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Morning Edition

November 20, 2025

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MLB commissioner Rob Manfred says the league will fully cooperate with a congressional gambling inquiry, but it isn’t planning any additional betting rules beyond its recent prop-bet changes.

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]], David Rumsey [[link removed]], and Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]

Manfred Defends MLB Prop-Bet Rules As Congress Turns Up Heat [[link removed]]

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

NEW YORK — Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said the league will cooperate with a new congressional inquiry [[link removed]] relating to gambling and integrity in baseball, but said no additional league rules in this area are planned.

Speaking with reporters during league meetings here this week, Manfred said the league will soon respond to recent requests from the Senate Commerce Committee for information and documentation surrounding Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz [[link removed]], indicted last week by the U.S. Department of Justice. The dialogue between MLB and the legislators, however, will not necessarily advance beyond that.

“We are going to respond fully and cooperatively and on time to the Senate inquiry,” he said in response to a Front Office Sports question. “Obviously the issue has received a lot of attention, and we understand why we got the inquiry. We think the steps we’ve taken in terms of limiting the size of these prop bets and prohibiting parlays off of them is a really, really significant change that should reduce the incentive for anyone to be involved in an inappropriate way.”

The comments arrive quickly on the heels of not only the indictments, but also a subsequent $200 cap on pitch-level prop bets in MLB [[link removed]]—something that is the heart of the charges. Clase and Ortiz pleaded not guilty last week [[link removed]].

The committee, led by Sens. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) and Maria Cantwell (D., Wash.), is seeking written responses from MLB to its questions by Dec. 5.

With the prop-bet cap and parlay ban now in place, Manfred said there are no additional gambling-related rules under discussion.

“We think the changes that we made strike the right balance,” he said.

Manfred, however, said MLB will be “looking at” issues related to prediction markets, which operate under a much looser regulatory framework.

Media Windfall

Manfred, meanwhile, lauded the long-awaited completion of more than $2 billion in new national media-rights deals [[link removed]], something that both provides additional revenue to the sport while also expanding access to MLB on both linear television and streaming.

In particular, the commissioner pointed to the ability of MLB and ESPN to reform a relationship that had gone on for 35 years, but descended into acrimony early this year [[link removed]] with seemingly no hope of repair.

“This is an evolution of a relationship,” Manfred said of ESPN. “Long relationships go through these things, and this is an evolution that I think is significant, and lines up with ESPN’s focus on streaming going forward.”

More League Matters

In other league business discussed at the owners’ meeting:

The historic viewership totals for the recent World Series between the Blue Jays and Dodgers— not only in the U.S. but also Japan and Canada [[link removed]]—were a topic of extensive conversation. Manfred in particular marveled about the fans’ desire to stick out Game 3, which stretched for 18 innings. “At 2:45 a.m. ET, we had 8 million people still watching the 18-inning game. Kind of an amazing number when you think about it.” There is no codified plan yet from management regarding next year’s labor negotiations with the MLB Players Association. Manfred, however, said he intends to continue his streak of no games lost to a work stoppage since he became a full-time league employee in 1998. Additionally, he said he is very sensitive to a widespread concern among fans about competitive balance. “We have a significant segment of our fans that have been vocal about the issue of competitive balance,” he said. “In general, we try to pay attention to our fans.” A process by the Pohlad family who owns the Twins to bring in two minority ownership groups [[link removed]] remains on track. MLB extended its contract with PitchCom, which enables signaling between pitchers and catchers, through 2031. Manfred predicted plenty of interest from prospective buyers in a Padres franchise recently put up for sale [[link removed]].

“It’s a really appealing franchise. They’ve done a great job building a fan base and an in-ballpark experience that is probably one of our best,” Manfred said. “I expect there will be people interested in buying.”

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Franklin Hire First Move of Virginia Tech’s New Big-Spending Mentality [[link removed]]

Brian Bishop-Imagn Images

Virginia Tech’s hire of James Franklin as its next football coach is the first major step of the school’s new nine-figure investment in athletics that’s aimed at returning the Hokies to prominence in the ACC and national college football landscape.

