President Biden鈥檚 efforts to work with two key senators could be seen as a way to bridge the divide between the Democratic Party priorities of the future and those of the past.聽
Fair pay in pro baseball鈥檚 minor leagues is about as rare as a no-hitter.聽
On average, these wannabe big leaguers make less per hour than workers at McDonald鈥檚 or Walmart. And it鈥檚 legal. With passage of the 2018 Save America鈥檚 Pastime Act (), minimum wage protection was removed.聽
You might say, but when they get to the majors, these guys make a bundle for playing a game. True. But only 10% of minor league baseball players make it to 鈥淭he Show.鈥 And compared with players of other major U.S. sports, those pursuing the pro dream are literally paying for that privilege. 聽($35,000), reports Sporting News. A baseball minor leaguer must also cover housing and at least six weeks of unpaid spring training.聽
Still, there is modest progress. The Triple-A minimum salary went up by 38% this year (to $14,700). And it was reported Sunday that minor league players next year will get what their hockey and basketball counterparts already receive:
The business model for nurturing new baseball talent is getting some overdue attention to fairness. Or as Bill Fletcher Jr. of Advocates for Minor Leaguers told Axios: 鈥淧eople talk about wages, hours, and working conditions, but聽. Am I going to be respected as a human being?鈥