Until Monday night, the last time we had seen Rob Manfred in a public setting was last Wednesday, when he announced the selections in the first round of Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft.
Last week, it was the drafting teams who were on the clock.
Now, it's Manfred's turn.
Manfred's bizarre reversal of field in the span of week -- first guaranteeing that an MLB season would be played, only to rescind that promise Monday -- has left the game in limbo. After seemingly getting what he wanted all along -- acquiescence on the part of the MLB Players Association -- Manfred sounded the alarm Monday night that the season remained very much in jeopardy.
The reason? Manfred's fear MLB was leaving itself open to an unfair labor grievance from the union. And so, the implementation of a 50-or-so game schedule, as the commissioner has the right to impose in the face of stalled negotiations, is on hold.
Forget for a moment that Manfred's backtracking made him look foolish on Monday's ESPN forum with other commissioners, all of whom have managed to reach agreements with their respective unions to return to play. Forget, too, that Manfred enraged the players by moving the goalposts at the last minute.
Those are temporary PR problems that are common occurrences in labor negotiations. There are bigger stakes in play here, not the least of which is the welfare of the sport which Manfred is charged with protecting.
As if that wasn't enough, Manfred himself has plenty on the line. Some six years into his tenure as commissioner, Manfred faces his biggest challenge yet. It's not overstating things to suggest his legacy is on the line.
Does Manfred really want to go down in history as the man in charge when baseball lost an entire season? Does he wish to be his legacy?
Perhaps a chat with his predecessor -- and one-time mentor -- would be useful. Bud Selig accomplished plenty in his time in office, from the advent of interleague play, the move toward an expanded playoff format and the introduction of revenue sharing.
Under Selig, the game's revenues grew at record rates, fan interest was retained in cities that otherwise would have been ousted from postseason contention and a number of small- and mid-market franchise were given the wherewithal to better compete on the field and, at least occasionally, in the marketplace for talent.
But Selig's place in history will always be diminished, in part, thanks to a canceled World Series in 1994. It will, fairly or not, be in the first paragraph of his obituary, an ugly stain on his history.
Selig, like commissioners before him and Manfred now, saw himself as a steward of the game. But that role is always compromised by a commissioner's fealty to the owners, who hire him and to whom he reports.
If Manfred didn't realize that before, he surely does now. Manfred can say all the right things about wanting to preserve the game and protect its integrity, to act in the best interest of both the players and fans. But ultimately, his allegiance is to the 30 owners.
(This is similarly true of commissioners in other sports, but the dichotomy is particularly heightened in baseball, thanks to its ugly labor history which serves to highlight these contradictions every few years).
It's true that Manfred is the owners' representative. While Tony Clark heads the Players Association and acts on behalf of that membership, so, too does Manfred speak for the owners. But he needn't be so servile to them when it's not in the best interest of the game.
There's nothing to prohibit Manfred from showing some leadership as the game dangled perilously close to the cliff. Instead of canvassing the owners and emerging with a consensus viewpoint, Manfred could -- potentially, at least -- show them what should be done.
He could say the following:
"I understand that some of you are on record as being diametrically opposed to any concessions whatsoever to the Players Association. I also understand there are a handful of you who would prefer that we not play at all in 2020. While I recognize these stances are genuine, they are not, in my opinion, in the best interests of our business, nor the game.
"It's my belief that some short-term financial sacrifices must be made in order to get the game back on the field at this critical time. The country is in the throes of a pandemic and tens of millions are out of work. Additionally, the death of George Floyd has sparked massive protests.
"Baseball has always played an important part during times of national crises. Americans have historically turned to baseball for any number of reasons -- comfort, distraction, and as a source of unity. We can play that meaningful role now, but to do so with any authority, we need to have our product on the field.
"We've seen little to indicate that the Players Association has any intention of accepting anything less than 100 percent pro-rated pay, and while it's our interpretation that the March 26 agreement gives us the right to reduce that amount in the absence of paying fans, doing so at any cost would be counterproductive.
"I fully recognize that such a plan will cause some short-term losses for some owners. But it's important to understand that forfeiting the 2020 season altogether would be far more injurious. At a time when millions are eager for the return of games, we cannot risk being the only major North American sport that fails to get back in business. Such an absence would invite further ridicule and alienate the American public.
"The recent TV deal negotiated with TBS is a reminder that, despite our current issues, the business of baseball is generally healthy and there are other areas of untapped sources of revenue to explore in the future. That's why it's critical that we negotiate an agreement with the Players Association, one that calls for a regular season of 70 or so games to be followed by an expanded postseason tournament that could be worth an additional $250 million alone in expanded TV rights fees.
"Your teams are your investments and you must trust that they will continue to grow in value as we expand our business. But again, this can only be accomplished if we put aside our current differences with the Players Association and demonstrate to the fans that we recognize their unhappiness with the current stalemate. There will be time to address important changes some of you have sought -- 18 months from now when we sit down with the union to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement.
"And so I seek your support to negotiate, as quickly as possible, a deal that will return Major League Baseball where it belongs -- on the field and in front of the American public. Failure to do so, I fear, will be calamitous to our great game.''
