Don't blame Rob Manfred for this potentially sobering MLB record

Less than a month remains in what’s been a thrilling 2025 MLB regular season, and Rob Manfred should hope that at least one of the National League’s premier sluggers gets hot before it’s too late.

A quick glance at the batting average leaderboard shows that only two qualified NL hitters, Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner and Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman, are batting at least .300 as of Sept. 2. Turner owns a .301 average for the NL East-leading Phillies, and Freeman is hitting an even .300 with an .874 OPS in his 16th season. 

That’s it, though, which means baseball is on the verge of unprecedented territory. Neither league has ever had a batting champion finish with an average under .300; Boston Red Sox legend Carl Yazstremski came the closest in 1968, posting a .301 average in the "Year of the Pitcher". Five National League players, including Cincinnati Reds right fielder Pete Rose and his league-best .335 average, hit at least .300 that season.

The American League is fine, with five players hitting at least .300 as of publication. New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge (.324) and Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson (.318) are well in plus territory and have qualified for the batting title. 

As for the National League, the odds are stacking against the Senior Circuit having a .300 hitter — and while some people are to blame, we suggest you leave Manfred out of it. 

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Don’t blame Rob Manfred for Major League Baseball’s batting average problem

By no means has Rob Manfred been a perfect commissioner, though baseball hasn’t needed him to be. Profits are up, the league is on the verge of expansion and national television ratings remain strong with superstars like Judge, Paul Skenes and Shohei Ohtani regularly commanding strong audiences.

Fans and the media collectively decided over a decade ago that batting average and win-loss records didn’t tell the whole story. That’s why Texas Rangers star Jacob deGrom won consecutive Cy Young awards with the New York Mets despite totaling 10 and 11 victories, respectively, after the 2018 and 2019 seasons. Everything considered, those were positive changes, and it could result in the 9-9 Skenes becoming the first starter to win the Cy Young with a losing record.

We don’t blame Manfred for that, nor do we blame him for diminished batting averages or upticks in Tommy John surgeries. Teams simply followed the trends and de-emphasized making contact in favor of launch angle and analytics-driven hitting approaches. Similarly, teams train pitchers to throw as hard as possible and aim for strikeouts rather than inducing a weak groundout or pop-up, and then they’re surprised when those same pitchers need an elbow procedure.

Manfred cannot convince teams to adjust their player development strategies. That falls on the ownership, executives and coaching staffs, just as it has since the 19th century. Theoretically speaking, Manfred could suggest changes during a casual conversation, but by no means are teams required to listen. It’s like if your friend makes pasta and you suggest they use more sauce next time. That’s on them to make the change, and it’s on teams to decide if they need to alter their hitting strategies.

Then again, the Boston Red Sox don’t have a qualified hitter batting above .260, and they’re 2.5 games out of first place in the AL East, so they might be fine with their pasta just the way it is.