MLB might be expanding playoffs to 16 teams at the last minute

Just hours before the MLB season is set to begin, the league and the players’ union are reportedly looking into expanding the playoff field to 16 teams.

With the much-anticipated 2020 MLB Opening Day just hours away, could we be seeing a last-minute change to this year’s playoff format. Instead of the usual ten of the 30 clubs making the postseason, we could see an expansion to 16 teams:

MLB Playoff expansion: Is this a good idea?

This was a much-discussed idea during the negotiations to get the season going, though both sides agreed ultimately to leave the playoffs alone. It seems strange that the two sides decided to open this up again at the last minute, if indeed it is true.

On the one hand, one could make the case that this would add more excitement to an unusual 2020 MLB season — it’s unclear whether this would be a temporary or long-term change. It could also help to offset the more random 60-game sample size that we’re getting this year, instead of the usual 162.

And of course, more playoff games would mean more TV revenue for the league, so in that regard, with the league losing so much money with empty stands this year, it makes sense that they would at least consider it.

On the other hand, as is always the argument against expanded playoffs, this would water down the regular season, with which this year, every game becomes more critical with a slate less than half the usual size. We would almost certainly get some .500 or below teams making the playoff field under this format, which many would argue would not be a good look for the league.

It will be interesting to see if anything more comes of this over the next 24 hours, before the New York Yankees and Washington Nationals open up the 2020 season tomorrow evening. If there is a change to the playoff format, it will spark plenty of debate on both sides.