Pittsburgh Pirates News: Team to Pay Minor League Players through June

The Pittsburgh Pirates and the rest of Major League Baseball are still trying to figure out if there will be a 2020 season or not.  However, this is not stopping teams from making decisions.

The main thing that the Pittsburgh Pirates are knocked for is being cheap.  They rarely sign notable free agents and often times trade away their big name players rather than extend them.  Whether you agree with how the Pittsburgh Pirates operate or not, one thing is for certain, the team is in one of the smaller markets in baseball and do not possess the money power that a large portion of the teams do.

The good news is that the Pittsburgh Pirates are making a positive financial commitment for the future.  According to Adam Berry of Pirates.com, the Bucs will be one of several teams to pay their minor league players through the end of June.  Here is what Berry had to say on what the Bucs will provide their minor league players with:

"Joining the majority of Major League teams, the Pirates decided to keep paying weekly stipends of $400 to their Minor Leaguers through at least June 30 while the status of the Minor League season remains uncertain due to the coronavirus pandemic. The club will also continue to provide healthcare coverage for those players for at least the next month."

This is great news and shows initiative by the Pittsburgh Pirates, who were only required to pay their minor league players through the end of May.  Yes, a lot of teams are doing this, but so far Bob Nutting and the Pittsburgh Pirates seem to be trying to do the right things instead of thinking in terms of finances.

It is unfortunate that the organization laid-off some employees and cut others’ salaries, but there are some organizations that have done a lot more.  The Chicago Cubs, for instance, have released over 50 minor league players since the start of the shutdown.  Good on Bob Nutting for continuing to support the future Pittsburgh Pirates.