best of nine world series

[Richard]

I remember someone proposed a nine game World Series last year after poor World Series ratings and there is precedent because the first World Series was the best of nine I think in 1901. Put the first two games in a warm weather location to get corporate America more involved and turn the first two games into a Super Bowl type atmosphere to promote the players and make baseball more popular. Reduce the regular season to one hundred and fifty four games just like the old days and add an extra round of playoffs. Call me crazy. What do you think?

[Sean Casey]

I think that by expanding the World Series, it would actually reduce ratings, because it would dilute the importance of each game. One of the reasons why the Super Bowl is so highly rated is because it is a single, winner-take-all event. The more games you add to a championship, the less and less significant each game becomes. Not to mention the fact that with 9 games you'd be stretching the World Series to a possible 2-week event, which I think would cause most casual fans to lose interest pretty quick.

It seems like the reason for the low ratings recently has more to do with the fact that a lot of smaller-market teams (Houston, Detroit, St. Louis, Colorado, etc.) and the fact that they've been fairly one-sided (Only one of the last 4 has gone to 5 games). So I can guarantee that this year, if the series goes 6 or 7 games, and/or a larger-market matchup (like Dodgers v. Sox or something) the ratings will be a lot higher.

[Death to Crawling Things]

Just having a 7 game series would help.

I remember the same complaint of low WS ratings in 1991. Because the A dynasty they either got blew out in 4 or won in 4 (they might have gone to Game 5 in 1988, I forget). The we had a 7 game series, no one talked about such stuff for a couple of years.

[Buczilla]

I say no more games. There have been 7 sweeps dating back to 1988. Three of them have happened with in the past 4 seasons. Since 1988 we have also saw five 4-2 finishes, four taken to 7 and three ending in 5 games.

The WS doesn't seem to be as competitive as it was prior. From 1968 to 1987 there was ten games that went to seven, four that made it to 6, five that ended in 5 and only one sweep.

From 1932 to 1988 there was as many sweeps as there has been the past 19 WS.

[Buczilla]

BTW....Wasn't it corporate America that gave us this little nugget?

[spark240]

Wasn't it corporate America that gave us this little nugget?

Yeh. Getting "corporate America more involved" is about the last thing we need.

[spark240]

...add an extra round of playoffs. Call me crazy. What do you think?

:crazy You're crazy.

[OleMissCub]

Don't like the idea.

The first World Series in '03 was a nine game contest.

[Richard]

I am a football fan, but I am more passionate about baseball and I am tired of football having all the fun! I think unfortunately the World Series has lost a bit of luster over the past twenty years.

[bluezebra]

I remember someone proposed a nine game World Series last year after poor World Series ratings and there is precedent because the first World Series was the best of nine I think in 1901. Put the first two games in a warm weather location to get corporate America more involved and turn the first two games into a Super Bowl type atmosphere to promote the players and make baseball more popular. Reduce the regular season to one hundred and fifty four games just like the old days and add an extra round of playoffs. Call me crazy. What do you think?

The first World Series was played in 1903. There was none in 1904, but resumed in 1905 and 1906. The best-of-nine Series were the first three, but none went more than eight games.

How much more can ‘Corporate America’ get involved? They not only own most teams, they own naming rights on most stadiums. Any ‘warm weather’ stadium would have to be an existing MLB facility. What would you propose if THAT team was involved in the WS? Quite an unfair advantage, right?

Make the game MORE popular? Have you checked the attendance records lately? How would you promote the players, most of whom have multi-year, multi-million dollar contracts?

Do you REALLY believe the Players’ Union would permit a lesser schedule, UNLESS there were no reduction in salaries? And the playoffs are too long now.

Oh yeah, you’re crazy.

Bob

[babaganoosh]

I like the best of 7 more. With the way rotations and pitching staffs work now, if they did a best of 9 series, you'd basically be pinning up this huge deciding game on 2 pitchers that probably last pitched in game 3 or 4...not the player you want to head into it with. Unless you want to start your ace, then pitch him on short rest twice in 1 series (and with the way contracts are going...I don't see it happening), the final games won't be very exciting at all.

In terms of adding an extra round of playoffs, I may be open to that one a little more. Some teams are stuck in very tough divisions and they probably deserve a crack at the post season. I would love to see a best of 3 series in the first round, best of 5, then best of 7 the rest of the way. Adding 1 more round (and essentially 8 more teams) will definitely increase ticket sales and local ratings because who doesn't like cheering for their home team. Many times during the regular season, even with a great team, you don't see the frenzy you do in the playoffs. Just look at the NBA playoffs when the G-State Warriors knocked off the #1 seed and very heavily favoured Mavericks. Just the atmosphere in Golden State was insane and that's something a lot of baseball cities could use.

