Dodgers will continue to pay minor leaguers past MLB deadline

The Los Angeles Dodgers will keep money flowing to minor leaguers during the coronavirus pandemic.

After announcing earlier this week that full-time employees will not be furloughed, the Los Angeles Dodgers extended their kindness in these challenging times by agreeing to pay minor league ballplayers past the May 31 deadline by which MLB’s weekly pay program expires.

Baseball America reports the Dodgers will continue to pay minor leaguers $400 per week, with payments extended to both domestic players in the organization, as well as those in the Dominican Republic. The Los Angeles Times later confirmed the Dodgers will continue payments through June.

MLB made a commitment in March to pay minor leaguers through the end of May, leaving it up to individual teams to decide how much financial support they provide beyond that date.

Over the past week, teams have started to inform their minor league players whether financial assistance would be provided past the MLB deadline. So far, the Dodgers join the Athletics, White Sox, Marlins, Padres, and Rangers in extending the weekly allowance. The Phillies will likely pay a reduced amount, according to Baseball America.

Players on the Dodgers major league roster are still negotiating 2020 pay structure.

Meanwhile, MLB and the player’s union continue to negotiate over how much money major league players will be paid if the 2020 season is played. The players agreed to pro-rated salaries in March. Under that agreement, if the season was 81-games long, half of the length of a traditional season, each player would receive 50% of their 2020 salary.

However, the owners are asking the players to take a larger haircut. The most recent proposal targets the highest paid players in the game, with a superstar like Mookie Betts seeing his $27 million salary cut to as little as $4.7 million, about one third of what he would make using the pro-rated calculation.

Baseball fans are left watching billionaires fight with millionaires before the 2020 season can begin. However, if it is deemed safe enough to play amid the coronavirus pandemic, it is hard to believe the two sides won’t come to an amicable agreement.

In the meantime, it is good to see the Dodgers taking care of their own.