MLB playoff picture: Three impacts of baseball's new 12-team postseason format
Less than a week remains in the 2022 MLB regular season. Five of the six division titles have been clinched. The wild-card race is down to three teams for two spots. The new 12-team postseason format is not that exciting.
The 2022 National League postseason schedule is released. It's a bit unusual, but works just as well as the usual 2-2-1 LDS and 2.3-3 LCS formats. The new 12-team format is impacting the postseason races in a few ways.
Teams will not be reseeded after the Wild Card Series. The winner of the No. 3 vs. No 6 Wildcard will play the number 2 seed in the LDS. In the wild-card, the team with the league's best record will face a wild card team.
No. 5 seed goes on the road to play the No. 4 seed Braves in the Wild Card Series. If they win, they have to face the number one seed Dodgers in NLDS.
No. 6 seed goes on the road to play the No. 3 seed in the Wild Card Series. If they win, they have to face the second seed, the Mets, in NLDS. No 5 seed is a tough draw. Dodgers have the best record and a historically great run differential.
The American League has 12 teams in the playoffs.
No. 5 seed goes on the road to play the No. 4 seed Blue Jays in the Wild Card Series. If they win, they have to face the number one seed, the Houston Astros, in ALDS.
No. 6 seed goes on the road to face the No. 3 seed in the Wild Card Series. If they win, they have to play the Yankees in ALDS. No 5 seed has a tougher road. The new postseason format should incentivize teams to finish with the best record. Players don't care about the better on paper matchup.
The new 12-team postseason format is being implemented in MLB.
Wild Card Game: No. 5 Rays at No 4 Blue Jays. Wild Card winner at no. 1 Astros.
The National League Wild Card Game takes place between No. 5 Padres and No., 4 Braves. The winner of the NLDS will play for the No, 1 spot against No,. 1 Dodgers.
Wild Card Game: No. 5 Padres at No 4 Braves. Wild Card winner at no. 1 Dodgers. No 3 Cardinals at number 2 Mets.
The new 12-team postseason format has made the games less exciting. MLB will push for a 14- team format after 2026. The league wanted a 12 team postseason this time around but the MLBPA resisted. Several teams would have made it to the postseason with the 14 team playoff format. The current collective bargaining agreement expires in 2036. It's unlikely that the league will change the format for the next one. In the old format, there were three teams competing for one wild-card spot.
MLB and the MLBPA agreed to do away with Game 163 tiebreakers as part of the new collective bargaining agreement. The new tiebreaker formula cost the Giants a postseason berth in 2020. In the AL, the tiebreaking formula won't be as important this year because the six postseason teams are already decided. But in the NL, it could be important if the Braves and Mets finish with identical records and have to play in a division winner's playoff. The Braves are fighting for the division title. If they finish the same way, they will get a Wild Card Series bye. They will play the Mets in that series.
There are three impacts of baseball's new 12-team postseason format. Head-to-head record, record within the division and record against teams in the same league but outside the divisions are the main ones.
The new 12-team postseason format means that tiebreakers are used to determine the playoffs. The Phillies hold the tiebreaker over the Brewers. Milwaukee is on the outside looking in. The tiebreaking is important because the final wild-card spot will be determined via tiebreaks. In the past, the Braves and Mets would have played a Game 163 to decide the division.
