 Typically, the exempted top finishers earn automatic promotion and the playoffs determine the final promotion place.The Shaughnessy playoff system was implemented in 1933 by Frank Shaughnessy, the general manager of the Montreal Royals minor league baseball team of the International League.After its successful implementation by the International League, the popularity of the new postseason format spread to other leagues in other sports, including the All-America Football Conference (which used the Shaughnessy playoff system in the league's last season of existence) and the minor American football league American Association, which used the format in five of its championship seasons.