ALTOONA, Pa. -- Housing -- or lack thereof -- has been a hotly debated topic recently and has been subject to rightful criticism near and far for what teams provide to Minor League Baseball players.
In September, that narrative began to change as Major League Baseball owners voted unanimously to “begin providing housing to certain minor league players,” according to a statement then released by MLB.
On Thursday, it was announced MLB teams will be picking up all of the tabs for the housing of their minor leaguers beginning with the 2022 season. This decision impacts roughly 5,000 minor league players spread throughout the country and allows said players to worry about playing the game rather than whether they'd sleep in their cars or a jammed hotel room.
This new guidance will provide furnished housing to minor leaguers who are not on major league contracts or making six figures. It's anticipated that 90 percent of minor leaguers will now have their housing costs covered.
The Pirates have been leaders in providing affordable housing to minor leaguers for quite some time under owner Bob Nutting, providing discounted housing rates to players at all levels.
"The Pirates fully support the new minor league housing policy, set forth by Major League Baseball today, as the organization has long been on the forefront of this initiative," Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Thursday. "Whether it is the housing facilities provided to our players at Pirate City in Bradenton, our newly expanded facilities in the Dominican Republic, or the affordable options that have been provided at other levels, this has long been a priority under Bob Nutting's leadership."
This decision is the next domino in a string of many that will benefit minor leaguers both on and off the field with their organizations. When MLB announced it would be taking over control of the minor league system in February of 2021, the league announced a plethora of changes to the infrastructure of minor league baseball that included facility improvements, better pay and more convenient travel.
Though salaries have been increased, there's still much more work to be done on that front moving forward for MLB as many minor leaguers currently are paid below poverty level rates while playing in the minors.
