New York Yankeees and Boston Red Sox in playoffs again. How baseball reflects the real world

Here are a few points:

(1) The MFY and Sox aren’t the top two payrolls. The MFY are tops. The Sox are fourth.

(2) Last year, the three highest payrolls in baseball—the MFY, Tigers, and Mets—missed the playoffs.

(3) This year, two of the top three—Mets and Cubs—won’t be playing in October.

(4) In 7 of the last 13 years in the AL, there was at least a 50% turnover in playoff teams from the previous year (in 3 of those years the turnover was 75%). In the NL, there was a 50% turnover in 12 of 13 years (in 4 of those years the turnover was 75% and 1 year it was 100%). The Braves and MFY were the only constants for most of that period.

Many consider the NFL to be a model league in terms parity between teams. However, football has always had a higher turnover rate than baseball because the season is shorter (making the impact of injuries greater) and more teams make the postseason. From 1995 (the year after the cap) to 2008, the turnover rate in the AFC was 50% or more in 9 of 14 years. In the NFC, it was 10 of 14 years. Of the 9 years in the AFC where at least 50% of the playoff teams differed from the previous year, in only three was the percentage of change greater than 50%. In the NFC, only 4 times was the percentage over 50%. Unlike MLB, there hasn’t been a 100% turnover from one year to the next in either conference. Only two seasons had a greater than two-thirds turnover (both times in the NFC).

The NFL turnover numbers really aren’t that different from MLB. More importantly, they really aren’t that much different from the pre-salary cap NFL. So any difference between football and baseball in terms of competitiveness has more to do with the nature of the two sports than disparities in team payroll.

Since 1995, when baseball went to the Wild Card, only three teams have never been in the post-season: Toronto, Pittsburgh, and Washington (Montreal). Every team except the expansion Houston Texans (7 seasons) has made the NFL post-season since 1994. Considering that more teams make the playoffs in football this really isn’t surprising. Here’s a breakdown of the number of times each team has been to the playoffs (baseball teams, in bold, since 1995 and football teams since 1995:

12
MFY
11
Braves, Colts
10
Packers, Patriots, Steelers
9
Eagles
8
Red Sox, Cowboys, Vikings
7
Indians, Broncos, Giants, 49ers, Bucs
6
Astros, Jaguars, Chargers, Seahawks, Titans
5
A’s, Angels, Dodgers, Falcons, Ravens, Chiefs, Jets, Rams
4
Mariners, Twins, D-Backs, Cubs, Padres, Giants, Bills, Panthers, Bears, Lions
3
Rangers, White Sox, Mets, Raiders, Redskins
2
Orioles, Rockies, Marlins, Phillies, Cardinals, Browns, Saints
1
Rays, Reds, Tigers, Brewers, Bengals

It looks like the usual suspects also make the playoffs the most in football. Of the three teams in baseball that haven’t made the playoffs, only Toronto is kind of a hard luck case. The Jays have had some decent teams that played in tough divisions. And, they made the playoffs four times in five seasons prior to the change in baseball’s playoff structure, from 1989-1993. Pittsburgh and Washington suck because of bad management.

One last point: when the MFY won their championships—1996, 1998, 1999, and 2000—the disparity in payrolls between the top teams was not nearly as great as it is now. In other words, they didn’t really have the “unfair” advantage they’ve had in their recent—non-championship—years.

and wants things equal, should have to also pay the same price to attend games, parking, etc… as fans of these teams do. If you are not willing to spend what we spend then shut the fuck up.