The Oakland Athletics have told their minor-league players that they will no longer receive their $400 weekly stipends after June 1.
Since minor leaguers are not paid during the offseason -- and since we have been in an offseason since last fall -- those $400 weekly stipends came as a result of all 30 teams agreeing to do it through May 31. Now, in the absence of a league-wide agreement to extend those payments beyond May 31, the A’s are choosing to stop. It’s unclear whether other organizations will stop paying minor leaguers as well or, if they are, when they will do so.
We do know that at least one team -- the Miami Marlins -- will not follow the A’s lead. Baseball America reported this morning that they will continue paying their minor leaguers $400 per week through August, which would have been the end of the minor league season. It’s worth noting that, while team financial information is hard to come by, most observers around the league believe that the Athletics have been profitable in recent years while the Marlins are probably the least profitable team in the league and may very well have lost money in recent campaigns.
Beyond just minor leaguers, Baseball America has a handy article up detailing what teams are doing with respect to employees as far as salaries, layoffs, and furloughs go.
As Major League Baseball the Major League Baseball Players Association continue to negotiate over a possible 2020 season, expect to hear more news like this.