In 2022, Major League Baseball introduced a new postseason format. The new format allowed for an additional team to compete in the playoffs, raising the total number of teams in each league from five to six. The old format included one winner-take-all game, with the winner facing the number one seed in the league. Now, after two seasons of the “new” Wild Card format, we can examine if this is truly the best way to start the postseason.
The way the format currently works is that the top two teams in each league get a first round bye, meaning that they will not partake in the wildcard round, advancing directly into the division series. The three seed, the division winner with the least amount of wins, takes on the final Wild Card team, the six seed. The fourth and fifth Wild Card teams play each other. This is where the change comes into play. Previously, these matchups were just one game, now, they are the best of three series. So, each year there are four Wild Card series, two for each league.
In 2022, only one team with the higher seed ended up winning that best of three series: the Cleveland Guardians. The three seeded Cardinals, and four seeded Mets and Blue Jays all lost the series, ending their season. The problem goes deeper than that though, of the four series, three of them were direct sweeps. The only series to use all three games was the San Diego Padres and Mets series, where San Diego pulled off the upset.
A similar pattern happened in 2023. This season, all four Wild Card series resulted in sweeps. With the highest seed only winning half of the series. So, yes, while more teams have an opportunity to compete for a World Series, it can be brought up that it might not make sense to have this many teams competing.
Another way you can look at this issue is the four teams that receive first round byes. This year, the regular season ended on October 1st, and the Divisional series started on October 7th. With six days off in between games, teams could come out rusty. Which is exactly what has happened the last two years. In 2022, both National League top seeds, the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers, received the bye and were eliminated in the first round. So far in 2023, the top seeded Baltimore Orioles got swept by the Texas Rangers. The Dodgers, the two seed, also were swept by their divisional rival Diamondbacks.
After two years of this system, it is clear that something needs to change. The Wild Card series have been uncompetitive, with seven of the eight series ending in sweeps. Additionally, the higher seeded teams are having to deal with too much time in between games, resulting in rusty performances in the postseason. While the playoffs continue to roll on, there is a noticeable difference in play between the teams who participated in the Wild Card round, and those who had lengthy days off.
