That’s true not just in the 26 cities with Major League teams, but nearly everywhere coast to coast because baseball still is “America’s pastime.”

Aren't there 28 cities with Major League teams? 27 if you consider Los Angeles and Los Angeles of Anaheim to be the same city.

San Francisco and Oakland are distinct in plenty of ways, but they're usually considered part of the same market.

This statement is a credit mostly to the efforts of the teams involved, and partly to Selig, but... after tonight we'll have had 6 winner-take-all games in this postseason.

My point is this: HOORAY BASEBALL!

Aren't there 28 cities with Major League teams? 27 if you consider Los Angeles and Los Angeles of Anaheim to be the same city.

Boston didn't field a major-league team this year.

The only problem is that if there is a seven-game World Series this year, it won’t end until Nov. 1. That’s a little late weatherwise in most of our Major League cities and also presents conflicts with football.

The solution is to start the season earlier.

The only problem is, if you start the season earlier, it would be in late March. That's a little early, weatherwise, in most of our Major League cities.

and also presents conflicts with football.

I was under the impression the football season started over a month ago.

There are several weird statements just in TFE ("conflicts with football?" when did the World Series not "conflict with football"?) but WTH, baseball is fun, as idiom says there's more of it this October, enjoy, everybody.

Aren't there 28 cities with Major League teams? 27 if you consider Los Angeles and Los Angeles of Anaheim to be the same city.

Duh, Colorado is a state.

I get 27 too (I would count the Angels as being in Los Angeles, sorry Anaheimians). Neuharth probably just did bad math but my reaction was the same as Andy, Oakland and San Francisco might be getting counted as the same place.

Selig could make those changes on his own as baseball’s boss.

The Commissioner's power is much less that Neuharth thinks it is.

Personally I think every full month of the regular season should feature two double headers for each team. That way each team plays on 150 days plus their regularly scheduled day offs. If that requires MLB to expand to a 26 man roster to placate the union then so be it.

The only problem is, if you start the season earlier, it would be in late March. That's a little early, weatherwise, in most of our Major League cities.

I know there's problems with attendance being lower in the spring and all, but I think there has to be a way to get games in March scheduled in warm weather climates and domes.

This has been a great post-season and I am entirely happy with the efforts of the double-secret wildcard.

I know there's problems with attendance being lower in the spring and all, but I think there has to be a way to get games in March scheduled in warm weather climates and domes.

Good luck getting the warm weather/dome cities to agree to give up summer games in exchange for early spring games.

Neuharth probably just did bad math but my reaction was the same as Andy, Oakland and San Francisco might be getting counted as the same place.

He did nothing of the sort. Read the sentence in context. He might be technically incorrect, but his implication was clear that he was talking about geographical regions. For the narrow purpose of his intent, both the bay area and the LA area are each one "city".

Good luck getting the warm weather/dome cities to agree to give up summer games in exchange for early spring games.

Yeah, I know. Is weekend attendance better during the summer? Maybe the warm cities can get more weekend series at home or something. I don't know the answer.

when did the World Series not "conflict with football"?

The smallest overlap there's ever been was about a week, but what's more amazing is that up through the 1950's the NBA playoffs were over before baseball's opening day.

I was pretty down on the extra WC at first, but I have really come on board. I'm very glad it has raised the stakes for a division title, and the one-game playoff is kinda exciting.

The only problem is that if there is a seven-game World Series this year, it won’t end until Nov. 1. That’s a little late weatherwise in most of our Major League cities and also presents conflicts with football.

That's mostly because of the calendar this year caused MLB to start rather late. Most of the time the season will end in late October. And like everyone else, I don't see any more conflict with football than in the past.

I don't really get the weather concerns. Its a bit colder. I haven't seen it snow or anything. Why do we freak out about this? I remember as a kid seeing October World Series being played with long-sleeves and crummy weather.

I remember as a kid seeing October World Series being played with long-sleeves and crummy weather.

Oh, you know how Americans react. One failed shoe-bomber and we take our shoes off for life in an airport. After the messy Phillies-Rays World Series, I sensed a lot of grumbling about moving the WS to a warm neutral site. Heresy.

I care less about this postseason than I have since I started following baseball closely in 1991. Having the Braves choke badly in one game (this year) is far more painful than watching them flounder helplessly for the last month of the season (last year). I've only watched the one game.

