Life in the Minors
Minor League Baseball is where lifelong dreams can be fulfilled or failed. There is no exact timeline for how long a player will be in the lower systems and struggle to prove their worth is constant...an endless audition. But, it can't it all bad. They play baseball everyday...for a living.
The concept of a living for a minor league player can range from a modest $1,500 a month to substantially greater $300,000 a year. The breakdown of salary starts with whether the player is on their Major League affiliates 40-man roster. Those players have to make the Major League minimum, which is $300,000 a year. For those who don't make the 40-man roster, their salary varies depending on their situation with the club.
Like any business job, the salary raises as the promotions come. As players gain the ranks through single-A, double-A, triple-A and the Majors, they live a little better at each level.
Living goes beyond the dollar signs as professional baseball players really do live together for half of their season, on the road. There are the horror stories of bad bus travel and even worse hotel stays. And while the traveling life may sound fun in the beginning, riding the road for two months of the season gets old quickly. Like the salary, road accommodations do improve as players move up in the system.
"I think there is a misconceived notion of professional baseball that it is all luxurious with great pay, great travel and great food," Sky Sox manager Tom Runnells said. "In the minor leagues it is certainly anything but that. I give the players a great deal of credit because it is part of the experience, part of the growing and maturing process. They have to go through every level to get this understanding. It is a grind that they have to experience it.
"It's not like football where you play once a week where you practice all week to build up to it. You play everyday."
Even when the players are at home, it's not really home. Some players live across the country, and even across international borders, while they live out the dog days of summer. Spending time away from home means spending time away from their loved ones including wives and children, while they are chasing the childhood dream turned into career.
Sky Sox catcher, Alvin Colina, said the long months away from family is something many players struggle with.
"The worst for me is being away from my family," Colina said. "I only get to see them every seven months in Venezuela."
But, the career these athletes have chosen is an unpredictable field where consistency is the key to success. With such a long season, baseball players who want to make it into the Majors have to perform at their highest level every night in hopes that their performance will propel them.
"It's tough not being able to control it," Smith said. "We are trained to go out there and play the game and let them worry about when we are going to get called up.
"It's just our job to be ready when we do get called up."
Clint Barmes, a Sky Sox infielder, said all the horrible travel and battle scars get looked past when you remember why you are playing every night.
"It's all about getting to you dream of playing in the Big Leagues," Barmes said. "You have to play at your best everyday, and it is definitely not easy. You have to go through the aches and pains.
"The tough thing is how short your career can be. If you can be in this game in pro ball for 10 years, you are pretty blessed. You are expected to be at your best every single day. There are no sick days. The are no excuses."
The concept of a living for a minor league player can range from a modest $1,500 a month to substantially greater $300,000 a year. The breakdown of salary starts with whether the player is on their Major League affiliates 40-man roster. Those players have to make the Major League minimum, which is $300,000 a year. For those who don't make the 40-man roster, their salary varies depending on their situation with the club.
Like any business job, the salary raises as the promotions come. As players gain the ranks through single-A, double-A, triple-A and the Majors, they live a little better at each level.
Living goes beyond the dollar signs as professional baseball players really do live together for half of their season, on the road. There are the horror stories of bad bus travel and even worse hotel stays. And while the traveling life may sound fun in the beginning, riding the road for two months of the season gets old quickly. Like the salary, road accommodations do improve as players move up in the system.
"I think there is a misconceived notion of professional baseball that it is all luxurious with great pay, great travel and great food," Sky Sox manager Tom Runnells said. "In the minor leagues it is certainly anything but that. I give the players a great deal of credit because it is part of the experience, part of the growing and maturing process. They have to go through every level to get this understanding. It is a grind that they have to experience it.
"It's not like football where you play once a week where you practice all week to build up to it. You play everyday."
Even when the players are at home, it's not really home. Some players live across the country, and even across international borders, while they live out the dog days of summer. Spending time away from home means spending time away from their loved ones including wives and children, while they are chasing the childhood dream turned into career.
Sky Sox catcher, Alvin Colina, said the long months away from family is something many players struggle with.
"The worst for me is being away from my family," Colina said. "I only get to see them every seven months in Venezuela."
But, the career these athletes have chosen is an unpredictable field where consistency is the key to success. With such a long season, baseball players who want to make it into the Majors have to perform at their highest level every night in hopes that their performance will propel them.
"It's tough not being able to control it," Smith said. "We are trained to go out there and play the game and let them worry about when we are going to get called up.
"It's just our job to be ready when we do get called up."
Clint Barmes, a Sky Sox infielder, said all the horrible travel and battle scars get looked past when you remember why you are playing every night.
"It's all about getting to you dream of playing in the Big Leagues," Barmes said. "You have to play at your best everyday, and it is definitely not easy. You have to go through the aches and pains.
"The tough thing is how short your career can be. If you can be in this game in pro ball for 10 years, you are pretty blessed. You are expected to be at your best every single day. There are no sick days. The are no excuses."