World Baseball Classic: Rob Manfred talks about possibility of moving tournament to midseason

The World Baseball Classic is thriving. While not on the level of the Olympics just yet, interest seems to be at an all-time high for the baseball tournament, with Team USA’s win over the Dominican Republic in the semifinals drawing more viewers than the MLB All-Star Game. Turns out, that example might carry a lot of weight moving forward, as MLB commissioner Rob Manfred floated the idea of moving the World Baseball Classic to midseason in the future.

Manfred told the Associated Press that the league has discussed the idea of doing a midseason tournament in the past, and the World Baseball Classic would be the “ ideal opportunity ” to test out that idea. “Obviously we have commitments to Fox in terms of the All-Star Game in the middle of the season through ’28,” baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said Wednesday during an interview with The Associated Press. “As the game continues to evolve, we have talked about midseason tournaments in general.

And certainly if we decided to get serious about this, about a midseason tournament, this would be an ideal opportunity. ” Manfred did not provide any additional details on the idea. Yahoo Fantasy Bracket Mayhem: Make your picks for $50K in total prizes But there is evidence it can work.

The NHL pauses its season and allows players to take part in the Winter Olympics when the two overlap. It’s not a perfect comparison, as MLB pitchers need to stay on somewhat of a regular workload during the regular season. They can’t take multiple weeks off and then return to action ready to throw 90+ pitches.