Minor Leaguers as the Working Poor

[olehippi]

Great you described the indentured servitude well. Baseball works well with this type of deal just make the masters feed the slaves and the system is fine. It is unlike almost any other business in that they own players for a very long period of time, with ownership comes responsibilities.

What you call "indentured servitude" is completely optional. And a maximum of six years is not a "very long time." A player is offered an opportunity by a team, and that team makes an investment in him to play a game. Think about that. And if a player doesn't believe he has a future in baseball, he can walk away from his fantasy world at any time and go get a job in the real world.

[CA-ORIOLE]

Isn't it Kum not cum? just sayin' .

I don't know but it sounds like both are done in a circle.

[scOtt]

This is such liberal cocktail party crap. MLB has no competition within the baseball world, to imply otherwise is stupid. You can try and make the implication that this is a racial issue. It is not and you are less of a person then I thought you were to imply such. It is a business issue. A marketing issue. A marketing issue as it pertains MLB's core fan base. Which happens to be American at this time. Your Polly Anna view, lets all sing cum-by-ya, wearing our beret's is complete an utter hogwash. There is one reason for the influx in foreign born players in MLB. One. Cheap Labor. That is how it started. To deny it, would make me lose even more respect for you.

Who's political now?

[Flosman]

What you call "indentured servitude" is completely optional. And a maximum of six years is not a "very long time." A player is offered an opportunity by a team, and that team makes an investment in him to play a game. Think about that. And if a player doesn't believe he has a future in baseball, he can walk away from his fantasy world at any time and go get a job in the real world.

Not if you want to play baseball. In this thread I have consistently agreed that something like the current system is probably the best possible solution. However the billionaires owning teams have a moral responsibility to take care of these low level guys a little better. It is part of the trade off for the industry operating by different rules than almost every industry in the country. I actually find it hard to believe so many are supporting the owners in this debate. Apply these type of rules to whatever you do for a living and you would probably have a different opinion. Baseball will probably hold on to the status quo until they actually get hit over the head by a court and then change. It has been their plan in almost every issue over the years. This is an area where they should just do the right thing on their own.

[scOtt]

They should at least provide decent food and lodging for free. It's the least they can do and it's in their best interest.

Any players with fat bonuses could provide their own if they want.

[SilentJames]

They should at least provide decent food and lodging for free. It's the least they can do and it's in their best interest.

Any players with fat bonuses could provide their own if they want.

See I could get behind this. I am sure the orgs could pay the guys' housing costs, like some universities do with their grad students. I mean to me it seems the only real problem people have with this concept is that they are baseball players and that somehow means, because they play a game, they shouldn't be paid a certain amount.

I mean come on. It strikes me as schadenfreude.

The average entry-level office worker makes about $35k a year according to Salary.com (not sure how reliable that is but why not, that sounds right), that would seem like a fair number to me. OR They get paid less, but they live in org controlled housing.

[russ snyder]

They should at least provide decent food and lodging for free. It's the least they can do and it's in their best interest.

Any players with fat bonuses could provide their own if they want.

Like SJ, I think that this is a viable solution.

The MLB teams should at least provide housing at the lower rungs.

I know some of these kids live with host families, but I think that there might be better life lessons on responsibilty if they were housed in an aprtment complex or something.

I think that an arrangement like this would offset some of the shortfall in salary and put these guys in an adult situation.

[DrungoHazewood]

Like in any other business, baseball players have to prove they have the talent and skills necessary to earn a promotion and make more money. MiLB players do have the opportunity to solicit offers from other "baseball companies." A player has 3 years to show he has the talent to make the ML team's 40-man roster. If he doesn't, he is eligible for the Rule 5 draft and can be taken by another team....and be on a ML roster. If he makes the 40-man, the ML team has control for 3 more years. After 6 years, he becomes a free agent and can sell his talent and skill set to whoever will hire him.

I'm fine with that, just so long as the Justice Dept breaks up baseball into 3, 4, 5 competing leagues and tells these leagues they have to pay back the government subsidies they got as part of their former monopoly. If five competing leagues all independently decide to develop players by paying them $40 a game then maybe that's ok.

[Odenton O]

Then MLB can decide to eliminate half the minor league affiliates because they are cutting into the profits.

What's to stop them from doing that now? Presumably they keep those affiliates around because they need the player pipeline, not because they are making money.

[DrungoHazewood]

What's to stop them from doing that now? Presumably they keep those affiliates around because they need the player pipeline, not because they are making money.

I think teams have seven or eight minor league affiliates because that's just how MLB teams roll. I doubt there's been some deep analysis that says that's optimal. Nobody wants to get rid of half their affiliates and risk nebulous bad things happening. In baseball nobody upsets the status quo unless an overwhelmingly great reason is presented to them in bold, 74-point type.

[Tony-OH]

Isn't it Kum not cum? just sayin'

Tony, I've seen you at one of these - yes, you had the beret but you didn't mention the AK47 under your psychedelic smock. The Kumbaya didn't do it, it was your self-control that stopped the carnage... and I, for one, was damn proud. Me? I just wear earplugs and go when the cocktails are free.

I think you need to read the whole thread. I'm clearly talking about what someone else wrote earlier and joking about the spelling. I would clearly google soemthing like that if I didn't know how to spell it.

[Plutarch]

I think you need to read the whole thread. I'm clearly talking about what someone else wrote earlier and joking about the spelling. I would clearly google soemthing like that if I didn't know how to spell it.

And just as an FYI to all of those out there in OH land with dirty minds (probably all of us).... 'cum' means 'with' as in getting our degree Summa Cum Laude

[SrMeowMeow]

Then MLB can decide to eliminate half the minor league affiliates because they are cutting into the profits.

That's fine with me. I just want everyone involved in the situation to have their full rights under the law. Then if baseball cuts half the minor league teams, one of two things happen: more quality independent teams spring up to fill a new demand, or we learn that minor league baseball just wasn't all that appealing to the market (and, by extension, most people).

[osfan83]

Great you described the indentured servitude well. Baseball works well with this type of deal just make the masters feed the slaves and the system is fine. It is unlike almost any other business in that they own players for a very long period of time, with ownership comes responsibilities.

Here's the thing...we need to view MLB as one company. The Yankees can't survive as a team without the rest of the league. So players elect to work for MLB....the company may move them between divisions within the company......If I work for Coca Cola in the bottling plant, I'm not free to decided I want to work in the marketing department. Just like if I work for the White Sox department of MLB I can't just decided I want to work for the Braves division of the company.

[osfan83]

Not if you want to play baseball. In this thread I have consistently agreed that something like the current system is probably the best possible solution. However the billionaires owning teams have a moral responsibility to take care of these low level guys a little better. It is part of the trade off for the industry operating by different rules than almost every industry in the country. I actually find it hard to believe so many are supporting the owners in this debate. Apply these type of rules to whatever you do for a living and you would probably have a different opinion. Baseball will probably hold on to the status quo until they actually get hit over the head by a court and then change. It has been their plan in almost every issue over the years. This is an area where they should just do the right thing on their own.

The people who should be most against this is the low level minor leaguers....if MLB is forced to change, those low level minor leaguers will be out of a job, with almost no chance to beat the odds and move up the organization.