MLB Players Use Social Media to Rip Commissioner Rob Manfred: TRAINA THOUGHTS

Players went off on MLB commissioner Rob Manfred after he said there were serious doubts about baseball being played in 2020.

1. Last week Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said, "unequivocally, we are going to play Major League Baseball this year."

On Monday Manfred said, "I'm not confident. I think there's real risk, and as long as there's no dialogue, that real risk is going to continue."

As soon as Manfred's comments became public, players tweeted and subtweeted about Manfred, the current negotiations and the state of baseball.

There was some solid GIF usage, and we tip our caps to those players.

Rob Manfred and the owners are walking back on their word...AGAIN. The fans do not deserve this. So I’ll say it one more time, tell us when and where.

— Max Scherzer (@Max_Scherzer) June 16, 2020

The current state of Baseball pic.twitter.com/c6TGqhqWOr

— Noah Syndergaard (@Noahsyndergaard) June 16, 2020

“Good faith” pic.twitter.com/zddVbM5epa

— Enrique Hernández (@kikehndez) June 15, 2020

pic.twitter.com/aStLxZSuC3

— Derek Holland (@Dutch_Oven45) June 15, 2020

Dear Adam Silver,

... you up?

- MLB Players

— Jason Kipnis (@TheJK_Kid) June 15, 2020

You know it’s bad when there’s a petition for your resignation. #BeBetter

— Delino DeShields (@LinoDeShields) June 15, 2020

So, Rob, explain to us how you can be 100% sure that there’s going to be baseball but not confident there will be baseball at the same time? hmmm. What changed between those statements 🤔🤔 Players told you to set the season, but it’s too early to set the season right now,

— Trevor Bauer (トレバー・バウアー) (@BauerOutage) June 15, 2020

These so called “negotiations” (or lack there of) have been sooo slimy, tone deaf, greedy, lying, leaking, and overall out of touch. This is not even close to what you dream of as a kid! Sorry to everyone for this playing out through the media during a pandemic. Brutal.

— Jameson Taillon (@JTaillon50) June 15, 2020

Every day somehow continues to get worse. MLB should be embarrassed... everyone involved. Im embarrassed. This is a joke

— Travis Shaw (@travis_shaw21) June 15, 2020

2. I told you in Monday's Traina Thoughts that ESPN's documentary on Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, Long Gone Summer, was a complete waste of time. Reporter T.J. Quinn, who was one of the talking heads in the doc, posted a lengthy Twitter thread about steroids and the 1998 season. His thread is exactly what the doc should've been. Check it out.

A rambling thread on McGwire/Sosa, as someone who was a baseball writer in the late '90s and started writing about PEDs in '02.
Almost no one seemed to have a clue what was behind the power in '98. It was insanely fun to watch and no one though much about steroids. 1

— T.J. Quinn (@TJQuinnESPN) June 15, 2020

3. In reviewing Long Gone Summer, I also said the network would've been better off doing a 30 for 30 on Ken Griffey Jr. 

Shortly after my column went up, MLB Network announced that it will air a Ken Griffey Jr. doc Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET. Why can't all my requests be answered this easily?

“This is the story of the baddest man in the land.”#Junior – Sunday at 8pm ET/5pm PT pic.twitter.com/zCLzqzlM2w

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) June 15, 2020

4. Who on earth knows if/when we'll get a baseball season again, but this is a good nugget from Sports Business Journal. When the game resumes, TBS's Sunday-afternoon game will be gone, and the network will most likely air a game on Tuesday nights instead.

MLB-Turner deal:
* Worth $470 million per year through 2028 — a 40% increase.
* In the playoffs, Turner keeps rights to one LCS, two DS and one WC game.
* TBS will move its weekly Sunday afternoon game to a weeknight, most likely on Tuesday.
SBJ's story: https://t.co/4ZQGkYAMIM

— John Ourand (@Ourand_Puck) June 15, 2020

5. The latest Sports Illustrated Media Podcast features an interview with Nate Burleson from Good Morning Football and CBS Sports. 

Burleson talked about the events in the United States since the killing of George Floyd, how he feels about cops, how his grandfather being killed by a cop shaped him as a kid, what he tells his kids about dealing with the police, the Drew Brees controversy, Vic Fangio's saying racism isn't a problem in the NFL, whether he was ever uncomfortable in an NFL locker room, and much more.

You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher and Google Play.

6. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: In honor of Tuesday ...

7. SPORTS VIDEO OF THE DAY: Eric Davis and Ray Knight got into one of the best baseball fights you'll ever see during a 1986 Reds-Mets game.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Stitcher. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter and Instagram.