Commissioner Rob Manfred’s matter-of-fact speaking style got him in some hot water this past week regarding baseball’s best player. While meeting with the Baseball Writers Association of America in Washington, Manfred received a question about Mike Trout’s low Q factor and whether Major League Baseball could or should be doing more to help with that.

“Player marketing requires one thing, for sure: the player,” Manfred said. “Mike is a great, great player, and a really nice person, but he’s made certain decisions with what he wants to do and what he doesn’t want to do, and how he wants to spend his free time and how he doesn’t want to spend his free time. … If he wants to engage and be more active in that area, I think we could help him make his brand really, really big, but he has to make a decision that he’s prepared to engage in that area. It takes time and effort.”

I was in the room when Manfred said this, and it didn’t strike me as critical as much as realistic. Nevertheless, the Angels responded with a spirited defense of Trout, and Manfred got roasted on talk radio.

Manfred’s intent notwithstanding, a level of frustration clearly does exist within MLB regarding Trout’s choices, and folks who feel that way must let it go. There’s no perfect way to build a brand — even Derek Jeter’s fame came with negative consequences (like the 2014 Yankees prioritizing Jeter’s pride over winning games).

Every time Trout opts out of a commercial shoot, or the World Baseball Classic, or the Home Run Derby, he opts into giving more of his energy to the Angels. And if the Angels ever surround Trout with a good enough supporting cast, he’ll boost his brand plenty on the best platform of all: October.