The World Series soon will be under way so if you’re a betting person put your money where the odds are the greatest — on whatever American League team makes it to the fall classic.

History is on your side. For the past dozen plus years, the junior circuit has prevailed in both World Series competition as well as in All-Star games.

The American League has won 11 of the last 16 World Series, including three of the last four. In addition, they’ve won 11 straight All-Star games. This is important because since 2003 the winner of this game determines home field advantage in the Series.

If that’s not enough proof as to where your betting money should go, look at the results of interleague play since it began in 1997. The American League is increasingly dominant and this past season won 60 percent of interleague matchups.

Causes for imbalance



As a recent Wall Street Journal article on the imbalance between the two leagues points out, baseball’s overall health isn’t threatened. Attendance in both leagues is nearly comparable, with the National League even holding a slight advantage. The article points to a few areas that have caused the imbalance between leagues.

Among them is the American League’s use of the designated hitter, which has brought a number of powerful hitters to American League rosters, prolonging the life of a number of sluggers whose presence on the defensive side of the game was not needed.

A prime example is Frank Thomas, an undistinguished first baseman who prolonged his career as an offensive force without having to put on a mitt. In the last two full seasons, Thomas hit 65 home runs.

The Journal article points to another factor that had made the breaks fall in favor of the American League. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 was expected to cut down on the public financing of new stadiums.

While it accomplished this goal, it gave public officials incentive to charge little or no rent to teams, a decision that made it more attractive for teams to demand new ball parks.

Many American League teams took advantage of the new economic climate and built sparkling new stadiums — like the Orioles’ Camden Yards — creations that spurred attendance figures and gave many American League teams a financial shot in the arm.

AL/NL conformity



As the article pointed out, “By 1998 the increasing ballpark revenue gave AL teams a $5 million edge. And the gap is growing. This season, the average AL opening-day payroll was $97 million, $14 million more than the NL average.”

This disparity has gone a long way to make American League teams much more competitive in the bidding for free agents. All of this has added up to the on-field results which make the outcome of this year’s World Series again heavily weighted in favor of the American League.

One way to bring the cycle of American League dominance to an end would be for the National League to institute the designated hitter rule. It seems silly, if not outrageous, that the country’s national pastime plays by two different sets of rules.

Bringing both leagues into conformity would go a long way to evening the results of All-Star and World Series confrontations.

Until then, my money stays on the American League.



Cape Coral resident Norman Marcus is a dedicated couch potato and author of “Inside Big Time Sports: Television, Money and the Fans.”