NEW YORK, NEW YORK – AUGUST 23: Pete Alonso #20 of the New York Mets in motion towards Anthony Rizzo #48 of the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on August 23, 2022 in New York Metropolis. The Yankees defeated the Mets 4-2. (Photograph by Jim McIsaac/Getty Pictures)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – JULY 12: MLB realignment, Willy Adames #27 of the Milwaukee Brewers celebrates his two-run house run as he rounds the bases towards the Minnesota Twins. (Photograph by David Berding/Getty Pictures)
Prefer it or not, MLB realignment is coming quickly and chaos is coming with it.
The concept of MLB realignment just isn’t a brand new one, however it’s actually been gaining steam lately. This 12 months, the main league schedule has modified and for the primary time ever, all 30 groups will play one another over the course of the 162-game season.
There’s additionally the matter of growth. As soon as Tampa Bay and Oakland get their stadium offers finished (a technique or one other), it gained’t be lengthy earlier than MLB expands to 32 groups. Nashville, Charlotte, Las Vegas, and Portland are only a few cities which will get the chance to accumulate a major-league crew.
Jim Bowden of The Athletic (subscription required), recently released his idea of what MLB realignment and growth ought to appear to be. Bowden believes that each Charlotte and Nashville will land the growth groups and that Las Vegas will turn out to be the brand new house of the Oakland A’s.
What’s going to turn out to be of the American League and Nationwide League? Who is aware of? But when MLB realignment truly happens, it’ll seemingly look much like the NFL with eight divisions of 4 groups which are comparatively shut geographically. With that in thoughts, let’s have a look at a handful of latest division rivalries that might throw MLB into pure chaos.
1. MLB realignment chaos: Milwaukee Brewers and Minnesota Twins in the identical division.
Within the NFL, the NFC North is typically known as the black-and-blue division due to the extraordinary physicality and hatred that exists inside the rivalries. The Inexperienced Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings don’t like one another very a lot, and MLB realignment may fire up some sick will between the followers in Milwaukee and Minneapolis.
Each the Milwaukee Brewers and Minnesota Twins have been at or close to the highest of their respective divisions of late. The Brew Crew made a handful of strikes this offseason and shall be within the combine for the NL Central Division crown as soon as once more.
The Minnesota Twins remarkably had been capable of re-sign Carlos Correa and have put collectively a membership that may compete for the American League Central Division in 2023 and past.
The Twins and Brewers had been division rivals previously when Milwaukee was a part of the AL. Maybe it’s time to reignite the Border Collection. If MLB realignment involves cross, the Brewers and Twins might create some chaos in the identical division.
