Major League Baseball is engaged in talks that could lead to significant changes to the labor situation of minor-league ballplayers, ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan reports. Initial talks have been held with the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, with “significant increase in salaries, a higher standard of living conditions and better transportation” all on the table.
It’s important to bear in mind that — so far as is apparent from the report — this is a negotiation about rather than with labor. Passan characterizes the initial discussions as a “collective-bargaining session,” though it’s not clear that reflects the situation. The NAPBL is the governing body of Minor League Baseball. It does not, however, represent minor-league players themselves. Neither is it clear whether the MLB Players Association is involve at this stage.
The office of commissioner Rob Manfred seems to be the driving force behind these discussions. While the league successfully secured federal protection for its low-wage approach to the pre-MLB labor force, that also served to boost the visibility of a longstanding issue that is the subject of still-pending litigation. The Blue Jays recently instituted an increased pay scale for their minor-leaguers, which has further nudged things along, and Passan says there’s a recognition at the ownership level that working-condition improvements are warranted.
Details on prospective changes are unknown and still must be negotiated. The actual agreement up for discussion is the MLB-NAPBL accord — a deal that expires in 2020. It had been extended back in 2011, with the sides indicating that the status quo was working to no small amount of mutual satisfaction. That’s no longer the case, at least from the MLB perspective, though that’s not to say that there’s any acrimony in the relationship. The rub of the matter may be that, as Passan puts it, “the expectation is that minor league affiliates would pick up at least some of the burden of the various improvements.” Apart from the salary question, the sides will need to agree upon and sort out the burden of potential workplace and travel improvements.
It remains to be seen what course these talks will take and to what extent they’ll meaningfully improve the lot of minor-league ballplayers.
MLBPA need to be as vocal about this as their own pocketbook.
They can try, but they still don’t legally represent the minor league players.
60 grand a year across the board for all minor league players, regardless of level. They would still be poor here in the SF bay area.
Good one
Good joke, you had me there for a second.
A step in the right direction.
It’s never too late to do the right thing…..
Get it done!
Minor leaguers make more across the board than the average person their age for a full year’s work. . I have a hard time feeling bad for them being “underpaid” while playing a game 5 months a year.
Are you insane? They make like $12,000/year.
AAA make $50,000. I don’t know many people under 30 making that. Plus, it is for only 1/2 a year’s time. Seems right in line with what other young people under 25 make.
Rob Manfred, is this you? Lol
You need to read up more on the subject.
AAA are the guys that have made it, high level promotions, mlb players- it is the rest that need to be encouraged to stay in the sport and develop
Say AAA players all make 50000. AA players make 2400 a month, that’s 12000. Single A players make 1300 a month. That’s 6500. Rookie ball players make 1100 a month. That’s 5500. Add those up. That’s 74000. Divide by the 4 minor league levels. That’s an 18,500 average. Still “right in line” for you?
Now take away spilt contacts ans MLB vets on minor league deals. Then the AAA average comes way, way down. And that AAA salary was propping up the other 3 levels. Rookie ball through AA would average 8 thousand a season on their own.
Uhhhhh. Say what? You’re so incredibly wrong. Horrendously wrong.
Start with “full years work” ….minor leaguers are paid during the season. Only. That’s 5 to 6 months. In single A, that can be as little as 6,500 for the season. While “working” 80 hour weeks. There’s no overtime. But there are run down buses, run down motels, run down personal cars and run down 3 bedroom apartments that have 6 guys living together to make ends meet. Probably while they have a wife and kid/s at home in another state where HOPEFULLY their second job is waiting for them when the season is over.
What a ridiculous comment.
I didn’t say they were paid for a full year’s work. I said just the opposite.
You said full years work. And then you said AAA players make 50 grand a year. Some do. But you’re forgetting AA players, high A players, Low A players and rookie ball players. Who all make significantly less, bringing the overall average down.
It’s a full time job regardless of what MLB says. If some minor leaguers chooses to work second job in the off-season and then goes back to baseball out of shape because he can’t train, he’s seriously jeopardized his career.
So yeah, what they get paid for a full time job is less than minimum wage, which is why they need a special law just for MLB to make it even legal…
I might believe that the *average* is $50,000 but that’s because they have a very convoluted payscale where guys that have major league experience get a minimum salary of a % of their prior year’s pay. But the median is likely much less than $50k, and the guys working their way up the system just getting to AAA the first time are making peanuts compared to what you can make in the regular workforce.
They’re only paid for those 5 months that they play, and the AAA minimum is like $2200 a month, which means for 5 months they’re getting paid $11,000 a year not counting things like signing bonuses. That’s grossly under what the average person makes a year, and that’s the HIGHEST minor league level.
In Low A/High A, they make $9/ hour with no overtime pay, no pay during spring training, no pay for off season training and conditioning work, and they have to pay a fee back to the MiLB affiliate club for “services”. Don’t get holier than thou unless you know what you are talking about.
