TOO FOR THURSDAY

TOO MANY WILD CARD TEAMS -TOO EARLY A TRADE DEADLINE

Happy Ken Keltner Day.

TOO MANY WILD-CARD TEAMS - TOO EARLY A TRADE DEADLINE

Would you say a team that is a mere 7.5 games out of a wild-card slot is a buyer, seller, or let's wait-and-see at the trade deadline? What if I told you that the team is the Orioles and they are nine games under .500? Would that change your mind?

Here’s another one: Would you say a team that is 7.5 games out of first place and fourth-place in their division is a buyer, seller, or let's wait-and-see at the trade deadline? What if I told you that the team in question is the Reds, and they are 2.5 games back in the wild-card race? Would that change your mind?

I dislike the extra wild-card team. As much as I can’t stand Manfred Man, if I could change one thing in baseball, it would be to go back to two Wild Card teams per league.

There are too many teams that are giving fans the illusion of being a good enough team to make the postseason, and then, once they reach the playoffs, anything can happen. Anything, baby!

With the diluted wild card, MLB should consider moving the trade deadline to mid-August, allowing teams a better chance to assess their place in the standings. I certainly dislike the fact that there are only 15 days left for teams to decide whether they are buyers, sellers, stayers, or a combination of the three. Come August 1, the person you came to the dance with is the person you are dancing with for the rest of the night. There are no “May I cut in?” moments. There are no deals that can be made. There are no waiver acquisitions. There is nothing that a team can do for the final quarter of the season.

I think of the 2019 Giants and the mistake they were forced to make because of circumstances at the deadline. The worst thing that could have happened to the team occurred. They won too much.

On June 29, 2019, the Giants were in last place in the NL West with a record of 35-47, 19.5 GB. By July 23, about a month later, they were in second place, 52-50, 14.5 GB, but on the edge of the wild card. This improved standing made it difficult for the new president of baseball operations, Farhan Zaidi, to justify a total teardown. There was a desire to give the roster a chance to compete, and that included starter Madison Bumgarner and reliever Will Smith, both of whom would have fetched a boatload at the trade deadline. On August 1, Bob Nightengale wrote, “A team that would have had a brighter future by trading away ace Madison Bumgarner and All-Star closer Will Smith. But the team believed the players deserved the right to see it through.”

Manager Bruce Bochy was retiring at the end of the season. Bumgarner was on his way to free agency, and while the Giants planned to talk with him, Nightengale correctly stated, “Realistically, he’s gone.”

At the deadline, the Giants were still 2 ½ games back from being the second wild-card entrant; they had visions of at least one more celebration. The Giants’ first baseman, Brandon Belt, said, “We’ve got a chance to do something special here. We’d love to send Boch out on a high note.’’ They didn’t. After the trade deadline, they went 22-32. They finished at 77-85, third in the NL West, 29.0 games behind the Dodgers.

By the following season, Bumgarner was with Arizona and Smith was with Atlanta. The Giants had gotten nothing in return because the worst thing that could have happened to them was their winning streak.

There are teams this season who could suffer the same fate as the 2019 Giants. There are too many wild-card teams, and we have an unreasonably early trade deadline in light of that. Buyers beware, because the sellers will have no regrets.

LET’S GO TO THE NUMBERS

There’s about 40% of the season remaining. Here are some key numbers to note in this edition of Billy-Ball.

• RECORDS AGAINST THE CELLAR DWELLERS

• HOME/ROAD ERA SPLITS

• HOME RUNS HIT/HOME RUNS ALLOWED/HOME RUN DIFFERENCE

• RECORD WHEN SCORING AND ALLOWING THE FIRST RUN OF THE GAME

Finally, fun with Schwarber.

But first, a commercial break.

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