MLB world rips Rob Manfred after he said he’s ‘not confident’ the season will happen

So much for 100 percent.

Just last week, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said that he was “100 percent” certain that there would be a 2020 MLB season. Even as the owners and MLBPA found themselves in a financial stalemate amid restart negotiations, the MLB commissioner remained oddly confident.

Well, that appears to have changed in five days.

During an interview with ESPN’s Mike Greenberg, Manfred walked back on his earlier statement and said that was “not confident” we’d see baseball played this year.

The comments came after the MLBPA rejected a return proposal from the owners (70 percent prorated salary in a 72-game season) and said they’d end negotiations. So, Manfred — who works for the owners — was likely making these comments as a tactic in an attempt to direct blame onto the players. As part of their rejection statement, the players asked the owners to implement the season and let them know when and where to report.

Still, Manfred said via ESPN:

“It’s just a disaster for our game, absolutely no question about it. It shouldn’t be happening, and it’s important that we find a way to get past it and get the game back on the field for the benefit of our fans.”

But if MLB actually decided to cancel the 2020 season, it would be the kind of shortsighted decision that would cause generational damage to a sport with already-dwindling popularity. The MLB commissioner, in theory, is supposed to prevent something like that from happening.

These latest remarks had MLB fans and players criticizing Manfred on Twitter.

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