The wild card system was introduced in MLB in 1995 to address concerns that divisional play had resulted in many teams with winning records missing the playoffs. Previously, only the teams with the best regular season records in each league made the postseason, regardless of their division standings. With the addition of a second wild card team in 2012, MLB expanded playoff access for non-division winners while also increasing the potential length and excitement of the postseason.
Under the current format, each league’s regular season consists of six divisions – three divisions of five teams each in the American League and three divisions of five teams each in the National League. At the end of the 162-game regular season, the three division winners from each league, comprising six total teams, earn automatic berths in their league’s division series round of the playoffs. Beyond the six division winners, the two teams in each league with the next best regular season records, irrespective of division, earn the wild card spots.
This means that in each league, there are two wild card teams for a total of four wild card teams across MLB. The wild card team with the best record hosts the one with the second-best record in a single wild card game. The winner of each league’s wild card game then goes on to face the top-seeded division winner in the best-of-five league division series. Having two wild card spots per league rather than just one allows two additional teams with winning records to have a chance to compete for the pennant in the postseason each year.
A notable aspect of the MLB wild card system is that it is possible for a team to win its division with a worse record than a wild card team. For example, if all three division winners in a league finish with records below 85-77 but the two wild card teams are 86-76 and 85-77, the 86-76 team would host the 85-77 team in the wild card game despite any of the three division winners having an inferior record. While somewhat untraditional, this outcome reflects MLB’s priority of rewarding division championships over best overall records alone. It also means wild card races can remain highly competitive down to the last day of the long 162-game regular season.
The introduction and subsequent expansion of wild card spots has added excitement and increased the number of teams realistically competing for a World Series berth deep into September. It also led to the introduction of the single wild card game in 2012. While some analysts argue this dilution of the regular season could reduce its importance over time, MLB’s postseason format continues to evolve in seeking to balance rewarding top teams against maintaining the relevance of more clubs later in the year. Generally, the two wild card spots per league have been viewed as a successful change that has made more teams’ seasons meaningful well into the summer and created additional dramatic playoff matchups each October.
In conclusion, Major League Baseball’s current playoff system features two wild card teams in both the American and National Leagues. The wild card format expands postseason access for teams that finish the regular season with winning records but outside of their division’s top three spots. It creates additional compelling races and single-game dramatic win-or-go-home matchups to start each league’s division series. While not a perfect system, the wild card has added to the depth of competition and extended the relevance and excitement of the regular season deep into September in modern MLB.
