MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and the owners are pressing for a salary cap system as part of the next labor deal with the players. In their latest proposal, should a cap system be implemented, they would seek a 154 game season and expanding the LDS from 5 to 7 games. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
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In the latest proposal to the MLB Players Association, the league is proposing a shortened regular season and expanding the Division Series. None of the proposal is currently being considered without a salary cap system, something the players are adamantly opposed to.
The latest proposal, reported through the league-owned MLB.com, would reduce the regular season from 162 games to 154, as it was from 1904-60. This would allow one off-day per week on every Monday, with holidays, the exception. If teams played on these Mondays, they would have the following Thursday off.
In addition, the league proposes expanding the League Division Series from a best-of-five games to best-of-seven. Given the chaos of how seeding has been this year, the new format would allow seeds in both the Wild Card and Division Series rounds to select their opponents.
“Returning to a 154-game schedule would allow us to introduce a weekly off-day, which is good for player health, while also creating a new national broadcast window to showcase our most exciting teams and players,” MLB spokesman Glen Caplin said. “A shorter regular season unlocks making October even better for our fans — with fewer weekday afternoon games, a longer Division Series and more opportunities to see the game’s best pitchers on the biggest stage. And allowing the top seeds to select their opponents in the first two rounds would create compelling storylines, intensify existing rivalries and create new ones.”
The proposals are tied to the league implementing a salary cap system, something the players are opposed to.
The MLBPA released a statement saying, “The league made multiple scheduling proposals today. We are reviewing these materials, including the proposed changes to the playoff format. Players will weigh in on these proposals and we will respond at the bargaining table. Unfortunately, the league once again made clear that all of its proposals are contingent on players’ agreement to a salary cap, a system that guts player rights and compensation, as well as its other anti-player proposals.”
It is unclear whether the league would seek to make any of these changes, or others prior, without a cap system in place.
The proposed changes to the regular season and Division play would create limited impacts to the MLB calendar. According to the league, a 154-game schedule with more regular-season off-days would end one week earlier, and a Game 7 of the World Series would take place only two days later than under the current system. Each team would play four split doubleheaders (one against each division opponent) during the regular season.
The proposed change would take place in 2029 to match up with what is expected to be the league’s next national media rights deals.
An additional upside to the change in the LDS would be that a staggered start to the postseason would allow games that are currently weekday daytime starts to move to the evening, allowing for more viewership opportunities.
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