Pohlad haters look away: The Minnesota Twins have committed to paying all minor leaguers through the end of August with no cuts made.
Minnesota Twins fans have long been critical of team ownership for not being willing to open up their checkbooks to pay and improve the team. While that may still be the case (as Jim Pohlad has a lot left to prove), ownership has made some positive steps this offseason.
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The team dealt out its largest contract in franchise history to Josh Donaldson in January, then in the midst of a pandemic, with multiple teams letting employees go to conserve money, the Twins opted to continue paying all employees through June. Now they’ve turned it up a notch.
With several teams releasing players to save money, the Twins committed to paying their players the $400 weekly salary through until the end of August, roughly the same time that the MiLB season would wrap up, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports:
The Minnesota Twins have committed to paying their minor league players a $400-a-week stipend and their full benefits, including health insurance, through Aug. 31, which is around when the minor league season was scheduled to end, a source tells ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) May 29, 2020
This is a huge move made by the franchise, as it shows that the team is committed to providing for its players on all levels. This isn’t a cheap move by any means, but it shows real class and care for the players in the minors. In addition, the Pohlads will also not be cutting any players:
Even better news from the Twins: As teams around baseball cut hundreds of minor league players, Minnesota does not plan on releasing any minor leaguers, a source tells ESPN. If there is no minor league season, all the players currently in the farm system will get the $400 a week. https://t.co/fAavhlkUhM
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) May 29, 2020
Very few teams have done all of this to help their employees in the same way that the Twins have, and that starts at the top, with Pohlad and Dave St. Peter leading the charge. Jim Pohlad has a lot of work left to do before shedding the Pohlad Pocket Protector Label, but these are good moves to start with.