Latest news with #RobManfred
New York Times
9 hours ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Should MLB's automated ball-strike system have a built-in buffer zone?
ATLANTA — Major League Baseball Players Association executive director Tony Clark wondered Tuesday whether the automated ball-strike system would do well to provide a little grace, a half-inch or so, so that the system isn't used to overturn calls that are wrong by a razor-thin margin. 'Does there need to be some type of buffer-zone consideration?' Clark asked. 'We haven't even started talking about the strike zone itself, how that's going to necessarily be measured.' Advertisement Commissioner Rob Manfred, however, does not wonder the same thing. 'I don't believe that technology supports the notion that you need a buffer zone,' Manfred said. 'To get into the idea that there's something that is not a strike that you're going to call a strike in a review system — I don't know why I would want to do that.' Manfred has the power to implement ABS at the major-league level for the 2026 season, and is expected to do so. The change would grant teams two challenges per game on the human umpires' ball or strike calls. The umpire would then defer to technology MLB has tested for several years in the minor leagues. The ABS system was on display Tuesday in baseball's All-Star Game, marking its first use by major leaguers outside of spring training. The All-Stars used four challenges, with three of them resulting in overturned calls — some by the kind of extremely thin margins Clark referenced before the game. Formally, the process to implement the system in the big leagues runs through an 11-person competition committee that includes league representatives, player representatives an umpire. But MLB has enough votes to push it through, a set-up players and owners agreed to during collective bargaining. Manfred has said he's going to indeed propose ABS to the committee. 'I would like to believe that at some point in time, when it's represented to the committee and in front of players, and players offer input, that it's actually listened to,' Clark said. 'I still remain hopeful that that may be the case. But our guys do have a concern with that half-inch, what that might otherwise lead to.' If teams think they can get the closest of calls overturned, they might be more likely to roll the dice on a challenge if they have one late in games. 'There's a lot of discussion that still needs to be had, despite the fact that (implementation) seems more inevitable than not,' Clark said. Advertisement Buffer zones have already been a controversial topic this year. The Athletic reported in May that MLB and the umpires' union agreed in the offseason to reduce the size of the buffer zone that's used in the league's umpire performance reviews. (LINK: ) Manfred said it's too soon to know whether he wants to further cut the number of Minor League Baseball teams carried as official affiliates. When MLB overhauled the sport's minor-league system before the 2021 season, the commissioner's office controversially reduced the number of teams from 160 to 120. The ones that remained in the umbrella also entered into a new type of business relationship with MLB, one where they operate more as franchisees. Each minor-league team is on a 10-year contract with MLB through 2030. The conclusion of this season will mark the halfway point of those contracts. However, even when the new system was put in place, some minor-league owners were fearful that the reduction of 40 teams was a starting point, and that more cuts could follow. 'We're years away from that conversation,' Manfred said. 'I just don't know how to answer that question. There is a lot going on. You know, college baseball is changing big time. I mean, so it's just impossible for me to speculate. But don't take that as 'He thinks it's going to be smaller or bigger.' I just don't know. It's 120 right now.' An added wrinkle is the unionization of minor leaguers. Their first-ever collective bargaining agreement, which runs from 2023-27, forbids MLB from contraction during the term of the CBA. But the bigger question will be what the following CBA calls for regarding contraction. Manfred has publicly said he expects to retire in 2029. If that's the case, at least some of the decision-making on minor-league licensees could fall to his successor. Advertisement Earlier this year, ESPN opted out of the final three years of its national TV deal with MLB, from 2026-28. That's left MLB trying to find a new arrangement, or multiple arrangements, on a short-term deal. Manfred said last month he was hoping he'd have something in place by Tuesday's All-Star Game, but he didn't hit that target date. Last week, however, he attended Allen & Company's Sun Valley Conference, where many media executives were also on hand. 'I had a lot of conversations that moved us significantly closer to a deal,' Manfred said. 'And I don't believe it's going to be long, but I'm not going to give you another date, since I already missed one.' The Athletic's Andrew Marchand previously reported that talks with ESPN have reopened after months of chilliness. ESPN's expiring rights include Sunday Night Baseball, the Home Run Derby and some early playoff games. (Photo of action during this week's All-Star Game: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)
CNBC
a day ago
- Business
- CNBC
CNBC Sport: MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred on the future of baseball, media, expansion and the CBA
The CNBC Sport videocast brings you interviews with the biggest names in the business. In this week's episode, CNBC's Alex Sherman sits down with MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred during the All-Star festivities in Atlanta, Georgia. In a wide-ranging conversation, Manfred discusses MLB's upcoming media rights negotiations, potential league expansion, the future of the CBA and salary cap, player marketing, robo umps, and growing the game globally and at the youth level. Watch the full conversation above, and sign up to receive future editions of the CNBC Sport newsletter straight to your inbox.
