Manfred said he wished powerful agents would find ways to make deals with clubs soonerGETTY IMAGES
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred is "tired of hearing complaints from players and agents about the changing economic landscape" of the sport and "suggested that players get over it," according to Tyler Kepner of the N.Y. TIMES. Manfred yesterday said, "I believe that, just like last year, that [free-agent] market is going to clear at some point in the next few weeks. Those players are going to get signed." He added, "Do I wish, if I had my way, that Scott Boras or Dan Lozano -- whatever agent -- would find a way to make a deal with some club sooner rather than later? Yes, I do. But we negotiated a system that allows a market to operate." Manfred suggested that players "should recognize that they are now valued differently by a data-driven industry less prone to the emotional decisions that once drove salaries ever higher." Manfred: "It's important to remember that the Major League Baseball Players Association has always wanted a market-based system, and markets change, particularly when the institution around those markets change. We've had a lot of change in the game. People think about players differently. They analyze players differently. They negotiate differently." He added the "process of putting together a competitive team looks a little different" now, noting the Rays last season won 90 games on a low budget. Manfred: "Fans have to get used to that different process and have a little faith in the people that are running their clubs" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/18).
ARE ALL TEAMS TRYING TO WIN? The AP's Mike Fitzpatrick noted several players around MLB have "taken issue with a second consecutive slow market for free agents," and they are questioning "why more teams aren't trying to win." But Manfred said, "Our teams are trying. Every single one of them wants to win. It may look a little different to outsiders because the game has changed, the way people think about the game, the way that people think about putting a winning team together has changed, but that doesn't mean they're not trying" (AP, 2/17). In New Jersey, Matt Ehalt notes Manfred is "not concerned with teams' lack of spending on their payroll despite the Red Sox winning the title last year with the game's top payroll." He pointed to the Giants "flopping last season despite a busy offseason." Manfred: "I reject the notion that a payroll is a good measure for how hard a team is trying or how successful that team is going to be" (Bergen RECORD, 2/18).
TWO SIDES TO EVERY DEAL: Manfred in regard to the slow free agent market said everybody "seems to approach this issue from the perspective of, 'Gee, why aren't the clubs signing players?'" He noted there are "lots and lots of offers out there and it's a bilateral system." Manfred: "Players haven't accepted those offers yet that's how a market works" (PALM BEACH POST, 2/18). Nationals 1B Ryan Zimmerman referenced Bryce Harper and Manny Machado in saying there are "too many good players out there that aren't on teams." He added MLB is an "entertainment business," and fans "should be able to see the best players in the world play, doesn't matter what team they're on." Zimmerman: "You have guys that are not even old that aren't getting jobs either. We'll see what happens, it's definitely trending in a bad direction" (NBCSPORTSWASHINGTON.com, 2/17). In Pittsburgh, Gene Collier wrote several factors are at work in "keeping both Machado and Harper out of anyone's camp." The "most impactful thing might be old-fashioned sanity" on the part of the owners. Harper and Machado "will sign when one of their agents ... decides that going first won't be the worst thing in the world." It is "anyone's guess whether that will happen before the handful of teams that are interested and financially capable" of putting a $300M accounts payable tab into their long-term budget "decide to abandon the blizzard of relative new predictive analytics telling them not to be stupid" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 2/17).
GOING INSIDE THE PROCESS: D-backs P Greg Holland signed a one-year, $3.25M deal two weeks ago, citing his desire not to "go through what I did a year ago" with the free-agent process. Holland was one of the "prized free-agent relievers" after the '17 season, but "sat out all of spring training a year ago." He "kept waiting for a big contract, only to eventually sign a one-year deal on opening day with the Cardinals." Holland: "It's easy to say, 'Be patient,' but at this time of year you don't have any patience. It's almost like a stalemate type of thing" (USA TODAY, 2/18). Cubs P Brad Brach, who signed a one-year, $4.35M deal last month, said, "Teams say they like you but they're not making offers. And then you finally get offers and six or seven teams are giving you the same offers. It's just kind of a weird process and nobody really knows what's going on right now." He added teams "told us we have an algorithm, and here's where you fall on the scale" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 2/16). Meanwhile, in Boston, Nick Cafardo reported the MLBPA will "not hold its spring training camp for unsigned free agents in Bradenton, Fla., this year." Last year's camp "only attracted fringe major leaguers, as most free agents had private workouts" (BOSTON GLOBE, 2/17).
TRYING TO CHANGE PERCEPTION OF MLB: In St. Louis, Derrick Goold notes Cardinals P Adam Wainwright in a recent interview "warned of an impending strike and that he was worried players would walk out midseason." He "aimed to clarify his comments in a series of tweets Saturday night but still captured the players' frustrations." However, Manfred yesterday "pushed back on strike talk -- years before the current labor deal expires." He said, "It reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of how you conduct good labor relations to have people running around three years before an agreement expires before there has been one word of negotiation -- arguing that that there is going to be a strike. ... It is not productive in terms of our business. I don't think it’s good for our fans. I don't think it's good for our players. And I know it's not going to change the outcome of negotiations, ultimately" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 2/18). Manfred said he hates the "negativity that surrounds the coverage" of MLB right now. Manfred: "Probably the best antidote for that is to get out there and start playing the game" (USA TODAY, 2/18).
FACING THE MUSIC: In Houston, Brian Smith writes Manfred deserves credit for "standing up and taking it." He has been "more Adam Silver than Roger Goodell during baseball's improved post-Bud Selig days." Manfred "knows his sport has become too slow and boring." He has "pushed for hip change, pressed the union and consistently been transparent (in the positive use of that word)" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 2/18).
