Rendering of the proposed Las Vegas ballpark for the Athletics. Image courtesy of MLB and A's
It is no secret that MLB is seeking to expand from 30 teams to 32 in the near future. With this, many questions remain: when will the expansion be announced? Which two cities will be chosen? And a big question not enough people are asking: how will it affect the current format?
It is understandable to expect that with the shift in number of teams, the division format will change. Currently, MLB uses a format of six divisions (three for each league) which comprises of an East, Central, and West. MLB is obviously not expected to eliminate the American and National Leagues. But what could be changed is the number and size of divisions.
Eight Divisions of Four
The NFL uses a conference format similar to MLB, where it is comprised of the National Football Conference (NFC) and American Football Conference (AFC). However, unlike MLB, it uses eight divisions of four teams each, with four divisions for each conference (North, South, East, West).
Rumors have it that MLB could adopt this format, as it would allow more teams to have a chance at winning their division, since there would be more divisions to win. This could in theory allow new teams to reach the playoffs that haven’t seen much sustained success.
This is a plan the owners could be in favor of for that reason. However, critics claim it would soften the game and allow worse teams into the playoffs that shouldn’t be there. It’s a problem other leagues such as the NBA are seeing with their play-in tournament.
Four Divisions of Eight
The other proposal, which is much more solid, is a format consisting of four divisions of eight teams each. This is a format similar to what the NHL uses, where the league is split into two conferences (East and West). Those conferences are split into two divisions of eight teams each (Metropolitan and Atlantic Divisions in the East, Central and Pacific Divisions in the west).
If the MLB adopted this format, the above table is what it could look like. Rivalries such as Yankees-Red Sox, Cubs-Cardinals, and Dodgers-Giants would remain intact without destroying the fabric of the league. Many fans fail to realize that this format is extremely similar to the old format used in the 1990s. It is therefore realistic to consider it could happen again.
MLB could even choose to keep the current format, and just add the new teams to existing divisions. In that case, two divisions would have six teams instead of five. Regardless, the main question with a potential MLB expansion, which Commissioner Rob Manfred already confirmed is coming, is which cities will gain the new franchises. But the underrated question remains whether or not the format of the league we’ve grown to love will change.
