After months of campaigning by players and other advocates, Major League Baseball says its owners have agreed to begin providing housing t...
After months of campaigning by players and other advocates, Major League Baseball says its owners have agreed to begin providing housing to certain minor leaguers beginning in the 2022 season.
'In mid-September, the owners discussed the issue of player housing and unanimously agreed to begin providing housing to certain minor league players,' MLB said in a statement to The Associated Press on Sunday night. 'We are in the process of finalizing the details of that policy and expect it to be announced and in place for the 2022 season.'
ESPN, citing anonymous sources, first reported Sunday on the owners' decision, saying the league would require major league teams to provide housing either via stipends to fully cover rent or by arranging the lodging themselves.
The league did not specify which players would be covered by the new policy.
The move is expected to ease the burden on players, some of whom have incomes from teams that fall below the federal poverty line of $12,880 for individuals.
This season, with the help of Advocates for Minor Leaguers, players circulated videos and pictures on social media showing their living conditions. In many cases, players were packed into hotel rooms
In one viral video, members of the St. Lous Cardinals Double-A affiliate in Springfield, Missouri were seen sleeping on the floor and atop rows of chairs in a hotel conference room
In this August 25, 2016, file photo, New York Mets minor league pitcher Gary Cornish, of the Mets Class A New York-Penn League Brooklyn Cyclones, eats his habitual breakfast in the parking lot of the Red Lion Inn & Suites in New York where he and the other members of his team stay when the team is not traveling. Major League Baseball says its owners have agreed to begin providing housing to certain minor league players beginning in the 2022 season. ESPN, citing anonymous sources, first reported Sunday, October 17, 2021, on the owners' decision, saying the league would require teams to provide housing either via stipends to fully cover housing or by arranging the lodging themselves
One anonymous player shared video of his car, which he had been sleeping in this season
MLB raised minimum salaries across the minors for 2021, pushing Class A pay from $290 to $500 per week, Double-A from $350 to $600, and Triple-A from $502 to $700 over the roughly five-month season. Players are only paid in-season.
While teams generally arrange for hotel accommodations for road trips, players have largely been left to find their own housing for home stands.
The level of assistance provided by teams varies widely - lower-level affiliates sometimes arrange host families for younger players, and some organizations have offered housing stipends to some or all players.
The Houston Astros are believed to have become the first team in baseball to provide furnished apartments to all players when they did so for the 2021 season.
But mostly, players are left to handle housing on their own, usually seeking short-term leases on little notice with a limited budget. It's not uncommon for teammates to overcrowd apartments and sleep on air mattresses. One player and his girlfriend in 2019 even took the unusual step of living in a renovated school bus.
The statement came about a month after players in the Mets and Phillies organizations staged an on-field protest during the last weekend of the regular season, wearing teal wristbands to draw attention to pay they said was insufficient. The demonstration was organized in part by Advocates for Minor Leaguers, which also handed out pamphlets to fans with suggestions for how MLB could treat minor leaguers better. In-season housing was among the ideas, along with raising wages, paying players year-round and offering three meals per day
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher David Price has been vocal in his support for minor league players. He was among a group of Major Leaguers to wear the teal wristbands to raise awareness of issues facing minor leaguers
Earlier in the season, several players complained anonymously about their meals
This season, with the help of Advocates for Minor Leaguers, players circulated videos and pictures on social media showing their living conditions.
In many cases, players were packed into hotel rooms. In one, members of the St. Lous Cardinals Double-A affiliate in Springfield, Missouri were seen sleeping on the floor of a hotel conference room.
Another player shared videos of the setup in his car, where he had been sleeping.
The players who submitted the videos to Advocates for Minor Leaguers were not named.
'MLB is engaged in a multi-year effort to modernize the minor league system and better assist players as they pursue their dreams of playing in the major leagues,' MLB's statement also said.
'In 2021, we increased the salaries for minor league players by 38-72 percent depending on level and significantly reduced travel requirements during the season. In addition, hundreds of millions of dollars worth of improvements to minor league ballparks around the country are already underway, including substantial renovations to player-facing facilities like locker rooms and training rooms.'
Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred's office announced the move Sunday
The move is expected to ease the burden on players, some of whom have incomes from teams that fall below the federal poverty line of $12,880 for individuals. In this file photo, the starting lineup is introduced during a pre-game ceremony before the inaugural game at Polar Park between the Worcester Red Sox and the Syracuse Mets on May 11, 2021 in Massachusetts
The statement came about a month after players in the Mets and Phillies organizations staged an on-field protest during the last weekend of the regular season, wearing teal wristbands to draw attention to pay they said was insufficient.
The demonstration was organized in part by Advocates for Minor Leaguers, which also handed out pamphlets to fans with suggestions for how MLB could treat minor leaguers better. In-season housing was among the ideas, along with raising wages, paying players year-round and offering three meals per day during the season.
'This is a historic victory for minor league baseball players,' Advocates for Minor Leaguers executive director Harry Marino said in a statement. 'When we started talking to players this season about the difficulties they face, finding and paying for in-season housing was at the top of almost every player's list. As a result, addressing that issue became our top priority in this our first season in existence.'
Advocates for Minor Leaguers executive director Harry Marino reacted to the news Sunday
In a previous statement, the group called out MLB's anti-monopoly exemption as a key factor in reducing minor leaguers' compensation and living conditions.
'Due to MLB’s exemption from federal antitrust laws, Major League teams are legally permitted to collude on Minor League salaries,' read a September statement from Advocates for Minor Leaguers.
'As a result, most players earn less than $15,000 per year. Many players also suffer from housing and food insecurity, and some have detailed significant mental health issues that they attribute in part to the oppressive conditions in the Minors.'
Several Major Leaguers have rushed to the aid of their minor league counterparts amid the economic crunch of the pandemic. Most notably, Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher David Price donated $1,000 to each of the franchise's minor leaguers in 2020 when their season was canceled.
Infielder Stone Garrett #11 of the Amarillo Sod Poodles is mobbed at home plate after hitting a walk-off home run during the game against the Frisco RoughRiders at HODGETOWN Stadium on September 19, 2021 in Amarillo, Texas
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