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Shop About Masthead Community Guidelines StubHub ✕Baseball newsRob Manfred on
Joe Ricketts and the
Cubs
http://www.diamondbacksfanproshop.com/authentic-zack-greinke -jersey ,
pitch clocks, expansion, labor peace and moreNew,36commentsThe Commissioner
addressed several topics at the annual Cactus League Media Day news
conference.CSTShareTweetShareShareRob Manfred on Joe Ricketts and the Cubs,
pitch clocks, expansion, labor peace and moreAl YellonGLENDALE, Arizona ¡ª
Commissioner Rob Manfred covered a vast array of topics on Cactus League Media
Day in front of assembled media at the Glendale Civic Center. He began his
remarks by celebrating the game, saying he had attended Angels batting practice
earlier in the day and that he was ready for baseball on the field.Well, who
isn¡¯t, after this winter of baseball discontent. Manfred also noted the several
international games to be played this year, in Mexico and London, and also where
big-league games will be played in other ¡°non-traditional¡± major league venues
such as Omaha and Williamsport (where the Cubs will play the Pirates August 18
in the Little League Classic).He promoted the idea that no one has repeated as
World Series champion since 2000 and that speaks to the ¡°competitive balance¡± in
the major leagues, and looks forward to young players like Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
and others coming to the majors this year as Ronald Acuna Jr. did last year.Of
particular interest to Cubs fans was a question asked about whether MLB would
get involved in the controversy surrounding Joe Ricketts¡¯ emails. He
replied:Manfred was asked about the reported Manny Machado signing. As the
lawyer he is, he acknowledged only the ¡°reports, which I¡¯ve read¡± but noted the
Padres have not yet announced the signing. He did say that having a small-market
team like the Padres signing a talent like Machado ¡°is good for baseball, having
big stars¡± in places like that.I asked him about pitch clocks, which will be
coming to spring training games this weekend, and the reports that MLB owners
want to negotiate with players before unilaterally implementing them for the
regular season. Here¡¯s his answer in its entirety:Translation: We¡¯re doing it in
spring training for practice so that everyone is used to it by the time we
implement it on Opening Day. Based on Manfred¡¯s response to my question I fully
expect us to have pitch clocks in regular-season games this year.Manfred was
asked by The Athletic¡¯s Jayson Stark whether there would be any use to having
free-agent signing deadlines, given the late signings this year and several top
free agents still unsigned. He replied, ¡°The question is, what do you do if the
deadline passes? Say we make a deal with the Players Association that every
player has to be signed by, say, January 10. What do you do if someone, in
fact
Jake
Lamb Jersey , isn¡¯t signed?¡±That¡¯s a reasonable question. If there¡¯s a
negotiated deadline between two parties for something and it passes without the
¡°something¡± occurring, usually some sort of financial penalty. But in this case,
who would be penalized? And how? So I think something like that probably isn¡¯t
going to happen. He noted that owners bargained for a ¡°market system¡± in the
last negotiation, with ¡°smart, aggressive negotiators on both sides,¡± and that
¡°timing was used as a point of leverage during those negotiations ¡ª on both
sides.¡±A question was asked about banning shifts. Here¡¯s his answer, which was
totally noncommittal:This is better, at least, than Manfred¡¯s comments in the
very first interview he gave as Commissioner in 2015, when he said he wanted to
¡°ban shifts.¡± Personally, I feel if a hitter is given the left side of the
infield because analytics say he most often hits to the right side (I¡¯m looking
at you, Anthony Rizzo and Jason Heyward), then maybe it¡¯s up to the hitter to
adjust to the shift and hit the other way from time to time, spread out the
shift. I don¡¯t want to watch a baseball game where there are lines or boxes on
the field designating where a fielder can stand until the ball is
pitched.Manfred was asked about his vision for the game five years from now. His
first mention, as you might guess, was to have the stadium situations in Oakland
and Tampa Bay resolved, as in ¡°having shovels in the ground.¡± He gave the people
in Oakland who are working on a stadium location ¡°a lot of credit¡± for the work
they¡¯ve done so far. He mentioned expansion to 32-team leagues and was open the
idea of ¡°Canada and Mexico¡± as possibilities (as well as having a better system
for ¡°player development in Mexico¡±), and when that happens he noted
¡°geographical realignment¡± and possible changes in the way postseason play is
arranged, though he wasn¡¯t specific about that. He added, ¡°I hope we will have
another Basic Agreement in place and another extended period of labor
peace.¡±This was a common theme throughout his remarks; he was asked again by
more than one person about strike talk, about players coming up to media unasked
and talking about labor-management relations, and he always said the ¡°right¡±
thing, noting that ¡°people said we wouldn¡¯t have an agreement without a strike
in 2002, and we had an agreement without a strike, and people said we wouldn¡¯t
have an agreement before the offseason in
2008
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and we had an agreement before the offseason.¡±I¡¯d counter to those comments that
labor-management relations were much more peaceful when Bud Selig ¡ª for all his
faults ¡ª was in charge. Selig was a conciliator and managed to broker several
