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Back in January, Los Angeles Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon became a major national talking point when he suggested the Major League Baseball season is too long.
Los Angeles Angels 3B Anthony Rendon was asked what he would change about MLB on the Jack Vita Show.
"We gotta the shorten the season, man. It's too many dang games… We gotta shorten this bad boy up."
Catch the full, 70-minute interview: https://t.co/JScTHSCW8Kpic.twitter.com/BYyLFaSi7J
— Jack Vita (@JackVitaShow) January 21, 2024
It turns out he’s not alone in that sentiment.
In an anonymous player poll conducted by The Athletic this spring, just over 30 percent of respondents agreed that 162 games is too many.
“He’s right,” one player said. “I think, cut out like 10 games. That’s all. Nothing crazy. I think September gets a little washy at the end.”
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Some pushed for an ever more radical change.
“There’s no reason we can’t reformat (the season) to make it 120 (to) 125 games with more off days and recovery,” another player said. “The game is made for us to get hurt. But (a shorter schedule) would ruin records, and the world likes records.”
Baseball records are hardly the only reason a shortened schedule is a complicated, hot-button issue. Fewer games might mean fewer roster spots, and it would almost certainly mean less money for teams and players.
“F— that,” one player said. “I get paid more (to play more games).”
In the poll, two-thirds of players said they liked the 162-game schedule.
“Perfect amount,” one player said.
“I don’t see a problem with it,” said another.
“It’s not long enough,” said one American League hitter.
Several respondents in favor of 162 games acknowledged that the season is a grind. Some suggested shortening spring training or spacing out regular season games for more rest, but most players ultimately said they appreciate — or at least accept — the day-after-day challenge of playing almost every night for six months.
“The length of the season is what kind of separates the big boys from the one-timers,” one player said. “That’s what makes, like, a Gerrit Cole special: 32 starts every year.”
One of the perks of a shortened schedule — especially if it comes with more days off — would be that a higher percentage of games would be started by aces like Cole, while superstars like Mookie Betts and Aaron Judge might have an easier time playing every single game. Currently injured MVPs like Mike Trout and Ronald Acuña Jr. might have an easier time staying healthy.
But at this point, a 162-game schedule is baseball tradition. It’s the standard for a full season in the Modern Era, from Willie Mays and Bob Gibson to Shohei Ohtani and Gunnar Henderson.
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“(It’s) the perfect number,” one player said. “I like the history of baseball.”
And there’s very little to suggest the schedule is about to change, anyway.
“We’ve been doing this for 150 years,” another player said. “Anyone who complains is soft.”
The 162-game season has been the norm since 1961 when it was lengthened from 154 games, which had been the full-season schedule since the early 1900s.
(Photo of Anthony Rendon: Darren Yamashita / USA Today)