Greed has made a mess of MLB playoffs

Last year’s MLB postseason was a disaster by design, worthy of the neglectful, money-first Bud Selig/Rob Manfred Era.Few knew which networks the games would be on, their starting times, the days they’d be played, where they’d be played, the number of wins it took to clinch a series, and who the heck those guys were in the TV booths.The Rangers-Diamondbacks World Series between transient players — neither team this season good enough to qualify for the 12-team playoffs — became the Fallen Classic, with the fewest folks to ever watch the Series on TV.And this time MLB, with its glut of follow-the-money qualifiers, seems eager to do it again unless the biggest-market Mets or Dodgers and/or Yankees, survive their managers — who continue to demonstrate their allegiance to reliably unreliable, dream-driven relievers and an adherence to the mythical laws of analytics that so often best serve their opponents — the institutionalized confusion has resumed.This year’s postseason again is a scavenger hunt — with games on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, Fox, FS1, TBS, TNT and truTV.But there’s some good news for next season:Now that the Selig/Manfred Era has ensured that the nation no longer gives a rat’s rhomboid about the All-Star Game, players’ team uniforms will be restored, much too late, in place of the annual on-sale-now! Nike clown costumes.But you know what they say: The future ain’t what it used to be.Don’t kid yourself: The most important piece of the Mets’ best-of-three win over the Brewers was Milwaukee’s itchy trigger-fingered manager, Pat Murphy.He brought to instant recall Rays manager Kevin Cash’s gift-wrapped present of the 2020 World Series to the Dodgers by removing unhittable starter Blake Snell with a 1-0 lead in the sixth.Snell had allowed one hit, and struck out nine on 73 pitches! You think that would have forever ended all analytics that night.Murphy on Thursday yanked starter Tobias Myers after five innings of scoreless, walk-less,...