Selig planning to step away from healthy game

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig believes he will be stepping down in three years when his contract ends content that the sport is in good health.

"I plan to retire," Selig, the former Milwaukee Brewers owner, told Reuters on Thursday.

"Other than Kenesaw Mountain Landis I think I would be the longest serving commissioner," added Selig, who became "Interim Commissioner" in 1992 and took the job permanently six years later.

"My contract runs for the next three-plus years. I'll be 75 years of age and ... I want to teach and write a book and do some other things," he said.

Selig said he was proud of "changing the economic landscape" of the major leagues through revenue sharing and a luxury tax on big-spending clubs and was gratified by revenue growth from $1.2 billion in 1992 to last year's $5.2 billion.

He also called the labor deal announced at the World Series "amazing," guaranteeing peace with players through 2011 after decades of rancor between the sides.

Despite calling this "the golden age of baseball," Selig admitted there were still issues to grapple with, saying he had "a sleepless night last night worrying about a lot of things."

They include the depth of suspected steroid abuse in the sport which has yet to be determined, and baseball being bounced from the Olympics. This season's World Series between the St Louis Cardinals and Detroit Tigers also had the lowest TV ratings ever while MLB drew record attendances and produced record revenues.

Selig said there was no timetable for findings from the independent probe he ordered into use of performance-enhancing drugs which is headed by former U.S. Senator George Mitchell.

The cloud of suspicion over possible steroids use by seven-times MVP Barry Bonds would not keep baseball from celebrating should he overtake Hank Aaron's career record of 755 homers, Selig told the Reuters Media Summit in New York.

The 42-year-old Bonds, who is currently a free agent, ended last season with 734 homers, 22 shy of the record.

"If and when he breaks Hank Aaron's record we will commemorate it in the way we would do any record of that size," Selig said.

"Hank understands the position we find ourselves in and if Barry Bonds breaks the record it will be so commemorated.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Selig said international development was a "fixation" of his, yet he was surprised by how much the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees paid Japanese clubs for the rights to negotiate with two Japanese pitchers.

Boston bid $51.1 million to negotiate with Daisuke Matsuzaka, and New York agreed to pay $25 million to enter contract talks with Kei Igawa.

"I think we need to review (the process)," Selig said.

Selig said MLB would love baseball to be in the Olympics beyond the 2008 Beijing Games but does not see how the big league season could be altered to allow players to compete.

"We can't stop our season. Of course we'd like to be in the Olympics given my fixation on international. But you can't stop the season for two weeks in the middle of the season."

Selig said he was buoyed by the success of this year's inaugural World Baseball Classic, won by Japan.

"The World Baseball Classic served as a very poignant illustration of how good international (baseball) can be if we do it right. I hope the classic in 2009 is much bigger, I know it will be bigger."

The commissioner did not foresee the American League giving up the designated hitter and ruled out expansion in the near future.

"I'm very happy with where we are. Expansion would be the worst for us at this point," he said.

Selig said he would prefer cutting back the schedule from 162 games to the old calendar of 154 games so that the playoff season does not threaten to spill over into November, but conceded that none of the owners agreed with him.

"I'm a fan of 154 games. I grew up with it," Selig said. "I don't want to play any games in November."