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OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Tue Sep 7, 2010 2:27 pm
by LittleOzzy
Don't be fooled by Monday night's marathon -- the AL East hosts some very good baseball teams.
So good, in fact, that the Blue Jays would be in contention for first place in two other divisions, but instead sit 14 1/2 back of the Yankees. So good that as of Monday night, the five teams had a collective run differential of plus-238, the best in the majors by a healthy margin. So good that the Red Sox could win 90 games this season and not make the playoffs.
It makes for some good baseball and pennant races, but it generally means that a deserving team gets stuck on the outside looking in when October rolls around.
So while most MLB fans will agree that the AL East is the best division in baseball (even with the Orioles locking down fifth place), it's worth asking if it's the best division in all of sports.
Where most fans' minds immediately head toward is the NFC East in the NFL. The Giants, Cowboys, Eagles and even the Redskins are always formidable opponents, with the Giants twice representing the NFC in the Super Bowl this decade and the Eagles making it there in 2004. Still, compared with the AL East, which has produced seven World Series teams and four World Series champions this decade, the NFC East falls a little short. Still, the top-to-bottom talent is perhaps the closest equivalent to the AL East.
In the NBA and NHL, the best divisions seem to change annually. The NBA's Southwest Division is always competitive, with the Spurs, Mavericks and Rockets creating the tough Texas Triangle. The Lakers and Suns provide more than enough talent for the Pacific Division, but the Clippers, Warriors and Kings can't fill out the rest of the division. The Northwest Division sent four teams to the playoffs last season ... only one of which advanced past the first round (and only on a technicality, as two of the teams played each other).
http://www.nesn.com/2010/09/is-al-east- ... ports.html
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Tue Sep 7, 2010 2:54 pm
by lobosloboslobos
Yep. And who knows what the Jays' records would have been had they not had to play 20% of their season against Boston and New York these last years, when those two teams have been the biggest spenders in the majors.
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Tue Sep 7, 2010 8:19 pm
by LLJ
It can't be called competitive since it's mostly the same 2 teams dominating the top. It's different now with Tampa Bay coming up but still...I would say it is the hardest division, but not the most competitive.
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Tue Sep 7, 2010 9:07 pm
by s e n s i
Four words. RE-ALIGN-MENT-PLEASE.
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Tue Sep 7, 2010 9:14 pm
by Avenger
chocolateSensi wrote:Four words. RE-ALIGN-MENT-PLEASE.
3 words: Additional Wild Card
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Tue Sep 7, 2010 9:43 pm
by wicked_crossova
chocolateSensi wrote:Four words. RE-ALIGN-MENT-PLEASE.
Our best record is vs. The East, and we are absolutely terrible at inter league.
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Tue Sep 7, 2010 9:55 pm
by evilRyu
wicked_crossova wrote:chocolateSensi wrote:Four words. RE-ALIGN-MENT-PLEASE.
Our best record is vs. The East, and we are absolutely terrible at inter league.
well the argument can be made that because we face them so much, the coaching staff and pitchers have more data, and do more homework for those teams. But it's all speculation.. It's impossible to know what the outcome could be if we just simply move the Jays from one division to another..
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Tue Sep 7, 2010 11:27 pm
by LittleOzzy
Did the Jays not get a chance to move and turned it down because they would lose money with the Yankess and Red Sox in town less?
I thought when Montreal moved they were offered a chance to move to the AL Central?
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Wed Sep 8, 2010 2:08 am
by Magic Bean
Avenger wrote:chocolateSensi wrote:Four words. RE-ALIGN-MENT-PLEASE.
3 words: Additional Wild Card
Balanced schedule and top four records make it.
I get tired of seeing teams in the NHL and NBA get more than what they deserve just for winning a meaningless division title. I hate it when it happens in those leagues and the problem isn't even as bad as it is in MLB because the greater number of playoff teams means less chance of a deserving team getting screwed.
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Wed Sep 8, 2010 2:18 am
by Geddy
The NFC east is a tough division, but in the NFL you have more chances at making the playoffs so it isn't as limited in the MLB.
If Tampa can field a team that is fighting for first then there is no reason why the Jays can't either. If it wasn't for interleague and the rough June results then we might have been playing some meaningful games right now.
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Wed Sep 8, 2010 2:24 am
by Avenger
Magic Bean wrote:Avenger wrote:chocolateSensi wrote:Four words. RE-ALIGN-MENT-PLEASE.
3 words: Additional Wild Card
Balanced schedule and top four records make it.
I'd be okay with that too but its never gonna happen. That would essentially mean getting rid of Divisions, MLB and the Networks are not interested in breaking up the Red Sox and the Yankees and any of the rivalries like the Phillies and the Mets. I also remember reading somewhere that under Paul Beeston the Jays would oppose realignment out of the AL East, they love the fans from Western New York and Mass coming to Toronto and even the local Jays fans come out in droves for the Sox and Yankees.
Re: OT: Is AL East Most Competitive Division in All of Sports?
Posted: Wed Sep 8, 2010 3:14 am
by gniewek
A HUGE difference between the Al East and other tough divisions in sport is that the AL East is consistently outstanding. The Yanks and Red Sox will always be a threat for the playoffs simply because of their spending potential. Between the Rays, Jays and Orioles (heh), one should be able to field a competitive team giving the division 3 great and always keeping it tough.
With the salary cap structures in other sports like hockey and basketball, tough divisions seem to cycle through. Teams cannot be ultra competitve for decades on end anymore. No single team has been able to hold a dynasty in hockey since the lockout and salary cap era.
Basketball is a bit of a different story due to its luxury cap potential, but it still sees many non-luxury teams continuously cycling.
Baseball just doesn't have this dynamic.