Benefits improve for Minor League players following recent MLB settlement

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) - Major League Baseball has made a significant settlement, agreeing to pay 185 million to the thousands of current and former minor league players who brought this class-action lawsuit against the MLB.

Friday, it was sent for a judge’s approval.

Jordan Kobritz, Wind Surge partner and CEO, said, “major league teams have their issues to deal with as we all do. I think this is just easy to ignore while they were dealing with other matters.”

Kobritz says this lawsuit against the MiLB because of past wage claims has been ongoing for nearly a decade. Almost all of the current Wind Surge players’ won’t benefit from this settlement.

“But there have been changes going on separate from this lawsuit. I think just in the last two years, we’ve seen significant changes in players’ salaries have increased by 50 percent up the latter,” said Kobritz.

According to Kobritz, the Minnesota Twins now pay for the players’ housing, an added benefit to ease the cost of living for minor leaguers; major league teams also provide players meals.

“The menus of the pregame and postgame meals have improved considerably. In the old days, we might have peanut butter and jelly sandwich on white bread, and today there’s a three-course meal and the same for the postgame meal,” said Kobritz.

He credits major league teams for choosing to address the compensation difference between major and minor leaguers.

“This is their research and development program, is what it amounts to. The more you invest in r&d, in theory, the more you get out of it,” said Kobritz. “The quicker and better they get to the major league level, the better the major league team is. It’s plain and simple.”

Kobritz says he is anticipating even more benefits for minor league players in the near future, whether it’s getting paid for spring training or higher wages.

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