Rob Manfred increasingly confident major leaguers will play in 2028 LA Olympics

TORONTO (AP) — Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred is increasingly confident big league players will participate in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

MLB did not allow players on 40-man rosters at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, when Nippon Professional Baseball interrupted its season and Japan beat the U.S. 2-0 in the gold medal game.

MLB has discussed creating an extended All-Star break to allow participation in the 2028 Games, to be held from July 14-30. An agreement with the players’ association is necessary and sponsor deals could be impacted.

“I am positive about it. I think that the owners have kind of crossed the line in terms of, we’d like to do it if we can possibly make it work,” Manfred said Saturday before Game 2 of the World Series. “There are logistical issues that still need to be worked on.”

At the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, the baseball tournament took place over 11 days, including a four-day group stage followed by knockout rounds and culminating in gold and bronze medal games.

Baseball at the LA Games is likely to have a more compressed format.

“We have made a lot of progress with LA 2028 in terms of the calendar,” Manfred said. “Right now we’re in discussions with the players’ association about that set of issues.”

Participation in 2028 is likely to be a one-off. The 2032 Olympics are scheduled for Brisbane, Australia.

“The logistics of LA as evidenced by how long we’ve been talking about it are difficult,” Manfred said. “The chances that we’re playing in Brisbane — difficult, right? Even way more difficult than being in LA.”

Labor negotiations and a possible salary cap proposal

There has been focus on postseason payroll disparity and whether a second straight World Series championship for the Los Angeles Dodgers would increase the likelihood of management proposing a salary cap in talks for a labor contract to succeed the current deal with players, which expires in 2026.

Los Angeles entered as baseball’s top spender this year, projected at $509 million in payroll and luxury tax, more than seven times the $69 million of the major league-low Miami Marlins. The Blue Jays are No. 5 at $266 million.

No small-market team has won the title since the 2015 Kansas City Royals.

“I don’t think who wins this World Series is any more relevant than who won the last five or six,” Manfred said.

No timetable for resolving Clase and Ortiz investigations

Manfred said MLB is moving “as fast as we can” in investigations that led to Cleveland pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz being placed on paid leave.

Ortiz didn’t pitch after June 27 and Clase after July 26 as part of an MLB probe into sports betting.

“Obviously, our No. 1 priority is to protect the integrity of the game. We think we have great systems in place that allow us to do that,” Manfred said. “We’ve worked really hard to provide resources to players to make sure that they are comfortable and have an outlet when they have a problem with respect to issues related to sports betting.”

The head coach of the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers and a player for the Miami Heat were arrested Thursday along with more than 30 other people in a federal gambling investigation.

“The most important thing that we can do is make sure that we have systems in place that give us access to data which puts you in a position to determine if there’s something aberrational going on,” Manfred said. “When you get that, you need to conduct a thorough investigation, make sure that you understand exactly what caused that aberration and then you need to discipline.”

Twelve-team postseason

Manfred sounded content with 12 of 30 teams making the playoffs. The size was expanded from 10 as part of the 2022 labor agreement after the players’ association rejected MLB’s 14-club plan.

Best-of-three Wild Card Series started as part of the larger postseason, all played at the ballpark of the higher-seeded team.

“I really like the way 12 has played out,” Manfred said. “I think the wild-card round, playing a series like we’d normally play baseball, was a big improvement.”

Expansion

Manfred has said he hopes MLB can select two expansion teams before his term expires in January 2029, but he won’t more forward until the Tampa Bay Rays and the team’s new owners have a deal for a new ballpark.

“We’re not going to be on the field, obviously, but I’d like to have the teams picked,” he said. “I’m pretty comfortable with the idea that something good is going to happen in the Tampa Bay region.”

Montreal has discussed bidding for an expansion team to replace the Expos, who became the Washington Nationals for the 2005 season.

“There’s certainly other cities in Canada that would be viable expansion candidates,” Manfred said.

National television contracts

MLB’s contracts remain in the legal drafting phase with Comcast’s NBCUniversal for the Wild Card Series and Sunday night regular-season games, with Netflix for the All-Star Home Run Derby, and with The Walt Disney Co.’s ESPN for a regular-season package plus in-market rights for Arizona, Cleveland, Colorado, Minnesota and San Diego.

“We have agreements. We’re just working on long forms and as I have learned over the years, long-form broadcasting agreements take a long time to get done,” Manfred said.

Rays returning to Tropicana Field

Tampa Bay played home games this year at the New York Yankees’ spring training home, Steinbrenner Field, following damage to Tropicana Field caused by Hurricane Milton. Repairs are ongoing, and the Rays play their home opener on April 6 after starting with a nine-game trip.

“We’re hopeful that it will be ready for the opening home set,” Manfred said. “It’s certainly going to be open very early in the year.”

Ohtani’s impact on increasing international attention for baseball

Shohei Ohtani has helped the Dodgers reach the World Series in consecutive years, sparking record viewership in Japan.

“Shohei, it just absolutely has been the greatest benefit to the game that you can imagine throughout the year. In the LCS he had probably the greatest game of all time and we’re fortunate to have him here in the World Series,” Manfred said.

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