Amid widespread expectations that the 2020 minor league season will not be played, Major League Baseball is considering an expanded version of the annual Arizona Fall League as a means of recouping some critical game reps for prospects throughout the sport, Josh Norris and J.J. Cooper of Baseball America reported earlier this week. MLB is thinking about not only adding additional teams to the traditional AFL format but also mulling the creation of a Florida Fall League, per the report.
While the AFL usually features six teams, each made up of prospects from five MLB clubs, there’s been talk of all 30 organizations being permitted to field their own Fall League club in 2020. There would be added cost for MLB clubs under this scenario, as player are paid for AFL play — albeit at a particularly high level. Cooper and Norris write that AFL prospects generally are paid $2250 per month, plus a $750 housing stipend.
Broadly speaking, that’s an eminently manageable sum for an organization to stomach, even if it’s sending a full roster of players as opposed to just a handful of names. But we’ve also seen even the $400 weekly stipend being paid to most minor leaguers at present be utilized as a cost-saving mechanism by some clubs. The A’s initially stopped the stipend entirely as of June 1, but reversed course yesterday in the wake of widespread criticism from fans and media. Similarly, the Nationals sought to reduce the weekly payment by $100 but reversed the decision after a wave of negative reaction from fans and their own Major League players (who had banded together to cover the would-be losses for the organization’s minor leaguers). A few teams have committed to paying their minor leaguers through the end of August, when minor league seasons would’ve ended, though most have only committed through the end of the current month.
All of that is particularly notable given that the BA report suggests MLB could try to begin Fall League play “within weeks” of kicking off the regular season. (For those keeping score on odd seasonal semantics, that’d put “Spring” Training in June and “Fall” League play in July/August.) It’s not clear whether Fall League pay would be in addition to the ongoing stipend or whether it’d simply replace the stipend; presumably, that’d be left to ownership discretion on a team-by-team basis. Minor league players, after all, aren’t protected by the MLB Players Association.
Even with an expanded two-league format that allows each organization to send one team would leave each organization with close to 200 prospects missing key developmental time. Eno Sarris, Emily Waldon and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required) tackle the matter, floating the possibility that some teams could include at least one top prospect who isn’t big league-ready as part of the proposed 20-player taxi squad that would train and work alongside the Major League roster. This proverbial “50th man” wouldn’t actually play in any MLB games, but would at least get an opportunity to at least somewhat replicate some type of normal developmental environment.
The taxi squad plan will also provide an opportunity for teams to provide work to minor league coaches and instructors who are otherwise hamstrung by the lack of a minor league season. Such coaches, instructors, training staff, etc. will be necessary since the regular Major League coaching staff would naturally be focused on the 26-30 big leaguers on the official roster.
Finding roles for these minor league coaches, coordinators, and other player development personnel is another separate issue altogether. Sarris, Waldon, and Rosenthal note that since many of these employees are furloughed within their organizations, it creates some legal gray area as to whether or not they could potentially look for a job with another team — as the Athletic trio put it, “If you are a furloughed employee on a one-year contract, are you basically a free agent?” That said, Major League Baseball took a firm stance against such “poaching” practices when the suspension of Uniform Employee Contracts was originally announced.
cheapos!
I do like seeing the prospects compete in the fall, Im on board with this one
I live in AZ. It’s already hit 110 on multiple occasions since May and it’ll only get worse as the summer progresses. NONE of the AFL parks are domed. There’s a reason it’s the Arizona FALL League.
Each year, the AZL plays in such conditions. So definitely not unprecendented.
Yeah, except they don’t. AFL starts toward the end of September, finishes at the end of October, and doesn’t play during the extreme heat of the summer. If you’re not aware of the temperature differences between AZ in late September and AZ in June/July/August, you’ve never been out here.
Arizona Summer League or AZL certainly does, they usually play June-August.
good point. if the AZL can play in thr summer then why cant other players do so?
I went down for a week of AFL games a few years ago. It was fairly comfortable weather. 🙂
Boston..Would playing night games help address both heat and attendance?
I live in Az too. Playing games starting at 9-10 In the morning or 6-7 at night would certainly be doable. Just best to avoid the 1-5pm times. Of course, players CAN play then but does it really make a difference? Especially if fans won’t be there?
If limited numbers of fans are allowed I’d love it. I love going to the Fall League games every year. Small crowds, some very good players. Cold beer. Nice
And if I’m not mistaken the sun sets an hour earlier than most other states in the summer because AZ doesn’t spring ahead with the clocks. I liked that first idea to have MLB play their games in the 12 stadiums in AZ to eliminate travel. It would be almost like what the NBA is doing in Orlando.
i like this, but at the rate things are going i could see full minor league games by the end of the regular season.
