With less than two months until MLB's CBA expires on Dec. 1, MLB and the MLBPA are embroiled in negotiations ahead of a potential lockout.
This week, MLB made a proposal to the MLBPA involving several radical changes to the regular-season schedule and postseason format.
One change involves shortening the regular season from 162 games to 154, which was the typical length of the schedule from 1904 to 1960. This would allow MLB to introduce a weekly off-day and give players more rest throughout the season.
MLB also proposed shaking up the playoff format again, which changed most recently in 2022. MLB proposed allowing top seeds to choose their opponents during the Wild Card Round and Divisional Round while also expanding the Divisional Round from five games to seven.
Fans and players have complained about the regular season being too long, playoff seeding being unfair and postseason series being too short, so all three of these proposals figure to be popular and well-received.
Time will tell which, if any, of these proposals are agreed upon, but MLB's schedule and playoff format could look considerably different next season.