Major League Baseball proposed cutting the regular season to 154 games and expanding the Division Series to seven games in negotiations with the MLB Players Association.
The proposal also grants higher-seeded playoff teams the ability to choose their opponents.
Expanding the Division Series from five to seven games would increase television revenue and the number of high-stakes postseason contests. The format matches those used in the NBA and NHL.
The shorter season reduces player workload but costs owners home game dates and local revenue. MLB is betting a more concentrated regular season with higher stakes and an extended postseason offsets that loss.
Both sides continue to negotiate over the sport's future structure.
