and receive a minimum of four playoff games. The NHL has also always permitted the top 16 teams to qualify for the playoffs as opposed to MLB’s 12. 

Building a roster in baseball is as difficult as it is to clinch a postseason berth in the MLB. Teams such as the Athletics or Colorado Rockies face an uphill battle from opening day, with subsequently lower payrolls than their wealthy counterparts—such as the New York Yankees and LA Dodgers—and no salary cap restrictions to even the playing field. Several organisations begin each season this way, knowing they’re about to embark on a 162-game journey with fewer capable players due to payroll restrictions. For a majority of these low-budget teams, their season often involves more losing than winning. 

At the same time, the Dodgers, Mets, and Yankees load up on expensive, high-tier talents, better positioning them to qualify for October baseball most years. Although the MLB salary structure is another issue on its own, the league isn’t helping its cause by making it harder for small markets to get into playoff positions. One could argue the Players Association is also to blame, but players don’t set ticket prices or sign the television deals. 

MLB pitchers might have it the worst of all, as their postseason journeys may last a handful of innings if the rest of their group doesn’t perform. With an increase in injuries in the pitching department, it’s rare to see an MLB starter finish a year without at least one missed start or a stint on the injured list. Hurling 100 mph pitches weekly for five consecutive months, just to be featured in five innings of an important playoff game, seems like a high price to pay in investment for both an owner and player perspective.

 In the case of a pitcher who’s listed as the third or fourth best pitcher in a rotation, they may not see the field at all, being forced to watch on in hopes that their team plays enough games for them to be a factor. 

One of the more notable examples of this came during the 2016 Wild Card series between the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays, where Orioles manager Buck Showalter chose not to use his superstar reliever Zack Britton in hopes of saving him for another day, which ultimately didn’t happen. Britton had played in 69 games that year, leading the majors in saves and winning the AL reliever of the year award. In Britton’s case, if the postseason featured a four-game series, there’s no doubt he would have been called upon at some point.

Although Major League Baseball has allowed one more team to join the wild card round to guarantee teams more than just one game as compared to past seasons, the question remains: Is it enough, and is it worth it for the players, organisations, and even for the fans?

If the MLB changed its format to mirror a format like the NHL’s, then teams with lower payrolls could have a better chance to qualify. Better yet, teams such as the 2023 Mariners, who won 88 games, or the 2019 Guardians, who won 93 games, would be included in the playoffs and, in a sense, given their due for having strong playoff campaigns. 

There’s no perfect formula for fixing the MLB postseason, but the current format in the MLB postseason feels more punitive instead of a reward for the majority of teams. It begs the question: who does the current playoff blueprint serve? 

It clearly isn’t ideal for the players who spend five months grinding through 162  in hopes of maybe playing a few extra games. It isn’t ideal for the organisations that may already know their fate. And it isn’t beneficial for the fans who wait through nearly half a year just to have their favourite team bounced in two days.