Das Team » www.officialdevils.com

Commissioner Rob Manfred says Major League Baseball is trying to remove from the internet the leaked video of former Mets manager Terry Collins ranting at umpires.

The profanity-laced video surfaced this week from a Dodgers-Mets game in May 2016 that Fox televised. Collins fumes after ace Noah Syndergaard is ejected in the third inning for throwing a fastball behind Chase Utley. In the 2015 playoffs Drew Stafford Jersey , Utley broke the leg of Mets infielder Ruben Tejada with a late, hard slide.

Umpire crew chief Tom Hallion is heard explaining the ejection to Syndergaard, Neil Walker and other Mets, then he breaks away to head off Collins. For many fans, the loud exchange between Collins and Hallion illuminated what actually gets said during heated disputes.

”We made a commitment to the umpires that if they would wear microphones, certain types of interactions that we all know go on the field would not be aired publicly,” Manfred said Thursday after the owners meetings ended.

”We promised them that. It’s in the collective bargaining agreement. We had no choice in a situation like that then to do everything possible to live up to our agreement. It is Labor Relations 101. To not do that is the kind of breach of trust that puts you in a bad spot over the long haul,” he said.

Manfred said there was conversation this week about how defensive shifts have affected the game. Batting averages are dropping, among other developments, and Manfred said MLB’s Competition Committee wanted to see ”whether it’s time for us to manage these trends a little more aggressively.”

A change that could occur as soon as next season: teams playing a two-game series on the weekend.

Normally, clubs meet for three games over the weekend. But in the case where marquee teams play just twice – say, Nationals-Yankees – those might be held on Saturday and Sunday.

Manfred said baseball was pleased with the pace of play. Games this year were averaging 2 hours, 59 minutes, 49 seconds through Wednesday; last year 49ers Fred Warner Jersey , they averaged 3:05:11.

Mound visits by catchers, coaches, managers and other teammates for nonpitching changes are down, too, from 7.41 last year to an average of 3.92 this season.

Manfred said the owners had a long discussion about the ”sports betting landscape” after Delaware and New Jersey began legal betting on games.

As for the never-ending debate on the designated hitter and whether the National League would ever switch to the DH, Manfred said: ”I think that is a continuing source of conversation among the ownership group and I think that the dialogue actually probably moved a little bit.”

NEW ORLEANS (12-5) at MINNESOTA (13-3)

Sunday, 4:40 p.m. EST, Fox

OPENING LINE – Vikings by 4

RECORD VS. SPREAD -New Orleans 8-8, Minnesota 11-4-1

SERIES RECORD – Vikings lead 21-11

LAST MEETING – Vikings beat Saints 29-19, Sept. 11, 2017

LAST WEEK – Saints beat Panthers 31-26; Vikings had first-round bye

AP PRO32 RANKING -Saints No. 6, Vikings No. 2

SAINTS OFFENSE – OVERALL (2), RUSH (5), PASS (5)

SAINTS DEFENSE – OVERALL (17) 49ers Tarvarius Moore Jersey , RUSH (16), PASS (15)

VIKINGS OFFENSE – OVERALL (11), RUSH (7), PASS (11)

VIKINGS DEFENSE – OVERALL (1), RUSH (2), PASS (2)

STREAKS, STATS AND NOTES – Vikings have won two of three postseason matchups with Saints, 1987 wild-card game in New Orleans and 2000 divisional-round game in Minnesota. Saints won 2009 NFC championship game at home. … Vikings are 13-3 at home in history against Saints, including the one playoff victory. … Saints are 7-4 in six appearances in playoffs under coach Sean Payton. They’re 1-4 on road, excluding neutral-site win in Super Bowl 44. … Saints QB Drew Brees passed for 376 yards against Panthers, his second-highest total of season. … Saints rookie Alvin Kamara, who had second-most receptions (81) in league by RB in regular season, had only one catch against Panthers. … Saints FB Zach Line, who spent four seasons with Vikings 49ers Kentavius Street Jersey , had TD run last week. … Saints, who ranked third in NFL in regular season with 20 interceptions and tied for ninth in league with 25 total takeaways, did not force turnover vs. Panthers. … Saints’ defense ranked eighth in NFL in sacks per pass attempt in regular season and sacked Panthers’ Cam Newton four times last week, including one by team leader Cameron Jordan. … Jordan had only sack for Saints in season-opening loss at Minnesota, when Sam Bradford was Vikings QB and passed for 346 yards and three TDs without turnover on 27 of 32 completions for career-high 143.0 rating. …. Vikings allowed 27 sacks in regular season, seventh fewest in league. … Jordan, who had career-high 13 sacks in regular season, is son of former Vikings TE Steve Jordan, who was six-time Pro Bowl pick and caught TD pass in 1987 win in playoffs against Saints. … Vikings’ record against spread in regular season was best in NFL. … Vikings had first-round bye for fourth time under current playoff format. They reached NFC championship game each of three previous instances. … Vikings coach Mike Zimmer is 0-1 in playoffs. … Payton and Zimmer were assistants on Cowboys staff together between 2003-05, with Payton running offense and Zimmer running defense. … This is Vikings QB Case Keenum’s first career start in playoffs and first playoff game at U.S. Bank Stadium, which opened in 2016 and is site of next month’s Super Bowl. … Vikings WR Stefon Diggs had TD catch in each of last three games. He had two TDs and 93 yards in opener against Saints. … RB Latavius Murray had 745 yards and eight TDs in last 10 games of regular season. He had TD run last season in playoffs for Raiders against Texans. … Vikings FS Harrison Smith tied career high with five interceptions and was one of two players in league with 70 or more tackles, five or more interceptions and one or more sacks. … Vikings allowed only 20 runs of 10-plus yards in regular season, fewest in NFL since 49ers in 1995.

—