The Evolution of World Series Scheduling
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CHARLIE BEVIS The Evolution of World Series Scheduling n the early years ofWorld Series play, game sched opted for a lengthy 5-of-9 game format to generate the I ules were not nearly a~ standardized as today's for- most gate receipts possible. After the NewYork Giants Imat. Back then, a coirt toss decided the site ofthe refused to play Boston in a post-season series between opening game as/.well as a\possible seventh game. The pennant winners in 1904, New York owner John order ofgames hosted bYleach league's pennant win Brush proposed in early 1905 a set ofofficial rules for ner varied each year. Anq as late as 1956, the games future World Series play to be conducted under the were often played on cortsecutive days without any supervision ofthe National Commission. respite for travel or rest. The "Brush Rules;' adopted by both leagues in mid The four primary elements of today's World Series February 1905, stipulated that "seven games shall scheduling format have been in place since 1960 fol constitute a complete series" and "the clubs shall con lowing a six-decade evolution. These four primaryele tinue to play each day according to the authorized ments are: schedule until one ofthem has won four games:'! Exactly what inspired Brush to include a 4-of-7 • Seven-ganle series, willIler lleedillg fOllr victories game format is unclear. Brush seemed to merely • 2-3-2 format of alternating game sets between adopt a post-season format he was familiar witlI, tllat cities ofthe Temple Cup series conducted from 1894 to 1897 • Site of the first game alternates between leagues between the first- and second-place finishers in the each year National League. • Travel days after the second and fifth games The 4-of-7 game format was followed for 14 years until 1919, when the National Commission decided to Since the first three elements were established with- lengthen the World Series to a 5-of-9 game format, interesting facets surrounding their development to the World Series. August Herrmann, chairman of have been masked by history. The fourth element, the commission and president ofthe Cincinnati Reds travel days, took more years to evolve from their inter (bound for the National League pennant that year) mittent use into a fixed arrangement. stated, "The recommendation had been made for no other reason tllal1 to bel1ef1t the public by permitting SEVEN-GAME SERIES Of the four l11ajor elell1ellts, the 4 a larger 11umber of persons to see at least one of the of-7 game format was settled upon first, in 1905. games:'2 Except for three years from 1919 to 1921 when a 5-of Another reason advanced for the change in series 9 game series was conducted, this scheduling format format was that the National Commission had cut has endured unchanged to today. backthe regular season in 1919 from 154 games to 140 Because the first modern World Series in 1903 was games. "Now Herrmann is sorry and, with the privately arranged, the Boston and Pittsburgh owners approval and support of [Ban] Johnson, he plans to make up the loss by stretching the world series over a longer period;' the New York Times commented in an CHARLIE BEVIS writes baseball historyfrom his home in editorial.3 Chelmiford, Massachusetts. He is the author of the The owners approved the longer World Series 1998 biography Mickey Cochrane: The Life of a schedule on September 11. The 5-of-9 game format Baseball Hall of Fame Catcher, and the 2003 book Sunday Baseball: The Major Leagues' Struggle to Play seemed doomed from the beginning, though, as the Baseball on the Lord's Day, 1876-1934. cllallge COil1cided with the Black Sox scandal in that year's World Series between the Reds and the Chicago 21 THE BASEBALL RESEARCH JOURNAL White Sox. Judge Landis, installed as the first baseball site for the seventh game was swiftly disgarded after a commissioner following the Black Sox scandal, then negative reaction to the concept. In practice, a coin assumed control ofthe World Series. Immediatelyfol toss between owners ofthe contesting teams was used lowing the last game ofthe 1921 World Series, Landis to determine the site ofthe seventh game.6 issued a statement that he would move to reinstate While the Brush Rules stipulated that the sites of the 4-of-7 game format for the World Series. the first three games were to be determined "by lot:' "This will be done in the beliefthat it is very gener the National Commission had discretion regarding ally accepted that the ideal world championship is the next three games as long as the six games were decided by the winning offour games, as was the rule equally divided between the two cities. By 1909, the prior to 