MLB owners to vote on five-year contract to new commissioner Rob Manfred
MLB owners will offer a five-year contract to Rob Manfred, who will take over as commissioner in January.
Someone blew into the conch shell that assembles baseball's owners, and the gaggle of them will meet in Kansas City today to vote on a five-year deal for MLB commissioner Bud Selig's successor.
Rob Manfred will take the reins from Selig this coming January 25 when the 80-year-old steps down (for real this time) after serving as commissioner since 1992. Selig's term has been tainted by the issues of the modern game – it moves too slowly, the umpires are blowing a lot of calls, the players keep pumping hormones into their bodies to become superhuman, etc. Selig's proposed solutions to such maladies have been traditionally slow or nonexistent, until somewhat recently, when MLB has seen a major influx of radical experiments, including instant replay and the pace of play trials that were tinkered with during the Arizona Fall League.
"Tremendously saddened" was how Selig described his feelings… following the 2002 All-Star Game ending in a tie. After that debacle, he instituted the new ruling that the league who emerges victorious from the Midsummer Classic will also be the league with home field advantage in the World Series. Selig also restructured the MLB playoff system and pushed it into November, a decision that everyone hated.
But there were good times, or at least attempts at good times, too - he founded Jackie Robinson Day on April 15, moved for expanded interleague play, and oversaw the birth of the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Rays franchises.
No aspect, however, will more clearly forge Selig's legacy than performance enhancing drugs, which he promised to filter out of the game. Long story short – he did not, though it's probably harder now to get away with using them than it was when Mark McGwire was putting baseballs on the moon.
Today, the end of Selig's tenure gets a little closer with the owners likely voting to offer Manfred a five-year and take on the role of MLB commissioner; a thankless, endlessly difficult job for which he will be inevitably shamed and yelled at.
Manfred is a native of upstate New York, and grew up a Yankees fan, meaning we're already off to a bad start – during his campaign for commissioner, he had the power and sway of the Steinbrenner brood behind him. The owners know Manfred from that time in 1994 when the players went on strike and Manfred served as "outside counsel" for the owners as they struggled through such a difficult time.
By 1998, he was given the position of Executive Vice President of Economics and League Affairs, and served as the league's labor relations guru for new collective bargaining agreements in 2002, 2006 and 2011.
Manfred became chief operating officer of MLB in 2013, where his name began being mentioned in future commissioner rumors. By the time a vote was held, Manfred had the votes he needed to win the job (nominees require 23 of 30 votes for victory).
As the Sporting News wrote last August, he will inherit a booming industry.
"The business of baseball has never been healthier. Revenues are expected to top $9 billion in 2014. According to the latest subjective, but well-respected, valuations by Forbes magazine, the average MLB franchise is now worth an estimated $811 million, a 9 percent increase over 2013. The average MLB salary is between $3.5 million and $4 million. Everyone associated with MLB is making money, and Manfred has been a big reason why the game is enjoying that economic surge."
So, MLB's owners are trusting Manfred with their sport for the next five years, allowing him to take their success out for a spin. He will take over the transition period for some issues introduced by Selig, and will undoubtedly not have to wait long for a real test - Alex Rodriquez is still lurking out there somewhere.