In a proposed overhaul of minor league baseball, Major League Baseball would sever affiliations with over 40 teams. Among them are the Staten Island Yankees and Binghamton Rumble Ponies, two long standing minor league teams for the New York’s own Yankees and Mets, respectively.
The majors have always been a business, and with the captaining of an enterprise as large and expansive as baseball, not every decision made will be met with approval. However, this “slimming-down” of the minors makes little sense. It’s a stab in the back to communities whose long endearing support is being suppressed by short-term profits.
At the heart of the argument for this decimation is the old “Moneyball” routine, that analytics have gotten so good at determining talent that there’s no need for prospects to be slouching around in short-season clubs. However, the fact of the matter is that analytical diagnostics can only go so far, and prospects need an education on the unique atmosphere, pace-of-play, and dynamics of professional baseball that only the minor leagues can teach them.
The ones getting the rawest deal are the fans and cities that have supported these teams. Most minor league teams inhabit small cities and towns, giving fans an opportunity to enjoy cheap, pro-level baseball and support the sport as a whole. Over 40 million fans attend these games to support developing stars, in many cases having done so for decades.
The planned contraction has been met with harsh resistance from fans, minor league hometowns, and even Congress. Major League Baseball has to realize that their decision will have a massive impact on the health of baseball in America. Either they will side with the fans and communities of America, or further the corporatization of America’s pastime.
