Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, June 17, 1993 TAG: 9306170136
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: DENVER LENGTH: Medium
\ Major-league baseball Wednesday modified its plan for expanding the playoffs, recommending that teams stay within their divisions for the first round.
The schedule format committee voted 4-3 to have the first-place team in each division play the second-place team in a best-of-five series beginning in 1994. The committee previously had been leaning toward a format in which the first-place team in one division would play the second-place team in the other.
"There's a slight preference that you should maintain the identity and autonomy of the division," said John Harrington of the Boston Red Sox, the committee chairman.
The plan, the first expansion of the playoffs in a quarter-century, is to be voted on today by all owners.
"I think it's a fait accompli," said George W. Bush of the Texas Rangers, the only owner publicly opposed to the proposal.
Harrington said the format could change again before the vote, but American League president Bobby Brown and National League president Bill White said there appeared to be a consensus in favor of the recommendation. The proposal must be approved by the Major League Baseball Players Association.
"To be frank, this, hopefully, is going to produce more fans at ballparks in August and September and higher TV ratings," Harrington said.
The committee voted 5-2 against a plan that would have the division winners in each league joined by the two teams with the next-best records regardless of their divisions.
"We felt that was kind of unfair to the fans," Harrington said, explaining there could be a geographical imbalance.
The season would remain at 162 games over 182 days with a balanced schedule. The first-place teams would be home for the final three games of the first round. With this expansion, Harrington acknowledged that a team with a losing record could wind up winning the World Series.
"The possibility is there and you can't deny that, but it's an extremely long shot," he said.
Under this format, Game 7 of the World Series would be scheduled for Oct. 30 in 1994 and the World Series would stretch to Nov. 3 in 1996. However, officials tentatively plan to split each league into three divisions starting in 1995 and adopt a new schedule format.
On other fronts, Colorado Rockies owner Jerry McMorris said there was increasing talk about expansion, but said action probably would be postponed until after collective bargaining with the players this winter.
"Expansion would help fix a lot of problems in baseball today, and that would include scheduling," McMorris said.
Richard Ravitch, management's chief labor negotiator, was set to ask clubs Thursday to schedule a special major-league meeting on revenue sharing. It appears he is having trouble lining up the 21 votes he needs to change the division of local broadcast money.
by CNB