Forget the part about the international draft. The idea is great in concept but it needs more thinking before it becomes practical.

Here’s maybe the biggest hole: Why should some 16 year old Venezuelan kid have a chance at being drafted in the 1st round while a 16 year old from LA can’t even petition to be drafted?

but think it’s made pointless due to the interleague play. That said, the DH rule should be the same in both leagues.

And it should start closer to mid-way through April and end mid-way through September so you aren’t dealing with as many weather issues, particularly on the West Coast. It would also allow for more off-days during the season which would hopefully lead to players being healthier over the long haul.

I know it will never happen because owners would NEVER sacrifice extra revenue, but I think it would be smarter for baseball. That way you are ending the World Series closer to the middle of October rather than November.

Trading draft picks doesn’t make much sense in baseball. And it would only further hurt the teams who aren’t any good when they’re trading established players for – not prospects, who at least have some pro experience – but a draft slot. Teams often can’t accurately analyze known commodities. I doubt they know the value of a pick. I don’t see how this makes things better. “Spicing up” is not a good enough reason. On the other hand, I think every league should do a hard slot for draft picks. I think the league should mandate years/dollars, but the teams and players/agents can figure out the breakdown.

Too many logistical problems with amateur players in the draft, namely the age rules and the unreliability of player information. There are still players who have age/name problems and it’s one thing when the guy is signed and the team loses nothing. It’s another when they’re using a draft pick. Ideally, yes, this would be better. I just don’t think it would work yet. I think the possibility of two separate drafts might work better.

YES YES YES. The Elias thing is not just clearly broken, it’s also secret. I love the idea of FA compensation, but it’s clearly based on stats that don’t matter a whole lot.

I don’t agree with eliminating all off days for individual series. I do think they can squeeze things together a little bit more. There were 2 or 3 days between the LCS and World Series. Why? Why do the Angels play a game, have an off day, then play another game? (The answer is so two games aren’t on at once, but that’s a silly reason). Plus, travel often requires off days. You’re telling me a Mariners/Marlins World Series wouldn’t need off days?

Don’t like either Pinto’s or Tango’s ideas, but I do think the NL should be forced to join the 21st century and adopt the DH.

1. No artificial turf, ever, anywhere

2. Mandatory FREE KRAUT at all stadia in perpetuity

1. $500 penalty every time someone does their #$%@#$^ Nomar impression fiddling with their batting gloves between every single pitch. Alternatively, if you adjust them twice in an at bat you have to take them off. This might be silly, but it pisses me off to no end.

2. Either eliminate errors as a stat, or hire professionals in a centralized office to monitor feeds and make the call. The reason fielding percentages are historically high is that whatever idiot at the stadium is in charge refuses to ever call them.

3. When the defense attempts to turn a double play, the runner is safe at second unless a player both has the ball and is touching second before the runner gets there. The whole “he was near the base around the time he caught the ball” thing is insane.

however the proposition of eliminating off-days is totally absurd. They need these travel days for the teams to “travel”, I know it is a pretty complicated subject. The media needs time to travel and this is also another big reason that these days are present.

Contract two teams. Divide 28-team league into four divisions. Every team plays every other team six times, three at home and three on the road. Top four teams go to the playoffs, 1 vs. 4 and 2 vs. 3.

Of all the ideas you have my favorite is the one stolen from Pinto. Especially if the divisions are created based on geography. I think that a Pacific Division made up of The A’s, Dodgers, Giants, Angels, Padres and Mariners would be a very cool development :)

The biggest change I would make is to create a uniform schedule on Saturdays and partner with the networks who carry baseball to have something similar to NFL Sundays. All games west of the Mississippi start at 1:05 Pacific, all games east at 10:00 Pacific.

The broadcasters for the game could be the home teams crew. It is my favorite aspect of XM Radio and I think it would play well to a larger audience.

This would allow TBS and Fox to broadcast the games most relevant to the playoff picture, or to the current national story, etc. Hopefully it would allow the league to get off the Red Sox and Yankees bus a bit and build stronger regional followings for teams.

I think the key to improving ratings, and thus potential revenue, for the World Series is to make baseball about the game and all 30 teams, not about 2.

if you are hit by a pitch and the ball hits the body armor, it’s a ball rather than a free base

Based on 14 teams (can be adapted to 16 team league too).

In a 14-team league, each team plays the other thirteen teams 10 times (13×10=130). At the end of the 130 game season, in August, a new season begins. The top six teams are then scheduled for September to exclusively play each other. The bottom eight teams only play each other to reach 160 games total. The team with the best record after the next thirty games (3 home, 3 away versus the other five teams) goes to the World Series. No playoffs, except for a tie-breaker after 30 games. No ALDS, ALCS,AL-BS. A traditional World Series in October, like it used to be. October=World Series games….only!!!

In the current system, you have a maximum of ten ALDS games, a minimum of six, and a maximum of seven, with a minimum of four, ALCS games. With a September schedule with six teams, you have a potential of an entire month of “playoff”-like excitement , at minimum fifteen games where the teams begin to separate the likely top spot from the runners-up. It makes many games in August more likely to draw bigger crowds, while football is still not on TV (much). It also allows the “not this year” eight teams to try out September call-ups against other similar teams and not worry about putting their finest product on field in order to not influence “home field advantage in the playoffs” possibilities.
Baseball is not anything like hockey or basketball. Baseball should not attempt to emulate or copy the playoff style of those sports IMO. MLB should do something that sets them apart from “playoffs”. The all-time low ratings with the 2008 World Series indicates that baseball does not compete when played when the NHL, NBA, NFL, and collegiate football are also onscreen, on schedule. And it really does not compete when playoffs preceding the World Series goes on and on and on and on for 15-17 days.

HARD Salary cap and/OR Revenue sharing that make the inequities that bring us the Bankees, Mets and Red Sux disappear. I know it’ll never happen, but hey – if I’m the commish, then all teams are gonna play on level terms.

Eliminate Umpire concocted stricke zones. Use the technical equipment that is available. Fox showed in the WS Moyer pitched that he would be effective if the ump gave him an extra 3 inches on one side of the plate and another inch on the other side.
This drives me crazy!

Allow draft trades… I could go for that, but I’d maybe still make teams keep their first round picks, but be allowed to trade all the others away if they’re that stupid.

No playoff off days: Totally agree, but it’s for the benefit of the networks, not the fans or the players or even the game.

but there are way too many the way it is now. It’s ridiculous that it’s possible to use a 3 man rotation in the playoffs, when every team uses 5 in the long regular season.

From reading tango’s blog for awhile, I think I’ve disagreed with roughly 100% of the dozens of rule changes he’s proposed…