February 28th, 2022 at 8:00 am 
by Jayann Kellogg During the current 2022 baseball lockout, a few things have come to light. Baseball fans just want baseball back and want the players to be taken care of fairly – including Minor League players.
Some fans may not have been aware of the Minor League players’ income (or lack of income) until Major League players, who themselves were once Minor Leaguers, recently spoke out. Based on the Massachusetts Institute Of Technology Living Wage Calculator, individuals in the United States can’t meet basic needs if they make less than $26,225 a year. According to a uniform player contract, Minor League players average between $8,000 and $14,000 from April to October; this while the MLB Players Association is currently seeking a minimum salary of $775,000.
Housing has not been a covered amenity by many teams. Most Minor League players have to gather enough roommates to make an apartment or hotel room a reasonable dollar amount for all to get by. As far as food, well, the same thing, not all teams provide meals for their players, or if they did, they are not well-balanced meals for athletes to perform at their top level. It has been reported that multiple teams are looking at following the lead of the Houston Astros by providing housing for all of their Minor League players.
Could you, as a fan, help a Minor League player? According to lifelong Dodgers fan and Rancho Cucamonga Quakes Booster Club member Clyle Alt you can.
The retired high school teacher and California State University Long Beach alum said that although the COVID-19 pandemic prevented the booster club from contacting players during the 2021 season, they made sure that players had what they needed.
“Previously, we hosted a welcome dinner the night they (Minor League players) arrived from Spring Training, had monthly potlucks after Sunday day games, and held a recognition dinner the last weekend of the season.” Alt said of the Quakes Booster Club.
(Photo courtesy of Clyle Alt)
Remember that low-income thing? The Quakes Booster Club provides help there, as well. They have a storage unit filled with supplies to help the players with basic essentials.
“We have a storage unit with apartment supplies (air mattresses, sheets, pillows, towels, coffee makers, kitchen utensils, etc.),” Alt said. “The Booster Club collected consumable supplies like toilet paper, laundry soap, dishwashing liquid, etc., for them,” she added.
(Photo courtesy of Clyle Alt)
As many teams work towards providing meals for their Minor League players, Alt said that the Dodgers are already doing that.
“The Dodgers are now supplying two meals a day, and reports are they are good meals.” Alt said.
(Photo credit – Gail Verderico)
Having the 2022 baseball season in question right now doesn’t feel very good for fans or for the players. The fans want their beloved games back and want what is right for the players to come back and play and avoid any lockouts in the future. Many fans have turned to watching college baseball to get their baseball fix. Some fans have even gone so far as to no longer support Major League Baseball by not renewing their season tickets due to their disgust with the greed.
As for the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes Booster Club and Minor League booster clubs throughout all of baseball, their future is up in the air now as well.
Let’s Play Ball (please)!
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Posted in 
@Dodgers Fantastic work & support of the Quakes.Very happy to see much deserved recognition given to Clyle Alt👍💙⚾️
While MLB argues against paying minor leaguers during spring training:
February 11, 2022 Evan Dreilich The Athletic (subscription required)
“A Major League Baseball lawyer said in federal court Friday that minor league players should not be paid during spring training, because they should be considered trainees. The argument was part of a broader push by MLB to toss an eight-year-old lawsuit brought by Aaron Senne and other minor leaguers over their compensation.
“It is the players that obtain the greater benefit from the training opportunities that they are afforded than the clubs, who actually just incur the cost of having to provide that training,” said Elise Bloom of Proskauer Rose, a firm that is also advising MLB in its lockout of major league players. “During the training season, the players are not employees, and would not be subject to either the Fair Labor Standards Act or any state minimum wage act.”
Shame on MLB!
i’m sorry man, i just don’t see the shame. didn’t you ever intern while honing your craft? many if not most of these guys get 5,6, and SEVEN figure signing bonuses to endure exactly this. NBA D leagues pay $25K/yr
most booster clubs do provide some support, offer host housing, and pass the hat. i’ve seen players collect hundreds of dollar in a singe night for a couple of doubles on “double double night” regardless of their signing bonus. he’s rewarded for success, as we all wish to be. would they be better off earning a “living wage” but paying for instruction, personal trainers, gym use, and physical therapy?
while their meals may not be steak and eggs, how many surgeons, architects and teachers ate top ramen, had multiple room mates and went without sleep while accumulating six figures of debt (never mind being “under compensated”) learning their craft and preparing for a future? if the med student gets injured and misses a semester, it could reroute the trajectory of life. if a player gets hurt he is directed to free medical and access to PTE. if he never recovers, he still gets his guaranteed money even if the injury is self inflicted like Brien Taylor’s or Kevin Brown’s.
how many players are paid handsomely and never produce? how many first round, 7 figure signing bonus guys never make it to the bigs? there is tremendous risk every time they offer a contract. for every Kris Bryant who got screwed by the system, there are a thousand Matt Bushes, Zach Lees, Hector Oliveras and Yasiel Sierras. i’m not on the owners side or against the players, i’m a realist with a study in economics. eating the golden goose is not in the best interest of anyone. certainly not the fans.
