Robert Manfred, who will become the Commissioner of Major League Baseball in January, will be presented the American Baseball Coaches Association's Honor Award at the ABCA Convention on Jan. 4, 2015 in Orlando, Florida. Manfred will become the 10th MLB Commissioner, succeeding Bud Selig.
The Honor Award will be presented to Manfred and he will have the opportunity to speak during the Honors Luncheon at the ABCA Convention on Jan. 4, 2015 at 12:15 p.m. at the World Center Marriott in Orlando, Florida. Kansas City Royals manager Ned Yost will also be receiving the Honor Award.
The Honor Award is presented annually to individuals involved in baseball, who have distinguished themselves and are recognized for achievements in their profession.
"We are excited to present the Honor Award to a great individual like Rob Manfred, who will arguably have more influence than anyone else on the game of baseball over the next several years," said ABCA Executive Director Craig Keilitz. "Equally important, we are thrilled to continue to enhance the ABCA's relationship with Major League Baseball and cooperate on important issues for years to come."
Manfred currently serves as Chief Operating Officer of MLB, a role he has held since 2013. Manfred reports directly to Commissioner Selig and oversees all of the traditional functions of the Commissioner's Office, including labor relations, baseball operations, finance, administration and club governance. He was elected Commissioner on Aug. 14, 2014.
Prior to being named COO, Manfred served for 15 years as Executive Vice President of Labor Relations, leading the negotiations that resulted in new collective bargaining agreements in 2002, 2006 and 2011. Those agreements helped realize Commissioner's Selig's vision of competitive balance and club financial stability through reforms such as increased revenue sharing, more aggressive payroll taxes, reform of the amateur talent acquisition process and strict debt regulation.
Prior to joining Major League Baseball, Manfred was a partner in the Labor and Employment Law Section of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, LLP. He received a bachelor's degree from Cornell University and received his law degree magna cum laude in 1983 from Harvard Law School, where he was an articles editor of the Harvard Law Review. Following law school, Mr. Manfred served as a clerk to U.S. District Court Judge Joseph L. Tauro in the District of Massachusetts.
The Honor Award has been presented annually at the ABCA Convention for over 40 years. Some of the past recipients include Carl Yastrzemski, George H.W. Bush, Bob Feller, George Steinbrenner, Lefty Gomez, Pee Wee Reese, John Schuerholz, Buck Showalter, Sparky Anderson, Phil Niekro, Nolan Ryan, Rawlings Sporting Goods and Tony La Russa.
The 2015 ABCA Convention features four days of clinics, meetings, the ABCA Trade Show and several awards presentations. Also at the 2015 ABCA Convention, the 2015 ABCA Hall of Fame class will be inducted, Pat McMahon will receive the Lefty Gomez Award, Greg Hawk and David McDonald will receive the Ethics in Coaching Award, ABCA/Diamond Coaches of the Year will be honored and Carma Brown will receive the Meritorious Service Awards, among other presentations.