1919:' Landis articulated. '~ five-game series, National Commission was using the following two the championship to be awarded the club winning general principles to create the format of each year's three victories, is too short for a fair test. On the other World Series schedule: hand, the present lengthy series overtaxes the patience ofthe public:'4 • When the contesting clubs were located in the Landis also mentioned a concern with public reac same city or within close proximity by train, the tion to the "financial returns" generated by the 1921 games would alternate between the two cities. World Series, which generated record gate receipts . .and higher player and owner shares than any previous • Otherwise, the first four games were played in World Series.. With the longer 5-of-9 game series cre sets oftwo in each city, then alternated between ating such a financial bonanza, Landis may well have cities for the next two games. thoughtthis situation could engender another scandal like the 1919 one. 111 allY event, why retain a series These gel1eral priIlciples are not readily discerllible structure associated with a scandal when another bet from simply lookillg at actual World Series play, ter alternative (the 4-of-7 format) was readilyavail because tie games and special situations surrounding able? rainouts often altered the original schedule. Of the The reversion to the 4-of-7 game format was first 14 World Series played under the 4-of-7 game for approved in December 1921. Beginning with the 1922 mat, only seven were completed as originally sched WorldSeries,'the 4-of-7 game format has lasted eight uled. Research into the actual initial World Series decades to the present day. schedules, as summarized in the accompanying table, 2-3·2 alE FORMAT While the Brush Rules established scheduling in the early years ofthe event. the seven-game series convention, there was little After the resumption of the 4-of-7 game format in specificity for precisely how the seven games should 1922 following the ill-fated 5-of-9 game experiment be arranged until the now-standard 2-3-2 format was from 1919 to 1921, these principles were again adopted for the 1925 World Series. employed for the 1922 and 1923 World Seriesw With The Brush Rules provided for a very general formu the Giants and Yankees engaged in an intra-city series la: "Three games shall be scheduled in each of the in both years, the home team for each game alternat cities of the contesting clubs. The Commission shall edbetween the two teams (the teams alternated last at determine by lot where the first three games shall be bats for the games in 1922, all ofwhich were played at played." Therefore, in the early World Series sched the Polo Grounds; in 1923, the games alternated ules, only the first six games were affixed sites ahead between the Polo Grounds and newly built Yankee oftime. The site ofthe seventh and deciding game, if Stadium). one.was necessary, was not predetermined.5 When the Washington Senators won the American If a seventh game was necessary, the Brush Rules League pennant in 1924·to meet the NewYork Giants furnished the principle that "the Commission shall in the World Series, Landis deviated from the accept determine the city in which the game is to be played:' ed general principles of World Series scheduling. Brush may have worded this clause intentionally to Landis adopted a new 2-3-1 format instead ofthe 2-2 provide for a neutral site for the seventh game, using 1-1 format that had previously been used when teams the term "the city" rather than the phrase "which· of were not located proximate to each other. Landis the two cities:' In any event, the possibility ofa neutral acted on his own, according to The Sporting News 22 THE BASEBALL RESEARCH JOURNAL account ofthe meeting, as Landis "delegated himself After both leagues approved the change in World as the advisory council ofthe major leagues, inviting Series format, the 1925 World Series established the neither President Heydler ofthe National League nor 2-3-2 format that has survived intact to the present President Johnson ofthe American League:'7 day. That is, except for special·circumstances during In the 16 4-of-7 game series before 1924, a seventh World War II, which emulated a radical change in for game had only been required twice-in 1909 and mat used during World War I. 1912. All other World Series ended in less than the In 1918 due to the wartime travel restrictions of maximum number of games. Traditionally, the coin World War I that had truncated the regular season at toss to determine the site of the seventh game Labor Day, the National Commission arranged the occurred before the sixth game of the 4-of-7 game World Series to require minimal travel.