Technically not hourly, they’re salaried. And if you really broke it down, say 80 hour weeks with travel, game times and extra work, it’d be about 4.06 an hour for 1300 dollars a month in single A
You’re beyond uninformed.
Don’t think I’ve seen so many people come together like this!!! Even traditional foes are on board with each other’s responses to this delusional argument.
Nothing like the absurd to make us appreciate our common ground!
Give ya an out here cause I’m assuming you’re argument is MLB players are overpaid. Not that I necessarily agree, but it’s one helluva better argument than saying MiLB players are over paid.
Need a thesaurus for another way of saying flabbergasted.
I am curious what the details will be because some minor league players have 6 or 7 figure signing bonuses and are pretty well off until they make the majors which usually is a high chance when they get that high of a bonus to begin with. Will they get same benefits as the player who got a very small signing bonus and struggles to get by? I do think higher standard of living should be across the board though.
In my opinion this is a more important labor issue than pretty much anything happening at the major league level
So, no union organization actually represents or collectively bargains for minor league players then, correct?
About time. These guys deserve more money and improved conditions
even if they don’t increase minor league pay build dorms for players and provide nutritious meals!
If they end up getting paid more, does that mean I no longer have to contribute to the “pass the cap” collection drive after a home run?
You don’t have to, now.
So….will this mean signing bonuses for draftees will decrease now that minor league players will receive a fair wage?
How will this affect pricing for fans attending minor league games? Will they see a hike in merchendise, ticket sales and concession food and drinks? Contrary to MLB, minor league TV deals aren’t structured the same.
Asking as a concerned baseball fan as this could have a ripple effect in some capacity.
Minor Leaguers are paid poorly. That is without question. Players have have a choice between baseball out of high school, college. baseball out of college or using your education to land a job outside of baseball. There are options, and they could choose a different path in life. You feel they are entitled to higher wages. You are wrong. They are entitled to an opportunity by earning it, baseball or not.
mlb has worked hard not to pay them at fed minimum wage. the league also worked on the states to deprive players of minimum wage protection. don’t be a scourge like mlb is.
I know you’re an ownership fan boy from previous posts,but I’ll say this anyway : if you’re a fan of baseball, don’t you want to see the best baseball possible?
If the best athletes can make a better living in other sports, that’s bad for you because it means lower quality baseball all around. If you’re a fan of baseball, you want better wages for minor Leaguers because it gives you a better product.
Will the owners raise prices? Probably, but it’s not like they ever need a reason to do that. Even when teams are trying to lose 100 games, they’ll still raise prices…
So yeah, baseball players have a choice between making nothing on the hope of a big payday later (which isn’t happening to a lot of veterans right now…) Or a better pay day in another sport.
If they pick another sport, you, the fan, lose.
Petrie000, you hit the nail on the head! The minor league level is paid a miniscule salary for 5 or 6 months. AAA makes roughly $2400 a month and once again that’s for only 5 or 6 months, even though players today work on their training year round. So, a AAA player makes on average $12,000 to $14,400 during the season to be stretched out over 12 months, so in reality it’s $1,200 a month and why players live together in apartments or live in homes from sponsor families that house them.
It’s even less for AA, High A, Low A, etc. These players ride busses to and from games and not always the best busses, they’re not getting chefs like MLB and for most are paying for food and other stuff. MiLB should be paying more for the talent you go and see. If they raise ticket prices due to this then they risk supply and demand telling them that there isn’t a demand for what they charge. I know top talent, high draft picks with sign on bonuses skew average pay and on the surface might make one think pay is fine, but that’s without looking into things.
Petrie I know from previous posts people have come down hard on your lack of knowledge so I’ll make this simple, even for you.
“minor leaguers are paid poorly” – direct quote from me.
A 50% raise will not entice athletes to choose baseball. A 100% raise in the minors will not entice athletes to choose baseball. That choice begins at the youth level.
Funny, players out of high school make more playing baseball than paying for a college education or even being on scholarship (unless they are paid under the table. We don’t know things like that).
If your life revolves around the game of baseball so much then you need to re-think your priorities and life. The game is wonderful. If baseball died tomorrow I’d have something to look forward to. Problem is, greedy and inept fans like you encourage the destruction of the game. The bubble might not burst but I’d say given the lack of interest with people under 40, it will slowly fade away, salary increases included.
I’m a fan of baseball. I do not have to approve the salary increase of minor league players to validate my fandom. That’s a poor argument. Coming from you it doesn’t shock me. If minor leaguers need a second job in the offseason they better dust off the resume. If major league players need a second job in the offseason they better dust off the resume. I don’t subscribe nor buy into this entitlement you and others feel players deserve.
You could have really simplified it to just ‘i have no idea what I’m talking about but I like to talk’, and saved 5 paragraphs of work…
Because you clearly have no idea what you’re talking about….
I am sure there will be some give and take, so I wouldn’t at all be surprised to see the draft bonus value decrease SOME in favor of across the board better pay scales