Phillies

Todd Pratt Doesn’t Care that You’re Living Below the Poverty Line in the Minor Leagues

By Kyle Pagan

Published: Feb 16th, 2022 · 3:56 PM EST

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This tweet is going viral for shedding light on how bad MLB’s minor league system pays it’s players:

https://twitter.com/MichaelCurry13/status/1493645029725900805?s=20&t=2cNGQJWGyFigMglpI36y9w

That’s Michael Curry, a Double-A ballplayer in the San Diego Padres’ organization, showing how much he made this year. Former Phillies catcher Todd Pratt doesn’t care that he’s living below the poverty line because he chose that route:

My monthly salary was $750.00 a month when I was drafted in 85'. I made it without one complaint. I chose that route in my life. https://t.co/9IvjkW5Coy

— Todd Pratt (@ToddPratt07) February 15, 2022

Gabrielle Starr from FanSided found that with inflation Todd Pratt’s $750 a month in 1985 comes out to $1,959.67 when adjusted for 2022. Michael Curry made $933.04 after taxes this year. I’m all for people having to take risks financially and personally to achieve their dreams, but scrounging around for food and sleeping in your car because you can’t afford an apartment is rarely the story you hear from successful entrepreneurs or athletes.

The thing that makes the least sense to me is why wouldn’t these teams want to invest money in their players? Doesn’t free housing or bigger pay only benefit the organizations in the long run? Let the players focus on baseball and not have to work at Home Depot just to pay the bills. Imagine how many players who could’ve helped the big league club quit because they couldn’t take the financial pressure anymore. Do teams really need 7 different minor league affiliates? What’s wrong with Single A, Double AA, and Triple AAA? There’s a reason the NBA doesn’t have an A, B, C, D, E, F league. Do something right for at least once in these past 15 years, baseball.

Instead, the Phillies want to play CIA Agent and discipline their prospects for wearing bracelets “in support of increased pay and improved living conditions” –

“We heard there was some backlash, some troubling reports, and we are definitely looking into it. We’re very concerned. It’s totally inappropriate to have any kind of backlash.

“There has been a response from the team side trying to suppress that speech, telling them they should be careful, not to talk like that, and think twice. Teams should be very careful trying to dissuade speaking out. The Phillies should know they’re being watched.”