MLB Announces Minor Leaguers Will Receive Spring Training Allowances

Update (6:45 pm ET): The story has been updated to include the base amount of the allowance teams are providing eligible minor leaguers.

Major League Baseball announced Thursday that minor leaguers from every team will receive a financial lump sum equal to the spring training allowances they would have received through April 8.

According to a memo obtained by Baseball America, each club will provide an allowance of $400 a week ($57.14 per day) to eligible minor leaguers through that date. According to a league source, individual clubs may go above that amount if they choose. The directive goes into effect March 20.

Minor leaguers were largely sent home March 15, with limited exceptions, after the spread of the novel coronavirus resulted in the cancellation of spring training games and the postponement of both the MLB and MiLB seasons. Players from some teams continued receiving the daily or weekly allowances they normally would have during spring training, while players from other teams did not

MLB moved to set an industry-wide standard for how minor leaguers will be compensated for the remainder of the regularly scheduled spring training. All minor leaguers will receive the lump sum equal to their spring training allowances except for those who are already receiving major league allowances; players who are currently receiving housing, food or other services from their clubs; and players who were not participating in, or expected to participate in, minor league spring training.

MLB is continuing to develop industry-wide guidelines for how minor leaguers will be paid from April 9, the originally scheduled minor league Opening Day, through when the season actually starts. League officials have said they plan to address that issue after MLB wraps up negotiations with the Major League Baseball Players Association regarding 40-man roster players.

Ben Badler contributed reporting.