If you really want to spice up these playoffs ...

The end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs in Northwest League baseball is starting to remind me of some things I’ve seen on TV before.

Like in that all-time hockey classic, “Slap Shot”, where the opponents from Syracuse bring back several of their old stars, including Tim “Dr. Hook” McCracken and tough guy Ogie Ogilthorpe, to face the Charlestown Chiefs in the championship game of the Federal League.

Or the old ESPN commercial where companies put together basketball teams for a tournament.

ESPN brought in a couple of ringers.

One of the opposing players complained that ESPN had stacked its team with former NBA players, including Juwan Howard and Cherokee Parks ...

“Play the game, plumber boy,” responded one of the ESPN announcers — an actual ESPN employee — who was playing in the game.

ON SUNDAY, Alex “Chi Chi” Gonzalez returned to Avista Stadium on Sunday for the first time since 2013, the former first-round pick in town for a rehab start with the Spokane Indians. He had pitched a couple times for the parent Texas Rangers’ Arizona League club last week. Perhaps it was just coincidence the Indians could wrap up a playoff berth with a victory on Sunday. And, wouldn’t you know it, Gonzalez pitched five perfect innings, striking out four and throwing 50 pitches.

The Indians won 3-1 to clinch the second-half title in the North Division, and the right to face the first-half champion in the North, the Everett AquaSox, in the best-of-3 North Division playoffs.

The series was scheduled to begin Wednesday night, where — would you believe? — Everett’s starting pitcher was scheduled to be Hisashi Iwakuma, a 2013 American League All-Star on his own rehab assignment from the Seattle Mariners.

Imagine the timing!

“We see your rehab start, and raise you one of our own,” the AquaSox were seemingly saying to the Indians.

OK, WHATEVER.

It’s funny, the Northwest League created a first and second half to its season and expanded its number of playoff teams from two to four a few years ago, because, even though the minor leagues is for development, it’s still worthwhile to compete for a division title, a playoff berth and ultimately, a championship. Except when it’s not really that important.

The Indians, for example, shut down three of their pitchers — two starters and a reliever — toward the end of the season because they had pitched enough innings this summer, playoffs be damned.

Now, for most of the players still remaining on the rosters of the Indians and the AquaSox, this is still a big deal — youngsters playing for their first championship at the professional level.

But if teams are going to bring in hired guns, let’s just go all in on this.

The Rangers have been out of the playoff race for months, it seems, and the Mariners are playing their way out, so what do they have to lose?

Felix pitched a rehab game in Everett last year — against the Indians, no less — so why not have him start Game 2 on Thursday in Spokane?

The Rangers could send down third baseman Adrian Beltre just for that game, and the two former teammates could stage their friendly rivalry on a short-season class A field, like they do in Seattle and Arlington.

Current Rangers Roughned Odor and Jurickson Profar are former Indians — perhaps they could be on hand for a possible Game 3.

For the Mariners, it would be a chance for them to actually taste the postseason.

If they still think they have a chance at the second AL wild card, perhaps they could spare Daniel Vogelbach, so he could take a shot at the box car just past the right-field fence at Avista. Or maybe they could come up with a reason for James Paxton to make a rehab start in Game 3.

Now that would be entertaining — as long as none of the players paraded around the field during the deciding game wearing only a jockstrap.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter@CdAPressSports.