New York Times
a day ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Beyond the ‘Swing-Off,' an innovative yet simple plan to solve MLB's TV problems
Welcome back to MoneyCall, The Athletic's weekly sports business cheat sheet. (Was this forwarded to you? Subscribe here.) Name-dropped today: Rob Manfred, Ken Rosenthal, Andrew Marchand, Cal 'Big Dumper' Raleigh, Patrick Zalupski, Mario Lemieux, TravisMathew, Cole Palmer, Gianni Infantino, Caitlin Clark, JuJu Watkins, Laurent Mekies, Bill Ackman, Scottie Scheffler, Paul Finebaum, UNO(!) and more. Let's go: A smart way for MLB to move forward on TV How fascinating, novel and fun was last night's MLB All-Star Game and a game-ending 'Home Run Swing-Off?' My colleague Ken Rosenthal just published the definitive reporting on it. It was a healthy sign of innovation, which had, in Ken's words, players 'as giddy as Little Leaguers.' Which is important because, elsewhere, MLB has a couple of pretty glaring issues with its larger TV strategy, including: In honor of the All-Star Break, my colleague Andrew Marchand — who is as tapped into media dealmaking and MLB's planning as anyone in the world — took a step back and laid out a brilliant plan for commissioner Rob Manfred and MLB's long-term media strategy that emphasizes accessibility, premium inventory and fan-friendly common sense. Advertisement Really encourage you to read the entire thing (MLB executives will!), but what I love about it is that in addition to creating exclusive, NFL-style national weekend inventory and building on MLB's smart 'event'-level ideating, he keeps the local option simple and available: One service, any locally broadcast game, available anywhere around the country and through every streaming platform, all for one reasonable monthly fee. (There is more, but that's the gist.) MoneyCall regulars know: The sports media landscape is only getting more complicated. Marchand's clear, clever plan is to make the national pastime universal. Again: Read it here. Big talkers from the sports-business industry… Other current obsessions: The upcoming marketing surge for HR Derby champ Cal 'Big Dumper' Raleigh (more on that later) … Bill Ackman tennis snark … Mario Lemieux reacquiring the Penguins … the limited-edition TravisMathew Guinness golf shoe … Cole Palmer's branding moment … Was the Club World Cup a success? Chelsea won big (including $114.6M of the $1B distributed), but — for better or worse — the biggest winner was arguably FIFA boss Gianni Infantino. But I wanted an expert take, so I connected with my colleague Adam Crafton, who covered the event closely all month and wrote the definitive story on Chelsea's championship. His reply: 'The Club World Cup was a qualified success. I would say that it will, without doubt, be sold by Infantino as a, to quote him, 'huge, huge, huge success.' 'It's not so difficult to make that argument: In terms of top-line numbers: $2.1 billion revenue … over 80,000 in attendance for the final … 16 games with over 60,000 attendance, and the $1 billion broadcast deal. 'There are far broader questions about whether the tournament was as successful as it could have been, though, including around plunging ticket prices and Saudi ties to the broadcast and sponsorship deals, among other potential issues. Advertisement 'So there's a lot of questions about how replicable the success is. The revenue needs to be this high or even bigger next time around, because the clubs have huge demands in terms of prize money in order to be here. 'FIFA will sell it as a success. That doesn't really make it a success, though. I think that will be decided in future editions.' Ratings Watch: 5.73M That's the number of viewers for the MLB Home Run Derby, up 5 percent from last year (but down from '23, '22 and '21). Can MLB capitalize on the 'Big Dumper' Effect? Data Point: 46.2 percent When 39 WNBA players were anonymously polled by The Athletic, nearly half said that Caitlin Clark would NOT be the face of the league in five years. Who else could it be? JuJu Watkins? (Maybe.) Paige Bueckers? (Possibly.) There is a seeming disconnect between WNBA players and the legion of fans driving the league's growth (most notably reflected in how CC's peers voted for the All-Star Game). BTW: Clark is supposed to headline both the WNBA All-Star Game on Saturday (8:30 p.m. ET, ABC) and the 3-point contest (Friday at 8 p.m. ET, ESPN), whose winner will get a (surprisingly paltry?) $2,575 from the league, but an additional $60K from Aflac. BUT! Clark's groin injury last night adds glaring question marks to the league's marquee event — being held in Indianapolis — both literally and figuratively built around Clark's popularity. Assuming everyone will do everything possible for her to participate. Name to Know: Laurent Mekies Red Bull F1's post-Christian Horner era starts now, led by a former engineer. Runner-up: Portland Fire That's the 'everything old is new again' name of Portland's WNBA franchise, launching in 2026. (Better belated branding than never!) Brand of the Week: UNO Take your family's favorite game night pastime and put it in a Las Vegas casino. That's the debut of UNO at The Palms, a viral gimmick being held this weekend. (Alas, entry is tightly limited and no money is involved.) Advertisement Runner-up: Puma, re-upping its kit deal with Man City, the largest in the Premier League and worth upwards of a billion dollars over the decade-plus it will run. What I'm Watching: NFL Flag Championships Boys' 14U championship Sunday at 4 p.m. ET on ABC, followed by girls' HS championship at 5 p.m. I'm beyond bullish on the future of flag football in the U.S. (As TV programming, it's a work in progress, but the investment being made by the NFL — not to mention private equity firms — is massive.) Phrase to Know: 'Valid business purposes' That is the three-word rationale that the College Sports Commission and its NIL Go platform are using to squash deals for college athletes run through collectives. The language is vague and flimsy, which also means that it is going to get picked apart by collectives' and athletes' lawyers. Related: Postscript to last week's MoneyCall lead, on Texas Tech's twist on 'Moneyball' for the new era of college football. Only fair to give Big 12 coaches their say on the topic. Great business-adjacent reads for your downtime or commute: '(Golf) is one of the greatest joys of my life, but does it fill the deepest wants and desires of my heart? Absolutely not.' Did you catch Scottie Scheffler's intense, thoughtful monologue earlier this week? Let my colleague Brendan Quinn take you through it. Two more: (1) The definitive profile of legendary SEC college football yakker Paul Finebaum. (2) Bruce Feldman with the most heart-warming story about sports media you'll read this summer. Back next Wednesday! With no MLB on TV today, I know there is at least one minute in your day to forward MoneyCall to a couple friends or colleagues! And, as always, give a (free!) try to all The Athletic's other newsletters.