“There is more of a business aspect to college football than ever before,” Franklin said Wednesday during his introductory press conference in Blacksburg, Va. “But I still believe you can still run your program in a way that’s transformational.”

In September, shortly after firing former football coach Brent Pry following an 0–3 start to the season, Virginia Tech approved a four-year budget plan it is now calling the “Invest to Win” fund, which will inject $229 million into the athletics department.

Beyond hiring Franklin and paying players through revenue-sharing, some of that money will be used to build out a modern football front office and improve training facilities. Virginia Tech is raising some student fees and seeking an extra $30 million annually of donor support to fully realize the plan.

Cashing In

Franklin has signed a five-year contract with Virginia Tech, although compensation details have not yet been released. He joins the Hokies just over a month after being fired by Penn State. Franklin was initially owed a $49.7 million buyout [[link removed]], but he negotiated that down to a $9 million settlement [[link removed]] before accepting his new job (offset language would have prevented him from being paid the full amount while working at Virginia Tech).

“Today is a statement about where we are headed as an athletic department and as a university,” Hokies AD Whit Babcock said. “One built on alignment, investment, and ambition.” Babcock previously lamented the lack of funding [[link removed]] at Virginia Tech, which likely led to the new investment strategy.

Franklin said Virginia Tech was “very aggressive” in the hiring process, and he cited the new university-wide financial commitment as an attractive aspect of taking the job. “In today’s college football, there needs to be alignment,” he said. “There’s no other way to do it.”

New-Age College Football

Virginia Tech will hire a football GM, with Babcock saying Franklin, who will make the hire, already has a candidate in mind.

A GM will help recruiting efforts that will be ramped up for Virginia Tech as well, including more national travel utilizing private flights out of the Virginia Tech Montgomery Executive Airport, that’s practically on campus.

“We’re gonna be very aggressive in doing that,” Franklin said. “That’s also where some of the budget decisions are important—to allow myself and the assistant coaches to get out and to be efficient with our time when there’s really not enough time in a day to do it all as it is. So, all these things are really important and critical all the way back to my days at Vanderbilt when I was flying Southwest. Things have changed.”

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The Battle for College Football Playoff Relevance in the Group of 6 [[link removed]]

Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

In the era of the expanded College Football Playoff, non-power-conference programs have a guaranteed spot in the postseason for the first time.

But they’re still left clawing for spots as the power conferences get bigger and stronger—especially the SEC and Big Ten—from rankings to revenue distributions.

The Automatic Qualifier

The 12-team College Football Playoff guarantees at least one non-power-conference school will earn a CFP berth, since the five highest-ranked conference champions automatically qualify, and the remaining seven spots are filled by at-large bids based solely on rankings. That means a guaranteed spot for the top-ranked Group of 6 conference champion. It’s also possible for two Group of 6 conference champions to automatically qualify if they ended the season ranked higher than one of the four power conference champions.

Because the Group of 6 automatic qualifier comes from the conference championship game, the spot is up for grabs regardless of CFP rankings—though the rankings can offer a glimpse into which conference’s champion the committee might choose.

Last year, that champion was Boise State, hailing from the Mountain West. This year, that champion will likely come from the American Athletic Conference, which has had multiple schools appear in the CFP Top 25 rankings. Last week, the committee ranked the University of South Florida at No. 24; this week, it dropped USF in favor of Tulane, also at No. 24.

But that doesn’t mean either program would actually appear.

Then there’s Navy, currently first in the AAC with an 8–2 overall record and 6–1 conference record, which hasn’t been ranked at all, and could certainly win the American championship game. North Texas and Memphis have been in conversations as well.

“The American is a really good conference this year, a really top-heavy conference,” CFP selection committee chairman Hunter Yurachek told reporters after Tuesday night’s rankings reveal.