At the rate things are going? There are still 20-25,000 new cases of corona reported every day.
at the rate things are opening at – which seems to not really be regarding case increases anymore if we are honest
Hasn’t been more than 2000/day in the US since 5/20 though it’s decreasing daily but still at 1000/daily according to coronavirus.gov
Thanks for the citation!
6/4: 20,000
6/2: 25,000
…but yer off by a magnitude and a fortnight.
All 30 teams should do the Arizona/Florida Fall League thing regardless of what MLB does with regard to their own season. I think the league would be a televised hit with fans, esp if there was no major league season.
In a bit of irony, the minor leaguers play and the major leaguers wilt away.
why do only 5 teams funnel prospects into the AFL? That seems odd.
It reads a bit funky, but there are 6 AFL teams, each team is made of of prospects from 5 MLB organizations. Every organization is represented in the AFL.
No, all 30 teams can participate, but usually there are 6 AFL teams comprised of 5 MLB teams’ prospects. to increase competition, they’re saying they could expand teams from 6 to possibly 30 AFL teams providing 1 AFL for all 30 MLB teams to use their prospects, giving a lot more opps for development.
It’s actually 25 or 6 to 4.
It appears we have a Cubs or White Sox fan.
Neither. Just thought the numbers fit with the confusing story.
No all 30 teams do partici[pate. Each of the 6 teams has players from 5 different MLB teams.
There are six AFL teams, EACH comprised of five or six prospects from the thirty MLB organizations.
This is a really cool idea. If there is a Florida fall league, I’d assume they would use spring training facilities (not sure if that’s how the AFL works). Since they’d have the infrastructure in place, I hope they would televise those games
I would think so. The AFL teams do use the spring training facilities.
Owners are going to be expected to spend money, so that’s not going to happen
Are these morons actually talking?
I’d be curious to know if they’d allow fans and how many would attend. Went to my first AFL games last fall and there were only 500-1000 fans per game. I could see an increase above that but would be interesting to see how much of one. You could literally have an entire section to yourself. Anyway, if you’re a baseball fan and cam do it I would totally recommend it, especially when more normal times return. Just gonna be a bit disappointed if they have 2 leagues and I don’t get to see any Twins prospects in AFL.
I would just worry about getting players on the field to play before asking if fans can come to watch live
500 to 1000 fans and 7 bucks for a ticket is why I go. You can sit anywhere I sit in the shade but not everyone does. They could expand the teams as they play away games and those could be filled with a new team. All play at the major league spring training sites and not all stadiums are used I don’t thing the As stadium is used or the Angels as I go to the cubs place as it’s the closest to my house and the angels site is closer to wear I live. And some games are played at night and yes being a local it’s cold in the fall.
I used to go regularly to AFL but haven’t in the last few tears. When I went, there was often less than 200 people in the stands and fifty of those were scouts. Great atmosphere, players having fun, etc.
I can see some real television advantages with this, tho televised AFL games seldom do well. But it would provide content, and a slightly better content than the 32nd re-airing of Ken Burns’ Baseball. Add a league in Florida, and there’s lots of stuff there.
i would certainly be more interested in it then ive been for the KBO. (ill still watch but not watching every game put on) im sure owners could at least make back the extra costs they’d be incurring from expanding the slate due to televisation, especially if each team has a prospectect or two of note in it.
I believe that the Mlb could easily support six “fall League” seasons consisting of ten teams to the league with five team divisions. Leagues could be centered in naturally Arizona and Florida but also Texas for one team per franchise. Then a junior similar geographical leagues in west, central, and east divisions. California, Tennessee, and Carolinas. Great Lakes if no cooperation from California. Fiftey four game schedules with two or three playoff weeks.
This would be the best way short of a partial Minor League season for prospects to avoid losing an entire season of development.
I would propose that each team gets about 60 prospects and everyday, the teams could play split squad. Once they open up, adding and extra 30 plays plus stuff isn’t that much more.
It would only be for a couple months. The league could come up with a tournament to end the season.
How about we get a regular season first then consider fall league
If they waited until November they could play day games and they could be televised. They still likely won’t allow fans in the stands and each team would be made up of one team’s top prospects.
I went for a week of AFL a few years ago and went to see the Cubs players, but because they were only a small part of the team, I really didn’t care if they won. With whole team from the same MLB team would cause fans to actually root for their team.