Major League and Minor League Baseball are still at the bargaining table, but the latter will now seat different representatives. According to J.J. Cooper of Baseball America, the MiLB leadership has named a new slate of negotiators.
It’s an interesting gambit with the clock ticking on the existing deal between the sides and plenty of ground left to cover. Indeed, as Cooper notes, some within the minor-league system now see a growing possibility that talks won’t result in a deal, which could even lead MLB to build its own new farm club network.
Cooper goes into full detail on the dynamics at play here; you’ll want to read the entire article to understand the situation. In brief, as he puts it: “The group that was disbanded on Monday was viewed by many to be more focused on the interests of MiLB owners rather than those of [MiLB president & CEO Pat O’Conner] and MiLB’s offices.”
No matter which negotiators attempt to close out the deal, it sounds as if contraction to 120 teams is now a fait accompli. While MiLB had built some leverage through political pressure, the global pandemic greatly undermined the organization’s position. If a bargain is struck, MLB is sure to gain much greater authority over minor-league operations, though the new MiLB negotiating team is expected to try to carve out an ongoing role for the organization and its leadership.
it would be peak petty if the MLB was so angry that they went and made a whole new fa system by scratch
It would run the owners excuses of “I’m poor” out the window
“We’d love to pay you more, but we just had to spend all that money on a new minor league system…”
Mookie did a pretty job of that.
I realize it’s all business. But teams being contracted means loss of jobs, not just for the players, but for the communities where those those teams are sited. And, this should be another reminder to local politicians—if you are going to hand out special gimmies, like tax breaks, zoning variances, infrastructure, to say nothing of subsidizing stadiums, get it in writing from the people you are showing favors on. They won’t feel any “moral” obligation.
milb should recruit congressmen and senators to pressure mlb owners.
Those worthless trolls ?!? They’ll summon some owners to Washington, put em on a stand and roast em for 5 minutes, it’ll be the lead on ESPN, and then that’ll be the end of it. Like it’s been with every single other person who’s been summoned…..it’s a mummers farce- come to terms w it.
that may be true but if they lose their constituents’ places of employment they may lose their jobs. there might be a reason for them to pressure mlb.
Well, I don’t think Minor League Baseball is known for well paying jobs. You know what players make. I think our top 3 front office guys made 40k+ salary. I was a department Director at 30k and showing up at 9am every day for 6-9 game home stands, I only stayed 2 years. Most salary guys are new graduates but there’s no way I’d do 18-20k. I don’t even want to talk about the hourlies, getting hosed out of OT, because it’s designated a seasonal job. Maybe it’s different for some bigger AAA teams like Memphis and Nashville, but I’m guessing the majority of minor league teams are the equivalent to working at a restaurant.
I was offered a painfully low salary at AA Bowie. I would have been 2nd in command in publications (writing, editing, securing ads) and done radio for 12-15 hours a day on game days, which would have worked out to much less than minimum wage. I did work at AAA Norfolk. The restaurant comp for the salaried workers is a fair one.
MLB has no clue on how to build the game of baseball. It does not help baseball one bit to eliminate parts of the country from the game of baseball. Attending minor league games builds the fan base. Next, they will travel to a major league game. I have been a baseball fan since 1965 and it sickens me to see where the game is at now.
I’ve been a fan even longer and I go to far more minor-league games than MLB ones…95 parks in 33 states. I feel sorry for all the small towns far from MLB cities that are losing clubs.
The town in which I live had a minor league hockey team (AHL) beginning in 2001, then its parent NHL club moved it out prior to the 2015-16 season and it was replaced with an ECHL club. But that only lasted through the 2018-19 season before lack of attendance caused it to fold.
Now there is a stadium with about 10,000 seats sitting around hosting things like occasional home shows; police&fireman hockey and HS hockey; the Globetrotters; Monster Jam; music shows, and things like that.
MiLB lost all their bargaining power w covid. They could hire OJ’s council and still be toast.
If there’s a need for all these teams and baseball a new league will form. A simple market strategy would be to allow fans to show. If so, they’ll crush MiLB in terms of fan base.
It will also show that all these owners playing poor on players aren’t quite as poor as they make out to be, considering “there’s no money in owning a baseball team.”
It’ll just deflect the excuses to all the cash they had to lay out, etc etc etc. If you think that billionaires will ever run out of “reasons” as to why they just don’t have the money, prepare for bitter disappointment.
I think you under estimate the players union if they get wind of the idea mlb will make its own new MILB system they won’t let it pass in the next cba
I agree that they won’t let it pass, but they won’t be able to throw it in the owners faces, either.
Why would they not? They are invested in mlb players now that’s who they deal with the players union. If you cut minor league baseball out and mlb starts it’s own why would the players union not force the owners hand? The owners need the players is a strike worth such a petty fight that could fall into a courts lap making mlb look dumb, I think not
Just ask Mookie Betts.
We’re heading back to the pre- Branch Rickey days of independent teams bearing the cost of player development. The current system is too cumbersome, expensive, and really doesn’t yield enough positive results.
The level competition in MLB is the highest it’s ever been. Almost all the players are signed and developed through the minor leagues.
It’s a sad day for baseball. They’re killing the sport.
i think the current Minors structure is in real danger if more of these players coming up from AA or even A+ manage to succeed this year. that woulf be a real indicator that there may not need to be so many minors levels.
This is just another entertainment venue and its “actors” at the MLB level are in the process of destroying it.
I feel sorry for those who will never realize their dream, but they all need to move to plan B pronto.
If MLB players were almost exclusively drafted in the first three rounds this stuff might make more sense. This is just trying to set up a system where MLB pawns low level development off on third parties, then turning around and loots the talent they develop.
yeah I feel like if they wee to limit the draft it would open the opportunity for a third league to come about which if they were allowed to compete in the post season could be a win for all parties..
I think mlb is making moves to be the monopoly company and they want total control of baseball in the states. They invested heavy in little leagues associate with MLB, they have the colleges in there pockets already. The one thing they need is absolute control of minor leagues. Think about it then they basically have the same scouting system they use internationally where they will know of the 12 year olds who they will want when they are 18 and manipulate from there.
And to think it’s MiLB that played in the cities that aren’t burning.
no cities are burning.
and there they are LOL!
Everything is owned by a major league team already expect the place they play right. They own the coaches, players. So setting up the system where they also own the team makes since. You won’t see so much moving. The Ryan family owns Round Rock and Corpus which with Nolan bouncing between the Rangers and Astros caused those affiliations to change.