In 1969, each league was restructured into two divisions of six teams each. The team with best record might no longer represent its league in the World Series because the two division winners would play a best of five series to determine who would go to the Series.
In 1994, after another expansion, the leagues were again restructured, this time from two divisions to three divisions. Each division winner and a wild card team, the team with the best record among the also rans, would play a best of five series. The survivors would then play a best of seven series, with the winners going to the World Series.
In the regular season, baseball teams play twice as many games as teams in other major sports. Decreasing the significance of the regular season by allowing mediocre teams or unbalanced teams that get hot for a few weeks to win the World Series detracts from the game but is financially profitable. Almost the entire month of October is now set aside for the playoffs and World Series and most teams are finally starting to realize that they must be structured to win three short series while being just good enough in the regular season to qualify for the playoffs.
The 2004 Boston Red Sox did not win the Eastern Division title. They won three fewer games than the New York Yankees but beat the Yankees in the second round of the playoffs to win the pennant. The 2004 Boston Red Sox met the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series. The Cardinals won 105 games in the regular season but couldn't win even one game against the Red Sox. The Cardinals never even had a lead in any of the games, which raises a question. If the Red Sox could be and were so dominating, where were they most of the regular season?
Teams with two or three strong starting pitchers and a strong bull pen are built for the short haul, and the Red Sox met that criterion. The Yankees and Cardinals did not. With Pedro Martinez and Curtis Schilling starting, a surprisingly effective Derek Lowe, and Keith Foulk in the bullpen, the Red Sox dominated.
