United we stand, divided we fall?

An issue that has been discussed recently in baseball has been the divisional setup within the leagues. Last week Hank Steinbrenner ripped Major League Baseball for what he percieves as an unfair system. Although these comments are recent, the debate about the disparities between divisions has been around all season. The regular season ended with the NL West having only 2 teams above 500 and their division winner, the Los Angeles Dodgers, finished the season with a modest 84-78. As the Dodgers head to the playoffs and the Yankees (89-73), Mets (89-73) and Twins (88-75) head to the golf courses, one has to wonder whether a divisonal setup, where seemingly glaring in equalities exist, is the best way to have teams play out a season.

Why it doesn't work...
As Hank Steinbrenner put (not so eloquently), the divisional setup at times can seem to be unfair and ridiculous. Often times the winner of a division will head to the playoffs while teams with better records and stronger divisions do not make the cut. This season for instance, the Dodgers with their weak record in an abysmal division have drawn the most scrutiny as a playoff contender. The interesting thing is, that in a division like the NL West, where the teams were so weak this year, how come one team (like the Dodgers) doesn't have an inflated record? If you are a capable team in a weak division your record should reflect the fact that the majority of your season is spent playing teams constantly tip toeing the 500 line. The Dodgers are 6 games above 500 in the worst division in baseball...and they are going to the playoffs. No matter what your opinion is on divisional setup the fact remains that there will be times where mediocre teams get to play for the title. Mediocre teams will have the chance to disregard a poor regular season showing and get hot for the right two weeks and walk away with the crown. It's a fact, and no matter how you play it, it doesn't seem fair.

Why it does work...
Divisional setup serves the same purpose as revenue sharing. Both were designed to widen the appeal of baseball and make it possible for more teams to get involved. Revenue sharing distributes money among the teams allowing small market teams the opportunity to compete financially with the large market teams. The divisional setup allows the playoffs to operate every year with representatives from certain regions. If the set up was to take the 4 best teams from each league, there could be periods of time where a team from the West coast would never be involved. In 2000, the Yankees were in the weakest division that year. They won the AL East with an 87-74 record...the 5th best record in the league. The idea that the AL East is the always a strong division is factually untrue. That year the Cleveland Indians, with a 90 win season, were sent home while the Yankees got hot to win their 3rd consecutive World Series. Divisional setup is practical, in a business sense, because it creates the possibility for a championship in every region every year. The Dodgers have the chance to win a World Series this year because of the divisional set up. Deserving or not, the Los Angeles area has a team (also has the Angels, who went 100-62...go figure) in the race and baseball likes having that be a possibility for any team any year.

Baseball divisions are not the problem. To me, the problem is the scheduling. It's only natural for some divisions to be stronger than others in any given season. Power can shift from coast to coast and divisions can have down years. In my opinion, this disparity could be negated if the scheduling were done properly. For example, in a tough divisions this year the Yankees played the Red Sox for almost 20 games while they faced the Mariners only 9 times. If a division is strong its teams are strong. Having the better teams in the league beat up on eachother for over half the season is likely to result in records that do not reflect overall ranking within the league. If the number of games within the divisions were slightly reduced I believe divisional set up would still work while also more frequently allowing the better teams to make the playoffs.

Why nothing will change...
We have already established that the divisions exist to increase interest and to increase revenue. Major League Baseball will never adopt my suggestion of bettering scheduling because it would still undermine the point of divisions. Division games increase interest and make playoff races more interesting. They add drama and rivalries to the sport, something that makes baseball a lot of money. No one cares about Yankee v Seattle, the networks and the everyday fan want to see Yankees v Red Sox.

In conclusion, the divisional set up has its flaws. No system is perfect and there will always remain the possibility (and often the reality) of a subpar team making it to the playoffs. The system is flawed but there really isnt another option. Abolishing divisions would decrease interest across the country, make scheduling a nightmare, and lose baseball a lot of money. All in all, divisions are hardly a perfect solution but they are all we really have right now.