MiLB Players’ Wage Case Gets Preliminary Settlement Approval

Image credit: (Photo by Zach Lucy/Four Seam)

Right around spring training next year, thousands of minor league players and former minor league players should be receiving checks from MLB.

Chief Magistrate Judge Joseph C. Spero has preliminarily approved the $185 million settlement in Aaron Senne et al v. Kansas City Royals Baseball Corp, a lengthy court case in which minor league players sued all 30 MLB teams for lost wages and overtime for time they spent in extended spring training, spring training and instructional league in the Florida and Arizona complex leagues. The suit also included the amount of work time they were credited for work in the California League.

As is typical with class action settlements, a court authorized notice will be sent to eligible players this fall. A settlement administrator will gather the names of eligible players and send out a notice to them about the class action settlement by Oct. 28, 2022.

During that notice period, players can send their information to receive their portion of the settlement. At the end of the notice period, the court will have to provide final approval before the settlement funds are distributed.

The exact number of players who are eligible is not easily determined, but it will be thousands of players. In fact, it would be hard to have been a professional baseball player who signed a contract in the past decade and not be eligible for at least a portion of the settlement.

Any affiliated minor league player who participated in spring training, extended spring training and instructional league in Florida between February 2009 and 2022 is eligible. Also, any affiliated minor league player who participated in spring training, extended spring training and instructional league in Arizona from 2011-2022 is eligible.

And any player who played at least seven days in the California League from 2010-2022 is eligible. Players can be eligible for multiple classes of eligibility. The exception is that anyone who had a Major League Baseball uniform contract before the beginning dates of the eligibility period.

The amount players receive will be determined by a number of factors, including the amount of work periods subject to the settlement they participated in.

 

 

Once the notices have been sent out, any disputes over which players are eligible or the time period for which they are eligible must be filed by Nov. 30, 2022. Any such disputes will be resolved by Dec. 15, 2022.

Eligible players can opt out of the settlement, object or take other action, but they must do so by Dec. 27, 2022.

The final fairness hearing to provide final approval will be held on Feb. 17, 2023, with payments sent to class action members 30 days after the effective date of the settlement. Players who believe they are eligible for the class action settlement can go to https://www.baseballplayerwagecase.com/ for more information. At some point, players will be able to see an estimate of their individual settlement payment on that website.

As part of the settlement, MLB also agreed to rescind the part of the standard MiLB player contract that prevents MLB clubs from paying players outside of the championship season. MLB is also sending a memorandum to all 30 teams telling them that they must pay minor league players in compliance with wage-and-hour laws in effect in Arizona and Florida for spring training, extended spring training and instructional league.