But that doesn’t guarantee an American team will make it. The committee, at least at this point, discussed the merits of ranking Tulane over JMU, from the Sun Belt—another potential CFP contender if it wins its conference championship and can somehow leapfrog the American conference champion in overall rankings.

In theory, Group of 6 teams could also be awarded one of CFP’s seven at-large bids. But that would mean they have to be ranked overall in or around the top 12—which so far has not happened this year.

However, the Group of 6 champion will face a new twist [[link removed]] this year. Last year, the four highest-ranked conference champions received the top four spots in seeding. That’s why Boise State was seeded No. 3 last year ahead of the ACC and Big 12 conference champions, earning it a bye, despite its overall ranking being No. 9. But this year, seeding will be based solely on ranking—meaning no conference champions will receive automatic seeding boosts for their conference titles.

Sharing Revenue

The finances of the College Football Playoff are in flux, as last season and this season created a holdover of conference distributions for the four-team Playoff that will re-adjust starting in 2026. The changes will also reflect the dissolution of the Pac-12, which went from being counted as a power conference to a Group of 5 (now Group of 6) conference.

And while Group of 6 leagues make significantly less than power conference leagues, they still have eight-figure payouts waiting for them.

Last year (and this year), the CFP distributed 80% of conference revenues to power conferences and 20% to Group of 6 conferences. Last year, for example, they received about $93.07 million each, according to the CFP. The non-power conferences shared $116.09 million total. The revenue has been adjusted to ensure conferences don’t distribute less money to schools after expanding.

There are also performance bonuses for appearing and advancing in the CFP. This year, the bonus structure will offer each conference $4 million per school to make the Playoff—including both automatic qualifiers and at-large bids. They’ll then earn another $4 million for each team that makes the quarterfinals. The CFP will then award $6 million for teams that reach the semifinal and $6 million for teams that make the national championship.

That guarantees at least one $4 million bonus to the Group of 6 conference that lands a conference champion in the Playoff. But again, there’s a complication. Last year, the top four-ranked conference champions (which included Group of 6 team Boise State) were at the time guaranteed $8 million, as they were also guaranteed first-round byes and guaranteed a spot in the quarterfinals. But now, the top four byes will go to the top four ranked teams—almost guaranteeing that no Group of 6 program will earn an automatic $8 million.

What’s more, starting in 2026, the revenue distribution will become even more skewed. The Big Ten and SEC will each earn 29%, for a total of 58% of total CFP revenue. The ACC and Big 12 will earn 32% total, with the Group of 6 splitting 10% (and independent Notre Dame receiving part of this distribution as well).

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Conversation Starters Former quarterback Christian Ponder opened up to FOS about life after the NFL—and why building The Post became his mission to help athletes navigate identity, investing, and their next chapter. Check it out [[link removed]]. Marlins center fielder Julio Rodríguez paid off his parents’ debt and bought a new car with his first paycheck. Take a look [[link removed]]. Nike has opened a pop-up soup shop on Ersha Island in China. The collaboration with Olympic sprinter Su Bingtian [[link removed]] is aimed at giving local runners herbal soup as a post-run meal. Editors’ Picks Power Conferences Finalize House v. NCAA Enforcement Guidelines [[link removed]]by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]Schools have two weeks to sign the agreement. Steve Kerr Lobbies for Shorter Season Again As NBA Injuries Pile Up [[link removed]]by Colin Salao [[link removed]]Kerr has been banging this drum for years. Arsenal Drops Rwanda As Jersey Sponsor but Clippers, Rams, PSG Deals Remain [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]The Clippers and Rams have similar sponsorship deals. Question of the Day

Will a Group of 6 team win a College Football Playoff game next month?

YES [[link removed]] NO [[link removed]]

Wednesday’s result: Only 5% of respondents think the NBA’s anti-tanking rules are actually working.

Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Events [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Show [[link removed]] Written by Eric Fisher [[link removed]], David Rumsey [[link removed]], Amanda Christovich [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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