Tight Race to MLB Playoffs May Alter Scheduling
The MLB regular season is set to end on Monday, but close playoff races could lead to a one-game playoff on Tuesday, which was originally set to be an off day. That, plus the looming storms in Florida and the Carolinas that could force rain delays could have huge implications for scheduling.
As of right now, the schedule through Monday is set and posted. Fox will air four games for its game of the week, TBS will air the Mets game and everything else will be broadcast regionally. Many of these games have playoff implications, as the Phillies, Mets and Brewers are all separated by just one game. Should these teams end with a regular season tie, a playoff game on Tuesday will be required before the schedule for Wednesday October 1 can be set. Should any game get rained out, the MLB will be in a tough spot to decide how to schedule these games.
It’s touch and go from here out, but for now here’s the schedule of upcoming games between now and the supposed end of the season on Monday.
| MLB Regular Season Final Weekend Schedule | |||
| DATE | TIME (ET) | DESCRIPTION | NETWORK |
| 9/27/2008 | 1:05 PM | Chicago Cubs vs. Milwaukee Brewers (Regional) | WGN (1080i) |
| 9/27/2008 | 1:10 PM | Florida Marlins vs. New York Mets (Regional) | FSN FL (720p) WPIX (1080i) |
| 9/27/2008 | 3:30 PM | Chicago Cubs vs Milwaukee Brewers Coverage Information |
Fox (720p) |
| 9/27/2008 | 3:30 PM | New York Yankees vs Boston Red Sox Coverage Information |
Fox (720p) |
| 9/27/2008 | 3:30 PM | Washington Nationals vs Philadelphia Phillies Coverage Information |
Fox (720p) |
| 9/27/2008 | 3:30 PM | Kansas City Royals vs Minnesota Twins Coverage Information |
Fox (720p) |
| 9/27/2008 | 4:10 PM | Oakland Athletics vs. Seattle Mariners (Regional) | FSN NW (720p) |
| 9/27/2008 | 6:15 PM | Cincinnati Reds vs. St. Louis Cardinals (Regional) | FSN MidW (720p) |
| 9/27/2008 | 7:05 PM | Atlanta Braves vs. Houston Astros (Regional) | FSN H (720p) |
| 9/27/2008 | 7:05 PM | Toronto Blue Jays vs. Baltimore Orioles (Regional) | RSN (1080i) |
| 9/27/2008 | 7:05 PM | Washington Nationals vs. Philadelphia Phillies (Regional) | MASN (1080i) CSN P (1080i) |
| 9/27/2008 | 7:05 PM | New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox (Regional) | YES (1080i) NESN (1080i) |
| 9/27/2008 | 7:05 PM | Tampa Bay Rays vs. Detroit Tigers (Regional) | FSN D (720p) |
| 9/27/2008 | 7:05 PM | Cleveland Indians vs. Chicago White Sox (Regional) | WKYC (1080i) WGN (1080i) |
| 9/27/2008 | 9:05 PM | Los Angeles Dodgers vs. San Francisco Giants (Regional) | CSN Bay (1080i) |
| 9/27/2008 | 10:05 PM | Pittsburgh Pirates vs. San Diego Padres (Regional) | 4SD (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 12:00 PM | Cleveland Indians vs. Chicago White Sox (Regional) Start Time TBD |
STO (1080i) CSN C (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 1:00 PM | Florida Marlins vs New York Mets | TBS (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 1:05 PM | Tampa Bay Rays vs. Detroit Tigers (Regional) | FSN D (720p) |
| 9/28/2008 | 1:10 PM | Florida Marlins vs. New York Mets (Regional) | SNY (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 1:15 PM | Cincinnati Reds vs. St. Louis Cardinals (Regional) | FSN O (720p) KSDK (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 1:35 PM | Washington Nationals vs. Philadelphia Phillies (Regional) | MASN (1080i) WPSG (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 1:35 PM | New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox (Regional) | YES (1080i) NESN (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 2:05 PM | Atlanta Braves vs. Houston Astros (Regional) | KTXH (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 2:05 PM | Chicago Cubs vs. Milwaukee Brewers (Regional) | WGN (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 3:35 PM | Texas Rangers vs. Los Angeles Angels (Regional) | FSN W (720p) |
| 9/28/2008 | 4:05 PM | Los Angeles Dodgers vs. San Francisco Giants (Regional) | KCAL (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 4:05 PM | Pittsburgh Pirates vs. San Diego Padres (Regional) | 4SD (1080i) |
| 9/28/2008 | 4:10 PM | Colorado Rockies vs. Arizona Diamondbacks (Regional) | FSN RM (720p) FSN AZ (720p) |
| 9/28/2008 | 4:10 PM | Oakland Athletics vs. Seattle Mariners (Regional) | FSN NW (720p) |
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September 26th, 2008 at 5:01 pm
Also, if the Twins and White Sox are separated by 1/2 game in the AL Central on Sunday night there will be a Tigers-White Sox makeup game in Chicago on Monday.
Potential tiebreaker games: Twins at White Sox (AL Central), Mets at Phillies (NL East), Brewers at NL East runner-up (NL wild-card).
September 28th, 2008 at 11:49 am
As of this morning, then, the potential Monday games are: Brewers at Mets (play-in game if they remain tied) and Tigers at White Sox (Twins are ahead of Chisox by 1/2 game; this game will be necessary unless the Twins win and the Sox lose).
A potential Tuesday play-in game looms too: if the Twins and White Sox finish tied after Monday’s game, they play at Chicago.
September 29th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
Tigers-White Sox is at 2 PM ET today on ESPN2 and WGN.