Minorleague contraction target of House resolution
Four members of the House of Representatives introduced a resolution Tuesday urging Major League Baseball not to adopt its proposal to eliminate 42 current minorleague teams.
MLB made the proposal last year to the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, the governing body of the minors, during negotiations for a Professional Baseball Agreement to replace the deal that expires after the 2020 season. MLB wants to cut shortseason leagues and reduce the number of farm teams with which each bigleague club affiliates.
The resolution was introduced by Reps. Lori Trahan, DMass.; David McKinley, RW. Va.; Max Rose, DN.Y.; and Mike Simpson, R Idaho.
“Minor League Baseball teams have had a major impact on small communities. These teams provide an enormous cultural and economic benefit to the communities they call home,” McKinley said in a statement. “Doing away with 42 teams is not a reasonable solution.”
MLB thinks political pressure is not necessary.
“MLB is confident that we can modernize our minorleague system, improve playing conditions for our players, and protect baseball in communities across America. However, doing so is best achieved with Minor League Baseball’s constructive participation, and a recognition that they need to be part of the solution,” the commissioner’s office said in a statement.
The Chicago Cubs agreed with oftinjured reliever Jeremy Jeffress to an $850,000, oneyear contract. Jeffress, 32, was one of baseball’s most dominant relievers in 2018, making the AllStar team for the first time while going 81 with a 1.29 ERA and 15 saves for Milwaukee. The righthander made a careerhigh 73 appearances for the NL Central champions, and then pitched in eight games in the playoffs.
Jeffress was slowed by right shoulder weakness during spring training last year. He also spent time on the injured list with a strained left hip before he was cut by the Brewers on Sept. 1.
Former Giants infielder Eduardo Nuñez agreed to a minorleague contract with the New York Mets and will report to bigleague spring training.
Nuñez, 32, has a .276 average with 58 homers, 309 RBIs and 141 steals in 10 bigleague seasons with the New York Yankees (201013), Minnesota (201416), San Francisco (201617) and Boston (201719). He was an AllStar in 2016 and homered in the 2018 World Series opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
College football: Cal announced that it will play at Notre Dame on Sept. 17, 2022. It will be the first meeting between the Bears and Irish since 1967.
Courts: A Florida judge freed NFL freeagent wide receiver Antonio Brown from house arrest, allowing him to travel freely as he awaits trial on charges that he attacked the driver of a moving truck.
Soccer: Aston Villa advanced to the England’s League Cup final, beating Leicester 21 for a 32 aggregate total. Villa, which is currently in the English Premier League’s relegation zone, will play either Manchester City or Manchester United on March 1 at Wembley Stadium.