Managing 82 games different

It would be sprint, not a marathon

You might view an 82-game baseball season — the only kind of season on the table right now — as little more than an asterisk waiting to happen.

I’d view it as far preferable to 162 games, just as I’d prefer 50 NHL or NBA games to 82, and 14 NFL games to 16 (soon to be 17, then 18, then who knows?).

I’d also prefer world peace. I get it. None of the above will happen — except that it will, for one season, if baseball can safely get up and running (and that’s an ‘if’ bigger than Ben Roethlisberger’s beard).

Nothing feels right about indulging in sports fantasies at the moment, but I’ve always wondered what a radically shortened baseball season would look like. One where every game would carry NFL-like significance and “load management” would become a thing of the past.

There’s no time for rest

when the first three weeks alone would constitute a quarter of the season.

A fast start would be imperative.

A manager would be justified in treating opening day — and every game thereafter — like it’s Game 7 of the World Series.

I asked Pirates manager Derek Shelton about that during his weekly appearance on “Cook & Joe” on 93.7 The Fan.

“I don’t know if you’d treat every game like a playoff game, but you’d definitely change your mindset in terms of the roster and how you manage the team,” Shelton said. “It would definitely change how games are managed, how you deploy certain weapons, how you use your bullpen, how you use your players.”

Every team would have a legitimate chance, too. You’d be shooting to stay afloat for those first 70 games. That’s a mere 14 turns through the rotation. If you’re in it then, you’re in it until the end — and there could be four more playoff spots available.

“One of the things we talk about in 162 games is that you essentially have to lose a number of games to [have] the equivalent to losing one game in the NFL,” Shelton said. “That’s not the case now. You’re probably going to have to be more aggressive right from the get-go. Any close game you’re in, you’re going to deploy your weapons to make sure you get that ‘W,’ because they mean more.”

Our sports seasons have suddenly become way shorter than any of us would like — zero games is a bit of an overcorrection — but in normal years they are waaaaaaay too long.

Last season, the Houston Astros played their first game March 28 and their final game Oct. 30. That’s almost an entire pregnancy. Hockey has exhibition games in mid-September and playoff games in mid-June. That covers the pregnancy and a month’s worth of diapers.

It’s ridiculous, actually. If NFL owners had their way, you’d see 20-game football schedules. By the time college football stages its national championship, I’ve usually forgotten who’s playing. They have games in August and in January.

Sports could easily cut back and still maintain the integrity of their playoff races. In the NHL, the playoff field is nearly set by late November. Hockey analyst Elliotte Friedman revealed as much several years ago. A blog called clappercast.com reported that since 2005-06, a staggering 76% of teams in playoff position at Thanksgiving — the Penguins had played 25 games at that point this season — go on to make the playoffs.

So what’s the rest of the season for?

Maybe 82 games isn’t ideal for baseball. Something like 130 would be perfect. But if 82 can be safely done, I’ll be on board like never before.

And don’t you dare put an asterisk next to anything. Winning a sprint is just as impressive as winning a marathon.