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Jeff PassanESPN
Minor league baseball players and Major League Baseball struck a tentative deal Wednesday on the first collective-bargaining agreement between the sides that will more than double player pay, sources familiar with the agreement told ESPN.
The deal, which will last for five years, comes after a rapid and successful effort last year by minor leaguers to unionize under the umbrella of the Major League Baseball Players Association and follows previous gains in housing and pay.
The pay increases at each level are significant, according to sources, and will pay players in spring training as well as the offseason, outside of a dead period between the Thursday before Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. At each level, the increases will be:
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AAA: From $17,500 per year to $35,800
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AA: $13,800 to $30,250
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High-A: $11,000 to $27,300
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Low-A: $11,000 to $26,200
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Complex league: $4,800 to $19,800
The deal also will include the reduction of the Domestic Reserve List, which governs the number of players a team can roster outside of Latin America, from 180 to 165 starting in 2024. The union, which does not include players at teams’ Dominican Republic complexes as part of its bargaining unit, fought MLB’s efforts to reduce the reserve list during the lockout last year.