ARLINGTON, Texas — Major League Baseball might follow the NHL and make its players available for the 2028 Summer Olympics, Commissioner Rob Manfred said Tuesday during a meeting with baseball writers.
Manfred said he has spoken with owners and Casey Wasserman, president of the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee, about the possibility of bringing the sport back after it was dropped following the Tokyo Games in 2021.
“I sat with Casey last week, we’re talking about what can be done, what exactly it would look like, what compromises we would have to make in terms of our season,” Manfred said. “I remain open-minded about that topic.
“I do think maybe what I found most persuasive (from) what Casey is saying is to forget about what happens with baseball in the Olympics long term, because I think we all know when you’re in Paris, they’re probably not going to build a baseball stadium.
“But when you focus on L.A., there is an opportunity that we need to think about. Doing my players rounds, there is interest on this topic, so that’s important.”
There would be no problem finding venues with Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, Angels Stadium in Anaheim and Petco Park in San Diego. But how baseball would be able to shut down for a couple of weeks during the Olympics and still get in a 162-game season and playoffs before Thanksgiving remains to be seen.
The NHL and NHL Players Association announced in February that players would be allowed to participate in the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, and in the 2030 Games, whose host city will be announced July 24. The last time the NHL interrupted its season for the Olympics was in 2014 in Sochi, Russia.
MLB players appear interested in the idea, which could upstage their own tournament, the World Baseball Classic.
“The main goal in Major League Baseball as a whole is to grow the game,” Philadelphia Phillies star Bryce Harper said Monday. “I don’t think there is a greater platform in the world than the Olympics. The biggest thing is: ‘Where can you grow the game the most?’ It’s on the international stage.”
Manfred also said Tuesday the automated ball-strike system (ABS), commonly referred to as “robot umpires,” could be tested in spring training next season with the possibility of implementing it in 2026.
The system currently is being used in Triple A, which also has a challenge system in place, much like the replay challenge system in the majors, in which players can challenge a call by a human umpire.
“It’s ‘24, so that leaves me ‘25 as the year to do your spring training test if we can get these issues resolved,” Manfred said. “Which would make ‘26 a viable possibility (for implementation). Is that going to be the year? I’m not going to be flat-footed on that issue.”
In a separate meeting with the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, MLB Players Association head Tony Clark said that MLB is “continuing to make a push” toward ABS and that the challenge system is a “more likely landing spot.”
The Atlantic League was the first American pro league to allow a computer to call balls and strikes at its 2019 All-Star Game. The MLB Umpires Association agreed in December 2019 to cooperate with MLB in the development and testing of an ABS system as part of a five-year labor contract.
Clark said the challenge system “likely” would have more support from players than a complete switch to robot umpires.
“The experiences have been interesting,” he said of talks with players. “There are those that have no interest in it at all. There are those who have concern even with the challenge system, as to how the strike zone itself is going to be considered, what that looks like, how consistent it is going to be.
“What happens in a world where Wi-Fi goes down in the ballpark or tech acts up on any given night? We’re seeing those issues, albeit in minor-league ballparks. We do not want to end up in a world where in a major league there are more questions than answers as to the integrity of that night’s game or the calls associated with it.”
Manfred also addressed one of the most one-sided fan debates regarding the All-Star Game: complaints about generic National and American League uniforms instead of players wearing their team jerseys.
Manfred sounded pessimistic about a change back to the old ways but said he’s well aware of fan sentiment regarding the issue.
“Obviously the conversations have to involve the players, first and foremost, and Nike and some of our partners,” Manfred said. “But I am aware of the sentiment and I do know why people kind of like that tradition. But there will be a conversation about that.”