[EdTarbusz]

The World Series was best of nine from 1919 until 1921. I doubt that the idea would be more popular now than it was during that period, especially with the length of today's post-season.

[EdTarbusz]

The first World Series was played in 1903. There was none in 1904, but resumed in 1905 and 1906. The best-of-nine Series were the first three, but none went more than eight games.



1905 and 1906 were best of seven as per the Brush rules.

[KevinWI]

BTW....Wasn't it corporate America that gave us this little nugget?

Oh my goodness, I had tried to mental block that from my memory.

At least most corporate sponsors try to pretend their product has something to do with baseball.

[hudsonharden]

I'm still trying to figure out how the travel schedule would work for a 9-game series.

[bob]

The postseason is too long anyway IMO. Yes the Wildcard added more teams (and profits), but the extra round has made the postseason seem less special.

It used to be that only 2 teams made it and they went straight throw to face eachother. They were usually the 2 best teams in MLB (or at least, there was never just an average team in there). Now with 3 divisions and a wildcard, you can have teams barely above .500 in the postseason.

I think that there is no need (other than extra revenue for the owners) to extend the WS to 9 games. We will still have the same 'problems' as now (one sided WS, lack of interest from casual fans), but once in a blue moon we'd get an extra game or 2.

[bluezebra]

The World Series was best of nine from 1919 until 1921. I doubt that the idea would be more popular now than it was during that period, especially with the length of today's post-season.

Correct.

Bob

[bluezebra]

1905 and 1906 were best of seven as per the Brush rules.

Correct. I should have checked first.

Bob

[DownUnderDodger]

Sounds a little like tossing a coin "double or nothing" till you get back to square! :happy: I would have to go along with the theory that extending the series from 7 to 9 would detract from the effect of the playoff situation. It would be saturation and a little demanding on the fans especially if it went the whole 9 games. Plus the WS is already well into the football season so how wise would it be to expand further into that. Plus, if a team can't win in seven games do they really deserve to be given 2 more to try to win?

[keystone]

The best-of-nine series might have been fine in the days of olde, but there are more sports for audiences to choose from now. Baseball would not win a popularity contest against football & basketball nowadays. Those sports are made-for-TV, and are ruled by a clock, thereby increasing their intensity. Baseball is not set up for that type of audience, by and large.

Under the current playoff arrangement, I'd be for shortening the regular season and making the three tiers of playoffs each a best-of-seven series.

But in a perfect world, there would only be two layers of playoffs. That's, of course, impossible now because we have too many teams and the whole realignment thing.

It's just not a perfect world. :ughh

[Honus Wagner Rules]

I love the idea of a best of nine World Series but it would only work if:

1) the regular season was shortened or
2) the post season was scaled back.

Neither is likely to happen. As to the idea that a seven game World Series is "perfect", well, that's silly. The only reason it's considered "perfect" is becasue we have 100 years of seven game World Series. If in 1905 they had set the World Series at nine games this would be considered "perfect" today by everyone.

[BiZmaRK]

I say no more games. There have been 7 sweeps dating back to 1988. Three of them have happened with in the past 4 seasons. Since 1988 we have also saw five 4-2 finishes, four taken to 7 and three ending in 5 games.

The WS doesn't seem to be as competitive as it was prior. From 1968 to 1987 there was ten games that went to seven, four that made it to 6, five that ended in 5 and only one sweep.

From 1932 to 1988 there was as many sweeps as there has been the past 19 WS.
Nothing can be done about the fact that there are a lot of 4-0 or 4-1 World Series. MLB has to accept this just as the NFL has to accept the fact that a Super Bowl could have a score of 35-0 at halftime.

Unless I missed out on one scenario, the following possible scenarios exist:
4-0: 2
4-1: 8
4-2: 20
4-3: 40

That means only about 3% of any 7 game series should go only 4 games and only about 15% should go not any more than 5 games.

[plask_stirlac]

How about we just start the games at a reasonable time and cut out all the garbage before them?

It's probably nice on the west coast and as a college student I don't care much but 4 hour games starting at 9 ET are not going to get the most people.

NFL playoff games start earlier, the Super Bowl especially.

[keystone]

plas_stilac -- That is something that has driven me nuts for years now. What happened to those glorious day games?? Money is the root of all scheduling. :rant:

[runningshoes]

:crazy You're crazy.

You beat me too it. :rant::ughh