A Kyodo News item came out of the blue on July 3, indicating Nippon Professional Baseball commissioner Ryozo Kato's term was to have expired June 30, and he is now in limbo, awaiting word about whether he will be extended.

Owners of the 12 NPB teams are scheduled to meet next Thursday to discuss the matter and, according to the report, how commissioners are selected.

One would think they would already know that but, then again, considering how a lot of Japanese baseball czars in the past were chosen, then wound up as figureheads who did not really do anything to advance the game here, it is right to question how they were picked in the first place.