Possible MLB realignment ahead?

2PLAYSMAX · Jun 12, 2011

Updated: June 11, 2011, 6:36 PM ET
Sources: MLB, players talk realignment
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By Buster Olney

A simple form of realignment being seriously considered has been raised in the labor talks between Major League Baseball and the players' association, according to four sources: two leagues of 15 teams, rather than the current structure of 16 teams in the National League and 14 in the American League.

According to a highly ranked executive, one consideration that has been raised in ownership committee meetings is eliminating the divisions altogether, so that 15 AL and 15 NL teams would vie for five playoff spots within each league. Currently, Major League Baseball has six divisions.

A source who has been briefed on the specifics of the labor discussions says that the players' union has indicated that it is open to the idea of two 15-team leagues, but that the whole plan still hasn't been talked through or presented to the owners.

"I'd still say the odds of it happening are less than 50-50," one source said.

A sticking point involves interleague play. Because of the odd number of teams in each league, it is possible that a team in contention late in the season will have to be playing its final games in interleague play.

One of the biggest issues that would have to be resolved in any realignment resulting in two 15-team leagues is which of the National League teams would switch to the American League.

Two highly ranked executives believe the Houston Astros would be a possibility, because a switch to the AL for Houston would foster a rivalry between the Astros and the Texas Rangers.

"There are still a lot of details that would have to be discussed," one source said.

Wrigley · Jun 12, 2011

Houston going to AL central next year so each League will have 15 teams, which means inter-league games all season long

WorldNumberOne · Jun 12, 2011

make the regular season 100 games. expand the playoffs.

Wrigley · Jun 12, 2011

World Number One said:
make the regular season 100 games. expand the playoffs.

Never happen owners wont give up 62 games, if anything we could see world series games on Thanksgiving night some time in our lifetime. Owners want it all 162 games and expanded playoffs

5teamparlay · Jun 12, 2011

Need the divisions, IMO, keeps more teams in it....

Astros to AL central makes more sense, and have at least one inter-league series going.

(guess when it's all said and done Selig weasled his way into a NL and a payday every time the Cubs come into town).

Wrigley · Jun 12, 2011

5teamparlay said:
Need the divisions, IMO, keeps more teams in it....

Astros to AL central makes more sense, and have at least one inter-league series going.

(guess when it's all said and done Selig weasled his way into a NL and a payday every time the Cubs come into town).

Houston to the AL west to have in state rivalry with the Rangers, Rangers really have no true rival in the AL West, Plus Baseball hates the fact that one league has 16 teams and one 14, The NL central teams have a 6-1 shot of winning their division compared to a 4-1 shot for AL West teams

TomGshotput · Jun 12, 2011

5teamparlay said:
Need the divisions, IMO, keeps more teams in it....

You sure about that?

With the divisional format I count 13 teams within three games of a playoff spot. Under this realignment proposal there would be 16

5teamparlay · Jun 13, 2011

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/bi...possibility-Astros-and-Rangers?urn=mlb-wp9320

Mon Jun 13 11:06am EDT

Best realignment possibility? Astros and Rangers sharing a division
By 'Duk

ESPN's Buster Olney stirred things up a bit over the weekend, reporting that Major League Baseball is considering a realignment that would leave each league with an even 15 teams and completely wipe out the divisions. The top five teams would make the postseason and, with an odd number of teams in each league, interleague play would be a constant on the schedule. The Houston Astros would be the one team calling the figurative moving vans as it's presumed they'd be plucked from the six-team NL Central and placed into the now-skimpy AL West (which currently only hosts four teams).
Buster's source puts the chances of this plan becoming a reality at "50-50," so there's obviously a lot more that needs to happen. But until we see which way Bud Selig and his committee pals go, there's going to be a lot of speculation and debate over the idea.
Initial positive reaction: Evening out the leagues is a great and necessary idea, though MLB's schedule-makers are probably already waking up in a cold sweat over the mere thought of reconfiguring the standard road trip. And as Fox Sports' Jon Paul Morosi writes, the Astros are the only logical candidate to switch stripes, even if their fans and players say they prefer to stay in the NL. (The one point where I sympathize with their gripe is the time zone conundrum: Those games in Oakland, Anaheim and Seattle will start awful late, though fans of the Texas Rangers have been doing it for years.)
Initial negative reaction: Hate, hate, HATE the idea of nuking the divisions. While Rob Neyer thinks we'll soldier on just fine with a "first division" of five teams, I will submit that there's nothing quite like saying you're on your way to watch a first-place team. Why would baseball eliminate six races for first and opt for two races for fifth instead? No matter what you think about the value of a division title, we can all agree that no one is going to raise a flag saying they finished fifth one year.
At any rate, combine both of those takes above and we're left with my ideal situation and a very underrated dynamic that would be created by placing both Texas teams in the AL West.
Think about this for a second: By pairing the Astros and Rangers, baseball will finally create a great regional rivalry in that gaping hole between St. Louis and the West Coast. The two teams are located about 250 miles apart from each other and handcuffing them together would give the Lone Star State — long considered an outpost by the rest of the league — an increased relevance and focus.
Dedicated baseball fans in Texas often don't get enough credit, but a close race between the teams would give them a bigger spotlight, plus an opportunity to needle opposing fans in the flesh. That's just something that doesn't happen right now with both teams being the geographical anomaly in their current divisions.