Rob Manfred

Rob Manfred

Manfred in 2014
10th Commissioner of Baseball
Assumed office
January 25, 2015
Preceded by Bud Selig
Chief Operating Officer of Major League Baseball
In office
September 28, 2013 – January 24, 2015
Preceded by Bob DuPuy
Succeeded by Tony Petitti
Personal details
Born (1958-09-28) September 28, 1958
Rome, New York
Alma mater Cornell University (B.S.)
Harvard Law School (J.D.)
Employer Major League Baseball
Signature
Website MLB Bio

Robert D. Manfred Jr. (born September 28, 1958) is an American lawyer and business executive who is the tenth and current Commissioner of Baseball. He previously served as the Chief Operating Officer of Major League Baseball and succeeded Bud Selig as Commissioner on January 25, 2015.

Early life and career

Manfred was born on September 28, 1958 in Rome, New York.[1] He attended Rome Free Academy and graduated in 1976.[2] Manfred enrolled at Le Moyne College from 1976 through 1978 before transferring to Cornell University. He graduated from Cornell and Harvard Law School.[3][4][5]

After law school, he clerked for Judge Joseph L. Tauro of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. He became a partner at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, focusing on labor and employment law.[6][7]

Major League Baseball

In 1987, Manfred began working with Major League Baseball (MLB) during collective bargaining.[7] During the 1994–95 MLB strike, he served as outside counsel for the owners.[6] He joined MLB on a full-time basis in 1998, serving as the Executive Vice President of Economics and League Affairs.[4] Manfred negotiated MLB's first drug testing agreement with the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) in 2002, and represented MLB in negotiations with the MLBPA when forming new collective bargaining agreements in 2002, 2006 and 2011.[8] In 2013, Manfred led MLB's investigation of the Biogenesis scandal.[9]

Manfred at the 2015 Major League Baseball All-Star Game

At the end of the 2013 season, Commissioner of Baseball Bud Selig promoted Manfred to chief operating officer of MLB.[4] The position had been vacant since Selig fired Bob DuPuy in 2010.[10] Following the announcement of Selig's retirement, effective after the 2014 season, Manfred became a finalist to succeed him as Commissioner.[11][12]

On August 14, 2014, MLB owners elected Manfred to succeed Selig, beating Boston Red Sox chairman Tom Werner and MLB executive vice president of business Tim Brosnan.[7] Manfred assumed office on January 25, 2015.[13] He stated that his primary goals as commissioner were youth outreach, embracing technology, quickening the pace of play, strengthening player relations, and creating a more unified business operation.[14]

As commissioner, Manfred instituted rules before the start of the 2015 season to address the pace of the game, including having batters remain in the batters box and the installation of time clocks to limit the time spent around commercial breaks.[15]

Personal

Growing up in Upstate New York, Manfred was a fan of the New York Yankees.[16] His father led the Rome division of Revere Copper and Brass, while his mother was a schoolteacher.[8][17] He has an older sister and a younger brother.[17]

Manfred is married and has four children.[4] He serves as a Board member at Catholic School of Holy Child in Rye, New York.[18][19] His daughter Megan Manfred married Timothy Petrella of Minnetonka, Minnesota, son of the president of UnitedHealthcare Community and State, at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Sleepy Hollow, New York.[20] His son Michael married Ashley Allen at Catholic Church of the Transfiguration in Tarrytown, New York.[21]

References

  1. ↑ Blum, Ronald (January 27, 2015). "Manfred's To-Do List Long". Daily Herald. Arlington Heights, Illinois. Retrieved March 18, 2015 – via HighBeam Research. (subscription required (help)).
  2. ↑ "RFA Class Of 1976 Graduate Rob Manfred Voted Next Commissioner Of Baseball". Retrieved August 14, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Baseball's new commissioner Rob Manfred, a Le Moyne Dolphin, has some serious challenges". syracuse.com. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Commissioner Selig names Rob Manfred as the Chief Operating Officer of Major League Baseball | MLB.com: News" (Press release). Major League Baseball. September 30, 2013. Retrieved September 30, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Michael Weiner a new kind of baseball players' union boss – Chicago Tribune". Articles.chicagotribune.com. December 26, 2009. Retrieved September 30, 2013.
  6. 1 2 "BASEBALL; Baseball Talks May Resume". New York Times. July 9, 1995. Retrieved September 30, 2013.
  7. 1 2 3 "Rob Manfred voted next MLB commissioner — ESPN". Espn.go.com. August 14, 2014. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  8. 1 2 "Rob Manfred, MLB's new commissioner, built resume through successes on labor and anti-doping front". NY Daily News. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Baseball COO Rob Manfred to be witness in Alex Rodriguez appeal, sources say". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 10, 2015.
  10. ↑ Shaikin, Bill (September 30, 2013). "Rob Manfred named COO of Major League Baseball". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  11. ↑ Zinser, Lynn (August 15, 2014). "A Look at the Three Who Would Be MLB Commissioner". The New York Times. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Who is Rob Manfred? Man who should be next MLB commissioner — MLB". Sporting News. August 13, 2014. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Bud Selig named Commissioner Emeritus, to make $6M pension". CBS Sports. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  14. ↑ Crasnick, Jerry (January 25, 2015). "New MLB commissioner Rob Manfred's top five priorities — ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
  15. ↑ "Rob Manfred thinks inside the box to speed up MLB games". KSDK. February 20, 2015. Retrieved June 10, 2015.
  16. ↑ Steve Ruark/AP. "An exclusive Q&A with new commissioner Rob Manfred on baseball's challenges — MLB — SI.com". SI.com. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
  17. 1 2 "Meet Major League Baseball's new commissioner, Rob Manfred — ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
  18. ↑ "Rob Manfred | MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference". Sloansportsconference.com. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  19. ↑ "School of the Holy Child: Board of Trustees". Holychildrye.org. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  20. ↑ "Megan Manfred, Timothy Petrella — Weddings — New York Times". Nytimes.com. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  21. ↑ "Ashley Allen, Michael Manfred". New York Times. June 16, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2014.

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