Should minor league players be compensated for participating in mandatory spring training? I say yes.
Yes, I interned and the Company paid me for my time. It was substantially less than the experienced professionals, but the Company recognized my contributions even though I was being trained.
Every year MLB teams spend around $150 million signing 16 and 17 year old international players — MLB can afford to pay their minor leaguers at least a minimum wage during spring training.
Concerning “signing bonuses” – In 2019 (last year of a full Rule 4 draft) the Dodgers signed players for $2,500, $5,000, $17,500, $25,000, $50,000, $72,500, $75,000, $100,000, and $125,000 (10) — those bonuses tied those players to the Dodgers for six years before they could become minor league free agents.
In 2021, Class A players received $500 per week during a 5 month season — then they want them to come to spring training with zero compensation. AA – $600; AAA – $700. It is not only ridiculous, I believe MLB owners should be embarrassed with such a greedy position.
come on man, if you’re going to do that, let’s discuss the 2.2 mill that Bruns got and 1.27 mill that Heubeck received, 500K to Nastrini, 250K….
almost 5 mill to 9 guys. your logic that they spent 150M so they should spend more is akin to saying you spent $180k on a new car so obviously you could afford to buy dinner for your neighbors and therefore you are obligated to do so. 500/wk works out to 26K/yr plus the signing bonus. the smaller bonus obviously reflects the risk/talent ceilings. these kids could be digging ditches for a living instead of persuing their dreams. if i wanted to learn from garvey, roenicke and ebel, it would cost me $5K a week. i wouldnt get paid, never mind the free food and lodging. if i sprain my knee, they send me home, not to the trainer. why? because the dodgers don’t see me as an investment. nothing prevents these guys from having other jobs for some months of the year. “In Game 2 of the 1966 World Series, 20-year-old Baltimore Oriole pitcher Jim Palmer bested another future Hall of Famer, Sandy Koufax, 6-0, becoming the youngest player ever to pitch a complete game and a World Series shutout, helping his team secure their first-ever championship title. A week after making history, the baseball phenom, whose wife was expecting their first child, reported for duty at his other job: as sales associate at Hamburger’s, a men’s clothing store in Baltimore” ~braswell. the players have come a LONG way from being abused. smart business doesn’t spend more, they spend differently. they will continue to contract MiLB meaning less opportunities for players and small town fans. would JT and Max have had second chances? would we even know names like Smoltz and Piazza?
In your first comment you wrote” five, six, and Seven figure signing bonuses” — I was pointing out for you and others that many more drafted players get much, much less than seven figures. Apparently, you think that a $2,500 bonus should offset up to six seasons of spring training. Even a $125K bonus (less taxes of course) doesn’t amount to that much over six spring trainings. Note the term signing bonus — that isn’t a pre-paid wage, it is consideration paid to a young player that binds him to the team for six (or more) seasons. The players are not given an option whether they want to report for spring training, it is mandatory. Not paying an employee when you demand that they report to work is wrong. Even in industry, if a Company demands an employee to attend training requires compensation. Quote from the Fair Labor Standards Act: “When your employees participate in required training, whether on site or online, that time must be recorded, and paid for. They also must be paid for any time spent in training while they shadow experienced employees, or do anything else related to their current jobs. In order for time spent during training programs, meetings, lectures, and similar activities not to be counted as hours worked, it must meet all four of the following criteria: it must be outside of normal hours; it must be voluntary; it must not be job related; and no other work is concurrently performed. Time spent completing online training, even when completed away from the worksite, must be counted as work time unless all of these criteria are met.”
$500/wk for 5 months! Not a year! IF MLB teams want to pay an A level player $26,000 per year then I am fully on board with no additional pay for spring training — but that isn’t the case.
Come on man — if you are going to use an analogy at least use something that makes sense rather than buying a car and taking buying my neighbor dinner. The $150 million PER YEAR is a cost of doing business, so is mandatory spring training.
What a great and informative article Jayann! I have read about these issues, but I’m sure some fans have not. For the MLB owners to hide behind players being “trained” is just selfish and greedy beyond measure! Let’s hope the two sides can come together so we can have baseball! Keep on writing, you’re great!
Thank you for your kind words, Ben.
@Dodgers Wow! Outstanding article. Information that needs to be more mainstream. The fans derive ente… https://t.co/rIr5esn3wf
Jesse,
your statement that they spend a lot so they should spend a lot more on others is not so far from my analogy.
You missed the point completely. Let’s agree to disagree and move on.
my thoughts exactly.
i always enjoy exchanging ideas with you even when we dont find common ground.