As much as I've always resisted the Wild Card, if they stop here this actually looks like a pretty darn good formula. In this day and age of virtually unlimited entertainment options, it certainly makes good business sense to keep hope alive in as many markets as possible into September. And we are seeing some compelling baseball in the Division Series. And winning your division matters again ... yeah, run with this set-up and I won't complain anymore. Selig does deserve some credit.

I don't really get the weather concerns. Its a bit colder. I haven't seen it snow or anything. Why do we freak out about this? I remember as a kid seeing October World Series being played with long-sleeves and crummy weather.

It is a bit different now (depending on when you were a kid), for two reasons:

* Prior to 1971, the World Series was played exclusively during the day. That's gotta be 10-20 degrees warmer, on average.

* With fewer postseason rounds, they wrapped up a lot earlier. The last World Series played pre-divisions, in 1968, ended on October 10, or this past Wednesday.

There's a huge difference between playing a game in Detroit the afternoon of October 7 versus playing a game in Detroit the evening of October 30.

23 days, right?

Well 23.3-ish, going from afternoon to evening.

The new playoff format had exactly zero impact on the American League races this year. You had a 95 win team, a 94 win team and two 93 win teams, as well as several teams in the high 80s. The races were close and compelling because a critical mass of teams were evenly matched, not because MLB engineered a post-season format that fosters anything in particular. All four division series going to a fifth game also speaks to considerable parity.

Having said that, there will undoubtedly be some future seasons in which the format does engender some extra excitement, as well as some future seasons where everything is settled early despite the extra wild card team. But if we want to give Selig credit for something, it should for creating conditions where more teams can be competitive, not for creating a one game pre-playoff round.

I haven't seen it snow or anything.

I think I remember a WS game getting snowed out in 1971, but I'm a really old fart, so you can't necessarily trust my memory.

I think I remember a WS game getting snowed out in 1971, but I'm a really old fart, so you can't necessarily trust my memory.

No WS games have been snowed out,although one was delayed in 1979 (Pittsburgh and Baltimore) but in 2009:

The third game of the Philadelphia-Colorado National League playoff has been postponed because of cold and snow in Denver.

Major League Baseball rescheduled the game for tomorrow night, with Game 4 pushed back to Monday.

Game 5, if necessary, will be played as scheduled on Tuesday in Philadelphia, without a day off for travel.

A cold front moved into Denver overnight, dropping temperatures into the teens with record lows for the date.

I recall that in the Cleveland games in the 1997 WS, the weather was miserable. Not snow, but something close to freezing rain.

I recall that in the Cleveland games in the 1997 WS, the weather was miserable. Not snow, but something close to freezing rain.

Wiki has some info

Game 3 was a wild affair that ended with the Marlins grabbing a 2–1 series lead. Both teams were greeted by snow during batting practice and freezing temperatures throughout this contest. The official gametime temperature of 38°F (3.3°C) remains as of 2011 the coldest recorded in World Series history, while as the game progressed media outlets reported wind chill readings as low as 15°F (-9.5°C).

The NL playoff game scheduled for 10/18/81 was officially a rain out but the weather in Montreal that day was actually cold enough for snow to fall. The game was played the next day in cold, damp conditions and Rick Monday hit a two-run homer in the top of the 9th to defeat the Expos. This is the game that was then referred to as "Blue Monday" by Expos fans.

The third game of the Philadelphia-Colorado National League playoff has been postponed because of cold and snow in Denver.

Major League Baseball rescheduled the game for tomorrow night, with Game 4 pushed back to Monday.

Game 5, if necessary, will be played as scheduled on Tuesday in Philadelphia, without a day off for travel.

A cold front moved into Denver overnight, dropping temperatures into the teens with record lows for the date.

I was at both those games. The Sunday night game began at 8:20 pm with temps in the low 40s and dropping from there, although it never snowed. Monday's game, which started at something like 4:00 in the afternoon, was fine, sunny and 50-something degrees.

could there be anything more romantic than playing baseball on a snow-covered field, 15°F, a couple of christmas trees with real candles on them in the coaches´ boxes and little candy cane-throwing faeries disappearing into the cold winter night with a heartwarming giggle ?