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Through 1968, the Major League Baseball schedule was quite balanced. Every year prior, each team in either the American League or National League played every other team in their league an equal number of times. The introduction of Divisional play in 1969 changed all of that. From 1969-1997, teams played in-division teams more than extra-division teams across the league.
In 1997, Inter-League play was introduced. This allowed American League and National League teams to play against each other in non-World Series (and exhibition) games for 18 games, typically between the end of May and early July. For the Blue Jays, that meant the other 144 games were split as 72 games against the AL East, and 72 games against the other 9 American League teams.
This held true until 2013 when the Houston Astros moved from the NL Central to the AL West, creating 3 divisions of 5 teams in each league. As a result, there needs to be at least one inter-league game every night (outside of off days). It has created a schedule where every team across the league plays 18 games against their division foes, 6 or 7 games against the other 10 teams in their league, and 20 inter-league games.
However, with the continued expansion of the MLB Playoffs, most recently in 2012 with the addition of the second Wild Card, an unbalanced schedule inherently gives teams in a weaker division a better chance of grabbing one of those two Wild Card spots.
Now, starting in 2018, more off days were added so the season has been extended to be 187 days long. This results in the earliest start ever (excluding special international events) on March 29, stretching to a potential World Series Game 7 on October 31.
Many people have complained about the length of the season, the unbalanced schedule, the constant inter-league play, and having a game nearly every single day for 6 months.
What changes would you make to the MLB schedule to address these problems (and others)? It can be anything, from reducing the number of games, to restoring balance, adding or removing teams, reorganizing the divisional structure, or flat out removing the concept of divisions. Go here and write up a FanPost outlining your ideas.