Rob Manfred was a baseball novice back in 1987, when then-commissioner Bud Selig called on Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, MLB’s legal firm, in his search for a lawyer with a background in labor relations and human resources.

The higher-ups at Morgan, Lewis and Bockius didn’t hesitated in recommending Manfred, a graduate of the Cornell School of Industrial and Labor Relations and the Harvard Law School, to fill that role.

Selig took a liking to the young attorney, and didn’t hesitate in calling on Manfred to fill MLB’s need for an executive vice president for labor relations and human resources in 1998, promoting Manfred to EVP of economics and legal affairs in 2012, and a year later to the role of MLB’s chief operation officer.

Now look at Manfred.

Having made the move to MLB in 1998 as baseball’s exective vice present and human relations, Manfred moved up the organizational later, stepping into the role of Commissioner in July of 2015 when Selig decided it was time to retire.

And while there have been challenging times, Manfred has made good that opportunity — so good that Manfred’s contract was extended for a fourth term by MLB owners in an in-person meeting on Wednesday through the 2029 season.

“At a critical moment in the history of our game, Commissioner Manford has leared to our fans and worked closely with our players to improve American’s pastime,” said Seattle Mariners chairman John Stanton. “Under his leadership, we have been responsive to the fans’ desire for more active and better pace, continued the game’s spirit of innovation, expanded MLB.s role in youth baseball and softball and beyond.”

The biggest challenge Manfred face arguably came when the owners announced a lockout of the players that began on Dec. 3, 2021 and as time went on created concerns that the 2021 season would be a victim of the battle over money between players and owners.

The two sides, however, came to an agreement on March 20, 2022, and Opening Day was pushed back only a week with games from that were scheduled for the opening days of 2022 were made up during the course of the upcoming season, leaving the rest of the initial schedule untouched.

Among his changes to the game of Major League Baseball has been the automatic runners at second base for extra-inning games, and a five-year labor contract that runs through the 2026 season.

His tenure has included a pitch clock and limits on defensive shifts. The results have been game times being reduced by a half-hour, and the DH being used in the National League, as well as the American League, which adopted the DH in 1973.

“It is an honor to serve the best game in the world and to continue the pursuit of strengthening our sport on and off the field,” Manfred said in a statement released on Wednesday.

It hasn’t been all smiles and pats on the back.

Manfred, like those who presided him on the job, has been criticized for issues including the Houston Astros cheating scandal in which the team and it’s manager were penalized, but not the players. He also has been a target for folks in the Oakland area for approved talk about the A’s moving to Las Vegas.

And he has had an icy relationship with the players, which he said after last year’s locked out he knew he needed a more open dialog with the players and Players Association.