Following the unexpected death of A. Bartlett Giamatti after a single season, Francis T. "Fay" Vincent, Jr. was selected to replace the fallen Commissioner. The choice seemed fitting as it had been Giamatti, who had appointed Vincent as deputy commissioner after establishing the new position. Following the unanimous agreement, it was decided that Vincent would complete Giamatti's five-year term, which began on April 1, 1989.

   Like his mentor, "Fay" was also a "Yale Man" after graduating with honors from Williams College in 1960 and receiving his law degree from Yale in 1963. Upon graduation, Vincent became an associate in the New York law firm of Whitman and Ransom and was later named as a partner in the Washington, DC law firm of Caplin and Drysdale. During his time in Washington, he also served as Associate Director of the Division of Corporate Finance of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

   In 1978, he left the courtroom for the movie set and became President and Chief Executive Officer of Columbia Pictures. Following the acquisition of Columbia by the Coca-Cola Company, Vincent was appointed Senior Vice President and President and CEO of its Entertainment Business Sector. Eventually, he was promoted to Executive Vice President of the entire Coca-Cola Company.

   Almost immediately after taking the Major League Baseball office, Vincent was called upon as a crisis manager after the San Francisco Bay area was hit with a massive earthquake, disabling the City of San Francisco and post-postponing the World Series between the Giants and Athletics. Amidst a media circus, he was able to preside over meetings with city officials and announced that the World Series would resume on October 27.

   The remainder of his term was fraught with multiple labor disputes and negotiations between Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association. After talks between the two parties had stalled in 1990, a settlement was reached some thirty-two days into the spring training schedule. Due to the lockout, Opening Day was delayed one week to provide adequate time for Spring Training, but the settlement ensured that a full season would be played.

   Expansion was also a major focus of the Vincent years and two new National League teams were established bringing the number of Major League Baseball franchises to twenty-eight. He also declared that the American League would receive $42 million of the National League's $190 million in expansion revenue but in return, the American League would provide players in the National League expansion draft. Disgruntled with the constant rising stress of labor disputes, Vincent resigned on September 7, 1992.