Actually, it's quite simple: Rob Manfred should resign

It's time for Rob Manfred to go. 

He has squandered whatever trust he once held as Commissioner of Major League Baseball. 

The botched and bogus Houston cheating scandal has exposed Manfred as an ownership lackey, a cover-up artist, unworthy of managing a major sport, especially one that heralds itself as "the National Pastime." 

The more we learn about the scandal, the more clearly we see Manfred's unwillingness to take action, even when the essence of the game had been corrupted. 

He will never recover from this loss in trust.

Consider the following facts...

Since 2017, speculation about the Astros cheating had been rampant. Several teams publicly suspected Houston of stealing signs.  

Manfred did not investigate. 

In 2018, after catching a Houston team employee taking pictures, the Cleveland Indians went so far as to warn other teams about the Astros in the upcoming post-season.

Manfred did not investigate. 

After game one of the 2019 ALCS, the Yankees asked MLB to look into the whistling sounds that were coming from the Astros dugout. Houston manager A.J. Hinch mocked the Yankees, saying, "It made me laugh." After fateful game six, the Yankees accused Houston of using blinking lights beyond the centerfield fence to convey messages to batters.

Manfred did not investigate. 

Instead, before the 2019 World Series, MLB warned both teams not to use electronic sign-stealing. (Only one team was accused of doing it.) Meanwhile, players from throughout the league were calling the Nats, telling them to be watchful. One Nats player later told the Washington Post, "It was amazing... how many people were coming out of the woodwork to let us know."

Yet Manfred did not investigate.  

Only until after Oakland pitcher Mike Fiers told The Athletic the specifics of Houston's cheating did MLB finally launch its probe. 

What are fans supposed to think, other than - without a public expose to force action - Manfred would have continued to look the other way?

For sitting on his hands while three entire seasons have been tainted, Manfred should resign.

For doling out minor slaps on the wrists of the Astros - (a $5 million fine? draft picks? no players punished? Pete Rose remains banned for life, while MLB links itself to lucrative gambling sites) - Manfred should resign. 

Sportswriters keep telling us the scandal will soon burn itself out, and fans will return to hot stove gossip. More and more, MLB and its spokespersons have become uncomfortable with the topic. They just want it to go away, before it affects the bottom line.

This scandal is not going away. 

Anger continues to grow. 

It is becoming Manfred's legacy.

He should resign.