World Series Home-Field Advantage: Lots of Options for Change
By Zac Snyder
Apr 25, 2015; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Mets first baseman
(21) runs past New York Yankees third baseman
(12) after hitting a solo home run during the first inning in an interleague at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
League with the best record in interleague play
Major League Baseball instituted interleague play in the late-90s to increase fan interest and it has largely been a success. If MLB thinks using the All-Star Game to hand out home-field advantage is a good idea, using interleague play deserves some consideration as well.
Pros: Unlike the All-Star game, using interleague play to determine home-field advantage takes real games into account rather than an exhibition. With interleauge play now running from opening day to the final day of the regular season, the AL vs. NL record would be something to watch just like division races. Interleague play was designed to increase fan interest, using it for home-field rights in the World Series takes that to another level.
Cons: The World Series is about crowning one team as champion, plain and simple. By the time teams reach the World Series, it doesn’t matter what kind of road they took to get there or how difficult it was. One team may have had an easier path, but the World Series is their opportunity to show they are still the best.
Beyond that, the American League would be on their way to claiming home-field advantage for the 12th-straight year if this system was already in place. The NL has had a better interleague record than the AL just four times since it began in 1997. I’m not sure Major League Baseball, or fans of NL teams, would see that as a good thing.
Next: No home field at all