I found this early today on Baseball Think Factory, a blog written by a player for the Angles Class-A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes. It’s pretty well-written and insightful — this post I found on TBTF concerns the salaries of players in minor leagues. I think most people have some idea that minor league players don’t make much money, but I liked the way the writer (catcher Chris Rosenbaum) fleshes it out.

The base salary for all Class A (both A and A-Advanced) players is $1,300 per month. Class AA and Class AAA players have higher monthly salaries, with players on the MLB 40-man roster paid even more. We are paid bi-monthly, and for simplicity, the figures I discuss will be for a two week period. The two-week pay of $650 is pre-tax, and after Social Security and Medicare is taken out, I am left with a $600 check. Fortunately (or unfortunately as it may be for my overall finances), I have not made enough annually that requires deductions to be taken out. Clubhouse dues are $45 every two weeks (these cover all of the food we have in our clubhouse, the cleaning of our uniforms and baseball apparel, and for additional compensation for our clubby, so of course, this does not include tip). A reasonable tip for this period is $15.

The comments on Baseball Think Factory have been overwhelmingly unsympathetic and some make good points. I have some insights into this having recently watched contracts being negotiated and signed — seeing more of the personal side to the whole process than before. I wouldn’t go so far as to say I feel bad for minor leaguers taking their shot, but the disparity of incomes in professional baseball is vast. Basically you have the majority of the employees working for a wage that a temp worker would receive — with no wage increase at that level in sight — and then you have this elite level where the employees are making astronomical money. Sure, there are companies/entities like this, but then again, I don’t think the gamble isn’t so immediate when you’re working 40 hours/5 days a week as a law clerk.

We will assume that we are on an overnight road trip for half of this two week period (tend to be more expensive than commuters), where we get a $20 per diem. While we get this $20, I tend to eat at restaurants that are not of the fast food variety (which I find to be gross, but sometimes are forced to frequent due to the odd hours), and after tax and tip on a meal, staying under $20 for lunch and dinner is seemingly impossible. So, it will be assumed that I am spending $28 per day for food on the road. While at home, lunch and/or dinner is sometimes had away from the field or the host family, so it will be assumed that one meal of $12 is had every day during a home game.

So far, the breakdown is as follows:

Take home pay: $600

Less dues: $60

Credit road per diem: $140

Less road food: $196

Less home food: $84

This leaves a current total of $400. Over the course of a season (10 pay cycles), I receive $6,000 of take home pay, and only $4,000 after the necessary expenses are covered. I need to use this money for miscellaneous expenses, including a cell phone bill, any gear (batting gloves, mitts, spikes, apparel) that I had to purchase during the season (which this year will total about $700), and anything else I need to pay for, like the $50 bag overage that will not be reimbursed for during my flight to San Jose after being promoted.

He’s got some other good posts on the site — one where he talks about the auxiliary staff (athletic trainers etc.) of teams and a treatise called Why Collegiate Success May Not Immediately Translate, that I liked.