We’ve written and talked a lot about the role of commissioner this offseason. I wrote an entire three-part series about the history of the office, and Rob Manfred’s received an outsized share of blame for this lockout. It’s tricky to completely blame Manfred for the state of things, though.
He is, effectively, the loudspeaker and the lightning rod for 30 owners. There’s nothing that Manfred says that hasn’t been said in closed door meetings with his congregation of bosses, and a good chunk of his $11 million salary pays for him standing up in public and taking the heat off of individual owners.