I happened upon a post by Nate Silver in which he opines about the realignment of major-league baseball franchises. His criteria:
[T]here’s value in maintaining the distinction between the American and National Leagues.... But teams also have traditional opponents.... [B]ut to preserve any sort of geographic integrity, it would require more switches between the AL and NL than I’m comfortable with — 4 divisions of 8 teams, or 8 divisions of 4 teams. And I’m going for the latter.
His plan:
American League East
Baltimore Orioles
Boston Red Sox
New York Yankees
Toronto Blue Jays
American League Midwest
Chicago White Sox
Cleveland Guardians
Detroit Tigers
Minnesota Twins
American League South
Houston Astros
Miami Marlins (league move)
Tampa Bay Rays
Texas Rangers
American League West
Arizona Diamondbacks (league move)
Las Vegas A’s (pending move from Oakland)
Los Angeles Angels
Seattle Mariners
National League East
Montreal Expos (expansion)
New York Mets
Philadelphia Phillies
Washington Nationals
National League Midwest
Chicago Cubs
Kansas City Royals (league move)
Milwaukee Brewers
St. Louis Cardinals
National League South
Atlanta Braves
Cincinnati Reds
Nashville Stars (expansion; Charlotte works fine too, I guess)
Pittsburgh Pirates
National League West
Colorado Rockies
Los Angeles Dodgers
San Diego Padres
San Francisco Giants
Way back in 2006, I gave this some thought, applying similar criteria. But I don't see the need to retain the American and National League designations. And I would create four leagues of eight teams each (current affiliations listed in parentheses):
Pacific League
Seattle Mariners (AL)
Portland? (new) [If not Portland, then perhaps the Sacramento SMSA.]
San Francisco Giants (NL)
Oakland Athletics (AL) [Las Vegas works just as well.]
Los Angeles Dodgers (NL)
Los Angeles Angels (AL)
San Diego Padres (NL)
Arizona Diamondbacks (NL)
Central League
Colorado Rockies (NL)
Kansas City Royals (AL)
St. Louis Cardinals (NL)
Minnesota Twins (AL)
Milwaukee Brewers (NL)
Chicago Cubs (NL)
Chicago White Sox (AL)
Detroit Tigers (AL)
Northeastern League
Cincinnati Reds (NL)
Cleveland Indians (AL) [I guess they're the Nannies Guardians now.]
Toronto Blue Jays (AL)
Pittsburgh Pirates (NL)
Philadelphia Phillies (NL)
Boston Red Sox (AL)
New York Yankees (AL)
New York Mets (NL)
Southern League
Texas Rangers (AL)
Houston Astros (AL) [They were NL when I proposed this.]
Baltimore Orioles (AL)
Washington Nationals (NL)
Charlotte? (new) [This could be Nashville, as Silver suggests.]
Atlanta Braves (NL)
Tampa Bay Devil Rays (AL)
Florida Marlins (NL)
Gone would be the American and National Leagues, which have become less and less meaningful with free agency and the standardization of umpiring practices. The remaining distinction that makes a difference — the designated-hitter rule — has been blunted by interleague play, and its across-the-board use would be a boon to scoring (and thus to fan interest).
Yes, a few old (but not very intense) rivalries would be broken up (e.g., Tigers and Indians Nannies Guardians, Tigers and Blue Jays, Cleveland and whatever). But look at all the new pairings: Mariners and Portland?, Giants and As, Angels and Dodgers, Angels and Padres, Royals and Cardinals, Cubs and White Sox, Reds and Indians, Indians and Pirates, Yankees and Mets, Orioles and Nationals, Charlotte? and the Braves, Devil Rays and Marlins.
A return to eight-team leagues would allow for a shorter regular season. In my ideal MLB, there would be no interleague play until the end of the season, so that each team would play every other team in its league 22 times during the regular season — 11 games at home and 11 games away — just like the good old days from that preceded expansion in 1961. That would reduce the regular season from 162 games to 154 games.
The season could be further shortened by eliminating the (yawn) All-Star Game. So, the season could start in mid-April instead of early April, when so many games are rained-, snowed-, and frozen-out.
Post-season play? Two rounds:
In the first round, the league champ with the best W-L record faces the league champ with the worst (fourth-best) W-L record; the league champs with the second-best and third-best records face each other. Both series are best-of-seven. In each case, the team with the better regular-season record is the home team for the first two games and the last two games (if they are necessary).
The first-round winners meet in the best-of-seven World Series. The team with the better regular-season record is the home team for the first two games and the last two games (if they are necessary).
Two rounds (vice the present four-round format) would cut a week off the end of the season. Games could be postponed when the weather is truly foul, instead of forcing players and fans to endure cold, rainy nights.
Would postseason play determine the best team? Probably not, for the reasons discussed here. But my scheme would eliminate the possibility that a World Series could be won by a weak division winner or wild-card team. That possibility is my strongest argument against Silvers' eight-division lashup.