As breaking news, baseball having problems figuring out its finances is right up there with Jerry Krause having crumbs on his lapel and Elvis being dead. But problems, old or new, can be solved, so here are a few suggestions.
Jerry, use a napkin.
Baseball, realign your divisions according to revenue, so the big-market teams are in the same division as other big-market teams and the little fish swim with the other little fish.
Elvis, I can’t help you.
Of these, the baseball solution merits the most elaboration. The competitive balance of baseball is such a joke that the game’s main sponsor should be Microsoft. The haves, such as the Yankees, Orioles and Braves, have three or four times the resources of the have-nots, such as the Athletics, Expos and Twins. As a result, the small-market teams find themselves with only a tiny chance of making the playoffs.
The best evidence of this was the feel-good story of the 1997 baseball season, when the Pirates stayed in contention for most of the season despite a budget so tight they had to travel to road games by horse and buggy. The Pirates scrambled to a 79-83 record with a roster made up of fresh-face no-names, and manager Gene Lamont finished second in the National League Manager of the Year voting. After the season, the Pirates brushed off the pain of not making the playoffs and went on to win the Pennsylvania 22-and-under championship.
But the Pirates had–and have–no real chance of proceeding to the postseason. Wouldn’t that change if they were in a division with, say, the Marlins, Expos, A’s and Twins? And the Yankees and Orioles and Braves could duke it out in their own high-rent district, with middle-market clubs such as the Tigers and Royals facing each other as well.
With this new alignment–call it Revenue Ball–everybody would have a legitimate shot at the playoffs, and teams would not be forced to pay more than they are capable of paying. The schedule would have to be unbalanced, with each team playing its division rivals more often than they do now; otherwise, there would be playoff teams with losing records, and this isn’t hockey.
To satisfy the big-market teams who would suddenly find themselves in a tougher fight for a postseason spot, the wild card would remain in place. Surely that spot would be filled by the best big-market team not to win a division, which would likely have a better record than any small-market non-division winner.
Revenue Ball would make the postseason more fascinating than ever, with the scrappy underdog thrown into the ring against the wealthy titan. Think for a moment: Year after year, what is the most exciting event in sports? The NCAA tournament, for its upsets and small-school shockers. Wouldn’t the Pirates be just like Valparaiso, or the Twins like Princeton?
As a Chicagoan, of course, you must ask one question: How does this affect Michael? Well, the White Sox would have an even tougher time making the playoffs than they do now, so he would be less likely to go back to baseball–and more likely to stick with the Bulls.
If Jordan avoids a return to baseball and the White Sox’s popularity continues to plummet, eventually so will their revenue. Like in some high school leagues or in Europe’s soccer leagues, where teams move up and down in division according to their performance, teams would switch divisions in Revenue Ball if their revenue rank rises or falls.
That may sicken traditionalists, who by this point in this article have probably fainted anyway. But it’s a bit late to worry about keeping tradition, don’t you think? The Brewers are now in the National League, the majors have six divisions, half the pitchers don’t hit and, you may recall, a World Series was recently canceled.
Tradition? What tradition?
In fact, Revenue Ball should be applauded by traditionalists. If the current system holds, do you think there will actually be a team in Minneapolis in 20 years? Or Oakland? With the new system, those cities could keep their teams.
Not only that, but the practice of forcing taxpayers’ hands in an attempt to get a new ballpark would be curtailed. No longer would owners be able to say they need a new stadium to “stay competitive.” With Revenue Ball, a new stadium would only push a team into a tougher division.
It’s a self-correcting system, so once it’s implemented it wouldn’t rely on the owners to fix it.
Revenue Ball. It could save baseball.
I’m going to take it right to the commissioner.
Oh, right. Never mind.
