Monday, November 22, 2010

Expanded Playoffs Discussed at GM Meetings; Changes Unlikely Until 2012

by Jeff Fletcher

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Rob ManfredORLANDO -- Baseball's general managers put their wheeling and dealing on the backburner for a few hours on Tuesday to discuss the future of the sport, with big changes possible because of next year's negotiation of a new collective bargaining agreement.

Rob Manfred, the executive vice president of Major League Baseball, pictured right, told reporters that the entire day's worth of meetings with the GMs were devoted to the next CBA. Although he wouldn't be more specific, two of the topics certain to come up are expansion of the playoffs and alteration of the draft. Manfred said there was no discussion of expanded instant replay on Tuesday.

Any significant changes are not likely until 2012, at the earliest. Manfred said it would be "a difficult trick" to get changes in the middle of a contract, and the current CBA does not expire until after the 2011 season.

The hot-button topic for now is expansion of the playoffs, but GMs followed Manfred's marching orders in avoiding the topic when questioned by the media. They were told not talk about their opinions or how the discussions went. It seems clear, however, that there is some appetite for two more wild-card teams.

 

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Source: http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2010/11/16/expanded-playoffs-discussed-at-gm-meetings-changes-unlikely-unt/

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