Major League Baseball expanded its playoff field to 12 teams with the current collective bargaining agreement (CBA) that went into effect prior to the 2022 season.
The league switched to the new format due to a belief it would lead to increased revenue and fan engagement by keeping more teams in contention longer. While the early results have been promising, some players feel the expanded postseason format is more rewarding to mediocre teams and less beneficial to clubs that perform at a high level all year.
During an appearance on “Literally! with Rob Lowe,” Clayton Kershaw said the regular season no longer feels as meaningful with the expanded playoff field:
“I don’t know how I feel about the postseason. Because basically if you’re about .500 throughout the regular season, you have a chance. I understand the postseason is where MLB makes the most money, so the more teams that are in, is better. But it really does devalue the regular season. You talk about load management and all those things, the Dodgers can take advantage of that because we have so much depth. We basically had Glas and Snell ready for October.
“I was healthy during those times, Emmet Sheehan and we had all these guys come in that helped pitch. Not a lot of teams have that. So definitely an advantage for us. I don’t know if it’s the best thing to devalue the regular season, but I do understand the playoffs are more exciting and all that. So I think right now it’s probably the best situation for MLB.”
As Kershaw noted, MLB’s expanded postseason format does seem to favor teams that get hot late and clinch one of the final playoff spots.
However, MLB also rewards the top two division winners in each league with an automatic bye to the Division Series, so there is still incentive to play at a high level all season long.
Of course, there has been some debate over the benefit of a first-round bye. Some players feel the rest is needed, while others believe it could ruin a team’s momentum.
Clayton Kershaw reacts to Dodgers dynasty
After winning back-to-back World Series championships, the Dodgers now have their sights on a potential three-peat in 2026.
While some believe the Dodgers have become a bad thing for baseball due to their seemingly limitless resources to continue improving, Kershaw thinks the opposite is true due to the attention they draw.
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