The Man Who Killed Baseball

January 25th, 2015 – A Day that will forever be remembered as the beginning of the end Baseball.

That dark day, Sith lord (unconfirmed) Robert Manfred was elected commissioner of Major League Baseball. Unbeknownst to anyone at the time, Manfred’s vision was to ruin the game in as many ways as possible. His vision is now crystal clear to all of us.

Manfred goes by many names; Commissioner, Sith Lord, Son of Satan, Destroyer of All Things Fun, and now, The Man Who Killed Baseball.

Manfred’s Empty Promises to Baseball

Manfred has brought nothing of value to the game since he took over as Commissioner.

At the very start of his reign of terror, he stated that his primary goals as Commissioner were to attract more youth to the game, get more technology involved (Instant Replay), quickening the pace of play, and strengthening relations with the players.

He’s done just about the opposite of that.

Introducing Younger Audiences to Baseball 👎

When it comes to attracting the younger generation, he hasn’t done much. Baseball, as it is now, is a dead game. Manfred added some pretty stupid ass rules a few years ago to speed up how the game is played, a major turn-off to the younger population. Those rules included runners on 2nd at the start of the 10th inning (carries on until game is done) and 7-inning double headers. If anything, that’s pushing fans away. Nobody want’s to see their team get shorted because some limp-dick bastard decided to fuck with things that weren’t the problem. Yes, these rules are going away soon, but what a massive fuck up by Manfred to begin with.

Technology and Pace of Play 👎

As far as technology and pace of play, those two don’t necessarily coincide. For now, adding technology to the game is really just for instant reply, which has actually slowed the game down more tremendously. Even with this increase in ways to look at plays, calls aren’t going to be right and it just takes more time. That’s where we get into pace of play.

The average time it took to complete 9 innings was 3 hours and 10 minutes in 2021, the highest it has ever been. I recall a Twins game that I attended back in June with a few people from 10K Takes and I may have been drunk, but 9 innings took damn near 4 hours. And then it went into extra innings. The game started around 7PM and didn’t get done until nearly 3am.

I’ve long considered myself to be a “Baseball Purist”. I’m content with how the game is played now, but most people my age (23 years old), aren’t. That’s totally okay! I’m very open to change, so I guess I’m an unconventional purist in a sense. But Manfred needs to begin to cater to a new generation of baseball fans instead of the purists who, by definition, are close minded and not open to change.

Building a Strong Relationship with the MLBPA 👎

Lastly; strengthening relationships with players… L O Fucking L. You think that this letter Manfred penned to the fans of Baseball is going to strengthen relationships between the MLB and the MLBPA? Manfred takes zero ownership of MLB’s part in all this Collective Bargaining Agreement shit. He basically says “Hey, fans. Get fucked. If the players weren’t such rich, whiny bastards, I would’ve implemented new rules to get more fans engaged! Too bad, feel sad for me and the 30 multi-billionaires who pay my salary 🙁 “.

Manfred’s Hidden Truths

Speaking of strengthening relationships with the players…

Towards the end of November of this year, things began to unravel even more for Baseball. It became public knowledge that MLB had been using two different baseballs.

Changes had been made after the surge of home runs in 2019 (S/O the Bomba Squad) and in 2020.

did you know MLB used not one, but *two* different balls all season? And that the balls were designed to perform differently?
You didn’t?
Well the players, coaches, execs and scouts I spoke said they didn’t either!
Buckle in— we got a story to tell: https://t.co/lLsHr9FouW

— Bradford William Davis (@BWDBWDBWD) November 30, 2021

One ball favored opposing hitters, making it go further off the bat. The other ball, of course, favored pitchers. Manfred, being the slimy little bastard that he is, didn’t tell anyone about it. What kind of piece of shit does that? He essentially manipulated games!!! PETE ROSE BET ON BASEBALL AND IS BANNED. Because what Manfred did was far worse, should something more severe happen? Theoretically, yes. Will it? No.

The integrity of the game is in shambles now thanks to this move by Manfred. I’m not mad that it happened, but I’m mad that it was hidden from us.

It was also, of course, blamed on Covid-19. There’s plenty of things you can justifiably blame on the ‘Rona. Your choice to secretly use two different balls is not one of them.

The Nail in MLB’s Coffin

Negotiations between MLB and the MLBPA for a new CBA are currently at a stand still. It was announced earlier this month that no negotiating will occur until 2022. When in 2022? Nobody fucking knows.

With that being said, there’s not much happening in the game. No free agent signings, no trades, no nothin’. Nothing CAN happen really other than managers and minor leaguers being signed. That alone is driving interest further away from the game during what is normally a pretty fun time for fans (Not Twins fans though, we aren’t ever happy during this time of the year). So instead of wondering who the Twins AREN’T going to sign, I have to spend my days watching the Vikings lose by one score for the seventeenth week in a row.

Manfred is to blame for all of this. He created this mess. Manfred destroyed any hope of the players of Major League Baseball trusting him again.

MLB players are making good money for sure, but not all of them. The way Manfred is making them out to be is terrible. He’s making them seem greedy, which is yet another reason why people won’t watch or support Baseball.

What’s next for Major League Baseball?

Manfred needs to be outed from his position. He clearly can’t do anything good and is ruining the game all on his own. Players, fans, executives, scouts, anyone with a pulse can’t trust him. If you’re a leader of a multi-billion dollar organization, how effective can you be when nobody trusts you?

At this time, Manfred has backed the MLB in its talks with the MLBPA. It needs to give in to the players demands and add more things, like the DH in the National League, that will attract fans and please players.

Please, Robert. Do the right thing. Stop ruining this fucking game that has been around for 150+ years.