There is a possibility that MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred could receive a contract extension in the near future.
That's precisely what the current and active commish of Major League Baseball has in mind and would prefer going forward, according to Evan Drellich of The Athletic.
Manfred's current contract runs through 2025. In an interview with The Athletic on Tuesday, Manfred expressed his "desire to continue serving as commissioner," although he did not provide "a specific timeline for the election process."
The soonest that process can take place is during the upcoming owners' meetings in November, whether it would occur during the owners' meetings in November or at another time.
According to Drelich's research, the MLB stipulates that when a commissioner seeks re-election, a majority vote is required within a designated period. This period begins 18 months prior to the expiration of the commissioner's current contract and continues until there are only nine months left on the deal.
That timeline aligns nearly perfectly with the time chosen by Manfred to make his intentions known, as he will enter that "designated period" in about two weeks. Once we hit that point, the window for the commish to hold a vote that can clinch him five more years at the helm of the MLB would be open.
On Manfred's most-pressing agenda is the relocation of the Oakland A's to Las Vegas, which is believed to have started already by the franchise as a formal proposal is already getting crafted by the team president and its owner, and also the potential expansion of the league.
Manfred told reporters through the All-Star break that the MLB, in fact, will look into expanding to 32 teams (including realignments) once the A's and the Tampa Bay Rays resolve the issues they're currently dealing with in terms of their stadiums at both Oakland (lease ending in 2024) and Tampa (Rays potentially moving into a new ballpark or relocating).