Dodgers, Yankees Ratings Show How MLB's Postseason Format Hurts Itself

The Los Angeles Dodgers traveled to the Bronx for aseries with the New York Yankees last weekend, revisiting one of baseball's longest and most important rivalries.

The three games had an inordinate amount of star power, with the Dodgers putting up Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and Tyler Glasnow against Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and new pitching star Luis Gil. Two big market teams, with stars up and down the lineup, with big crowds at an important situation. 

And who would have ever guessed? A lot of people wanted to watch it.

For Saturday's game, which aired at primetime on Fox, a Fox Sports press release revealed it was the most watched regular season baseball game on any network in two years. Even with Juan Soto missing the entire series. For a Fox national game, it was tied for the most watched Saturday baseball game in six years. 

Turns out, fans want to watch games between big name teams and big name players. Who would have ever guessed?

Jokes aside, the massive ratings figure for a relatively unimportant early-June game shows how important big matchups are for baseball's popularity. And shows how MLB is cutting off its nose to spite its face with its postseason format.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 07:  Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers in action during the first inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on June 07, 2024 in New York City. The Dodgers defeated the Yankees 2-1 in eleven innings. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

MLB's Postseason Expansion Creates Uninteresting Matchups

The clear takeaway from this series is that ratings for a World Series-rematch between the two teams would be massive. And with both among the top two or three teams in their respective leagues, they'd each deserve their spot.

But that's not how the modern playoff format works. To Major League Baseball's great detriment.

READ: Major League Baseball Has A Serious 2024 Postseason Problem On Its Hands Already

By adding more teams and including a wild card series, the league has put its best teams at a significant disadvantage. And ensured that we'll see more 80-84 win teams playing deep into October each season. Last year it was the 84-win Arizona Diamondbacks. This year, the National League has just four teams over .500.

The more teams involved, the more random the results. Especially considering the short format of the division series round and the momentum wild-card winning teams seem to gain while teams on a bye sit at home. Three teams won more than 100 games in the 2023 regular season, and they combined to go 1-9 in the first round of the playoffs. That one win also required a miraculous eight-inning rally.

This doesn't mean that the league needs to ensure that every World Series is between the Yankees and Dodgers. But the fan interest in this matchup illustrates how important quality teams with big name players are to casual fans.

The Orioles have stars like Gunnar Henderson, Corbin Burnes and Adley Rutschman. The Phillies have Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber and Zack Wheeler. If those teams win their divisions, their reward will be a five-game series against a hot team. And in a league where the gap between elite teams and above-average ones is just a 5-10 gap in winning percentage, there's no such thing as an upset.

So instead of the best teams playing each other in compelling matchups, which would mean better ratings for baseball, the league is setting itself up for mediocrity, more often than not. With ratings to match.