Split season

Split season

A Split season is a schedule format implemented in a variety of sports leagues. It is used in several contemporary Minor League baseball leagues and was used in the earliest years of the National League. It is also frequently used in high school basketball leagues.

In this case, the league will divide the season schedule into two parts. Usually, the teams with the best record in the first-half and the second-half of the season play each other for the league championship after all regular season games have been played. In the event that the same team finishes with the best record in each half, there is no playoff; the team winning both halves is declared champion.fact|date=June 2007

One problem with the split season format is that the team with the best won-lost record overall can, on occasion, miss the post-season playoff entirely. For example:

1ST HALF STANDINGS --- Team A (5-1), Team B (4-2), Team C (3-3), Team D (0-6)

2ND HALF STANDINGS --- Team D (5-1), Team B (4-2), Team C (2-4), Team A (1-5)

OVERALL STANDINGS --- Team B (8-4), Team A (6-6), Team D (5-7), Team C (5-7)(figures in parentheses are won-lost records)

In this example, Team A (the first-half champion) plays Team D (the second-half champion) for the championship, while Team B ... the best team overall ... misses out. This situation happened twice in the 1981 Major League Baseball split season, as the St. Louis Cardinals finished with the best record in the National League East overall, while the playoff was between first-half champion Philadelphia and second-half champion Montreal, and the Cincinnati Reds finished with the best record in the National League West overall, while that division's playoff was between first-half champion Los Angeles and second-half champion Houston.

A second problem relates to the requirement of tiebreaker playoffs within each half --- something that can confuse the public. For instance, in the following standings

1ST HALF STANDINGS --- Team A (5-1), Team B (4-2), Team C (3-3), Team D (0-6)

2ND HALF STANDINGS --- Team A (4-2), Team B (4-2), Team C (2-4), Team D (2-4)

Team A (the 1st-half champion) will play Team B for the second-half championship. If Team A wins, that team wins the 2nd-half championship and the overall title. But if Team B wins, they are merely 2nd-half champions (via tiebreaker playoff), and must play Team A again for the overall title. Some fans find this confusing. (It is sometimes even more confusing when the tiebreaker playoff is for the first half title ... as that playoff occurs during a lull between the halves ... meaning that fans might see, e.g., Teams A and B compete for the first half championship, and follow that up with a second-half opening game).

The must-beat-the-same-team-multiple-times scenario can be increased even more if, at the tailend of the season, the second-best team in the 2nd half is a game behind, and faces a second-half leader who just happens to be the first-half champion to boot. I.e.,

1ST HALF STANDINGS --- Team A (5-1), Team B (4-2), Team C (3-3), Team D (0-6) (schedule completed)

2ND HALF STANDINGS --- Team A (4-1), Team B (3-2), Team C (2-3), Team D (1-4) (each team one game remaining)

In this scenario, the schedule might, by luck of the draw, call for Team A to play Team B, and for Team C to play Team D, in the last round of the season. This means that for Team B to win the championship, it must defeat Team A three consecutive times, i.e., (1) once in order to force a tie for the second-half championship, (2) again in the second-half tiebreaker playoff, and (3) once more in the all-season playoff. Team A, for its part, must win only one of those final three games.

Still another problem are first-half rainouts in baseball leagues that use a split season. If a first-half game is important, the teams may find themselves playing the game during the second-half of the season. On the other hand, if the first-half championship is not affected by the game, the rained out game may be canceled --- resulting in a loss of revenue.

Aside from these problems, many minor baseball leagues, as well as high school basketball coaches, like the split season format because it gives teams more chances to overcome a bad start.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Split, Croatia — Split   City   City of Split Grad Split Some images of Split and its landmarks …   Wikipedia

  • Split infinitive — A split infinitive is an English language grammatical construction in which a word or phrase, usually an adverb or adverbial phrase, comes between the marker to and the bare infinitive (uninflected) form of a verb. For example, a split infinitive …   Wikipedia

  • Split-T — The Split T is a formation used by the offense in football games in the 1940s and 50 s and a variation on the T formation. Developed by Missouri Tigers head coach Don Faurot, the Split T was first used in the 1941 season and allowed the Tigers to …   Wikipedia

  • Split — Infobox Settlement official name = City of Split other name = native name = Grad Split nickname = Velo Misto , The Most Beautiful City in the World , The Center of the World settlement type = motto = imagesize = 280px image caption = Split, as… …   Wikipedia

  • Split Decision (NCIS) — Infobox Television episode Title = Split Decision Colour = Series = NCIS Season = 1 Episode = 21 Airdate = 11 May 2004 Production = 1x21 Season list = Infobox NCIS season 1 episode list Episode list = List of NCIS episodes Prev = Missing Next = A …   Wikipedia

  • Split Second — Note: this article is not about the expression for a split second ; for the band, see A Split Second; for the 2004 TVB drama, see Split Second (TVB); for the film, see Split Second (1992 film) Infobox television show name = Split Second caption …   Wikipedia

  • Split-flap display — Flap display as departure board in Hannover railway station, Germany …   Wikipedia

  • Split Waterman — Infobox Speedway rider ridername= Split Waterman nationality = flagicon|ENG England dateofbirth = birth date|1923|7|27 dateofdeath = cityofbirth = New Malden countryofbirth = England retired = Retired career = Wembley Lions Harringay Racers West… …   Wikipedia

  • 1920–21 NHL season — The 1920–21 NHL season was the fourth season of the National Hockey League (NHL). Four teams each played 24 games in a split season. The NHL s Ottawa Senators won the Stanley Cup by defeating the Vancouver Millionaires of the Pacific Coast Hockey …   Wikipedia

  • 1921–22 NHL season — The 1921–22 NHL season was the fifth season of the National Hockey League (NHL). Four teams each played 24 games. For the first four seasons of the NHL, the winner of the league playoffs would face the winner of the Pacific Coast Hockey… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”