HBT: Herzog says he tanked games for draft position

Former Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog spoke to a group of folks yesterday and when he did so he ripped Bud Selig and the expanded playoffs:

?Look at what baseball has become, with interleague play and unbalanced schedules,? said Herzog, who led seven teams to the playoffs and had two others finish second ??So now the Commissioner is trying to come out with a knockout game. The reason he is doing that is to get one more game you can see for $10 million,? Herzog said.

That?s not wrong. But it?s also not the most controversial thing he said. This is the reporter paraphrasing him:

At one point, Herzog admitted that, had the new format been in place when he managed, he might have tried harder to finish second.

Three of his teams finished third, and Herzog said he sometimes managed to finish third on purpose, not second place, as a way to improve draft-day positioning the next season.

Well OK, then. But yes, it is Selig who is harming competitiveness on the field.

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