The Brewers announced on Monday that infielder Nate Orf had his contract selected from Triple-A Colorado Springs. Orf is in Monday night’s starting lineup, batting sixth and playing second base against the Twins.
Orf, 28, is a great story. He was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Baylor University. He didn’t break out until his fifth year in the minors when he hit .320/.397/.507 in 125 games for Colorado Springs last season. It’s been more of the same this year, as he hit .307/.412/.563 with 27 extra-base hits and 20 stolen bases in 74 games prior to his promotion.
MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy shares Orf’s story about when he signed:
Nate Orf went undrafted out of Baylor. Brewers scout Brian Sankey asked if he would sign for $1,000 and Orf said heck, he’d sign for a Snickers bar.
— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) July 2, 2018
So the Brewers gave him $500.
“I cost myself $500,” Orf said Monday, after making it to MLB. “Not a good move.”
Attn: @SNICKERS pic.twitter.com/dk6LKRPZhy
Can we just talk about that for a minute? Brewers execs had a fresh-faced 22-year-old kid in their office and screwed him out of $500 because he was so ecstatic to play professional baseball he gave up his own leverage. In 2012, Forbes valued the Brewers at $450 million (they’re now valued at over $1 billion). Not that this kind of behavior is surprising coming from a league that institutionally underpays minor leaguers across the board and has lobbied Congress to keep it legal.
At least Orf will now make a prorated major league salary and have lifetime healthcare coverage. If he plays 43 days in the majors, he’ll qualify for the annual pension plan. Hopefully he never forgets how the Brewers nickel-and-dimed him out of $500. And God forbid if the club should ever question his loyalty as is wont to happen in this sport.
