The real world falls far short of a meritocracy, of course. In the wider world, I think, it would be good to squeeze more of the randomness out of who succeeds, getting closer to true meritocracy. The team owners want to expand the playoffs to 14 teams, but the players’ union has resisted. An inferior team can win a playoff series, or even more than one series, if the “game of inches” breaks its way. The Diamondbacks being a case in point, at least until they bombed out in the World Series, losing the best-of-seven competition after five games.

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Persons: ” Robert Frank, Fortune, ”, ” Rob Manfred Organizations: Cornell University, Major League Baseball, National League, Diamondbacks, MLB Network Radio