Newsweek
a day ago
- Sport
- Newsweek
MLB Commissioner Reportedly Considers MLB Player Olympic Participation 'Possible'
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Baseball is scheduled to return to the Olympics for the first time since the 2008 Beijing Olympics in 2028, when the world will have its eyes set on Los Angeles. While MLB players are not yet allowed to participate in the games, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported that the commissioner of Major League Baseball, Rob Manfred, said "it's possible" that MLB stars would get to don their country's colors. LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 26: Rob Manfred (C), Commissioner of Major League Baseball, is seen before the New York Yankees play the Los Angeles Dodgers during Game Two of the 2024 World Series at... LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 26: Rob Manfred (C), Commissioner of Major League Baseball, is seen before the New York Yankees play the Los Angeles Dodgers during Game Two of the 2024 World Series at Dodger Stadium on October 26, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. More Photo byNightengale's report mentions that if MLB players were allowed to participate, there would have to be "major concessions" to preserve a full 162-game schedule in the 2028 season. The most likely result would be an extended All-Star break with either an earlier opening day or extending the regular season deeper into October for the afflicted season to keep a full schedule. MLB players have never been allowed to participate in the Olympics, and while it is not set in stone, the growth in popularity of the World Baseball Classic, which is set to return next year, has sparked a renewal in the conversation of MLB players competing in the Olympics. Manfred seems to be set on not losing games from a full schedule, and if there is no compromise about the start date, or potentially fewer off days, then MLB players may not be allowed to play in the Olympics. A longer All-Star break sounds the most likely compromise for the event, and the Olympics is still a couple of years in the future, leaving MLB and the MLBPA with ample time to reach an agreement. More MLB: World Series At Spring Training Ballpark? MLB Reportedly Finds Solution To Rays Problem
Newsweek
a day ago
- Business
- Newsweek
MLB Commissioner Not Excluding Bay Area From Expansion Talks
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Athletics left Oakland with the intention of building a stadium in Las Vegas before this season, and the exit was not an easy one for the fans in Oakland. Fans were boycotting the team consistently as the talks of departure continued for the Athletics' ownership, but according to John Shea of The San Francisco Standard, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has not ruled out the return of a second team to the Bay Area. LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 23: (L-R) Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager (D-Las Vegas), U.S. Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), President Marc Badain of the Athletics, Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred, principal owner John Fisher of... LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 23: (L-R) Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager (D-Las Vegas), U.S. Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), President Marc Badain of the Athletics, Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred, principal owner John Fisher of the Athletics, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority President and CEO Steve Hill and Clark County (Nev.) Commission Chairman Jim Gibson participate in a ceremonial groundbreaking for the USD 1.75 billion, 33,000-seat domed stadium for MLB's Athletics at Sutter Health Park on June 23, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. More Photo by Justine Willard/Athletics/Getty Images "In terms of expansion, open book," Manfred remarked about the potential return to Oakland in expansion. MLB isn't ruling out any possibilities in its effort to expand the league. This includes the possibility of San Jose, where the San Francisco Giants claim territorial rights to the region. Whether the league chooses to expand at all will have to wait until both the Tampa Bay Rays and the Athletics are in permanent homes that are up to MLB standards. The Rays were displaced after Hurricane Milton tore the roof off of Tropicana Field last year, but MLB is hopeful that the Rays will return to the stadium next season. The Athletics hold the key; they have broken ground, but the stadium is scheduled to be opened by 2028 at the earliest. Once both teams are in stadiums that meet the standard, the league will return to the prospect of expanding to new markets, or in the case of the Bay Area, returning to an old one. Even after the controversial exit last year, baseball in Oakland might still have a sliver of a chance of returning. More MLB: World Series At Spring Training Ballpark? MLB Reportedly Finds Solution To Rays Problem
