MLB proposing huge minor league revamp - eliminating 42 teams, short season ball

[Schad]

But it shouldn't be an either/or. There is no rational financial justification for saving like $5/meal per player while spending $10m in the draft, even if some of those players won't make it.

As Kelly suggests, the rationale is more old school sports moron than beancounter: suffering as motivation. If players are comfortable in the minors -- if they eat properly, get a good amount of sleep, don't have to work manual labour in the offseason, and maybe even get to sit on the comfy couches once in a while -- then by golly they won't bother working to become major leaguers. It's complete nonsense -- Barcelona's La Masia hasn't churned out top quality prospects for decades because they keep them in a cowshed and feed them newspaper between beatings -- but it's the sort of nonsense that North American sport thrives on.

Which is an uncomfortable truth about our 'bloodlines' draft policy: there's a rational justification for it that has nothing to do with inheriting pappy's hand-eye. Kids from privileged backgrounds will consistently have access to good nutrition and training year-round, won't have to worry about having an offseason job, and won't have to sleep five to an apartment, even if they don't get a massive draft bonus.

[I_Like_Dirt]

Which is an uncomfortable truth about our 'bloodlines' draft policy: there's a rational justification for it that has nothing to do with inheriting pappy's hand-eye. Kids from privileged backgrounds will consistently have access to good nutrition and training year-round, won't have to worry about having an offseason job, and won't have to sleep five to an apartment, even if they don't get a massive draft bonus.

Wait, so having wealthy parents allows kids a better chance at success when they're working a job that pays them next to nothing? Next thing you're going to tell me that all those studies about how classical music leads to success, or the studies from the 80s that suggested bottle feeding led to success, or the more modern studies that suggest that breast feeding leads to success are all about what wealthier parents are doing rather than anything else. I'm pretty sure somewhere there's an example of someone who came from nothing to be something and if one person can do it, that clearly means it's scalable for billions of people and it's their fault if they can't do it.

[Schad]

Wait, so having wealthy parents allows kids a better chance at success when they're working a job that pays them next to nothing? Next thing you're going to tell me that all those studies about how classical music leads to success, or the studies from the 80s that suggested bottle feeding led to success, or the more modern studies that suggest that breast feeding leads to success are all about what wealthier parents are doing rather than anything else. I'm pretty sure somewhere there's an example of someone who came from nothing to be something and if one person can do it, that clearly means it's scalable for billions of people and it's their fault if they can't do it.

Exactly. It's a second cousin of the internship system, if you needed your intern to be your CEO in like six years.