Manfred confident of new deal
CLEVELAND — Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred is hopeful an agreement on a new labor contract will be reached before the current deal expires Dec. 1.
Negotiators for management and the players association have been meeting in New York this week. The 2006 contract was announced during the World Series and the 2011 agreement Nov. 22.
“There are certain natural deadlines that kind of flow around the end of the World Series and then through the expiration date of the agreement,” Manfred said Wednesday before Game 2. “Each of the last couple of times we’ve either gotten it done during the World Series or a few days afterwards. I remain optimistic that we’re going to be in that same window in terms of getting it done.”
Primary issues include luxury tax thresholds, management’s desire for a draft of international amateur players, changes in schedule rules to ease travel and international play such as regular-season games in London. Baseball has not had a work stoppage since the 1994-95 strike that led to the cancellation of the World Series for the first time in 90 years.
Manfred was management’s primary negotiator for the previous three labor deals, then succeeded Bud Selig as commissioner in January 2015. Former All-Star first baseman Tony Clark is leading players in talks for the first time; he took over as union head following the death of Michael Weiner in November 2013.
Ratings soar
Cleveland’s 6-0 win against the Chicago Cubs Tuesday night drew the highest rating on Fox for a Series opener since 2009. Viewers are intrigued by the Cubs’ quest for their first title since 1908; the Indians have not won since 1948. An average of 19.4 million viewers watched on Fox, up 30 percent from the 14.9 million average for Kansas City’s 14-inning Game 1 win against the New York Mets a year ago.
Indians logo
Manfred plans to meet with Indians owner Paul Dolan after the Series to discuss the team’s continued use of the controversial Chief Wahoo logo. The symbol has stirred strong opinions for years.