good agreements. Manfred, for all his experience in collective bargaining ¡ª and
he mentioned this several times during the presser ¡ª doesn¡¯t seem to have the
same kind of collaborative ability. I should say that he tried to position his
remarks in a way that reached out to players. Whether this will end in a
positive way for the sport remains to be seen.In particular, he was asked
whether he could find a solution to the current team practice of keeping players
(Kris Bryant, Ronald Acuna Jr., etc.) in the minor leagues to manipulate service
time. Here¡¯s his reply in its entirety:He went on to say, again, that he was a
believer in collective bargaining. Which leads me to say that the players, if
they want a better system, ought to have a better negotiator than Tony Clark to
get it. It would appear, in Bruce Meyer, a good labor lawyer, they now might
have that. Manfred said he thought some of the issues were ¡°a little overblown
right now,¡± and though I personally am still concerned about a strike that could
wipe out the 2022 season, I do think Manfred is sincere about his desire to
avoid that, and he asked media to not ¡°sensationalize¡± the current
back-and-forth on the issues. That¡¯s a fair request.There was a question asked
about the Arizona Fall League, and Manfred hinted that the league might wind up
having its schedule moved back. The reason actually makes some sense ¡ª he said
that having the minor leagues stop in September, then take four weeks off before
the AFL season begins, could lead to possible injuries. That¡¯s a valid concern ¡ª
but then, do you have the AFL season end during the baseball postseason? Now, it
goes into November, and can have some attention to itself. Perhaps they can
begin it in September and keep it going into November by playing fewer games per
week. A similar concern prompted the Cubs to move their instructional league
from October into January, when players would then have the winter off, and come
back to play the week of instructs just before spring training begins.On this, I
give Manfred some credit for forward thinking.Lastly, I brought up the
attendance drop from 2017 to
2018
Jeff
Mathis Jersey , and noted three factors: bad weather, tanking teams, and
the one I wanted him to address, high ticket prices. I asked him what he could
do to assure fans that baseball games would remain affordable. Again, here¡¯s his
answer in its entirety.Someone let the Cubs know about that, please.I found
Manfred to be more open-minded in his remarks and responses this year than on
previous Cactus League media days. He¡¯s learned, I think, that consensus is
needed for radical changes in baseball, even though there are some (the
automatic intentional walk, the mound-visit limit, and possibly the pitch clock)
that he has instituted unilaterally. Those are minor blips on the baseball
stage, though, and any bigger things in the game itself (shifts, divisional
realignments, etc.) will require a lot more thought. I still think he ought to
listen more to real baseball fans; I don¡¯t think he does enough of that. Perhaps
someday Rob Manfred will have a news conference open to fans. I think he¡¯d be
enlightened about how much fans know, and care, about the game we all love. As
ugly losses in ugly seasons go, well...this was one of them."WhiteFanposts
Fanshots Sections Farmers onlyFeaturesPlayoffsHistory/Hall of FameGame
RecapsMarlins stomp hapless Reds 6-0New,36commentsAs ugly losses in ugly seasons
go, well...this was one of them.ByWick Terrell@wickterrellSep 23, 2018,3:57pm
EDTShareTweetShareShareMarlins stomp hapless Reds 6-0Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY
SportsThe Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the GameChad Wallach tallied a
grand total of 11 PAs with the Cincinnati Reds in the 2017 season, some three
years after being acquired by the Reds from the Miami Marlins alongside Anthony
DeSclafani in the Mat Latos trade. Between that and a 42 PA stint with the
Marlins this season - he was picked up off waivers by the Marlins this past
winter - he¡¯d never yet managed to hit a big league dinger.That changed on
Sunday, however, as he belted a 3-run blast off Michael
Lorenzen
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and that was the single biggest blast of the day.Considering nary a Red really
did anything of note on the day, it¡¯s only right that a former Red gets the nod
here. So, congrats, Chad. Your Marlins just whomped the heck out of the Reds for
an entire series.2018, man.Key PlaysA walk, a single, and an RBI infield single
that 3B Eugenio Suarez simply couldn¡¯t come up with preceded Wallach¡¯s 3rd
inning dinger, which was belted over the wall in left-center for a 3-run blast
that put the Reds in an intial hole, 4-0.The Marlins tacked on another pair of
runs in the Bottom of the 5th with Sal Romano on the mound. Brian Anderson got
things going with a single, and he later ended up at 3B on a wild pitch and
throwing error by catcher Curt Casali. Another single, a Scooter Gennett error,
and an RBI single from Magneuris Sierra later, and the Reds trailed, 6-0. That,
folks, is how this one would finish.Tony GraphaninoSource: FanGraphsOther
NotesLorenzen allowed 9 hits and 2 walks in his 4 IP. He was tagged for 4 ER and
struck out no one.On the plus side, the Reds are rapidly improving their draft
position.The last place Reds will return home to GABP later today, presumably.
On Tuesday, they¡¯ll begin a quick two-game series against the last place Kansas
City Royals, in case you¡¯re still interested in tuning in. First pitch Tuesday
is set for 6:40 PM ET, and will have Matt Harvey again on the mound for the Reds
in what should be his final appearance of the year before he reaches free
agency.Tunes.