The Game 163 tiebreaker featuring the Cubs and Brewers isn’t for all of the marbles, but just enough of them to make the loser’s road to the World Series fraught with handicaps.
Ben and Sam answer listener emails about umpires, catchers, and home field advantage, a wall in front of home plate, game length, and the anti-DH movement.
The All-Star Game will never be taken seriously because of a flaw in its design, but it’s time to stop trying to fix it.
The Rays are 12-1 at home this season. Where does their home-field advantage come from?
If you want to estimate run-scoring accurately, what are all the factors you need to take into account?
Major League Baseball’s recent decision to base home-field advantage in the World Series on the outcome of the All-Star Game runs contrary to the way Commissioner Bud Selig normally operates. Spurred by last year’s All-Star debacle in Milwaukee, the entire process – from concept to approval – took only six months, and failed to employ even one sub-committee of analysts to explore the issue. More typical of Selig’s decision-making process is his announcement of the newly-formed special task force for “The Commissioner’s Initiative: Major League Baseball in the 21st Century.”
Last week, Major League Baseball’s owners unanimously approved Commissioner Bud Selig’s proposal to give the league that wins the All-Star Game home field advantage in the World Series.