Commissioner Rob Manfred’s plan to enhance Major League Baseball’s hiring of blacks, Hispanics and women got off to a rousing start this week with the Boston Red Sox hiring of Dave Dombrowski as president of baseball operations. Dombrowski is neither black nor Hispanic or a woman.

He is, however, an outstanding general manager and a man of unparalleled class, and I would hire him to run my team if I had a team. But that is not the point here and not the reason I view the Red Sox decision with sarcasm.

Dombrowski’s hiring came only five days after MLB issued a news release trumpeting its hiring of an executive search firm to assist minority candidates in pursuit of significant MLB positions.

To be honest, I can’t blame the Red Sox for hiring Dombrowski. A couple of sentences ago I said I would. But rules are rules, and the commissioner has rules. When clubs seek candidates for decision-making positions, they have to include minorities.

The Red Sox interviewed no minorities; they interviewed no one but Dombrowski.

“There was no search or job opening,” John Henry, the Red Sox principal owner, said in an e-mail, meaning the Red Sox weren’t looking to fill a vacancy. Larry Lucchino was stepping down as club president, but Henry had already designated Sam Kennedy as his successor.

“When Dave became free we discussed if there might be a fit,” Henry continued. “Dave is a uniquely qualified executive with whom I have previously worked.”

When Henry bought the Florida Marlins from H. Wayne Huizenga in 1999, Dombrowski was the team’s president and general manager. On Nov. 5, 2001, Dombrowski went to Detroit. Forty-five days later Henry and his partners became the owners of the Red Sox.

When the Tigers’ owner, Mike Ilitch, surprisingly fired Dombrowski earlier this month, he became the most attractive free-agent executive.

“Given his record of success in Florida and Detroit – a World Series championship, two American League pennants and four consecutive division titles – Dombrowski will have no trouble gaining high-level employment,” I wrote in an Aug. 9 column.

It didn’t take long. Last week Henry and other Boston officials met with Dombrowski. They didn’t meet with anyone else, violating the rule Manfred inherited from Bud Selig that teams seeking to fill a decision-making position had to interview minorities. Manfred, through a spokesman, explained why they were permitted to avoid the rule.

“The Red Sox,” Pat Courtney, MLB’s chief communications officer, wrote in an e-mail, “contacted Rob and communicated that they were not planning a search but viewed Dave’s availability as a unique opportunity to hire a top industry baseball operations executive. They also indicated that Dave was the only person that they planned to pursue.”

“This raises questions about minority hiring,” I replied. “If the Red Sox can be excused from interviewing minority candidates, why can’t any and all clubs expect the same treatment? Even if the Red Sox told Rob their plans for Dombrowski, doesn’t he have to say, ‘OK, but you’re violating the guidelines nonetheless so you face disciplinary action.’ By doing nothing, isn’t he undermining his efforts to enhance minority hiring?”

Courtney responded: “Our goal is to use the minority interview requirement to promote hiring not interviews that are a mere formality. As I said in my earlier email, the Red Sox thought this was a unique opportunity to hire this particular individual.”

I agree that clubs should not conduct sham interviews. Many minority interviews in the past have been of a sham nature. That doesn’t serve anyone well, and the person being interviewed usually walks away knowing it wasn’t legitimate.

But how should Manfred deal with the Red Sox-Dombrowski scenario? If he ignores it, he gives clubs in subsequent situations a reason to pay no attention to the rule.

A substantial contribution to youth baseball would seem to be appropriate, though it’s only money and clubs have plenty of that. More costly would be the loss of an early round draft choice.

Clubs might find that penalty unreasonable, but if the acquisition of a Dave Dombrowski is so critical that an important rule is waived the club has to be willing to pay the price.

The way I see it, Manfred is not taking a step to reverse the slide the minority rule had taken under Selig, who too often seemed to excuse clubs from adhering to the rule he established.

Manfred’s decision to give the Red Sox a pass was curious considering the timing. He had just recruited Korn Ferry, a firm that assists people in preparing themselves and their resumes for job interviews. In this instance Manfred wanted Korn Ferry to work with minorities and women to enhance their job prospects.

Liz Boardman, a Korn Ferry executive, said the firm was not involved in the Dombrowski matter.

“We help clubs understand what’s out there,” she said. “We seek diversity candidates. We identify people who are good candidates. And we help candidates prepare for interviewing.”

Ben Cherington isn’t a minority, but he’s available as a candidate for a job. He was the Red Sox general manager for four years, building one World Series champion and three last-place teams. The Red Sox said he declined to stay on as general manager under Dombrowski, but it seems obvious that he was fired.

Even though a general manager is really an assistant general manager when a club has a president of baseball operations, it’s not a job one just walks away from. There will be some g.m. jobs available after the season, but there isn’t one with Cherington’s name on it.

Early in June, Henry said Cherington would be the Red Sox general manager “for a very long time.” That “very long time” lasted only until Dombrowski became available. Baseball’s calendar doesn’t work like everyone else’s.

Two more points:

One Boston writer suggested that Dombrowski’s hiring “might signal a change from the analytical approach taken by Cherington and his staff to one more dependent on the viewpoints of scouts in the field.” This is one observer who would welcome that change.

When Ilitch, the Tigers’ owner, fired Dombrowski without giving a reason, I suggested it could have to do with Ilitch’s age of 86, saying he wanted the Tigers to win a World Series while he is alive and thought he had given Dombrowski enough time and now wanted to give someone else a chance.

How awfully ironic would it be if Dombrowski went to the Red Sox and won the World Series – after they knocked the Tigers out in the league pennant playoff.