Major League Baseball is getting closer to announcing the full contraction plan for minor league teams… and the unavoidable truth is whole communities will be devastated.
The contraction is reducing the minor league system (MiLB) from 160 teams down to 120, which leaves only four affiliations: AAA, AA, High A and Low A. The Draft will be reduced from 40 rounds to 20, helping to diminish the need for so many affiliates. The other significant aspect of the contraction is the doing away with any minor league oversight — control will rest fully with MLB.
There are many aspects of this contraction that make sense, financially and operationally – for MLB, that is. What it leaves in its wake is where the devastation lies. Minor league teams have operated in conjunction with MLB under an agreement called the Professional Baseball Agreement and the Players Development Contract. The PDC is what divides the share of financial responsibility between a minor league affiliate and its MLB club. The MLB club pays for player’s salaries, bonuses, coaches salaries, and team medical personnel. The minor league club is responsible for the stadium (such as rent and upkeep), for uniforms, travel to minor league games, all staff (such as concession workers, security guards), the cost of food and beverage supplies, etc. Without a 2020 season, the owners of the minor league teams and all employees were already in a bind. But, now for some that will be left with no direct link to a major league team, what’s left?
Minor leagues teams are essentially small businesses in their towns. They don’t see any revenue from television broadcasts or big league player merchandise sales, nothing that the MLB sees. Their revenue comes only from what the minor league ballpark makes in ticket, concession, and minor league team merchandise sales.
If a team loses it’s affiliate status, it might be demoted, in a sense, to a draft league or a wooden bat league. But without the direct MLB connection, there will be less interest in the teams, less of a talent pool, no high draft prospects, and no big league players coming through on rehab.
Like any sport, baseball is driven purely by money. MLB clubs save money by reducing the number of affiliates. They will have less salaries to pay out – not that most minor league players make that much, anyway. Barely over minimum wage for many – or around $14,000 for a season – and they aren’t even allowed to file for unemployment in the off-season because they are under contract.
As fans of the game, most people won’t notice any difference when their teams take to the diamonds in the spring, that is if baseball starts on time. MLB owners will benefit from the changes. High level talent and staff will continue to collect paychecks. But, for the minor league players still chasing their dreams, for the communities built around the small scale of America’s pastime, the effects will be felt for a lifetime.
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