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| Bowen Field Home of the Bluefield (Appy) Blue Jays |
If you’re a
hard-core fan, move along, there’s nothing to see here….you should know this.
If you’re not,
here’s a primer on how baseball’s minor leagues work.
Perhaps no other
sport has a development system that is so extensive as baseball's. One could argue that football, at least the
European version, with its series of leagues and promotions is, but that system
is not an amalgamated collection of affiliated clubs – it more resembles minor
league baseball in the first half of the last century (more on that one in a
future post).
Baseball’s system
of development is a pyramid in shape, with the majority of players in the
lowest reaches of the system. A major
league team typically has between 5 and 7 farm clubs, often with several teams
on the lower rungs of the ladder, and one at each of the top two levels. A player right out of high school (or an
international free agent, most of whom are signed between the ages of 16 – 18)
will typically take 4 to 5 years to make it to the major leagues, whereas a
college graduate may only require half
that time. Most of the lowest
levels, of course, are stocked with players who will never progress to the next
level. Teams draft and sign many players
who they know will likely not advance, but are needed to fill out rosters. These players are know as “org” (short for
organization) guys.
The minors are
separated into 4 main levels, with a couple of sub-levels in the lowest
league. AAA is the top of the heap,
followed by AA and A, and rookie ball.
Rookie ball is
mostly comprised of high school grads and international free agents, with the
odd low college draft choice completing the roster. After spring training ends,
these players will be kept at the clubs’ minor league complex, where they will
take part in drills and practice games – this is referred to as extended spring
training. Depending on the location of the minor league complex, teams are
entered in the (Florida ) Gulf Coast Dominican
Republic (including the Jays). There is an advanced rookie ball level above
this, with teams playing a 72 game schedule.
The Appalachian League (based in West Virginia ,
North Carolina , Tennessee ,
and Virginia ), Pioneer League (most teams in and
around where the boundaries of Utah , Idaho , and Montana meet) are the
leagues which make up this level. Rookies who have advanced quickly, plus
lower-round drafted college seniors play in these leagues. Most teams have a team in at least one of
those the levels. The Blue Jays will
field both a Gulf Coast team and an Appalachian League team in Bluefield, West Virginia .
The next step up is
the more advanced short season leagues, which play a similar schedule.. These
leagues are stocked with higher round draft choices, players who played in the
complex leagues the season before, or players who received an in-season
promotion from that lower level. The
Northwest League (teams based in the Pacific Northwest ), and the New York-Penn League make up this
level. One of my favourite baseball books is Roger Kahn’s Good Enough to Dream, which chronicles the famed author’s travails
as an owner for a season in the early 80s in the NY-Penn league. The Jays’
affiliate at this level is Vancouver
of the Northwest League, who have won two consecutive league titles.
The next rung on
the development ladder are the full-season leagues. Prospects in these leagues get a chance to
experience the day-to-day grind and travel that more closely approximates the
major leagues. Starting with Class A ball, there are low level and high level
leagues. The Midwest and South Atlantic
League make up the former, and the Carolina ,
Florida Lansing , Michigan
AA ball is the next
stop. Many teams will group their top
prospects at this level, to get them used to one day playing together for the
parent club. It’s not unusual for a player to make the jump to the majors from
AA. There is no distinction between the AA leagues, which include the Eastern
League, Southern League, and Texas League.
The Blue Jays are rumoured to be interested in re-locating their AA team
to Ottawa , but for now they are housed at New Hampshire of the EL.
AAA is one step
away from the minors. Many parent teams
use this level more for keeping injury replacements on hand than they do for
development, but sometimes players who appear major-league ready but have not
had success there make return trips to AAA to further hone their skills. AAA
players tend to be older (the median age of this year’s IL is just over 27),
and many have had some major league experience. The International and Pacific Coast Leagues
make up this level. After several years
of basing their AAA team in the hitter friendly confines of Cashman Field at Las Vegas of the PCL, where the ball tends to travel
further in the thinner mountain air (and the Blue Jays were very hesitant to promote a pitcher there, as a result) , the Jays’ AAA affiliate is now just down
the QEW at Buffalo
of the IL. This is a much better situation for injury call-ups, who can be in Toronto in an hour and a half, instead of half a day.
Players in do not
necessarily move in lock step from one level to the other. It depends more on their rate of
development. Some need to repeat at
least a half a season with their previous club before moving on. Pitchers who come to the minors directly from
high school tend to be placed on strict pitch counts, so it can take several
seasons at Class A before they advance.
Once a high profile prospect shows signs of being ready, they can easily
skip a level. It’s not unusual for a
player to be in High A ball, and then in the majors a year and a half later if
their development takes off.
When a player is
signed, if he does not advance high enough to be placed on the major league
40-man roster by the end of their fourth year of minor league service (5 years
if they were younger than 19 on the June 5 immediately before they signed), he
is either eligible for the Rule 5 draft (which is a huge gamble for most clubs
– such players cost $50 000, and must be kept on the 25-man major league roster
for the whole season – of offer him back to the club they drafted him from for
half that price), or may become a minor league free agent.
Once a player is
placed on the 40-man roster, the team has options on him for three seasons. This means that the major league club can
either keep him on the major league roster, or send him back to the minors
without having to expose the player to waivers for three seasons. After those three years, the team is out of
options on that player, and he is eligible to be chosen by any other major
league team through the waiver process.
From time to time, clubs like the Jays risk losing players like Adam
Lind, who is struggling at the big league level and could use some time to get
themselves back together in the minors, but has long since run out of
options. All other teams were scared off
by Lind’s salary, and he was able to be sent to the minors.
And development
doesn’t necessarily end when the regular season ends. The top prospects (usually AA or High A
players) are invited to play in the Arizona Fall League, which runs from early
October to late November. Other
prospects are invited to attend Instructional League camps, which usually last
from late September to mid October.
Players who are converting from position player to pitching (or the
opposite) are often invited as well, and so are top international prospects who
signed after July 2nd, in order to get a taste to the different
culture and language. Arizona Fall
League prospects benefit from playing at a high level of competition, while
Instructional League players are exposed to some of the best coaching the
organization can offer. From there, some
players go on to play Winter Ball in Mexico ,
the Caribbean, or Australia .
The Blue Jays have
been considered to be among the top farm systems in baseball for the past
several years. This year, with the trade
of several of their top prospects, the club has fallen to 22nd in
Baseball America ’s
rankings. This is not to say that there is a dearth of talent in the system,
because most experts agree that the Jays have a wealth of talent, but given the
deals they made to bolster the big league club, most of the top prospects are
considered to be several years away from the minors. The Blue Jays were one of the most aggressive
teams in the most recent player draft, and have one of the largest scouting
staffs in baseball.
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