By MATTHEW MICHAELS

STAFF WRITER

The playoff picture is set and the first wild card game took place on Tuesday. Implemented two years ago, the experiment of having two wild card teams in each league seems to have failed to serve its purpose.

The Atlanta Braves know firsthand how crucial it is to win the division. Despite underperforming most of the season, Atlanta coasted to a title in a division filled with disappointments (Washington and Philadelphia) and flat-out bad teams (New York and Miami). After a bitter defeat last season, the Braves knew they needed to get in front of the pack this year. The Nationals took the East flag in 2012 and were predicted to repeat as divisional champions. The Braves, winners of 94 games a year ago, were required to play a one game playoff against the inferior Cardinals in order to advance to the Divisional Series, whereas the Nats were resting before their series started. Then came the infamous “infield-fly” game.

Had this been 2011, the St. Louis Cardinals would have missed the playoffs completely, having fallen short in the division and finishing behind the Braves for the wild card. This was 2012, however, and the Red Birds were the first beneficiaries of the new rule. Down 6-3 in the bottom of the eighth, the Braves were threatening to score, and seemed in good position when rookie shortstop Andrelton Simmons hit a shallow fly ball that fell in to load the bases with one out. Left field umpire Sam Holbrook made the very questionable call of ruling the hit an infield fly and calling Simmons out (having six umpires in playoff games is another terrible idea). A barrage of trash was thrown on to the field as fans protested the poor umpiring decision. Atlanta only managed one run in the inning and the 86-win Cardinals were advancing thanks to a one game victory.

In a recent poll by ESPN.com, Georgia is the only state that has a majority population that disagrees with the current wild-card system. Obviously, past experiences have embittered fans, and when other teams fall victim to the new system, they too will notice the flaws.

A move introduced to increase competition late in the season, the extra playoff team has so far had the opposite effect. Under the one wild card format, the Pirates and Reds could have had a historic fight for the spot (they played six of their last nine games against each other).  Instead, their final games were only a battle for home field advantage in the wild card game, as both teams had secured a spot and were well ahead of the pack for a while already.

In the unpredictable game of baseball, an inferior team can easily defeat a better one on any given day and it is unfair that a club who had played so well for six months can have one bad game and be eliminated.  Chipper Jones, who was playing in his final game of a 19 season career, regretted having to play a win-or-go-home game while other teams were already set for the Division Series.“You’ve got a game seven and your whole season is on the line…things like that are going to happen,” said  Jones.