The St. Louis Cardinals clinched the National League Wild Card Wednesday night and will be going to the post-season. I’ve written before about my disdain for the Wild Card system that Major League Baseball has been using since 1995.
Naturally, the question I get asked often is whether I’ll be rooting for the Cardinals now, since they are the Wild Card this post-season. And the answer is, of course, YES!
There’s nothing logically contradictory about that. In the same way that you can criticize the Patriot Act and still be a patriotic American, I can criticize the current three-division-plus-wild-card arrangement and still be a loyal Cardinals fan. On the positive side, if there were no divisions or wild cards, and instead the four teams in the National League with the best records advanced to the playoffs, the Cardinals would still make it. It’s not like the 2008 season where the Dodgers — the eighth-place team overall in the league that year — went to the playoffs because they won a weak division.
The Cardinals face the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League Division Series starting Saturday.
If you don’t like the wild card, you’re really not going to like it when they have a double wild card – possibly as soon as next year. I think it’s great as gives us Cub fans some hope of playing at least one game in the post season!
For all you non-cable or non-dish, non-direct TV people, the NLDS is on TBS only.
I’m guessing a majority of the Cardinals postseasons have been a result of a weak division. I’m sure you remember 2006 pretty well. As a cardinal fan I’m surprised you would want to change things the have clearly been a benefit to your team.
I am a Cub fan but you need to give credit where it is due – the Cardinals are tied with the Red Sox for the 4th best winning percentage of active teams at .518 (http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/). They trail the Yankees (.568), Giants (.538) and Dodgers (.524). The winning percentages are are based on all games played by the teams (in both current locations and former).
The Cardinals have also been in 17 World Series (winning 10). The 17 World Series appearances trail only the Yankees (40), Dodgers (18) and Giants (18) and the 10 wins trail only the Yankees (27).
Go Cardinals!
Looking forward to their early elimination.
😉
“I don’t like the wildcard”, when did you become a Luddite and grumpy old man? The wild card system is a great improvement in a sport where more than half the teams are eliminated before spring training starts.
Ok I don’t get it. If a team, like the Cards have a .518 winning record, that means they lost over 75 games. How can anyone cheer on a team that has 75 loses in the season?
BTW, double wild card or not, the CUBS are already asthmatically eliminated from anything next season. Keep dreaming.
That should say: mathematically.
Speaking of the Cubs – anyone get their sewer bill and note the “capital surcharge and Peoria rehabilitation fees? Wow!
I now have a rooting interest in the playoffs – any team that plays St. Louis. That’d include the Yankees.
Bob, you guessed wrong – the Cards have a winning percentage in the post season since the realignment and playoff system.
Emtronics, you missed what he was saying – that .518 was overall winning percentage since 1876 or whenever the team joined the majors – so 75 losses would be pretty darn good! This year the Cardinals were 90-72. But I do like the term asthmatically.
Tom, go watch football, their in season games don’t mean much. In baseball you have to win something to get to the post season – the games count.
Billy, my Dad was a Cubs fan, God love him. You’re last World Series appearance was when I was 3 months old – I’m retired now. BTW I truly loved Ernie Banks, second only to Stan Musial. The Red Sox proved that if you spend enough you can buy a WS, hope your new owners have deep pockets.
But I agree with CJ, I hate all the Bud Selig moves – the playoff system, DH, Inter-league play. I’d rather have Bill Veeck back – at least he was serious when he batted a midget. Bud let’s the useless All Star exhibition determine who gets home field in baseball’s most important event. My wish for baseball would be reincarnation of Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis and the return of the game to the baseball fans.
Ok, CJ, I’m asking for equal time (or words) for us die-hard Cub fans.
My To Do list for the Ricketts Family now that the season is over:
1. Fire Quade
2. Get a new pitching coach
3. Trade Marmol, Grabow, other RP that blew saves or holds for Garza
4. Trade Casey Coleman, move Marshall from bullpen back to starter
5. Renegotiate Soriano contract to lower amount for remainder
6. Lower ticket prices by 20% if he agrees to it
7. Don’t re-sign Pena if he wants to move on
8. Keep Ramirez any way you can
9. Focus on playing younger players more often vs. sitting on bench
10. Keep Castro/Barney in the 1-2 batting lineup
11. Offer 3-year contract to Ryne Sandberg to be new Field Manager
12. Go after Pujols if he & Cardinals can’t agree on new contract!!
(Despite age he is still a big threat at the plate)
Murrel,
In season football games mean much more than baseball games(actually 10 times) and you do have to win something to get into the playoffs. BTW I notice you didn’t address my comment, just made some unrelated rant.
” My wish for baseball would be reincarnation of Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis and the return of the game to the baseball fans.” Let me see when there were no teams west of St Louis, players were under paid and had no control of where or who they played for, and just as few teams had a chance of winning each year.
CJ – while the blogosphere will lose one of it brightest lights, our city will continue to gain from your commitment to your family and our community for years to come. Godspeed!
How do you feel now about the wild card? Congrats… with any luck we’ll give you guys a run for your money in a few years.
CJ: Tonight what a whopper of a game! Congrats to your team! 🙂